Page 17 of Furious (The Six Six Six Rule #2)

Best Friends

ZARA

W aking up next to Chance is really nice.

His strong, muscular arms are wrapped around me, our legs tangled. He’s warm and smells so good that I never want to leave this bed.

But of course, the outside world has a way to remind us that life doesn’t stop just because you’re enjoying your post race and post sex glow.

“Who keeps texting you at the crack of dawn on a Saturday morning?” I groan, hiding my face in his chest.

Chance shifts to grab his phone on the nightstand.

His voice reverberates all through me with my head resting on his chest. “Take a guess?” he chuckles.

“Lev reminded me we got morning skate in an hour and then something else to do today. Dad had warned me that Coach Harrison is a hard ass. They played together for a few years. And for as much as I would love to blow practice off, you don’t say no to my coach and you don’t show up late.

If I’m not on the ice at seven, ready to kick ass, Coach is going to make the whole team pay for it. ”

I tighten my hold on him. “Practice at seven? On a weekend, it’s like five on a normal weekday.”

Chance puts his phone back down, pulling me up for a good morning kiss. “You’re cute when you’re cranky. And has anyone ever told you that you look really hot in the morning?”

Something hard throbs against my thigh. “Does that thought come from the head upstairs or from the one downstairs that’s been awake for a while?” I tease him.

His cock throbs again. “Both my heads are really into you, so it doesn’t matter.”

My fingers trace his perfect jaw, playing with the blond stubble that’s starting to grow there. “If that’s a pickup line, it’s really working.”

My stepbrother sighs, brushing his lips against mine but interrupting the contact before it can turn into a real kiss. “You have no idea how much I would love to spend all day in bed with you, testing all my pickup lines. But Lev is going to be downstairs in five minutes.”

“Aww.” I whine. “Maybe we can invite him to join us? I promise I’ll give you both a more thorough workout than you Coach could ever dream of.”

Chance’s lips curl up in a sexy smile. “Can we take a rain check on that awesome plan for later? We have an errand to run in town after practice. We could bring lunch and eat it naked.”

I’m a little disappointed that Chance has to go, but his dedication to the things that matter to him is one of the things that makes him so attractive.

Talking about attractive, I can’t take my eyes off his ass when he slips out of bed.

Years of hockey and riding motorcycles have given him a round, muscular ass and strong thighs.

And if Chance’s back is mouthwatering to look at, don’t even start me off on his six-pack abs and that sexy V of muscle that points down to his thick, long cock.

A girl could happily spend hours looking at him and I’m not shy about showing my appreciation for his hotness.

“If you look at me that way,” he says, pulling his jeans up. “I might have to get back into that bed and face the consequences for missing morning skate later.”

I love that he’s considering blowing off practice for me, but I don’t want to be the reason he gets in trouble.

“No, let’s take that rain check and have lunch together.

” I sigh, getting out of bed too. “If your coach knows your dad, missing practice might get back to our parents. Not the smartest thing to do if we want to fly under the radar.”

Chance is now fully dressed. “I hate to admit it, but you’re right.” He pulls me into his arms again. “Thank you for understanding, baby. Just know that I would much rather have spent the morning in bed with you.”

The dark blue of his eyes is so deep and intense that I could drown in it.

My heart is beating so hard and fast in my chest that I wouldn’t be surprised if Chance could actually hear it.

When I met him for the first time, two years ago, I was immediately attracted to his gorgeous looks and to his fearless, wild side.

Chance is the person who understands my need to prove myself, to take risks, to get what I want more than anyone else.

But in the past few weeks, since Mom and I moved into this house, I’ve gotten to know another side to my stepbrother.

The loss his family suffered didn’t change Chance’s softer side. He’s kind, compassionate, loving. This is why I have to make sure that he and Lev are safe in spite of whatever Cal is planning.

“Let me see you out.” I run to my closet and throw on a white sundress, then follow Chance outside, where Lev is waiting in his car.

“Hey Zee,” he smiles, and I lean over the driver’s window to kiss his soft lips.

“Hey you, too.”

Lev traps my chin between two fingers, turning my brief greeting kiss into something that makes my toes curl in my flip-flops.

“Fuck. If you kiss me like that again, I’m going to send Chance to practice by himself and stay home with you. Fuck practice and I’ll deal with the consequences later.”

