Polo Ponies

The Party (Take II)

 Chapter Four—The Party (Take II)

Avery had thought she was prepared for the womanizing newcomer. She already had a picture in her head as the other three guys joked about Brentley. He was sure to be an arrogant, slimy jerk…most likely good-looking but a jerk nonetheless. However, she wasn’t at all prepared for Tane Brentley. Sure he seemed to have the arrogant part down, but he was nowhere near slimy and good-looking was downright insulting.

She was certain that when his discerning blue gaze first met her eyes he could see everything she was feeling. She felt like an open book with highlights, pointing out her every little secret. Her lips parted slightly, taking in everything about the boy—man, really—in front of her. His jaw and cheekbones looked as if they had been carved from stone. All the sharp angles and elegant shadows that fell across his face in the dim lighting had her swallowing hard. Dirty blonde hair was styled in an infallible mess and the blue-grey t-shirt he wore clung to the muscles in his chest and arms. God, I’m in a shitload of trouble, Avery thought to herself as she watched his full, rosy lips move. Oh, crap his lips are moving. He’s saying something.

“Hey, I’m Tane.” Lord, even his voice is sexy.

Shaking the inappropriate thoughts from her head, Avery recovered quickly. As she looked at his outstretched hand, she chuckled.

“I’m Avery…so when do we get to see the panty-dropper?” She put her hand in his as she introduced herself. She smiled smugly, seeing the grin on his face dim just the slightest bit, but the smug feeling was ephemeral. As soon as his skin touched hers, Avery felt tingles spread throughout her entire body. This boy might just be the death of her.

“Well, normally there’s a wait…but for you I can make an exception,” he said with a wink.

“We obviously have a charmer on our hands here. As tempting as your offer is, I think I’ll decline. I have a hunch that the panty-dropper is used,and I like my bikes shiny and new.”

Tane smiled. He had met his match. He always did like a challenge. “I prefer experienced. You wouldn’t want to hop on a bike that had never been ridden and tested before, would you?”

“I think I’d prefer to do the test driving myself,” the brunette shot back.

“They’re not talking about his bike anymore, are they?” Ailey whispered in the background.

Tane ignored Ailey, saying, “Well, then by all means…please see for yourself.”

“Fine,” Avery said curtly, not one to back down.

Tane smirked. He grabbed Avery’s hand, barely suppressing a shiver from the contact, and began dragging her back toward the front door. “We’ll see you guys later,” he called over his shoulder.

~*~

“Well, that’s sure going to be an interesting pairing,” Blithe commented as the group stared after its two friends.

“You said it,” Gwen agreed.

Ailey looked up at Makena while the others continued chatting. An unspoken question hovered in her eyes. Makena smiled warmly, nodding his head. He pulled his girlfriend tighter against his body, resting his chin on her head.

The curly-haired boy cleared his throat loudly, attempting to get the others’ attention. When their eyes turned to him he began speaking. “Ailey made a great suggestion. You guys”—he nodded toward the girls—“should come down to the club tomorrow. We just have to get a little practice in then we are free for the rest of the day so I figured we could all hang around the club…unless the captain has any objections?” he teased Ryder with a smirk.