Circle of Lies (Red Ridge Pack) by Sara Dailey, Staci Weber Page B

adorable. What had happened to their awkward stage? It was like they’d come out of the womb ready to pose for a camera.
    I was just about to grab a framed picture of Aiden in a baseball uniform for a closer look when there came a loud knock at the door. Before I could say anything, the door swung open and there was he was. Aiden.
    Shirtless.
    “Hey, Alli, would you—” He stopped mid-sentence.
    Holy mother of God. My hands of their own volition flew up to my mouth to cover my gasp. Bright red scars covered his shoulder and part of his chest. They looked horribly painful but…well, the rest of him was perfect. His sweat pants hung loosely on his hips, and it only took a moment for my eyes to drift down those wonderfully chiseled abs.
    My God, could he be any more gorgeous? It was like looking at Adonis himself.
    He noticed me staring—gawking was more like it—and he covered the scars with the t-shirt in his hand. “Oh, sorry. It’s not as bad as it looks, really.”
    I didn’t know what to say, not that my mouth was cooperating. Neither were my eyes, since I couldn’t take them off him. Aiden. Unbelievably hot Aiden. Shirtless. This was so not good.
    I must have looked like a complete fool just standing there speechless, and he finally broke the silence. For a moment he got a weird look in his eye and I was afraid he was going to mention what had happened when he dropped me off, but then the look changed. He said, “Sorry to barge in on you, Teagan. I thought you’d gone home already. I was looking for Alli.”
    He stood there, half in, half out of the room, half-naked, waiting for me to respond, but my brain was betraying me.
    Say something, you idiot!
    “Uh…Alli went downstairs to get some Cokes,” I finally managed.
    “Oh.” Aiden looked down at the tube of ointment in his hand. His eyes wandered around the room as if still waiting for me to say something, but I didn’t know what, so I just continued to stand there, completely wordless. Oddly enough, he just stood there too.
    Maybe he didn’t know what to say, either. Strange, him being such a ladies’ man, but he kind of seemed nervous. He shifted his weight from foot to foot, and I couldn’t figure out if he was about to take off in the other direction or come further inside the bedroom.
    Get a grip, Rhodes. You can handle this. He’s just a guy. A guy that happens to be extremely hot and shirtless. Chill out and speak.
    Trying my best to act as if his half-naked presence was having no effect, I said, “Do you need some help with that?” I pointed to the medicine in his hand.
    Shit. What had I just asked? Do you need some help with that? Really? I could barely look at him without turning to mush, and I was offering to rub ointment on him?
    He looked down at the tube. “Sure—if you don’t mind. I’d do it myself, but I can’t reach my back.”
    I could have sworn he blushed as he walked forward, but surely it was my imagination. Guys like Aiden Wright didn’t blush. Not at girls like me. Did they?
    He sat down on the bed. As I walked over to him, it was suddenly me that was blushing; that I was sure of. Out of nowhere I felt flushed all over, as if the temperature in the room had skyrocketed. Damn it. Where the hell was Alli?
    With shaking hands I took the ointment and prayed he couldn’t feel the panic welling up inside me. When his fingers grazed mine, I was overcome by Aiden’s nearness, and my legs felt as though they might give out at any moment. What the hell was wrong with me? Get it together, Rhodes, I told myself.
    Doing my best to ignore my racing pulse and trembling hands, I squeezed out some of the medicine. It appeared to be antibiotic cream, though I’d never seen anything exactly like it. Spreading it over my fingers, I took a deep breath and gently placed my hand on his back.
    When he shuddered, I swiftly tore my hand away. “Omigod, I’m sorry! Did I hurt you?” I was feeling a bit lightheaded.
    Aiden inhaled