Hyde and Seek

by Layla Frost

  “What’re you supposed to think about?” Jake asked.

  I looked around to avoid his all-knowing green eyes. “Oh, nothing really.”

  “Yeah, ‘cause you look like someone who just had a ‘nothing really’ kinda discussion.”

  “He, uh, wants to spend some time together,” I mumbled, pretending to be very interested in the drunk chick dancing to a beat only she was hearing.

  “He wants to spend time together,” Jake repeated.

  “Yeah.”

  “He said that?”

  “Yup.” I wasn’t sure if I should be insulted that he found it so hard to believe.

  “He said those words?” Jake asked. Controlled. Quiet. And scary as fuck for some reason.

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “No reason.”

  Before I could push for an answer, an arm was slung around my shoulder. An arm that just so happened to be wearing a very nice dress shirt.

  I knew he wore GQ.

  “Hey.” I smiled up at Z.

  His pompadour was fully pomped, his black slacks and gray dress shirt nicely pressed. He didn’t fit in at a rock concert in a dive bar, but it was totally working for him.

  “Doll Face. Everything good?”

  “Awesome.”

  He dipped his head to my soda. “Want something stronger?”

  I glanced back at the unusual gyrating of Drunky McDrunkerson and shook my head. “No, I’m good.”

  “Damn, it’s hot as balls in here,” Xavier said, coming up as Z headed to the bar.

  Even though my short-sleeve shrug was thin, I was starting to get uncomfortable. I knew my deodorant was doing its job, but I wasn’t looking to push it to its limits.

  My gaze slid down the bar and caught Rhys’ stare. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Make your decision already, darlin’? Or just need a drink?” Rhys teased.

  “Refill and a small favor.”

  “Name it.”

  “Could you tuck my sweater somewhere safe back there? As Xavier says, it’s hot as balls in here.”

  “Sure thing, darlin’.”

  I felt someone move in close behind me. Without looking, I knew it was Jake.

  His fingers grazed down my arms as he slid my shrug off.

  Try as I might, I couldn’t hold back a shiver. It would’ve been impossible for him to miss, but when I glanced back at him, his face showed nothing. I didn’t know if it was more embarrassing that he felt my reaction to him, or that he was indifferent to it.

  What are you expecting? You’re the perv that’s getting off on him touching your shoulders. Get it together!

  “Thanks,” I said to Rhys, grabbing my refill.

  He looked down at my wrist tattoo. “Nice tat, darlin’. Got anymore?”

  “Not. Fuckin’. Again,” Jake muttered.

  I ignored him and talked to Rhys. “Yup. Not all visible with clothes on, though.”

  Rhys’ smile turned even wickeder. “Now that just makes me wanna see them more.”

  Careful not to brush against Jake, I turned around and pulled my hair to the side so he could see the swallows on my shoulders. When I turned back, I lifted my tank top a little so he could see part of the shooting stars on my hip bones. My low rise pants weren’t quite low enough to see it all, but I doubted any pants were. Thankfully, my tattoo artist Ray, short for Rayna, was also my best friend.

  “There are a few more that common decency and state laws prevent me from sharing.”

  Rhys put his elbows on the bar and leaned forward. “Darlin’, remember what I said to think about?”

  I nodded.

  “Yeah, I mean that tenfold now. Keep that in mind.” He smiled big, his dimples emphasized more.

  I could eat cereal out of those dimples.

  I felt a strong arm around my waist and fingers digging into my hip. “Time to get back so we can see.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I sighed, though I was a big fan of his arm around me.

  “Rhys,” Jake bit out with a slight nod.

  “Jake,” Rhys responded with a chuckle.

  “Rhys,” I bit out mockingly. If Jake was going to be a jerk to everyone, I was going to have fun with it.

  “Enjoy the show, darlin’.”

  Jake moved us effortlessly through the crowd as people hustled out of his way. It took him less than a minute to get us from the back of the room to up near the stage where the guys were.

  I’m obviously not the only one that finds him imposing and scary as fuck.

