“It’s not even a real hold,” Cannon complained.
Armie couldn’t stop grinning. The kids, all of them needy in one way or another, snickered and elbowed each other and all in all had a good time at the absurd display.
Denver pretended to be in agony, which was pretty ridiculous given Yvette now barely held his pinky. She, too, kept laughing, her long hair spilling forward, a very sweet ass on display as she bent toward Denver’s supine form.
One of the boys jumped up, helping to haul Denver back to his feet so he could try the escape. As carefully as he had with Yvette, Denver put the kid in the choke.
Cannon’s long exhalation brought Armie back around.
“You, my man, are in a very bad way.”
“Yeah,” Cannon agreed. “I am.”
“So go get laid already.”
It shocked him stupid when Cannon said, “Working on it,” and then with frustration, “but she needs some time.”
“Why?”
He rocked a shoulder. “She just lost her grandfather, moved, hasn’t seen me in years.”
For the women Armie knew, none of that would matter. Sex would be the cure, the relief, the escape, always. But he could tell Yvette was a different kind of lady.
Different from what he preferred.
Different to how Cannon felt about her.
She was the kind Armie avoided. “All right. So give her some time.” At Cannon’s scowl, he asked, “Or is that a problem?”
“She has some guy who keeps calling her.”
Competition? Things were getting interesting. “Who?” He’d put his money on Cannon every time.
“She says her ex.”
Maybe not so interesting. “He’s around?”
Shaking his head, Cannon said, “In California.”
Armie just stared at him.
Cannon stared back.
Yeah, now would be a really shitty time to laugh. Might even get him decked. So instead Armie cleared his throat. “If he’s that far away, I don’t see how—”
“I don’t want her attention divided.” Cannon opened and closed his fists in frustration. Voice going low, almost tortured, he said, “I want her one hundred percent focused on me.”
“Can I offer a suggestion?”
Cannon stewed, worked his jaw and finally said with deceptive calm, “Let’s hear it.”
“First, bring it down a notch. Dude, you are seriously heaving like a caveman and it’s just not like you. It’s making me uneasy, and you don’t want to f**k me. I can only imagine how the little lady feels.”
Hands again locking into massive fists, Cannon stewed some more.
Biting back a fat grin, Armie gave some—what he considered sound—advice. “Second, why not use the time she needs to win her over? You’re in the same house, right? So there’ll be a lot of alone time. Rein yourself in, take advantage of proximity and she’ll be the one sinking. Then you can just go down with her instead of drowning alone.”
“Your metaphors are getting more confusing by the minute.”
Armie rubbed his chin and tried to clarify. “It’s old-school, I know, but you might try seducing her. You’ll have time and opportunity. That’s all I’m saying.”
Cannon transferred his gaze back to the lady. She was busy oohing over a kid’s barely there biceps, then listening intently as one of the older boys told her a joke. She laughed, ruffled his hair, and Cannon clenched all over.
“I like her,” Armie stated. He clapped Cannon on the back. “Get it together, do your thing, be your usual irresistible self and like all the other ladies, she’ll be begging for it in no time.”
“God, I hope so,” Cannon told him quietly. “Because I’m not sure how long I can wait.”
He walked off to collect Yvette, so he didn’t see Armie’s surprise.
Huh. Cannon rarely talked about sex. The most the bastard ever did was smile when asked. So Yvette was unique.
Nice.
He’d spread the word around. It wouldn’t stop any of the guys from egging Cannon on when they could, but they’d also go out of their way to assist whenever and wherever possible.
Having Cannon back in town for an extended time would be even more rewarding than he’d first assumed.
Now, if he could just resolve his own issues...
CHAPTER SEVEN
WHILE YVETTE TOOK in all the improvements at the rec center, Cannon went over things in his head.
I can’t, I’m sorry.
Over and over, Cannon heard those softly whispered words. He didn’t buy it. Can’t? What the hell did that mean? She could. She most definitely would.
With him.
But as Armie had suggested, he probably needed to cool it just a bit before he spooked her too much.
They’d agreed—her with relief, him under duress—to discuss her odd statement more later. She claimed to be overwhelmed with all the changes. He could buy that.
But when she kissed him, the way she looked at him, he knew they were on the same page.
For some reason, she didn’t want to be. For some reason, she wanted to deny them both.
Twice more her ex had contacted her. Once again in text, once by a call that she let go to voice mail. The idea that she might be hung up on some other man made him more than a little nuts.
Hell, he didn’t like seeing Denver touch her, even in jest. He definitely didn’t want to stew on some bozo she cared about getting busy with her.