by C. M. Owens
Just because I don’t want to seem rude, I also lay down a twenty, even though I still haven’t formed an educated guess as to what’s going on.
Harley just grins at me. “How long?” she asks.
“How long until what?”
“Until Tommy leaves?” Tria asks as she walks up and puts money in, somehow knowing what the conversation is without having been over here prior. “I’m going with forty minutes. The guy isn’t from Sterling Shore. Just overheard him telling the guys that. He’s gonna be a long-hauler.”
“Dammit. Maybe I should change mine,” Rain says.
“I’m standing firm at fifteen,” Salem interjects. “He’s way too gullible and far too mousy, even though he looks like a jock. Look the look, but can’t walk the walk.”
“You’re taking bets on how long Tommy lasts here?” I ask, looking behind me.
Tommy is smiling brightly as Dane shows him one of his many cars inside his garage. I can barely see them as they disappear inside, with Kode smirking as he jogs to catch up.
“He’s not a date,” I decide to say. “So he should make it the entire time. The guys were being really nice.”
“Of course they were. You were standing there,” Rain tells me, blinking. “They still think you’re clueless about their sabotage attempts.”
“Tommy isn’t a date, so I say he lasts the entire party,” I tell them, going on before they can argue. “By the way, they’ve sabotaged me more than I realized. Base assured me that men don’t enjoy the constant mention of a hymen.”
They all groan, but Harley quickly looks around. “Hurry and tell us about Base before they get back.”
Ash sighs heavily. “Tag is going to cash in like crazy when he finds out I’ve kept this from him.”
I’m going to have to assume cash in is now the new metaphor for kill me, given the context. They always say the guys are going to kill them when they’ve done something that will directly spark a feud. Obviously it’s a metaphor, since no bodily harm ever comes to them.
“Again, they won’t care about Base either,” I dutifully point out. “He doesn’t want my virginity, and he kissed me last night to show me that I wasn’t ready yet.”
“That makes…zero sense,” Tria says, and I sag in relief as I take a seat, no longer feeling like a complete idiot.
“He proved I was scared, and—”
“Of course you’re scared,” Rain says softly. “Any girl who says she wasn’t scared that first time was either really drunk or very disillusioned.”
Already, I’m relaxing. I thought this was going to be an issue only I had, since I seem to have so many of those.
“This is why we’ve insisted on you waiting for someone who would give a damn and help you ease into this without—”
Something loud cracks, and then the distinct sound of shattering follows. We all jerk our attention to the garage.
“You don’t think they’d actually kill him, do you?” Ash asks, leaning up as silence continues.
Tag starts quickly making his way toward the garage, his son trailing behind him as he skips.
In a few suspended breaths, riotous laughter starts wailing from the guys, and I relax again, even as all the other girls seem to tense.
“Everything okay, Dane?” Rain calls loudly.
“Fine. That was all Tommy. Not us.”
“Sorry!” Tommy yells.
The girls all finally relax and turn their attention back to me.
“So last night he kissed you again?” Harley asks me.
Rolling my eyes, I answer, “Yes. And the kiss was more…intense. We ended up progressing when we went to the bed. And I tensed when he started pulling off my underwear—”
“Oh sweet heavens, they’re going to kill him dead,” Ash quietly murmurs, covering her face with her free hand and covering her daughter’s ear that is facing me with her other hand.
The child coos, easily balanced in Ash’s lap, unable to truly understand the inappropriate conversation. I’m not sure I understand why she covers the one ear.
Shaking out of the distraction, I carry on, “But when I tensed, he stopped and gave me a very embarrassing lecture about how I wasn’t really ready.”
“Oh, he’s one of those,” Tria says on a sigh. “The ones with just enough experience to forget they used to be virgins.”
“It’s sad, though, since Base would be perfect. He’s not blowing through girls left and right, but he still gets his without being obnoxious about it,” Harley says, as though she knows him, even though she doesn’t.
“He’s a good guy. A really good guy who defied the odds by having a good head on his shoulders, despite his father and the stereotype that plagues musicians,” Ash says. “So I’m happy that he’ll be living for another day, but he really would have been someone I trusted with you.”
“So…he doesn’t want me at all?” I surmise, expecting relief for having the confusion cleared up, but experiencing a pang of disappointment instead.
“Oh, he definitely wants you,” Salem says.
The disappointment begins to war with hope, and I’m back to being really confused.
“But—”
Before I can finish that, I hear the sound of a car revving, even though it doesn’t sound like the owner should be revving it, given the whine it emits instead of the roar I’m accustomed to hearing.
The guys emerge with large grins, exiting the garage—all five Sterling men with Tag Masters. I never even spotted Dale before now.
“Damn. Fifteen minutes. Salem wins. Again,” Rain groans.
“At least all the information my mother shoved into my head about reading men wasn’t a complete waste,” Salem is saying as I turn around, frowning as she rakes in all the money.
“That was Tommy leaving,” I state, catching up a little slower, but still dumbfounded. “But he wasn’t a date.”
Ash lets Tria take the content little girl from her lap, as she pulls up her phone, distracting me momentarily.