  The lights started to go down as they did a quick sound check. When Harington appeared, the small venue roared to life like a packed arena. They jumped into the music and did it hard. Everyone got lost in the sounds. The energy. The whole vibe.

  It was amazing.

  I danced with all of the guys except Jake. This, surprisingly, included Z. He was stiff and seemed a bit uncomfortable, but he tried.

  When I took a break, Jake came up behind me. “Babe, wanna beer or something?”

  “No, thanks. I’m gonna grab a water.”

  “Don’t drink?”

  “Not here.”

  “Why, you a mean drunk? Gettin’ wild and startin’ fights?” Jake teased, a smirk changing his face from badass hot to unbelievably badass hot.

  “You caught me.” I raised my fists. “I’ve got a crazy right hook.”

  “I’m thinkin’ that’s not how you do your damage. So, why?”

  “I’m only twenty. I shouldn’t be here at all, let alone drinking.”

  “Christ. Seriously?”

  I nodded.

  Jake looked towards the bar then back at me. “Rhys know your real age?”

  “Kase told him when he asked if I could come tonight. Why?”

  Jake, of course, ignored my question. “And he said he wanted the chance to spend time with you?”

  “Yeah. Why’s that so hard to believe?”

  “You know he’s pushin’ forty, yeah?”

  “Okay… and?”

  Jake shook his head, all traces of his sexy smirk gone as he looked ahead at the band. He didn’t say anything further, and I wasn’t going to waste my time trying to read between his hot and cold lines.

  There were times, like when he’d held my hand earlier or was being playful, that I thought maybe he was into me. Or at the very least, that we were cool with each other. However, the majority of his responses ran along the lines of disapproval or indifference.

  I was way over it.

  Without a word, I turned and headed to the bar. I gulped down the water the bartender gave me, happy to break away from the crush of people for a minute.

  When I got back to the group, Kase grabbed my hand pulled me next to him. Using his empty cup as a mic, he lip-synced along with the song, his dreads moving wildly.

  “I’m gonna get a beer, need anything?” he asked, pretty much yelling in my ear to be heard.

  I looked up at him and shook my head, knowing there was no way he’d be able to hear me.

  Xavier waved me over to introduce me to some women. I couldn’t hear one thing he said, so I just nodded and smiled.

  Their response was similar.

  The girls moved away from the men to dance, pulling me with.

  After a few minutes of dancing and laughing, a hand gripped my hip. I turned to see Jake. He didn’t even look at me as he shifted us away from the group. I tried to step away from him but hardly gained any distance before his arm wrapped the rest of the way around my waist.

  As much as I wanted to pretend he didn’t exist, it was impossible to with his arm around me.

  “Uhh, what’s up?” I asked when it became obvious he wasn’t going to say anything.

  Shifting my hair off my neck and onto my shoulder, Jake leaned close to my ear. “The way you were movin’? You want that kinda attention, get it some other time.”

  It was the shorts thing all over. At his work? Alright, I got that.

  At a rock concert in a bar, thoug
h?

  Yeah, I didn’t get it.

  I didn’t get it so much that I wasn’t just upset.

  I was pissed.

  Quickly twisting my body, I hoped to jerk out of his grasp.

  I half succeeded.

  I managed to turn around to face Jake, but his arm stayed tight around me.

  If he weren’t such a giant asshole, I might have enjoyed having his body pressed against mine. Right now, though, a well-aimed punch to the junk seems like a better idea…

  “What the hell are you talking about?” I yelled, both because the music was loud and I was losing my temper.

  “You were attractin’ attention.”

  “What kind of attention, exactly?”

  “The kind that involves every guy gettin’ a hard dick watchin’ you move. Thinkin’ about you movin’ like that with them. Naked. You’re a fuckin’ wet dream.”

  It wasn’t the most flowery compliment I’d received, but it stole some of the wind from my bitch sails until I remembered what an ass he was.

  “That’s on them, not me. Why should I let what people think bother me? I was just having a good time and dancing.”

