I was so lost in my own anger and indecision that it took me a moment to realize they were talking about me.
"Oh yeah?" Jax was saying. "Then where the hell is she?"
Jaden's voice, sounding annoyingly calm, replied, "Why are you asking me? I was with you."
"Fuck."
"Dude, what did you expect? You were gone like six hours."
Yes. Exactly.
"What do I expect?" Jax made a hard, scoffing sound. "I expect people to do their fucking jobs."
"Yeah? Well, if you're talking about Morgan, good luck with that."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning she's not worth the trouble. Why'd you fuck her?"
I felt my jaw clench. Morgan? Morgan who? Was that where he'd been? Screwing someone named Morgan?
Jax replied, "Because I’m a dumb-ass. That's why."
"Hey, you said it, not me."
"Forget Morgan," Jax said. "Where the hell is Cassidy?"
"I don't know. Just like I didn't know the other ten times you asked."
"Shit. She was supposed to wait."
"Yeah. And you were supposed to be right back. Looks to me like you're even."
If I were sitting up, I might've nodded. Yeah, you tell him, Jaden. Suddenly, the guy was making a lot of sense. Go figure.
When Jax made no reply, Jaden continued. "My guess? She's fucking someone else."
I sat up. What?
No wonder I didn't like him.
Jax replied. "No. That's not her."
"Yeah?" Jaden's tone grew sarcastic. "Well, it's adorable you think so."
"Hey, I know what I know."
"Oh come on, you heard what Morgan said. She left with a better offer."
At this, my mouth fell open. A better offer? What did that mean?
Jax was saying, "Or maybe Morgan's full of shit."
"Well, there is that. But that doesn't mean she's lying."
"Oh, she's lying alright."
"How do you know?"
"Because I have Cassidy's phone."
"So?"
"So she wouldn't leave without it."
"Maybe it was a burner. You know, her hooker phone."
What the hell?
My hooker phone?
I knew there was a reason I hated that guy.
Jaden was still talking. "She probably goes through ten a week."
"For the last fucking time," Jax said, "she's no hooker."
Jaden laughed. "Sure. That's why she was decked out like twins with another working girl. My guess? That was her sister."
"No. It wasn't."
"How do you know?"
After a long pause, Jax said, "Because it was her mom."
"No fucking way." Jaden laughed like he'd just heard the funniest joke ever. "You're shitting me, right?"
"Oh, fuck off."
"Dude, she's gone. Forget it."
As I listened, my emotions bounced all over the place. I felt pathetically grateful that Jax was sticking up for me. Unfortunately, my gratitude was offset by the fact that he'd still ditched me and that his brother was a giant douchebag.
And now, I didn't know what to do. I definitely needed my stuff. And if I knocked on their door – or maybe even just hollered out to them – they might let me wait inside for Allie. But the thought of being seen in my bedraggled state was almost too humiliating to consider.
I was still trying to decide what to do when Jaden said something that made my heart sink to my stomach. "Holy fuck. Is that her?"
Chapter 18
I held myself very still, praying that he didn't mean what I thought he meant.
From somewhere above, Jax replied, "Where?
"Down there."
A moment ago, I was freezing. Now, I was burning with raw embarrassment. Like a child, trying to hide from the monster in the closet, I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to pretend this wasn't happening.
Oh, but it was.
I knew this, because a moment later, even with my eyes tightly shut, I could still tell the difference between darkness and light as some sort of spotlight burned down on me from above.
It was funny in a way, because until then, I'd been absolutely certain that I'd been humiliated enough for one night.
Apparently not.
Reluctantly, I opened my eyes, only to feel the need to shield them with my hand. From what I could guess, those idiots were shining a flashlight – a very bright flashlight – straight at me.
I hollered out, "Will you shut that thing off?"
They didn't.
Instead, Jaden called back, "What are you doing?"