“Okay, the guys are stopped far enough away for you to tell us more about Base.”
Sitting back, I meet Harley’s eyes, since she’s the one who said that.
“I’m afraid I’m going to need everything explained in detail, because I’m really confused.”
Chapter 20
BASE
“Fuck, I love this new sound,” Sticks says through a very exaggerated moan as he stills his cymbal after the final note.
It’s just me and him going over some of the music, since Randy and Taylor are off doing their part-time jobs.
“She’s damn good for the music if that was just a sample,” Sticks goes on.
I say nothing.
My head is in all the wrong places.
“Dude, either you tell me what has you pissed, or I’m going to crack you in the head with a drumstick.” He wiggles the purported weapon. “Now.”
Cursing, I put aside my guitar, and run a hand through my hair.
“Oh, so this is about her. Or about her being out with that ‘Level-One motherfucker’ you mentioned,” he easily guesses, fucking grinning at me like the prick he is. “Please tell me we’re about to do girl talk. I’ll need to remember this moment for the rest of my life.”
“I fucking hate you,” I say as I stand and walk out, ignoring his mocking laughter as he tries to catch up.
Just as I reach the fridge, he says, “So let me guess…she brought up the virginity thing again, and you’re still trying not to be a dick by not sticking your dick in a girl who deserves a lot better, right?”
I just glare over my shoulder, then reach down and snag a bottle of water, letting the fridge door close as I start moving through the house.
“Well, just hear me out. I think you’re actually being a much bigger dick for the sake of not being a dick,” he says, causing me to look over at him as I crash to the couch and prop my feet up.
“That doesn’t make a damn bit of sense,” I point out dryly, drinking the water
as I shift my attention to the TV.
“It’s obvious you like the girl. Hell, it’d be hard not to, as long as you can appreciate the fact she’s a little different.”
I cut my gaze toward him.
“Drop it.”
He grins broader, clearly not ready to drop it. “She asked for one thing. One. Thing. With no strings attached. And instead, you’ve been giving her the boyfriend experience without the one thing she requested, so that, you know, she doesn’t get attached or anything. Makes perfect sense.”
Pinching my fingers together and lifting them in front of me, I tell him, “You’re this close to getting punched.”
“Look, I’m saying we have a few months before we go on tour for a solid year. A relationship with a deadline should be doable. You’re living in her house, after making the dick move to insert yourself into her life and snap pictures of her all the time. And she’s been cool as shit about it. As long as you both know the deadline, no worries. Get it out of your system. Get it out of hers. Otherwise, you’re just going to want it more than you really do, and so will she. It’s psychology, dude. Like one-oh-one or some shit.”
After giving him a glare for a little longer, I turn my attention back to the TV, even though my mind is actually nowhere in the vicinity.
He’s not telling me anything I haven’t already thought of a thousand times since last night. I keep fucking with her head and mine, and I can’t seem to stop myself.
“And you really think that’s what she deserves?” I ask him tightly.
He bats a dismissive hand. “She’s asking for less.”
“She doesn’t really know what she wants. She just thinks she does.”
“And you know her so well after just a couple short weeks,” he deadpans. “You’re even more arrogant than I thought. And that’s saying something.”
Groaning, I scrub a hand over my face, feeling my phone buzz in my pocket.
He continues on, pointing out the various ways I’m an arrogant dick, as though he’s been making a list, while I read my text from Ash.
ASH: Britt’s date made it fifteen minutes, and she’ll need a ride home. Don’t show up if you’re just playing with her head. And get out of her house if that’s the case.
Rapping my fingers, I stare at the screen, tempted to tell her I’m just friends with Britt. But even Britt knows that’s an obvious lie.
I’m not sure what the hell we are, but friendship isn’t in the cards for us on a platonic level.
“Since you’re not even listening to me, how about you tell me what you’ve decided,” Sticks drones on.
“I haven’t decided anything, because it’s not my decision to make,” I grumble as I stand, ready to grab my keys and head out.
Walking past a mirror, I barely glance at it, moving on by. Then abruptly back up and take in the fact I’m overdue for a haircut, and because of this frustrating damn girl, I’ve managed to run my hands through my hair a thousand times, causing the shit to stick up everywhere.
After snagging a random hat from the floor, I pull it on backwards and grab my keys.
“Where’re you going?” he calls out.
“To fuck with my head some more,” I say just loud enough for me to hear.
Chapter 21
BASE
A lot of cars are here, and since there’s a little music in the backyard, I assume that’s where to go. I’m half surprised there isn’t a valet service, even if it is just one of their casual outdoor gatherings.
The Sterlings have more money than they know what to do with.
It’s one of the many reasons I’ve never gone to any of their private parties when Tag has invited me. I don’t even know how to act around that much money.
Bristling, I walk through the back gate, and Maverick Sterling almost collides with me. There’s a small girl on his shoulders who grabs his hair like a horse’s reins and yanks him back.
With a yelp, he promptly lifts the kid and deposits her to the ground, telling her to go play, as he gives me an incredulous expression.