  “You wanna dance, have at it. Just do it back here, yeah?”

  “No, I’m good,” I snapped, tired of him telling me what to do.

  I’d worked hard to not let people’s opinions get me down like they used to. Normally, I would keep doing what I wanted. However, it was his friend’s bar and, technically, I wasn’t even supposed to be there. It wasn’t worth ruining my night by getting upset.

  Yet, at least.

  I spun around to get free, but Jake wrapped his other arm around my chest.

  I was torn. Half of me wanted to follow through with the junk punch. I was pretty sure I could position myself correctly to get a good hit.

  The other half of me, though, was thinking maybe a kick to the junk with my heel would be more effective.

  Unable to decide, I went with verbal insults.

  “You’re kind of an ass.”

  “No kinda about it, babe,” he said, close to my ear.

  What good are insults if he just agrees with me?

  Instead, I went back to ignoring him, which was hard to do with his arms around me. I focused on the music and people watching, my anger slowly fading.

  He was looking out for me in his own bossy as fuck way. He wanted me to be safe. It was kinda sweet, minus him being a jerk.

  I wasn’t booking us any BFF getaways, but at least he didn’t seem to hate me.

  I shifted a little and his arm tightened around me again. Moving my head to the side, my cheek slid against his chest as I looked up at him.

  “Jake?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Don’t feel like you have to watch over me all night. I’m fine, really. Go have some fun.”

  Jake looked down at me for a few seconds before looking back at the stage without saying anything. When his arms stayed around me, I sighed dramatically before turning back to the show.

  Oh no. Woe is me. I have to watch an awesome show in the arms of a hot guy. How will I ever survive?

  When the music ended, the lights came up and brought me back to reality. I pulled away from Jake, his fingers trailing my skin as he dropped his arms. I turned to say goodbye when he unexpectedly grabbed my hand and began walking. I focused on maneuvering through the crowd, but Jake didn’t seem to have that problem. He moved with confidence and everyone got the hell out of his way.

  I saw the other guys, except Z, with some women at the bar. As we approached, the men were trying not to look at Jake’s hand holding mine.

  They were also failing.

  “Pipe, what’d you think?” Kase asked when we reached them.

  I pulled my hand from Jake’s and threw up the horns. “That was definitely in my top five shows.”

  I heard a deep chuckle next to me. “Hey, darlin’.”

  “Rhys! Your place is the freakin’ best!”

  “Good to hear,” he said, handing me my shrug.

  As I took it, I got on my toes and leaned over the bar. I grabbed the front of Rhys’ shirt and pulled him closer. I saw a look of surprise in his eyes a second before I pressed my lips to his cheek. “Thank you for letting me come. It was one of the best nights of my life.” Releasing his shirt, I lowered myself back down.

  Rhys looked down at me, his expression shooting from warmth to pure heat. “I had a few of those cookies, darlin’. I’m definitely looking forward to experiencing more sweet from you in the future.” He walked towards the other end of the bar and signaled Jake to follow him.

  God, Rhys was sexy. His eyes were such an amazing color, and I was right about his smile coming easy and often. And those dimples? As a woman, I appreciated the view. I liked it even more knowing that his looks weren’t the only appealing thing about him.

  I just needed to work on transferring some feelings, finding time and energy, and having the nerve to go for it.

  That’s all? No biggie.

  Turning to Kase, I stood back on my toes as he dipped down a bit. I moved his surprisingly soft dreads and kissed his cheek, too. “Thanks for inviting me and setting this whole night up, Kase. It was awesome.”

  Kase looked down at me and grinned. “Music’s to be shared with good friends, hot chicks, and hot chicks who you know are gonna turn into good friends. You leaving?”

  “Yeah, I gotta head out. Lots of cakes tomorrow. Let Jake know I said thanks.”

  “I just experienced how you say thanks, Piper. I don’t know if my delivery will be as good as yours. My beard probably tickles.”

  I laughed. “Good point.”

