“He’s so hot. My god.” Erin’s grin made it impossible not to grin back.

Like this was news? The man messed with her head. Made her break all her rules. He was a tornado in her life.

“I agreed to be monogamous while we were together.”

Erin turned, her brows flying up. “Get out! Really? Damn, he must make you come so hard.”

“Well yes. Didn’t I already say that? He demanded it. And I like him and it seemed silly to argue. I’m too busy to f**k anyone else right now anyway, and this will burn out in time and I’ll move on when we’re done. I’m a big girl, I can do it.” She chewed her lip. “I think.”

Erin cocked her head.

“God, what if I mess it up?”

Erin put an arm around her shoulders and squeezed. “You’re not going to mess it up.” She took a drink from the table and handed it to Raven, clinking her glass to it. “It had to happen sometime. My baby is growing up.”

Raven snorted before she took a sip.

And then she heard him.

“Well now, I’m extra glad I came tonight.” Jonah walked straight to her as if no one else was even in the room. He took her free hand and kissed her fingertips. “Hello.”

She knew she did one of those cartoon gulps but she really couldn’t help herself. “Hi. Fancy seeing you here.”

“I called your place, actually. To ask you to dinner. But you weren’t there and Levi bugged me to come here and I was hungry. But this makes everything so much better.”

He made her skin tingle. His voice did things to her ni**les. Flashes of how he felt deep inside her as he f**ked her kept running through her memory.

“Hey, Raven.”

She tore her gaze away from Jonah to catch sight of Daisy approaching wearing a big smile.

“Hello, Daisy.”

“We saved you a seat. Next to Jonah, I mean.” She fluttered her lashes at Raven, who managed to wrestle her left eyebrow into staying put.

Jonah did some fancy thing with her hand. He turned as he put her hand on his arm, his own hand firmly over it, keeping her at his side as he walked her over to their table.

Erin simply moved their things down to that end of the table. “That was pretty nifty there.”

Jonah gave Erin a look, but she wasn’t the type to be scared off by a big alpha male face, as she had two of her very own anyway.

“That little spin as you directed her, I mean. So how have you been?”

Todd sat on one side of Erin and Ben the other. He kissed Erin quickly. “Smooth. You totally could have been a CIA agent with your sneaky skills.”

“I’m not sneaky. He’s smooth. I’m not waterboarding him or anything.”

Jonah leaned in closer to Erin, clearly amused. “Would you?”

“I don’t know. I might. Have you done anything worthy of being waterboarded?”

“Not yet. I don’t think.”

Raven cleared her throat. “Just ask him whatever you’re going to ask him already.” She turned to Jonah. “You need to give in now. She won’t give up. She’s like one of those little dogs. She’ll bark and nip at your ankles until you submit. It’s her way.”

Erin laughed, clearly delighted. “I’m just getting a feel for him. If he wants to take my daughter out, I should know his intentions.”

Raven couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m a big girl, Mom.”

“She’s concerned.” He put a hand over hers briefly. “I promise not to despoil her. And to have her back by ten.”

“What if I like being despoiled?”

“I tell you, you walk away from a table filled with these people and you return to talk of despoiling.”

Mary shooed her fiancé, Damien, to the table. “Sit. Don’t get any ideas.”

“I can help you in the kitchen.” He mooned over her, which Raven—though she’d never admit it out loud—thought was sort of sweet.

“You are not my helper tonight.”

“I am. So back off, buster.” Daisy sent him a lovely smile that sort of ruined her gruff words. “You get her all the time. It’s not enough that you stole her away to Oregon? You get to be in her kitchen every day. You need to learn to share.”

“That sounded sort of dirty. Can we watch?” Adrian leaned back in his seat, his arm around Gillian’s back.

“Only if you want me to poke your eyes out.” Levi sipped his drink. “If anyone gets to watch, it’s me. And Damien I guess, if he’s nice.”

Raven breathed a sigh of relief when the conversation moved past the grilling of Jonah. Oh, she knew people thought she loved being the center of attention and none of them mattered enough for her to correct their misperception. But she didn’t like it.

Erin leaned closer. “So we need to continue our discussion later.”

Jonah slid his hand up her spine, stopping to cup the back of her neck. She shivered and Erin’s eyebrow slowly rose as she took in Raven’s response.

“Yes. Later.”

“Oh, is it a secret? What’ll I need to give you to let me join in?” Jonah’s words were playful, but his grip on her neck made Raven tingly.

Todd laughed.

Erin sniffed but wore a grin. “This is what I’m trying to get her to tell me. What you give her, I mean.”

Raven knew this was her payment for being so provocative with all her friends. Now Erin was going to be merciless.