Crowd Pleaser

by Marie James

  “I’m a United States Senator.”

  “That shit may work when you get pulled over for speeding. It may even work to get hotel upgrades and that sort of bullshit, but it’s not going to work on me.” I stand, pour another glass of bourbon before turning back to my father. “This estate is Rothwell property.”

  “What’s your point, Jacob? I have shit to do.”

  “You have twenty-four hours to remove yourself and your belongings from this house, Senator Kortright. As the only living Rothwell, this property is mine.”

  I down the liquor and head to the door of the office.

  “Grow the fuck up, Jacob.”

  With my hand on the doorknob, I look back at him over my shoulder. “Better start packing. Imagine the scandal if I have to call the cops on you for trespassing.”

  Chapter 33

  Randi

  “This is a bad idea,” I mutter as we draw closer to Jake’s frat house.

  The steel spine I had earlier dissipated, along with cooler morning temps as the sun peaked in the sky.

  “It’s a perfect idea,” Jas says finding my eyes in the rearview mirror. “He didn’t make the video. You didn’t make the video. All of this shit is just a miscommunication.”

  “Relationships have been ruined with less.” My breath fogs the window as the bitter words fall from my mouth.

  “True,” Ellis agrees from the passenger seat. “He’ll want to work it out. I just know he will.”

  Jas, pulling up to the curb in front of the house, shifts into park and turns to look back at me.

  “He didn’t come to me. He hasn’t called or responded to my texts for days.” I pull my eyes from his and focus on the frat house as the threat of tears burn the back of my eyes. “I think he’s done with me.”

  “Only one way to find out,” Ellis replies enthusiastically as he unclicks his seatbelt and swings open his door.

  Gawking at the backs of their heads, I’m stunned when Jas does the same and climbs out of his seat. It isn’t until the back door opens and Ellis sweeps an arm, indicating I need to climb out, that I speak. “And just where in the hell are you two going?”

  “We’re here for moral support,” Ellis says as he slings an arm over my hunched shoulders.

  “I’m here to kick his ass if his head isn’t in the right place,” Jas adds as Ellis steers me in the direction of the front door.

  Snorting, I don’t even stop the small smile playing on my lips. “You can’t beat him into loving me.”

  “Oh, Peach.” Jas smacks a kiss to my temple. “He already loves you; he just may not realize how much. Hence, the ass kicking.”

  Jas walks a few steps ahead and is pounding on the door before Ellis and I even make it up the steps. When we can hear others inside, but no one bothers to grab the front door, Jas turns the knob and walks in like he owns the place. Probably, not the best move for an attorney that expects to keep his law license. I’m certain burglary of a habitation, even though none of us have any intention of walking in there and stealing anything, wouldn’t look good to the State Bar.

  “You can’t just go in there,” I hiss, but step inside as Ellis urges me forward.

  “What?” Jas asks with a one-shoulder shrug. “I’m here to see a friend.”

  Looking up at Ellis, I plead with my eyes for him to get his boyfriend under control. His only response is a quick wink.

  “What a shithole,” Jas observes taking in the discarded red cups and empty beer and liquor bottles littering every available surface. Tilting his head back, he cups his hands around his mouth and yells, “Jake!”

  Several unfamiliar guys linger around downstairs, not one of them bothering to offer to help or act offended that we just stormed into their house uninvited and unannounced.

  “Do you know where his room is?” Ellis asks as Jas heads to the staircase after getting no response from his bellowing.

  “Yeah. Up to the left.”

  I try to pull out of Ellis’ grasp, but he pulls me along anyway. I’m certain now that speaking to Jake, especially with an entourage is the very last thing I should be doing today.

  “There.” I point to the closed door.

  I will never survive if he has another girl in there.

  Before I can reach out and stop him, Jas’ knuckles are already pounding on the door. Just like when his knock went unanswered on the front door, he grips the knob and swings the door open.

  Squeezing my eyes shut, I turn my head, terrified of what I might see.

  “Not in there,” Ellis whispers down to me.