I could hear him, but I couldn’t see him. Cripes, I couldn’t see anything through the glaring light. I yelled back, "I'm not doing anything." Damn it. The stupid flashlight was still on. "Didn't you hear me?"
"Hell, everyone heard you," he said.
Terrific. And no doubt, everyone could also see me, thanks to the Spotlight of Shame.
I stumbled to my feet and glared up at him. Or rather, I tried to. But it was hard to glare while that light was roasting my eyeballs alive.
With a muttered curse, I crouched down and yanked my shoes out of the sand. Without bothering to put them on, I began stalking away from the light, planning to head back the way I'd come. But there was no escape. As I moved toward the side of the house, the light moved with me until, at last, the house itself was between me and Freddie Flashlight.
I welcomed the darkness, just like I welcomed a surge of hatred for both brothers. Obviously, Jaden was manning the light. But what was Jax doing?
Was he watching silently from above, like this was some sort of show for his amusement?
No. He wasn't.
I knew this, because a moment later, while stalking through the shadows, I ran straight into him, literally, and almost lost my footing. In fact, the only reason I didn't topple over was because his arms closed tight around me, pulling me close, even as he said, "Hey, are you alright?"
I gave a bark of laughter. "Oh, sure, I'm perfect. How are you?"
His voice was very quiet. "You're cold."
"No," I snapped. "I'm not. I'm roasting alive. Can't you tell?"
Yes, I realized I was being incredibly rude, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. Tonight had been one of the worst nights of my life, and I saw no reason to pretend otherwise.
Pathetically, it wasn't even because tonight had delivered more bad stuff than I could handle. Rather, it was because the best parts of the night had been so very wonderful, which perversely, only made the awful parts seem ten times worse.
I yanked myself out of his grasp and demanded, "Where's my phone?"
His voice was low and soothing. "In the house. If you need it, just say the word."
"Fine," I snapped. "I'm saying it. And I need my wallet, too."
As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I could see Jax more clearly now. He was still wearing the tux, but it looked slightly rumpled, like he'd slept in it or something. And yet, he still looked incredibly sexy.
The bastard.
He eyed me with obvious concern. "What happened?"
You left. That's what happened. I made a scoffing sound. "As if you don't know."
"I don't know," he said. "Why'd you leave?"
Now, that was a lovely question. In fact, it was so lovely that I tossed it right back at him. "I dunno. Why'd you leave?"
"Because I had to."
"Fine. Whatever. Just get me my stuff, alright?" I crossed my arms. "I'll wait here."
"The hell you will."
"What?"
"You think I'm gonna go inside and leave you standing here? Like this?"
Through gritted teeth, I said, "Like what?"
Dirty and disheveled? Half-crazed? Freezing? And sweating too?
I could only imagine what I looked like.
Even more maddening, I couldn't help but notice that I'd felt a whole lot better when I'd been in his arms. Now, I felt cold and lost – rudderless in a storm of my own
roiling emotions.
He never did answer my question. Instead, he reached for my hand and said, "Come on, let's get you inside, and we'll talk there, okay?"
His hand was warm, and his voice was a soothing balm to my jangled nerves. Like an idiot, I might've melted right then and there if it weren't for the sudden appearance of that cursed light, coming from somewhere behind me now.
I gave a silent curse and tried not to scream in frustration. I just prayed that flashlight was nice and huge, because I swear to God, I was going to shove that thing up Jaden's ass.
Jax glared past me to say, "Shut that thing off, will ya?"
Jaden replied, "But you told me to keep it on her."
I gave Jax an annoyed look. "So that was your idea?"
He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. "I didn't want to lose you."
The stupid light was still on, and I turned around to yell, "Are you gonna shut that thing off or not?"
"I dunno," Jaden said, sounding almost amused. "You're looking a little crazy. I'm not sure I should."
I wanted to strangle him. If he thought I was crazy now, just wait 'til I got ahold of that flashlight.
