I so shouldn’t be thinking like this. He’s not for me. I want a good guy. Not scared of commitment, player asshole Gabe.

“Thank you,” I finally say, lifting my head the slightest bit to find him still watching me, though now his gaze is zeroed in on my lips. They tingle in anticipation and I remember his kisses. His skilled, perfect mouth. Oh crap, I want him to kiss me again. If Sydney weren’t here I bet he would kiss me again…

“Will you two just get a room already?” The disgust in Sydney’s voice snaps me back to attention and I sit up just as Gabe’s hands fall from my knees and he draws himself to his full height. “The sexual tension between you two is freaking ridiculous.”

Say what? “I, uh, have no idea what you’re talking about,” I stammer, trying my best not to look in Gabe’s direction. This is just too embarrassing, especially if it’s all one-sided, which it must be.

She rolls her eyes and hops to her feet, as agile as ever. How I envy her lithe figure, those long legs and her slender waist and hips. “Do you two really think you can pass off as just friends? Gabe, I see the way you look at her and it skeeves me out. I don’t want to be in the middle of your guys’ sexual dance or whatever.”

Sexual dance? Sydney’s lost her mind. “Seriously, Syd. We’re just friends. We came to that agreement,” I reassure her.

“It’s a bogus agreement and you both know it. You two are going through this exercise deal as an excuse to spend time together.” She holds up a hand when Gabe opens his mouth to speak. “Don’t bother denying it, we all know it’s true. I’ve been playing along with it because it’s nice to hang out with you, Gabe. I never get to anymore, what with you gone at school most of the year. And I really like you, Lucy. I think you’re sweet. But you’re too sweet for my big brother. You’re not good enough for her, G. And you know it. So either stop hanging around each other or give in to your animalistic urges and just do it. Jeez.”

Sydney stomps off before we can utter another word. I’m too stunned, too shocked she would say those things to us. To her brother. I chance a look at Gabe and he looks just as surprised.

“You still had two sets to go,” he says to her retreating back.

“Take my place. Do sit-ups with Lucy. While on top of her or whatever,” Sydney yells at the top of her lungs, making me grimace with embarrassment.

I really hope no one else heard her.

“She’s just saying that stuff to rile me up,” he says, his tone apologetic as he returns his attention to me. “She loves to piss me off.”

“She told us to give in to our animalistic urges,” I whisper. That sounds even worse when I say it because I’m referring to the two of us. Together. I repeat, giving in to our animalistic urges. Otherwise known as sex.

Gabe looks down at the ground, a little smile curling his lips as he chuckles. “Pure shock value on her part.”

“And that we should do sit-ups with you on top of me.” My cheeks warm just saying the words. “Like that’s even possible.”

“She’s giving us a hard time. Specifically me a hard time. You just got caught up in the crap.” He pauses and I pray he isn’t looking at me. “You’re cute when you blush.”

Damn it, he’s looking at me. I glare at him, confused by his words, the flirtatious tone. “I thought we agreed to be just friends,” I remind him.

“Friends who have animalistic feelings toward each other,” he says, sounding extremely amused.

This irrationally pisses me off.

“Look, if we can’t be friends, then maybe we shouldn’t be anything at all.” I snatch the small tote bag I brought off the ground and start to leave. But he won’t let me, grabbing my arm before I can get past him and stopping me.

“I want to be your friend,” Gabe says, his fingers gripping my upper arm, his thumb smoothing over my skin in a gentle caress. I want to scream at him to stop touching me.

I want to beg him to never let me go.

“I-I want to be your friend too.” I lift my head, meet his gaze. He’s not looking at me like he’s my friend. He’s staring at me like a guy whose hot for me would, his gaze still on my lips, his fingers gentling on my arm as he oh, so slowly draws me closer to him. Like maybe I won’t realize what he’s doing.

I do. I so do. But I’m not stopping him.

I’m not protesting.

The exercise pretense is already wearing thin. Sydney isn’t stupid. She saw right through my motives and used them to her advantage. I like that she wants to hang out with me and appreciated even more that she said so. Yeah, she’s my pain in the ass little sister but I like the kid. I like talking to her, spending time with her. It’s me and her against those two people who call themselves our parents. I need Syd. She’s my partner in crime.

But bonding with my sister is a bonus. What I’m really trying to do is spend more time with Lucy. Watching her run and jump and do sit-ups and push-ups and all sorts of exercises that puts her body into weird positions that I can appreciate like a fucking pervert. Checking out her perfect tits and ass, hoping like hell she doesn’t have me figured out. That she thinks I’m helping her and Sydney out of the generosity of my heart.

More like the generosity of my dick. Despite telling myself it’s wrong, I can’t keep my distance from Lucy. I’m dying to have her. Anywhere, anyhow.

I’m acting too friendly when I shouldn’t. Touching her. Pulling her closer. Staring at her perfect, luscious mouth. God, that mouth. It’s a little fiery when it wants to be. A little sassy. Funny. Sweet. Sexy.

She parts her lips, her tongue darting out for a quick lick and Christ, that makes me crazy. My knuckles brush against her chest, coming into full contact with that glorious rack and I want to rip her T-shirt off and see exactly what she’s hiding.

I mean, I do have a clue. I’ve seen her in the bikini often enough. But I want more. I want to see bare skin. As in, I want to see a naked Lucy.

If she knew I was thinking like this she’d probably slap my face.

“We’re getting too caught up in all this.” She withdraws from me and I feel the loss like a stab in the heart. My hand falls away from her arm as she steps back, putting distance between us. Too much distance but I don’t say a word, don’t protest because it’s not my place.

And I really need to remember my place.

“Caught up in what?” I frown, my fingers still tingling from where they made contact with her flesh.

Lucy takes another step back away from me, as if she really needs the distance. “Look, you made it very clear how you felt about me a few days ago, when you walked right out of—my house and never looked back.”

The last thing I want to remember was how I reacted that night. Talk about a complete idiot. “I panicked,” I say, hoping she’ll believe me.

The skeptical look she shoots my way tells me otherwise.

“You panicked.” Her voice is flat, almost deadpan. “Gabe, you never said another word. Just kept walking like I told you I had a raging case of genital warts. I didn’t know what to do, how to react. You—you freaked me out.”

The words fall out of me before I can stop myself. “I freaked you out? You’re the one who told me you were a virgin. Then you offer yourself up like some sort of sexual plaything. But with only one rule—no actual intercourse.” As if I could stop myself from taking it all the way with Lucy. I don’t think it would be possible. And I don’t want to test myself.