Carter angles his head and brushes his tongue against my mouth. When he pulls away, his eyes are dark. He draws in a breath, but before he can say anything else, Rich is sidling up to us, his charming smile in place.

“Can I buy you two a drink?” he asks.

Carter

I’d pay good money for the pleasure of slugging that sonofabitch.

I pull away from Teagan—just enough to glare at Rich. “Rain check, man. I’m kind of busy seducing my girl.”

Rich claps me on the back, as if we’re best buds and he’s all about me taking Teagan to bed. “I don’t mean to intrude. I feel like we got off on a bad foot last year, and I wanted to start over. What do you say?”

I already fucking said it. I’m sure he can see the annoyance in my smile. I don’t try to hide it. “Another time.”

Irritation flickers in his eyes, and he clenches those beefy fists before he walks away. When he’s gone, Teagan leans her head against my shoulder and exhales. Her eyes were hazy when I pulled back from our kiss, but her body wound tight the second he walked up to us.

I toy with the hair at her temple. “Sorry about that. I forgot for a minute.”

She lifts her chin, looking up at me through her lashes. “Forgot what?”

“Why you had me kiss you. Why we’re even here.” I shake my head, studying her face, trying to decide if maybe for a minute she forgot too. “When I’m kissing you, I forget everything.” I wrap my arms around her, and she leans into me, some of that tension melting away.

Across the bar, Rich is pretending he’s not staring, but I know he’s watching every move we make. I lean my head down and brush my lips against her ear. “He’s still watching.” At that, she stiffens. When she starts to turn her head, I take her chin in my hand. “Don’t look. It’ll ruin my plans.”

She arches a brow. “What plans?”

I brush her hair to the side and lower my mouth to her neck, kissing her in the way longtime lovers might. The way a couple planning to spend their lives together might show affection in mixed company.

“Is that it?” she asks when I pull my mouth away.

I tighten my arms around her middle, and I swear the heat in her eyes is real. I chuckle. “Well, your mom and sister are watching too, so I thought it would be best to keep it G-rated. But if you’d like, we could disappear into the kitchen for a while and make them wonder.” I’m totally joking, but she giggles and steps out of my arms, grabbing my hand and dragging me back behind the bar and into the kitchen. And because I can’t resist when it comes to Teagan, and because I’ve felt more alive with her these last few days than I’ve felt in months, I follow.