by Emily Snow
“We’re jet skiing today,” Gage said. “Ben set it up for us.”
“Holy shit.” Montana rubbed his hands together. “Wait…” His face fell as he stared at Gage. “I don’t have a bitch.”
I gasped and the skank snickered. “Montana, don’t call them that,” I snapped at him, slapping his arm.
“Oh… sorry, Eliza. I always forget you’re an actual lady with class. My apologies.” He kissed my cheek playfully and I laughed. Gage stiffened across the table and I looked at him, slowly smirking.
And then my mindset became a little devilish. Oh, it was perfect: pretend Montana and I did have something going on just to get under Grendel’s skin. He was getting under mine. It was only fair as payback, right? It was time for war.
“Well, I don’t have a chick,” Montana said, glancing at me to make sure what he said was an okay term.
“If you want, we can partner up. It’s no big deal.”
Montana’s eyes stretched and I could feel Gage glaring holes through the side of my head. “Really? You do know jet skiing requires me sitting behind you and… well, you have the hottest ass ever, Eliza. I don’t mind. It’s just you I’m worried about.” He grinned.
I grinned back, ignoring Gage. “That’s fine. Just keep your hands in appropriate places and we’re good. We’ll have fun.”
“It’s not my hands you’ll have to worry—”
“What time do you want to leave from here?” Gage asked, interrupting him. I looked at him and his eyes were hard, his glare icy as he directed it on Montana.
Montana didn’t seem to notice and that made the moment even more hilarious. I was winning. I was getting under his arrogant, thick skin.
“Anytime, man. Doesn’t matter. Since Miss Eliza is my date for the afternoon, I guess I should be asking her.” He looked at me, smirking. “What time would you like to go, cutie?”
“Doesn’t matter.” I held back a laugh. Montana was so natural at flirting that I felt he played along with me to make Gage even more annoyed. Hilarious.
“Well, we should go and get ready now,” Gage said, drumming his fingers on the table. “Truck’s already waiting.”
Montana and I nodded and Gage stood without another word. The skank followed after him, but he didn’t touch her. I watched as she brushed against his side when he met up with Roy and Deed and said something to them. They nodded and followed Gage out of the mall, but he still wasn’t touching the broad.
“Shall we?” Montana asked, offering his hand. I nodded, taking his hand and standing from my seat. “So does this mean I have to spend the whole afternoon with you? Not that you’re a problem or anything. I just know there’s going to be some hot bitches there and—”
“Montana! Stop calling them bitches, please.” I aimed to be serious, but of course I failed terribly as he grinned goofily and knuckled my chin.
“Sorry.” He laughed. “I’m just used to it. It’s not like they aren’t bitches. Most of ‘em are stuck-up and self-centered anyway. Best ones to have sex with, though.”
“They’re still people,” I said softly.
He smirked at me, shaking his head. “So, like I was saying… we’ll be at the beach and I’ll be seeing some hot…”—he hesitated, trying to find a polite word, and I laughed—“…females. I’m gonna get at one for myself. You know that, right?”
“I know. It’s cool.” I shrugged. “I don’t expect you to stick with me the whole time. I’m not expecting a real date from you.”
He smirked, holding the glass door open for me. I stepped out and he caught up with me, putting on his sunglasses. “I know what you’re doing, Eliza. It’s fucking funny as hell, too.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re pissing Gage off. It’s funny when he’s mad. He does that whole scary glare thing and his jaw clenches a million times. He’ll say he’s not mad constantly when we all know he is.” He laughed, sliding his fingers into his front pockets. “You’re an asshole for this. You know that, right?”
I laughed. So Montana did know I was trying to get under Grendel’s skin. “I’m not an asshole. I just know it’s killing him to think I’ve rejected him for you. He’s been rubbing his skank in my face all day, and it’s truly annoying.”
Still laughing, Montana and I climbed into the truck and took the back row with Roy. Of course Roy took a window seat, and to make things less awkward, Montana sat in the middle, but I didn’t let Roy bother me like usual. This afternoon was going to be… interesting, and I was ready for Gage’s reactions toward my fake date.