  “I’ll walk you to your car,” he offered, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

  “Cool, thanks. See ya guys!” I waved to the rest of the group before Kase and I headed towards the exit.

  When we were almost to the door, I heard a deep voice rumble, “I got this.”

  Looking over my shoulder, I saw Jake had caught up with us.

  “Nah, boss, it’s cool,” Kase said.

  “Kase—”

  “Fine, fine,” Kase interrupted, dipping to kiss my cheek. “See ya, Pipe.” He turned and began walking back to the bar.

  “Bye,” I called to him.

  He lifted his hand in a slight wave, bringing it down to rub the back of his neck as he sauntered off, chuckling and shaking his head.

  Yum.

  Wait.

  What just happened?

  “Let’s go,” Jake said, drawing my attention back to him.

  “You don’t have to walk me. I was good with Kase.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure you were,” he muttered with a slight sneer.

  “What does that mean?” I walked as fast as my short legs would carry me.

  Quick getaways would be much easier with long legs.

  “Rhys and Kase in one night? Covering your bases?”

  When we reached Bo, I opened the door but didn’t get in. I turned and looked at Jake. Gorgeous Jake who thought I dressed, and now acted, like a whore. I was hurt and embarrassed. I was also really freakin’ pissed.

  Since anger was the easiest emotion to deal with, I rolled with that.

  “Are you implying I’m a slut?” I gestured up and down my body. “I mean, you think I dress like one. And, apparently, I dance like one. I guess in your mind it’s a quick jump to ‘covering my bases’ with as many men as I can add to my waiting list.”

  God, I’m so stupid.

  “Babe—” Jake started.

  “You don’t like me. And that’s fine ‘cause, honestly, I don’t much like you, either. I’ll stay out of the shop and out of your shit.” I quickly slid into my car and slammed the door. I paused and took some calming deep breaths after fumbling with my keys and turning the ignition.

  Jake wasn’t the first person to be mean to me. He also wasn’t the first person to misinterpret my easygoing demeanor and assume I was easy in other ways. I knew the issue wasn’t w
ith what he thought. It was that it was him thinking it.

  I put Bo into drive. Turning to check for oncoming traffic, I saw Jake still standing on the sidewalk. His head was tilted, looking away from me. I held my breath as he took a step towards my car. Changing course suddenly, he headed back to Rye, shaking his head.

  I released my breath in a loud sigh as I pulled out and drove home.

  *******

  Sleep wasn’t coming. No matter how many sheep I counted, or how exhausted my body was, I couldn’t relax. My brain had decided that the middle of the night was the perfect time to replay and analyze my argument with Jake. Only this time, I had all sorts of snappy and clever comebacks. The Jake in my head was shamed, but also impressed with my biting wit.

  My eyes had just closed when I heard pounding on my front door. I jolted up, wondering if I’d imagined it.

  It’s after two in the morning. Maybe the Sandman is finally here to put me out of my misery.

  There was more knocking as I made my way through my small ranch style house. I looked through my peephole, sure I was delirious from sleep deprivation. I opened the door. “What’re you—”

  Before I could finish my question, Jake’s mouth dropped to mine and his hands cupped my face.

  He had a thing about interrupting. It irked me. Now? Yeah, not so much.

  After the way we’d ended things at Rye I hadn’t planned on seeing Jake ever again. I definitely wasn’t planning on it being in the middle of the night for a sudden doorway kiss.

  I also wasn’t questioning it.

  Not yet, at least.

  Instead, I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting myself enjoy his hot before his cold inevitably came back and pissed me off.

  Jake’s tongue moved, teasing but persistent.

  I opened wider for him, tasting beer, scotch, and something else. Something rich and masculine.

  Something Jake.

  He groaned, his hands moving behind my head and up into my hair. He fisted it, gently tugging my head back and kissing me harder. He controlled the kiss and me, using his hands in my hair to move me where he wanted. Jake dropped one hand down to cup my ass before easily lifting me.

  I instinctively wrapped my legs around his waist, feeling him hard against me.