Before You (Before You #1)(6)
Jax placed his hand on her arm. She stiffened imperceptibly, so he shoved his hands in his pockets and tipped his head toward the crowd of people dancing near the now unoccupied stage. “I don’t know what happened to Cam, but maybe you’d like to dance?”
“With you?” she said drolly with raised eyebrows.
“Well, you could always dance by yourself, but you looked so uncomfortable earlier, I thought you might like an escort to keep the wolves at bay,” he said with an impenitent grin.
“I got the distinct impression earlier that you were one of the wolves I should keep at bay,” she answered, her amber eyes sparkling with laughter as she looked pointedly at him.
Without thinking, Jax burst out laughing and grabbed her arm, leading her toward the dance floor. “Too true, Bre, but for you, I promise to be on my best behavior. Besides, you’re Cam’s girl, so I don’t think I have any choice.”
She rolled her eyes. “You really expect me to believe you’re going to be on your best behavior after all those lame things you said to me earlier?”
Jax stared at the expression on her face and he took in how fresh and innocent she looked, then his eyes dipped to her mouth and he couldn’t help wondering how her lips would feel against his when they curled upward teasingly. “A few minutes ago,” he murmured, “I would have told you absolutely, but when you look at me like that, maybe not.”
“Oh right,” she responded, laughing. “There you go again—accusing me of looking at you inappropriately.”
Jax laughed. “Fine, I’ll keep all my thoughts to myself. Let’s dance.” Jax pulled her closer than necessary and momentarily buried his head in the side of her neck. He loved the way she managed to smell like fresh mountain air mixed with lavender even in a dirty, run-down bar. A slow song came on, and he placed her arms around his neck and let his hands roam down the sides of her body, ultimately settling on her lower back. If Cam saw them dancing like this, he would be angry, but right now, he didn’t care. He wanted to touch her from the moment he laid his eyes on hers, and until she protested, he intended to take full advantage of the situation, within reason, of course.
When the song ended, she pulled out of his embrace and stared up at him, biting her lower lip. “I need to find Cam. I didn’t plan to stay out late. I’ve been driving all day. I should probably go to bed before I collapse.”
If she were any other girl, now would be the time he pressured her to forget about her boyfriend, but he knew that would be futile. Cam was part of the band and more importantly Cam was his friend, so he needed to back off. “Sure, he’s probably back at the bar.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the crowds of people grinding against each other to the pulsing music. When they neared the bar, Jax spotted Cam with his arm around some blonde groupie that looked vaguely familiar. He turned to see Bre’s reaction, but she seemed to be absorbed in watching the scene on the dance floor.
“Cam,” he shouted, trying to give him warning of their approach. Cam turned to look at Jax. “I think this one belongs to you. She’s ready to go home.”
Cam jumped off his barstool. “Hey, Bre. I’ve been looking for you. Where did you disappear to?” Jax watched Cam lean in and kiss the top of her head.
Turning to look at him with a wide smile, she replied, “Dancing. Jax was nice enough to invite me.”
Throwing his arm around Jax’s shoulder, Cam said, “Was Jax propositioning you again? You need to watch out for him. He’s dangerous with all of his well-practiced lines.”
“No, he was a perfect gentleman.”
Jax watched the blonde woman that Cam was talking to a few minutes ago saunter toward them. She stepped between Cam and Jax and put her arms around both of their waists. Getting a whiff of her musky perfume, Jax turned his head and stepped away from her. Unlike Bre, this woman was a dime a dozen in this bar and not in a good way.
“Hey, Cam, Jax,” the woman practically purred. “Jax, is this your little toy for the night?” She nodded toward Bre. “She doesn’t really look like your type, and I thought you were with Katie. She never misses an opportunity to tell everyone that you’re taken.” Not a hair out of place, the woman looked as if she spent hours staring into the mirror to get every detail right. Her eyes, however, were partially bloodshot from her obvious overindulgence.
“Bre is Cam’s girlfriend. She’s in town for a month,” Jax replied, ignoring the comment about Katie. Katie was really getting on his nerves. He should have listened to his instincts and never touched her. She acted as if their occasional hookups allowed her stake some sort of claim on him despite his clear declaration that he wasn’t interested in a relationship.
“Really, Cam. I had no idea you were dating anyone. You never mentioned.” The words dripped off her tongue like venom.
“Right,” Cam interrupted. “Hey, I’ll see you guys later. Bre had a long day. I need to get out of here. Jax, grab my guitar on your way out. I’m going to drive Bre’s car home.”
“Sure,” Jax responded. “I’ll see you both in a week for the Labor Day party at the beach house.”
Watching Cam leave with Bre, his arm riding her lower back, Jax experienced an uncharacteristic moment of outrage. He bristled like some sort of pathetic jilted lover and the intensity of his irritation alarmed him. Before they reached the door, he turned and stalked toward the dance floor, grabbing Katie on his way. He needed to release some tension.