Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 128380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 642(@200wpm)___ 514(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
“Why?”
“She feels that Dayna doesn’t deserve her boy, considering she’s been content to stay away for so long. Maybe Livy also thinks that you’ll fit him better.” Blair sighed. “I kind of feel bad for him right now. Touch-hunger can’t be any fun.”
Bailey had personally never experienced it, but she’d heard it was hell. Touch was a need for shifters. Highly tactile, they didn’t function well without both social and sexual contact. And if they were deprived of either, they’d be hit by touch-hunger at some point. They’d then have to deal with irritating stuff like hot flushes, night sweats, and their libido sporadically kicking into overdrive.
There were some exceptions where a lack of sexual touch was concerned, such as when a shifter was provided with enough social touch by their true mate—something that would be very potent for them—to compensate for it. Which was why Blair and Luke had been spared it during the years they were unmated.
From what Bailey had learned, Deke and this Dayna person had agreed to only sleep with others when touch-hunger came calling. Apparently, he usually did exactly that. This time, though, he appeared to be fighting it.
“I don’t know why he won’t just go work it off in some female’s bed. He’s been like this for weeks. It’s not as if he’s short of offers.” Bailey stomach twisted again. More gas.
Havana looked at her. “The only outlet he’s currently getting for all the tension is from his verbal spars with you, which is why I didn’t tell you to dial it down and give him a break. He needs whatever release valve he can get.”
Blair fiddled with the end of her pale-blonde braid. “I personally think Bailey should just go fuck his brains out and be done with it.”
Bailey almost dropped her fork. “What?”
Aspen barked a laugh. “I happen to agree. No, don’t say you don’t like him that way, Bailey. We know you too well.”
Which was terribly unfortunate at times. “I like his butt, that’s all.” It was spectacular. “And I still say he’s not worthy of it.”
“You can’t possibly hold it against him that he asks you to reflect on your behavior,” said Aspen.
“Yeah? Watch me.” Bailey shoved more pie into her mouth.
The bearcat sighed and shook her head.
“You can hold a grudge and still help him work off the touch-hunger, Bailey,” said Blair. “He’d bone you no problem.”
“Are you kidding? The dude is no fan of mine. He wouldn’t even fuck me if the survival of his species depended on it.” Bailey dug her fork into her pie again. “Besides, I’m not interested in sleeping with someone who spends most of his time glaring at me in disapproval. It hurts.”
Aspen cast her an exasperated look. “You love that you irritate him. You purposely set out to do it.”
True. “I do that to everyone,” Bailey reminded her.
“Yeah, but you put in a little extra effort when it comes to him,” said Aspen.
Hmm, maybe. In her defense, her mamba always egged her on. Peer pressure was no easy thing to fight for Bailey, she was very sensitive to such … Damn, she couldn’t even finish the thought without inwardly laughing it was so ridiculous. The truth was that she only responded to pressure if she wanted to.
“I don’t know why you’re so sure he’s not into you, Bailey,” said Blair. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
Bailey flicked up a brow. “Like he wants to squeeze my throat until I stop breathing?”
“The other way he looks at you. Like he wants to get all up in your business. And now that you’re no longer dating Shay …” Blair shrugged.
The mention of Shay made Bailey’s lips thin. Hey, he was a decent guy. And not boring, which she liked. But he’d regularly made a point of talking about Deke, always watching her carefully while a knowing smirk played around the edges of his mouth.
“Believe what you want,” began Bailey, waving her fork dismissively, “but I’m telling you, Deke loathes me. He thinks I’m evil.”
“No, he doesn’t,” Havana assured her.
Bailey snorted. “He splashed me with holy water to, and I quote, ‘see what happened.’ He claimed to be disappointed when I didn’t burst into flames.”
Aspen’s mouth curved. “I swear, he can be almost as bad as you sometimes.” She paused. “If you were to ease your foot off the taunting-him-pedal, he’d probably be a lot nicer. Maybe give him a reprieve.”
“I wouldn’t give him the steam off my shit. Besides, Deke doesn’t do ‘nice.’”
He was a good guy, but nothing close to pleasant. Gruff and unpolished, he had zero time for subtlety. In fact, he was as aloof and superior as any feline. Not to mention rude and finicky. And he could ignore you like only a cat could. But people tended to find his rough exterior endearing.