After picking up a striped black-and-white bathing suit from one of the stores nearby, the boys and I were at Cocoa Beach. It was beautiful, temperature blazing, and my sunglasses were definitely necessary. What weren’t necessary were the millions of chicks in bikinis that the boys had invited. There were a few guys as well, but they barely stood out among the flocks of girls waiting around for attention with bottles and cups of beer in hand.
“All right, Miss Eliza,” Montana said, rubbing his hands together. “Do your worst. We’ve gotta make this quick, though, ‘cause—” Montana stopped talking rapidly as a girl in a black G-string bikini walked by, her skin shiny from tanning oils. She giggled over her shoulder, red cup in hand, as Montana stared directly at her ass. I rolled my eyes as he practically drooled. I then snapped my fingers in front of his face, breaking him out of his horny state of mind.
“Get it together, Montana,” I sighed.
He shook his head, still staring at her ass. “Sorry, but that one’s mine. Let’s make this quick. Please?” he begged, turning around to hold on to my shoulders. Just as he’d placed his hands on me, Gage stepped by with a new chick on his arm. Typical.
He paused in front of us, staring at Montana’s long, tanned arms stretched out toward me. His hands gripped my shoulders and we were only a few inches apart. From a bystander’s point of view, it looked like we were about to kiss and then hug, and I could see in Gage’s eyes that was exactly what he thought.
The girl on his arm hugged against him, probably aiming to never let go. If she were to let go, he would have most likely found another chick to fondle. It made me giggle thinking how stupid and naïve she was. It made me giggle even more as Gage frowned at Montana. “Ready?” Montana asked, hooking his arm around my shoulders.
I nodded at him, smiling. “Yep.” I smiled warmly at Gage, but his eyes were stern, cold. Montana gave him a playful punch in the arm, but Gage’s frown deepened. “He looks really mad,” I said as soon as we were out of earshot.
“It’s your point, right? To piss him off?”
“A little, but not too much. I don’t want him too mad.”
“Gage’ll be fine. You’re making him realize his balls aren’t as big as he thinks they are. He’s one cocky fucker.” Montana released me as we met up at the jet skis. After we strapped up in our lifejackets and I pulled my hair up into a tight ponytail, Montana stepped ahead of me. “You know how to work one of these things?” he asked, fiddling with one of the handlebars.
“No.” I shrugged. “But it can’t be too hard. I’ll give it a shot.”
“Oh, good ‘cause I know nothing about this shit. If we end up wrecking, you’ll take full blame and Ben will pay it off.”
I laughed, stepping past him to climb on. As I did, a jet ski appeared beside us and girly giggling caused me to turn. Gage floated in next to us, a cocky smile on his lips as he looked directly into my eyes. He didn’t look away as he strapped on his lifejacket, ran his fingers through his hair, and then pulled the girl in by the waist. Her annoying giggles chimed again, but I rolled my eyes, gripping the bars of our jet ski.
“How about a race?” Gage asked. “It’ll be just like lawn mower racing… on water.” He winked at me, but I frowned, reliving our night of square dancing and the kiss that almost happened. “Hop on, baby,” Gage said to the girl, his eyes still locked on mine. “You know I like it from the back.”
I rolled my
eyes again, looking at Montana, who was staring off. I looked back and saw the same girl with the black G-string. Ugh, men. “Montana, come on,” I said, snapping my fingers in his face again.
“Oh, right.” He climbed on behind me, hooking his arms around my middle. He placed his chin on my shoulder but kept his lower half a few inches away. “I won’t get too close,” he said in my ear.
I smiled over my shoulder before looking at Gage, who’d been staring at us the entire time. “So, about that race?” I asked, grinning.
He slid behind the brunette who had her fingers clutched around the handles. He then cupped her breasts with his hands, grinning over her shoulder. “Ready, baby?”
She smiled. “Of course.”
He looked at me just as I had shuddered and looked away.
“All right, get ready!” Montana yelled.