  Only then, do I find the courage to look. Other than his perpetually messy bed, there’s no sign of Jake.

  “What the actual hell?” We all turn to see Hunter standing in boxers and a t-shirt just inside his doorway.

  “Hunter,” Ellis says with a playful voice. “Just the queen I need to talk to.”

  “Jake’s not here,” Hunter responds pushing his door all the way open, an invitation I’d take just to get out of the hallway if it weren’t for the jock inside scrambling into his jeans. “Carlos was just leaving.”

  Carlos doesn’t meet anyone’s eyes as his flustered hands succeed to get his zipper up on the third try.

  “A warm bath will help ease the ache,” Hunter calls after the asshole jock as he makes his escape.

  “Asshole,” he mutters as he slinks past Jas with his head down.

  “Nice,” Ellis praises as he watches Carlos disappear down the hall. Turning back toward Hunter, he asks, “Quarterback is gay?”

  Hunter laughs. “He’s hardly even bi-curious when he’s totally plastered. I just wanted to give him a little lesson in morning-after regrets.”

  When Hunter’s eyes meet mine, I know he’s referencing the night I willingly went up to that jerk’s room only to have him push his luck when I said no.

  “Thank you,” I mouth to him.

  An almost imperceptible nod is his only response.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Hunter asks Jas and Ellis.

  “We’re here to find Jake,” Ellis answers.

  “And make sure he knows Randi is what’s best for him,” Jas adds with a crack of his knuckles.

  “Settle down there, hulk,” Hunter responds with a smile. “Jake’s not here. Since you are, I guess he didn’t stop by last night?”

  Shaking my head, I drop my eyes to the tangle of my fingers as I studiously focus on the hem of my shirt like it holds all the answers.

  “Idiot,” Hunter mutters. “Ok, change of plans.”

  “See,” Jas whispers to Ellis as Hunter makes his way around the room shoving clothes into a backpack. “I knew he would be on board.”

  “What is going on?” Confused, I watch as Hunter zips his bag before stripping off his t-shirt and reaching for another one.

  “Jake went home,” Hunter informs us before his amazing chest and abs disappear under another shirt.

  “What a waste,” I mutter. “Are you sure you’re gay?”

  All three of the guys laugh.

  “As gay as they come.” Mostly unaffected, I stare as Hunter’s marvelously muscular thighs are hidden behind a pair of well-worn jeans.

  Elbowing me, Ellis gives me a teasing look. “There are plenty of straight dudes out there for you ladies.”

  “His sexual orientation shouldn’t matter to either one of you.” Jas gives Ellis a pointed look, one that just makes Ellis smile wider.

  “Do we need to stop by your place first?” Hunter asks Jas.

  “Nope,” he says before turning and walking back out into the hallway. “I have court tomorrow, and someone has to deal with that satanic mutt back at Randi’s place.”

  “I’m so lost,” I say, but the words go ignored as the three guys plan things as if I’m not even in the room.

  “Where exactly is home?” I ask catching on a little.

  “Kansas,” Ellis and Hunter respond at the same time.

  “And what in the hell does that have
to do with me?” Only then do the guys turn around and acknowledge me. I hold my hands up to stop them. “No way. I’m not going to freaking Kansas.”

  “Road trips are fun,” Ellis says with familiar haughtiness before once again ignoring me to speak with Hunter. “I don’t imagine we’ll be there long. If I need anything, I can just make a quick run to the mall or something.”

  Stunned, but less confused, I follow the guys downstairs and out the front, waiting for Jas and Ellis to kiss each other goodbye.

  A firm hand on my elbow stops me when I go to climb in Jas’ car with him.

  “No,” Jas chides as if I’m Havoc caught with shredded lace between my teeth.

  “I get car sick,” I complain.

  “Not in the front seat,” Ellis reminds me as he pulls open the passenger door of a turquoise Mini Cooper with rainbow-colored racing stripes over the hood.

  “Could you be any gayer?” I tease Hunter, an attempt to stall and distract them long enough to sprint down the street.

