Kiss with Cherry Flavor (Grover Beach #4) by Anna Katmore Page B

morning after?”
    Lisa laughed. “True.” She took a toothpick and stabbed one of the strawberries in the bowl with it.
    But before she could pop it into her mouth, someone reached around her from behind and took the piece of fruit out of her hand. “Oh no, you don’t.”
    We turned around to face Ryan, who pulled the strawberry from the toothpick with his teeth and ate it.
    “Why not?” Lisa drawled, a secret smile flashing across her face.
    Ryan took her hands, wound her arms to her back, and shackled her wrists with his long fingers. “We had that once. Not a very good idea, remember?”
    Lisa tilted her head up, gazing at him in a way that shut out all of us others. “I only remember that you carried me to your room afterward.”
    Leaning in, he drawled into her ear, “I can carry you to my room now, if that’s what you want. No strawberries needed.” Apart from Lisa, I was probably the only one who’d heard it, because I was standing so close. “Or better yet, carry you outside to the swing.”
    As he bent and scooped Lisa up over his shoulder, she squealed, drumming at his butt to make him set her down. Ryan refused. He headed toward the back door, laughing at her struggles, but then he turned around once more. “Right, I forgot. Sam?”
    “What?”
    “Tony’s waiting in the kitchen. He’d like to talk to you.” Ryan made a pleading face. “Be nice to the guy. He’s confused as hell, and it’s not up to me to explain everything to him.”
    Oh no. My stomach slipped to my feet.
    Someone pushed me gently in the back. As I turned around, Simone beamed in her stunning model way at me. “What are you waiting for? Hunter said Tony’s waiting for you. He probably wants to ask you out.”
    Or…not. As far as I could judge the situation, he wanted to talk about me and Nick and the things we hadn’t done. But why the hell was I so scared all of a sudden? Hadn’t I decided not to give a damn about Tony just an hour ago? And also earlier today…and yesterday…and practically every freaking day this week?
    If he wanted to know what was going on between Nick and me, I would honestly tell him…nothing. Because it wasn’t Tony’s damn business. And if he intended to tell me he was still in love with Lisa, I didn’t care to hear it. So why go and see him anyway?
    Simone answered my thought when I stood rooted. “If you don’t go and talk to him now, you’ll regret it for the rest of the night.”
    I heaved a deep sigh. Maybe she had a point. I handed her the Coke. “Can you give this to Susan?”
    “Sure.” Simone yanked the can out of my hand and pushed me in the direction of the kitchen. “Now go. And fill me in on all the deets later!”
    I heard her laugh behind me, but it was quickly drowned out by the loud music as I reluctantly walked back the way I’d just come. Getting closer, I caught a glimpse of Tony sitting on the kitchen counter, his head dipped back against a cupboard as he studied the ceiling. I had made it as far as the arch in the wall, but just before I entered the kitchen, my courage gave out, and I stopped in my tracks.
    The guy sitting in there was an ass. He’d been an ass from the first time we’d spoken with each other, and not even a kiss—or two—had changed that. He’d fooled around with me wh ile his heart beat for someone else. For a friend of mine. I really, really didn’t want to talk to him right now.
    About to disappear int o the crowd, I spun on my heel—just not fast enough. Tony tilted his head to find me turning tail.
    I rushed away, fighting a quick path through the dancers, when a familiar shape a few feet in front of me made me stop dead, my heart stopping with me. I would recognize those skyscraper-high heels and that black mini-dress anywhere. The one disturbing thing was that my cousin’s hair had gone. Not all of it, but two thirds of its original length.
    Holy crap !
    Chloe was talking to a guy with dreadlocks and leather pants on, running her