I clutched the handlebars, staring ahead.
“Set… GO!”
I sped off, leaving a splash of water to resemble my dust. I squeezed the gas lever as Montana hooted and hollered. Some water splashed onto us, but it felt nice along with the wind beneath the blazing sun. I’d put Gage and his skank to shame as I circled around and rushed forward. I thought they would at least catch up, but it wasn’t happening. As I looked back, it seemed the skank was whining, clutching the handle a little too tightly. She soon started complaining about her nails, waving them in the air dramatically. Gage rolled his eyes a dozen times before looking at me and narrowing his eyes as we rushed back to shore.
I laughed as we met at the shore and Montana hopped off immediately. “All right, Miss Eliza,” he said, unclipping his lifejacket. “It was nice fucking with Gage, but that hot chick over there is giving me the fuck-me eyes and I can’t afford to miss out. I’ll catch you later, I promise.”
He kissed my forehead playfully and then dashed away to get to the blonde in the G-string. I knew Gage caught Montana’s playful kiss on my forehead because his deep voice asked, “You’re interested in Montana?”
Gage was a few steps away, his head cocked and his eyes narrowed again. His skank was still sitting on the wave runner, sighing over her broken nail, her bottom lip poked out.
“I’m not.” I smirked, climbing off, and unclipped my jacket. I pulled it over my head and sauntered toward the stand where they’d been hanging. When I hung it up and turned around, Gage stood a step away, his head tilted.
“What the hell are you doing?” he asked.
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“You and Montana. What is it?”
“Montana and I are just friends.”
He laughed dryly, running a hand through his untamed hair. As he lifted his arms, his muscles tensed, and I inhaled to keep myself steady. He had a body to die for… ink I wanted to lick away, but I couldn’t fall for it. I didn’t want to. I couldn’t stand him. “Friends? That’s funny. Friends don’t flirt.”
“So you’re upset we’re flirting?”
“Well… yeah, ‘cause you said before you weren’t interested in him. Flirting means interest.”
I folded my arms. “Never said I wasn’t interested in him, actually.”
“Seems like there’s more between you two.” His eyes hardened as he took another step forward. My breathing became heavier as he closed the space between us, bringing a hand up to cap my shoulder. His hand on my skin was bringing even more warmth to my body. It was hot as hell outside, but with him this close, I wouldn’t have been surprised if I were to suddenly combust. “You’re mad about my girls?” he asked, smiling.
“They’re not your girls,” I muttered, aiming to remain confident.
“They’re my girls, all right. You could be as well.”
“I want nothing to do with you, Gage. What part of ‘we’re friends’ do you not understand?”
“Why can’t you just flirt around with me like you do with Montana?”
I stifled a laugh, pulling away from him. I wonder if he realized how desperate he sounded. “Gage—”
“Ellie,” he interrupted. “What’s so bad about me? I’ll let you know right now that Montana is ten times worse than I could ever be. You see how he left you for another chick. You really want that?”
“Montana and I are just friends, just as you and I are—and I’m sure you’d do the exact same thing he did. I don’t care what either of you do. You’re both my friends.”
He pressed his lips, his hazel eyes expanding. “You always say that, but I find it hard to believe.”
I frowned. “Why?”
Smirking, he leaned forward, brushing the tip of his nose across my cheek. My skin tingled, my breath catching as one of his hands moved down to my waist and then past the small of my back to cup my ass. I gasped as he chuckled. “I find it hard to believe because you’re always gasping… always holding off on your next breath to see what I’ll do. You may not notice it, but you always lean in, wanting some part of your body against mine.” I looked down, noticing how my chest had inched forward to press against his.
“You always tense up when I touch you. What part of your body do you want me to touch most, Ellie? Your lips?” he asked, running a finger over my bottom lip. I wanted to savor that finger on my lip, lick it just because it was part of his body. “Your chest?” His finger dragged from my lip to my chest and heat boiled in my stomach. “Your full, perky breasts that I can’t seem to stop staring at? If I had the chance, I’d motorboat the hell out of ‘em.” He smirked, his fingers expanding and reaching in for one of my breasts. Before he could grab it, I snapped out of my daze and shoved him away, scowling.