  “My parents bought me a black truck for high school graduation,” is his very serious response. “I was ecstatic until I heard him tell my Mom later that night that, ‘at least when he’s driving people wouldn’t know he’s a faggot.’ The very next day I traded it in and had this beauty custom ordered.”

  “Oh, Jesus,” I gasp and cover my mouth with my hand. People are awful, even to those they are supposed to love. “Really?”

  I’ve never seen Hunter smile so wide as he looks at me and shakes his head. “Girl, no. My parents have never had an issue with my sexuality. Well, my proclivities got me in a couple of tight spots in boarding school, but the fact that I’m gay was never a problem.”

  All the guys laugh at the not-so-inside joke.

  “We should fly,” I barter after the chuckling dies down.

  “So you can tell TSA you’ve been kidnapped?” It’s like Ellis is in my brain. “Get in the car, Randi.”

  Looking back over my shoulder at Jas, I see him climbing into his car, pulling away before I can stop him.

  “Seriously, Randi,” Hunter interjects. “Do you even want to see him? As his best friend, it’s kind of my responsibility to ask what your intentions are.”

  “I’m not sure what they are,” I answer honestly. “I just know that I need him in my life.”

  “That’s the first damn time you’ve been honest with yourself,” Ellis mutters and sweeps his hand to the open passenger door again.

  “Well then,” Hunter says with a grin. “Let’s go get your man.”

  I sulk to the car. “Fine, but passenger gets to pick the music.”

  Chapter 34

  Jake

  As I toss the tennis ball against the wall, something I’ve done for years to reduce stress, the familiar purr of Hunter’s car drifts in through the open window of the pool house. I can’t seem to be bothered by it. He knows where the door is.

  I knew he wouldn’t be far behind me. Every other time I’ve taken off, he’s trailed behind within a few days. Although it’s only been twenty-four hours, his arrival is anticipated.

  I throw the ball. It bounces back. I catch the ball. Over and over and over again. The texture of the sheetrock is long gone, but that doesn’t stop me from trying to hit the center of the damage time and time again.

  Catching the ball a final time, I peer in the direction of the front door. Not one to linger in his car, Hunter should’ve been barreling into the pool house by now.

  “Maybe he’s on the phone,” I mumble as I swing my weight off of the couch and lumber in that direction.

  Only, it’s not Hunter with a raised fist about to clock me in the face when I pull the door open.

  “Randi,” I breathe. Her appearance here in Kansas is both confusing and alarming.

  “Hey,” she chokes out, startled by the door opening before she even knocked on it.

  The glow of the porch light reflects off of her hair, and I’m once again mesmerized by the sight of her. A cough forces my eyes from the depths of her eyes. Looking over her shoulder, I make out Hunter standing in the open door of his ridiculous Mini Cooper. Surprisingly, though, is Ellis hovering on the passenger side. Even in the middle of the night, both guys stare back at me with expectant looks.

  “What’s going on?” I ask, not looking down at Randi but also not loud enough for the guys to hear.

  “Road trip,” she mutters as if she was forced to be here.

  Seeing her, having her within arm’s reach makes it difficult not to reach for her. I haven’t gotten back online to see her new video, but just knowing it’s out there keeps my hands shoved deep into my jeans pockets.

  “See you guys later!” Hunter yells from the car before both he and Ellis climb inside and they drive away.

  “Fuckers,” she hisses.

  “Why are you here?” I question, finally pulling my eyes from the glow of Hunter’s taillights as he turns on the road at the end of the driveway. Her shrug only serves to piss me off even more. “If you don’t want to be here I can call you a cab.”

  Please don’t go.

  Even mad, her presence calms something raging in me I’d never willingly admit to out loud.

  “I want...” She clears her throat before meeting my eyes. “I don’t want to leave.”

  Common courtesy has me stepping out of her way so she can step inside. The last thing I need is my Dad peering through the windows and seeing her standing out here.

