“Why were you outside my door last night when Sadie came over?” he asked when he reached the door to leave. His back had been to me as he asked the question, but he turned to face me as he waited for my answer.

“I already told you la—”

“I’m not buying that.”

“I don’t care if you are or aren’t. I told you why I was there, and you’re just trying to make it out to be something different than it was.”

He took three large steps until he was on the other side of my desk, and bent down to rest his hands on the wood. “I saw the way you looked, you can’t keep tell—”

“Did you remember to pay Sweetheart before she left? Oh, wait, I forgot. You actually remembered this one’s name. Did you remember to pay Sadie?”

Connor’s head jerked back and his eyebrows slammed down. When he spoke, his voice was dark and sent chills through my body. “Come again?”

But he and I both knew there was no need to repeat the question. I glanced at his clothes, and noticed that he was in slacks and a button-down with a tie. His badge, gun, and handcuffs were all attached to his belt. Damn, I’ve always loved the way he looked in his detective getup. Forcing my eyes away from him, I woke up my computer and pretended to start a new game.

“Sorry you felt the need to come all the way over here to check on me, but you should probably go back to work, Detective Green.”

“Watch yourself, Maci,” he said in warning. “You’re starting to look jealous.”

I didn’t look back at him as he walked out of the office. As soon as the door shut, I let out the breath I’d been holding and dropped my head onto my desk.

“Don’t act like you’re asleep, Mini, I just heard you talking. Who was here?”

I glared up at Dylan and rubbed at the back of my tender head. “Connor.”

Dylan walked over and opened the door, looking out into the parking lot. “Well why’d he leave before talking to us, did he get a call?”

“He didn’t come to see you two,” I replied immediately, not realizing what I’d said until Dylan’s expression turned murderous. Trying to keep calm, I thought quickly and rolled my eyes. “Oh God, come on, Dylan. Not like that, he was apologizing for the sounds his skank was making last night. Our walls are really thin.”

It was beyond stupid that my heart was racing, and I was terrified of my brothers finding out about this unreciprocated crush I had on their best friend. But when they’d taken my phone, which had conversations between Bryce and me, I hadn’t flinched.

“Lucky bastard.” Dylan shook his head and smacked his hand on my desk, causing me to jump, before walking down the hall again.

“Yeah,” I mumbled softly and failed at ignoring the pain spreading in my chest. He views you like a sister, Maci. Nothing more. “Lucky bastard.”

Connor

“WHAT THE HELL, what the hell, what the hell?” I pulled my car into a strip-mall parking lot, threw it into park and groaned into my hands. “What. The. Hell?”

I didn’t know why I’d gone there. I didn’t know why I’d been worried about her in the first place. She spent nights away all the time, but she’d known I was coming over this morning. There was no way she hadn’t heard Sadie, because she’d been f**king obnoxious before I’d finally kicked her out. And for some damn reason, I’d spent the rest of the night wondering why Maci had still been outside my door, why she looked like she was trying to keep herself together . . . and why the f**k I’d had to picture her to get off.

This was Maci. Maci. I knew I couldn’t think about her like this; and I knew that to continuously entertain the thoughts that had been playing in my mind since the night before would be dangerous. But even in the office, the only thing that had kept my mind clear enough to stop me from covering her body with mine and claiming her mouth was the fact that her brothers and dad were all in the back.

That mouth. Jesus, that mouth was perfect. How had I never noticed that? I loved that Maci swore just the same as her brothers did. It was just . . . so . . . Maci. But the way those full lips fell into her natural pout in the office had had me straining against my pants.

“Fuck!” I growled and slammed a hand down on the steering wheel before raking both hands through my hair.

I can’t think about her like this!

And yet, I couldn’t stop thinking about her like that. Her wild, vibrant red hair on my pillow with her body underneath me. That raspy voice of hers breathing out my name. Those full lips wrapped around my cock. All of it. All of her . . . was continuously playing through my mind.

Like a bucket of ice-cold water had been thrown on me, my phone rang, displaying Dylan’s name.

“Yeah?” I answered cautiously.

“Mini said you stopped by. What? No love for me and Kota?”

“Had to get back to work. Sorry.”

He grunted. “Have a question for you about Mini. Is she seeing someone?”

I muted the relieved breath that left my lungs, and didn’t even have to think about my answer. Maci would kill me if she found out I told them about the douchebag who came over. “No, she’s not.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yeah, Dylan, I’m sure.”

He spoke away from the phone, telling what I’m guessing were the rest of the brothers what I had said. “Okay, well, hey. Let’s all get together this weekend, grab some food and beers.”