Chance chuckles, shaking his head. “Get in line, dude. I don’t know by what kind of miracle I managed to get up and get dressed. Waking up with Zara is way too nice. It makes you want to never leave the bed.”

“Shit.” Lev chuckles. “Maybe we should blow off the entire day and get back in the house.”

I can’t believe I’m doing this, but I really don’t want to be the reason why Chance and Lev get in trouble. “Yeah, but I’ve heard your coach isn’t someone you want to piss off. So Chance and I made a plan for later. Lunch, movies, and the three of us. We don’t plan on leaving the house all day.”

“Sold. Any idea what you would like for lunch?” Lev asks.

“Surprise me.” I smile.

Lev’s eyes flare with heat. “I don’t know what’s gonna be for lunch, but I know exactly what I’m gonna have for dessert.”

The air is crackling with electricity, and the thought hits me that I have no idea how I’ll ever choose between them. And that’s without even considering Ares.

My dad has always said that he likes riding a motorcycle because it’s a perfect metaphor for how fast life can move.

For the first time in my life, I just wish things could stay the way they are.

“Ok.” I sigh. “You guys go before I make you late for practice.”

Chance takes my hand, leading me to the passenger side. “Can I get just one more kiss for the road?” he asks, opening the car door.

“Of course. It’s just an advance on all the kisses I’m gonna have for you later.” I whisper.

Cheesy, I know. But I’m full of endorphins from being in his arms all night and my body doesn’t care about cliches.

We keep our goodbye kiss surprisingly brief and shallow, but somehow so sweet that my heart swells in my chest and the butterflies in the pit of my stomach flutter their wings as if they were on crack.

I stay in the driveway, waving at the back of Lev’s car until it disappears down the road.

I know, I know.

I look like a lovesick fool.

The truth is that I couldn’t care less. I even consider texting Heather to see if she wants to go get our hair done, so I can look my best later.

Sometimes, however, you need to be careful about what you wish, because the universe has an uncanny way of delivering the very things you ask for at the wrongest possible time.

“Zara?” Heather is standing right behind me. She must have come from our backyard and around the house. It’s the only way she could have come up behind me.

“Oh, hey. I was just about to text you.”

I would wonder how long she’s been standing there, but the look on her face is all the answer I need.

“Zara, what’s going on?”

Fuck.

She saw me kissing Chance. “It’s not what you think.”

Lame, I know. But my mind is spinning out of control.

If Heather tells our parents what she saw, it’s impossible to predict the potential fallout.

I mean, Mom can’t send me back to boarding school, since I’m eighteen.

But after she canceled my dorm, I have nowhere to go if she kicks me out of the house.

That’s without counting that Dad pays the money for my tuition into her account.

I’m not the only one who could be in a lot of trouble.

Scott made it clear to Chance that unless he treated me like a sibling, he would have no qualms about cutting him off.

Heather crosses her arms over her chest. “No? So I didn’t just see you kiss your brother’s lips?”

“Chance isn’t my brother.” The words fly out of my mouth before I can think better of it.

“Potato po-tah-to.” She scoffs. “Your parents are married. That makes you kissing your stepbrother gross. Besides, I thought you were with Lev?”

I wish I could rewind time, come out of the front door and just wave Chance goodbye. Or better yet, stay in bed.

“I am with Lev.” I struggle to keep my tone firm and confident.

“Then explain why you were kissing another guy right in front of him.” Heather challenges me.

“It was nothing. Just a dare.”

I know. Not the best solution to the problem, but it’s the best idea I could come up with on the fly.

“A dare?” she asks, clearly skeptical.

I nod. “Yeah, the guys and I have an ongoing game of truth or dare. Lev just dared me to kiss Chance. If I didn’t do it, I would have had to shave the sides of my head.”

Luckily, Heather believes me. “Oh my God,” she covers her mouth with her hands.

“I’m so glad you went through with it. Even I wouldn’t have been able to fix a disaster like that one.

I swear, those guys are crazy. They used to dare each other to do the craziest things when we were kids.

And Ares and Atlas were the worst. They always came up with the hardest dares.

I’m glad they’re playing that game again.

We stopped two years ago, for obvious reasons.

Maybe I could get back into the game too?

I miss how close we all used to be. And with you and I being besties, it could be a lot of fun.

As you can imagine, the guys used to always gang up on me. ”