  Not surprisingly, she doesn’t look around and ooh and aww at the opulence of the pool house. Most pool houses are functional only, but this has served as my home for years. The picture windows, granite flooring, and high-end leather furniture doesn’t even register with her, a side effect of her wealthy upbringing.

  “You look tired,” I observe out loud.

  Yet, still the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.

  “I didn’t sleep well last night,” she explains, lingering near the sofa but not committing to staying by taking a seat. “Plus, it was like a concert in that damn car for the last nine hours.”

  “Hunter is very animated when he’s driving.”

  Small talk? Really?

  “Hunter thought you were heading to my house the other night.” Giving in to her exhaustion, she drops down on the couch, pulling her legs up and curling her arms around her body almost immediately.

  I want to be in the circle of those arms.

  No, I argue with myself.

  I want her to hurt the way I hurt.

  “Why did you run home?”

  “Why did you go to a different party and fuck Wallace again?” Answering her question with another question isn’t the best form, but she has to know I wouldn’t be okay with what she did.

  She jerks, body tensing from the slump of her defeated shoulders to the tip of her chuck-covered feet.

  “I didn’t.”

  Two words are all it takes for my world to go from up-ended to back to where it belongs.

  “I showed up at your frat house. Karen seemed to be comfortable rubbing her naked body on you, stroking you through your jeans.”

  For the first time since following her into the pool house, I take a few steps closer to her.

  “If you would’ve stayed—”

  Gasping, she glares at my face. “I know you didn’t make a video with her, but expecting me to stick around for the foreplay is low even for you.”

  “If you would’ve stay you’d know that the situation with her was all a misunderstanding,” I insist. “I was waiting for you, and this chick comes in and tells me you’re across town letting Wallace fuck you.”

  Her face softens, going from anger to tangible pain. “So you were doing it to get back at me? I thought you knew me better than that?”

  Frustrated that we’re even having to discuss this when we know the other didn’t make a video for SCP that night, I drop onto the couch cushion beside her.

  “Knew you better? Really, Randi?” Scraping a harsh hand over the top o
f my head, I take a deep breath. “You pull away from me every damn chance you get. How it’s possible for me to love someone who bolts around every turn is beyond me.”

  Watching her face for her reaction to my confession, she stares ahead. The TV isn’t even on, yet she’s hyper-focused on it like she spent her life savings on lottery tickets and they’re calling the numbers.

  The tear that crests her lower eyelash and rolls down her cheek could stand for hundreds of different things right now.

  Sitting, I wait in silence for her to work through it. Waiting for her to respond is scary as hell and the biggest adrenaline rush I’ve ever felt in my life.

  “I’m a mess,” she responds after a long moment.

  Not exactly what I was hoping for, but I hold onto the fact that she didn’t immediately reject my words.

  “I’m well aware. I’m not the poster boy for mental stability over here either.” I chuckle, trying to lighten the mood.

  “I don’t do relationships.”

  Another nail in the proverbial coffin.

  “I don’t either,” I add. “A relationship wasn’t even on my radar.”

  “Wasn’t?” Her dark brown eyes search my blue ones.

  Is that hope I see?

  Slowly, I nod. “Wasn’t.”

  “As in?” she prods.

  Definitely hope.

  “Everything is different with you,” I confess, saying words I never thought I’d get the chance to tell her to her face. “You’re more to me than one night.”

  “Six nights,” she clarifies with a small smile.

  I can’t even hate the contract I had drawn up. We wouldn’t be here now if it weren’t for it, and even if it goes no further than what we’ve shared, at least we had that time together.

  “I don’t think six thousand nights with you would be enough for me to grow tired of you,” I proclaim.

  “I suck at math.”

  Laughing, I reach for her, taking one of the arms she has wrapped protectively around her legs. I hold her hand in mine. Touching her for the first time since she arrived is both heaven and hell. Heaven because even the skin of her hand against mine is soothing. Hell for exactly same reason. My cock has forgiven everything we thought we were mad at her for. Throwing her down on the couch and showing her how much we missed her is his go-to response right now.