“God, you’re so full of yourself.”
He chuckled deeply as I pushed past him to get to the coolers of beers. “I’ll be waiting, Ellie!” he called. I grimaced over my shoulder, but that grimace turned into a mask full of shock as a cluster of girls rushed for him, fighting to be on his arm for the rest of the afternoon. He simply laughed over their arguing, his eyebrow arched amusedly. His eyes then swung up to meet mine as I stopped in front of the coolers and snatched out a beer. It was hard to look away from him. “I’m ready when you are,” he mouthed at me, grinning widely.
“Never, dickhead!” I mouthed back.
He simply chuckled, chose two from his collection of girls, and went off with them. Not once did he look at me as the day carried on.
When the sun had set, Montana finally came to check on me, a smile gracing his lips. “You okay, Eliza?”
“I’m great,” I sighed, sitting up on my towel.
He tilted his head, his eyes softening. “I’m being a horrible date, aren’t I?”
I giggled. “A very horrible one, but don’t worry about it. I’ll move on.”
He chuckled and placed his palms on his knees to bend over. “Most of us are going to a party later. I know how you hate parties and… well… I’ll be hanging with the hot chick over there for the rest of my evening.” He pointed back with his thumb and I looked, seeing Miss G-string standing a few feet away with a towel on her shoulder. “Maybe you should call Ben, tell him to get you a ride back to the bus.”
I nodded because the bus sounded like heaven to my ears compared to a party. “Yeah. I’ll do that.”
“Great.” He sighed, standing up straight. “Have a good night, Miss Eliza!”
I waved at him, laughing at how nonchalant he was. Montana was sweet, but when he had plans, he didn’t like to be held back. I couldn’t blame him. He was living his life and doing what he wanted. I was never one to make others hold back, so I had no problem with him fleeing.
After calling Ben and hurrying for the parking lot to wait for my ride, I sighed and sat on the curb, the palms of my hands planted behind me on the concrete. Someone cleared his throat behind me and I glanced over my shoulder. Gage came into view with the blonde from the mall and the brunette he’d ridden with on the jet ski.
“No date?” he asked, smirking.
I stuck my middle finger up and turned my head. I was
no longer in the mood for him.
Gage chuckled, stepping ahead with the skanks. He nuzzled the brunette’s neck as they approached the truck. She giggled obnoxiously, and as the girls climbed in before him, he spanked their asses and they yelped excitedly.
I rolled my eyes, looking away. He was truly revolting.
The doors slammed shut and the truck made a U-turn to get out the parking lot. As it drove by, Gage winked at me, making kissy faces and then shouting, “Make it soon, Sweet Ellie!” Again, I gave him the middle finger and as soon as they were out of sight, my truck came and I sighed heavily, ready for the night to just be over.
WRONG TIMING
The following night the boys had a show and, of course, they knocked the ball out of the fucking park. Amazing, beautiful, and heart throbbing, as always. I hated how Gage could sing so beautifully but had one of the ugliest and cockiest personalities. I don’t know why it did, but it bothered me that I’d caught on fire for his ass once again right after jet skiing.
It was two times in a row, and each time I made myself look foolish. He knew what he could do to me with his touch, how weak I could become.
Ugh.
It annoyed me.
It excited me.
It pissed me off.
It thrilled me.
It was completely enthralling, but I knew I had to keep my distance. He wasn’t good for me. He expected me to become one of the many whores on his arms. Um… not likely. Not ever. Unlike them, I had pride and dignity in myself.
After the show ended, a few girls stormed backstage arm-in-arm, waiting on the boys to come out of their dressing rooms just to meet them. As I sat on the sofa by the wall, I couldn’t help but watch them. They were giggling… a lot. They were too eager to see the boys and were even taking pictures with one another with their tongues hanging out while they waited.
I thought about why I didn’t have friends, but then reality slapped me out of my stupor and told me exactly why.