From behind me, Jax said, "Shut that fucking thing off before I shove it up your ass."
Well, at least we agreed on something.
And yet, the light was still on.
With my free hand, I shielded my eyes, trying to get a sense of what Jaden was doing. Under the glare, I could barely make out his silhouette as he said, "Gee, you try to do someone a favor…"
Obviously, the "someone" wasn't me. It wasn't hard to guess what they'd done. From what I could tell, Jaden had watched from the rear of the house while Jax had approached from the front.
It was way too devious, and I didn't like it.
Not one bit.
I looked back to Jax and said, "Did it ever occur to you to just call out my name or something?"
His voice remained calm in the face of my wrath. "I didn't want you to run off."
What a joke. Where would I run? I had nowhere to go. And yet, I had been running – or stalking or stumbling, anyway. By now, everything was a blur, and I had no good reply to what he'd just said.
So I said nothing. And this time, I didn't argue as he led me toward the front of the house. Together, we mounted the front steps and then walked inside, using the very same front door we'd used however many hours ago.
Unlike earlier, the house was mostly dark and utterly devoid of people. Even Jaden had melted away to somewhere in the night.
Whether Jaden had used a back door or left entirely, I didn't know, and I didn't care. I was just glad he wasn't here, because I just knew he'd be mocking me, and I wasn't sure I could take it.
Plus, the guy thought I was a hooker.
Jerk.
This only served to remind me of the other things I'd overheard while listening from below. None of them brought me any pleasure – in particular that bit about Jax screwing someone named Morgan.
It shouldn't have mattered. After all, I barely knew the guy. And I was determined not to pry, no matter how curious I might be. If nothing else, I refused to give him the satisfaction.
Unfortunately, he wasn't nearly as respectful of my privacy as I was of his.
Chapter 19
For what felt like the millionth time, he asked, "What happened?"
We were sitting in a side room, and I was wrapped in a soft flannel blanket that he'd grabbed from a nearby chest. Like the sap I was, I'd protested that I shouldn't be using the blanket at all, given the fact that I was so grubby with sand and who-knows-what-else.
Ignoring my protests, he'd tucked the blanket around me anyway, and then also ignored my claim that I wasn't thirsty. So here I was, wrapped up and sipping hot cocoa in the middle of the night. On the nearby side table sat an ice-cold bottle of water, which I'd yet to open.
Whether I was too hot or too cold, I'd have the perfect beverage either way. I hadn't asked for either one, and yet, I couldn't help but appreciate all of it – which only made it that much harder to be angry with him.
Damn it.
His question hung in the air, and I repeated the same answer that I'd already given. "Nothing happened. I just left, that's all."
"But why? You didn't get my message?"
Now that made me pause. "What message?"
His jaw tightened. "So, you didn't."
"No," I said. "I didn't even know you left one."
We were sitting in matching arm chairs with the side table between us. He abruptly stood. "I should've known."
I stared up at him. "You should've known what?"
"That it wasn't true." He shoved a hand through his hair. "Hell, I did know."
I wasn't following. "Sorry, but what are you talking about?"
He looked away and muttered, "Nothing."
I asked, "Are you doing that in retaliation?"
His gaze returned to mine. "Doing what?"
"Saying 'nothing,' because that's what I've been saying, like you're throwing the same word back at me to make a point?"
For a moment, he looked almost ready to smile. "That's not it," he said. "I just mean it's nothing I want you to worry about." His mouth tightened. "But I can promise you this. I'm gonna handle it."
"Handle what?"
"Forget it," he said. "It's my problem, not yours. And we're gonna keep it that way, alright?"
I was just about to object when his expression softened. He moved closer and crouched down in front of me. We were nearly at eye-level, with him close enough to touch.
He was still wearing his tuxedo, and I was still wearing my dress. But it was painfully obvious that both of us looked a lot rougher than we had earlier in the evening.