“I was beginning to think you were too cool to hang with us,” he states flatly, smirking. “How many times has Tag invited you now?”
I don’t correct him about who invited me this time. “A few.”
“Look who the hell just showed up,” he says, and my eyes land on the very laidback party that has most of their inner circle in attendance. Fortunately, I don’t spot Bella.
Tag stumbles, his eyes widening when he sees me. Well, I guess that means he knows why I’m really here.
A few of the guys wave me over, since the party seems to have mostly split into three groups—guys, girls, and kids.
My gaze flicks over the girls’ faces until I land on one stunned redhead, who is staring at me as though she’s shocked to see me. Clearly Ash didn’t tell her she sent me a text.
Why am I here?
Taking a seat with the guys, I idly listen as they carry on with a conversation about some dude who managed to bust a window on Dane’s new Jag today.
My attention only turns to them when I realize they’re talking about Tommy, telling Rye Clanton this information.
“He legit ran out of here,” Maverick says, laughing under his breath as he joins in on the conversation.
“As soon as Dane said, ‘You can write me a check or just go now and never speak to my sister again. Either way, we’ll call it even,’” Corbin drawls, his own sinister grin in place.
“Who won the pool?” one of them asks, confusing me.
“Salem. Of course,” Maverick snorts, causing all of them to laugh like there’s an inside joke.
All this insider chatter is annoying as hell. Is this how Britt felt on the ride out to the club?
At least I know how they got rid of Tommy.
Definitely more creative than I was expecting.
My eyes move back to Britt, noticing how all the girls are looking from me to her. When my lips twitch, Britt jerks her gaze away, and Rain grins at her as she says something.
“So how’d Tag convince you to come out here?” Corbin asks me as Rain weirdly puts money on the table they’re sitting around.
Tria says something to Britt that I can’t hear before she also puts down money. It’s an annoying thing that I’m unable to read lips right now.
Britt shakes her head, putting her money down as though she’s stating something important. I think I make out, ‘he’s not a date,’ but I can’t be sure.
“He didn’t. Ash did,” I tell Corbin, even as my eyes stay on Britt as she continues to animatedly argue something, while the money continues to collect on the table.
Before I have to answer more, Wren walks in with his daughter and…girlfriend? Wife? Fiancée? It’s hard to keep up with these things. But Allie’s eyes widen when she sees me, and she darts away from Wren to join the girls, digging money out of her purse as she goes as though she’s in a hurry to join in on before all bets are closed.
“What the hell is going on over there?” I ask Tag as the guys start filling Wren in on what he’s missed—mostly the garage story again.
Only this time, they’re calling Tommy Timmy because they’ve already forgotten his name. Fucking rich people.
“What are you doing here?” Tag whisper yells at me, trying to keep from being overheard.
“That’s yet to be decided,” I answer absently.
“I saw in the socialite section that you’d been spending time with Britt, but since none of the guys mentioned it, I thought it was bullshit.”
“Apparently they don’t read the gossip columns,” I answer distractedly as Ash gives me an apologetic smile and mouths something that suspiciously looks like twenty-five, while tossing some money down.
“But seriously, what are they doing?” I ask again.
He groans. “They’re making bets on how long you last before the Sterlings manage to run you out.”
“And twenty-five minutes is the amount of time Ash is giving me?” I ask i
ncredulously. “She’s the one who invited me.”
“She really invited you? That wasn’t just something you told them?” His eyebrows go up in surprise, then his eyes narrow when I nod. “Oh, I am so getting pancakes every morning for a week, two nights off from night duty, and some incredibly hot sex when I confront her with this.”
“So glad I could be of assistance,” I state dryly.
He grins, his eyes on Ash now, and she battles her own grin, like she knows what he’s thinking. Unreal.
“You should probably go soon. Ash always guesses too long. The guys will be eager to get rid of you before you can weave your groupie-effect spell on Britt.”
“You realize this sounds ridiculous, don’t you?” I ask him as he stands.
“Completely ridiculous,” he agrees without an ounce of humor in his tone as he goes to scoop up his son and mouths something at Ash.
My attention goes back to Britt, as she stares at me like she’s expecting me to vanish at any moment because she thinks she made me up.
“Why are the girls collecting money?” I hear Maverick asking.
As one, four Sterlings turn an abrupt glare on me as though it’s clicked in unison. Rye Clanton and Wren Prize just start grinning.
“I take it this is a common thing?” I muse, lips once again twitching as they stare at me like they want me dead. “What’s the minimum bet?” I add.
Dale Sterling walks up late, spotting me for the first time, and he points at me. “Why is he here? He wasn’t here when I went inside.”
“Found out Britt isn’t really gay,” I tell him with a growing grin. “Though some dude in tights tried to convince me otherwise.”
“They were leggings,” he growls.
“Okay, so we’re discussing that later,” Maverick says in a way that makes it sound like he’s annoyed he has to wait to probe. “And by later I mean as soon as this very bad nightmare ends.”
“I’m a nightmare?” I ask with a grin, leaning back in my chair as I put my hands behind my neck.