“Not sure how Aiden can help me,” I say.
“Dirk will help too. I’m sure Auz will as well,” Adele throws in.
“Do not let anyone tell Austin or Dirk what’s happening. Nobody, Carly, not even you should even have a clue.”
“Maybe you should talk to Jude, level with him, and go from there,” Carly suggests.
“Maybe I should just let Jude fuck me and then when he falls asleep, sneak off to Japan before I put you guys in any further danger,” I reply. “No. Wait. No. I can’t have sex with him again. That might be my kryptonite.” I throw back more of my boozy slushy. I need to get this dealt with. I head out, not sure what I’m about to say or do.
The girls follow behind me.
***
He’s sitting with the guys, having a drink, looking all cool and casual. But his eyes hit mine and the look in them makes my knees turn to mush.
I stare. He stares back and the way he looks at me makes me angry. He looks amused. But also dangerous. And he is. To my heart. To my ability to think clearly. To himself if he doesn’t stop digging into my past.
“Leave,” I demand.
“I’ll leave when you leave. Since you’re comin’ with me. In more ways than one,” he replies.
Asshole.
I point at the door.
“A bet is a bet, sweet cheeks,” Jude informs.
“I can’t believe you,” I say.
“Believe it. You bet, you lost, and now you owe.”
“Owe what?” Carly asks.
She still doesn’t know. I’ve only told Adele so far.
“Peaches,” Aiden warns.
“Don’t play if you’re not prepared to pay,” Jude says with a cocksure expression that makes me even angrier.
“You’re really gonna make me do this.”
“Not only am I going to make you do it, you’re gonna like it.” He wiggles his brows. “We both are.”
“Fine. But I hate you more today than I hated you yesterday,” I tell him.
He rolls his eyes. “And probably not half as much as you’ll hate me tomorrow. Let’s go.” He downs the rest of his drink and winks at Aiden, who smirks.
He’s revealing things right now that should really be the basis for a disqualification on the bet.
Plus that he was tailing me and knew I didn’t have a date the other night – that’s another reason why he really can’t consider himself a winner here. Because he’s had way more time, obviously, to dig into me than when we made the bet. I made that bet without having all the facts.
“Wait. No. I don’t like this,” Carly says.
“It’s fine, Car,” I say.
I’ll get myself out of this. He’s got two disqualifications.
“What’s goin’ on here?” Austin asks.
My eyes are locked with Jude, but I hear Adele’s husband Dirk reply, “Not a clue, but it’s like a soap opera and I can’t tear my eyes away. Make some popcorn, Aid.”
“This guy tricked me into making a sex bet and now I have to pay up. Because he’s a snake,” I inform.
“Tricked you? Is that word now a synonym for won? Poor victim,” Jude laughs, folding his arms across his chest.
Time to take this downstairs before he does something ridiculous, like say my real name.
I grab the doorknob.
“You’re not gonna make her have sex because she lost a bet,” Adele states. But she’s not too convincing. She looks at me like she’s excited for me that I’m going to get some.
“Of course I am,” he replies. “A bet is a bet. Ask her if she’d have made me pay if she’d won.”
“Of course I would,” I declare.
Am I sabotaging myself here on purpose?
“What did you bet?” Carly asks.
“If I won, he’d fuck off and leave me alone,” I say, letting go of the doorknob, feeling heat flood my face.
Aiden makes a funny sound.
“I’m ready,” Jude says, coming over and opening the door all the way, gesturing for me to go ahead.
“Call me before you do anything hasty,” Carly requests. “Promise?”
I nod, looking over my shoulder at her and then I head down the hall so I can get out of earshot of these guys before I lose my temper.
***
He follows me in silence down the three floors to my place. He left the door unlocked. Not safe! He calls himself a safety and security expert? Please.
When I get inside, I spin around to face him.
“You’re totally disqualified from this bet. You screwed yourself, Dick.”
“Oh really?” He folds his arms across his delicious chest. His muscles strain against the tight black button-down shirt he’s wearing. The first few buttons are undone, and the sleeves are rolled to the elbows and why is it so damn sexy? His hair looks sex-mussed. I spot a piece of glitter over his eyebrow.
“First, you tailing and following me last week means that you’ve been investigating me since before our bet, which has to disqualify the bet.”
“Not likely. And I followed you that night but only because you said you had a date, and I was plannin’ on stopping it. But you didn’t have a date, did you?”