I was a total mess from head to toe. Even now, I could feel the sand in my hair and grittiness between my toes. I never did put my shoes back on, which was just as well, unless I wanted them ruined, assuming they weren't already.
As for Jax, his appearance was more complicated. He still looked amazing. But his tux? Not so much.
It wasn't just rumpled either. I gave it a closer look and noticed a tear in the jacket and a smattering of reddish-brown spots on his formerly pristine white shirt.
I felt my eyebrows furrow. "What happened to your tux?"
"Nothing you need to worry about."
I couldn't tell if he was being rude or trying to spare me. I zoomed in on his shirt. "That isn't blood, is it?"
He shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe."
I stared at him. "Maybe? What, you don't know?"
"Forget that," he said. "I want you to know something."
I was still looking at the shirt. Absently, I murmured, "What?"
"Tonight…" His voice grew very quiet. "It wasn't supposed to happen that way."
I looked up to study his face. His eyes were dark and troubled as he added, "I'm sorry."
Now, I felt almost guilty. Yes, it was true that he'd abandoned me at a party where I didn't know a soul. And it had totally sucked. But I was only here at all because he'd rescued me from a different sucky situation.
I sighed. "Don't be sorry. Probably, I shouldn't have been here in the first place."
But already, he was shaking his head. "You're wrong. It was me. I shouldn't've left."
I just had to ask, "So, where'd you go anyway? Was there a fire or something?"
He grew very still. "What makes you say that?"
"When I ran into you, I thought I smelled smoke." My nose wrinkled. "And I think I still smell it."
He glanced down at his tux. "Yeah, well, it's been one of those nights."
"What happened?"
"Nothing. Just family stuff."
And I thought my family stuff was weird. I asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"
He smiled. "Hell no. What I want is to make it up to you."
I shook my head. "There's nothing to make up. But you said you left me a message? What was it?"
"It was just letting you know I'd be
late." He gave a humorless laugh. "And a reminder for you not to go anywhere."
I tried to smile. "Not even to the beach?"
His gaze met mine. "That shouldn't have happened."
I didn't know what to say, mostly because I wasn't sure what should've happened. I'd spent the whole night in limbo – not just because I'd been waiting for Jax, but also, because I had nowhere else to go.
I'd been trying not to obsess over it, but now, in the quiet of the house – his house, apparently – I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
What now?
Earlier, he'd offered me a thousand dollars to pretend to be his girlfriend. Maybe I should've jumped at the money. But I wasn't that clueless. By now, I was nearly certain that the whole thing had been a ruse for my sake.
And if it wasn't? Well, I still couldn’t accept the money. I mean, jeez, his brother already thought I was hooker. Accepting cash for a date seemed the perfect way to prove him right, especially if I fell into Jax's arms, and then into his bed.
But that wasn't going to happen, and not only because he hadn't asked. I wasn't big into one-night stands or jumping into bed with a guy I'd just met.
And this meant what, exactly?
I turned and looked vaguely toward the front door. I couldn’t see it from here, but I did know where it was.
Jax said, "If you think you're leaving, forget it."
"Actually," I admitted, "I don't know what I'm thinking."
"You never answered my question," he said. "What happened?"
"It was just that the party was over and…" I gave a useless shrug. "Well, I had to leave eventually, right?"
He studied my face. "There's something you're not telling me."
There was a lot I wasn't telling him. But unless I was ready to dump a bucketful of problems on his doorstep, I was determined to keep it that way. Lamely, I murmured, "It's just late. That's all."
"You're right," he said. "It is. So why don't you stay here tonight. We'll figure it out tomorrow, okay?"
I bit my lip. It was a really nice thought, and yet, I wasn't quite sure what he was offering me.
When I made no reply, he added, "I've got a guest room."
Relief – and the barest twinge of disappointment – coursed through me. I gave a nervous laugh. "Only one, huh? In a place like this? I'm surprised you don't have ten."
One Good Crash Page 8
