Drawn To You (Paloma's Edge) (22 page)

I pecked him on the cheek. “What does that tell you?” I responded.

“I am Chase.” Jake and I dropped our hands. He extended his hand out to Mariska.

Mariska examined him with shrewdness I hadn’t taken for granted. “Mariska.” She took a step forward and they gave each other that confident
, business-like handshake. For a second, she slid me a look from the corner of her eyes. Afterwards, she walked near Brianna.

“Great to finally put a face to
the voice I’ve talked to,” Mariska told Brianna. They’d said hello to each other a few times when Mariska had called while I was with Brianna. I knew this was a little awkward for all of us, but I think it was less awkward because I had my two girlfriends talk to each other gradually. “Thanks for taking her on.” Mariska made a face, which seemed to lessen some of the nerves Brianna may have had as her shoulders dropped and her face spread into a smile. “I know it’s not easy, but you’ll find that Beth’s okay.”

I hit Mariska’s arm. “Shut up.”

“And I am Jake.” He shook hands with Chase and half-grinned at Brianna and pulled in a deep breath. “Smells good in here. What are we cooking?”

“About to grill burgers after I wash my hands,” Gavin answered as he sauntered over toward us. “You grill?” he asked Jake
.

“
Yup. If I didn’t cook, these two girls would have starved most of the their lives.”

Gavin motioned
with his head like he wasn’t surprised to hear that. Mariska and I couldn’t say anything about Jake’s statement because it was true. “Can Jake throw down?” His gaze darted over to Mariska.

“Yeah,” she admitted. “He can, but I bet you could teach him a few things.”

***

We were eating in the backyard when Brianna came back with Joel and Rylan, who accepted the plate
s Gavin fixed for them. Joel placed his dish between Mariska and I, gesturing me to make space for him. “I am Joel, and it is
very, very
nice to meet you.” He took the ketchup and slathered it on each side of his burger, smacking the buns back on.

“Likewise,” Mariska replied politely.

“And I am Rylan.” He waved his hand and began eating.

Jake introduced himself to Joel and Rylan as he went to discard his plate. Rylan took a seat by the sliding doors. Gavin and Jake worked well together. They had a similar grilling technique. Jake was impressed that I’d remembered how he seasoned meat. But I had to give credit to Brianna for doing it with me
, or we all would’ve been choking on our burgers.

I cocked my gaze over to Chase, who wiped his mouth with his napkin and rubbed the back of my neck.

“You’ve got a spot,” Chase said, his eyes focused on my lips.

“Then take care of it,” I told him
, and he licked the barbecue sauce on my lips, going in for a kiss.

We heard groans and I felt my face break out into
a wide smile.

***

“I can give you two time alone,” Brianna said with the door half closed.

“Come back in,” Mariska said with the shake of her head
. “Please. This is your room and we want you to stay,” she insisted as she crossed her long, pliable legs on the carpeted floor.

Brianna came back in and took a cute little
antique wooden chair and sank down on it as if it were comfortable. Once the boys started talking about the hottest new Victoria’s Secret model at length, Brianna and I’d decided to take Mariska to her room.

“Does Chase have a brother?” Mariska asked with the curl of her lips. “Because maybe his generosity and looks run in the family.”

“Hmm…ummm,” Brianna joined with an equally devious expression. I felt the pink tinge creep on my face, flaring out onto my neck.

I rolled my eyes at them. “He does have a brother, but they don’t talk,” I said, instantly wishing I hadn’t had a case of loose lips. I had a strong feeling that Chase wouldn’t have liked that I
’d said that. I’d thought he was going to put the breaks on our conversation earlier this morning, which was why I hadn’t asked him more questions.

“Why not?” Mariska said with a downturn of her face.

“I can’t go into it.”

Brianna instantly looked
indifferent, or she may have hid her interest well. She knew that Chase was a sensitive button for me, and it wasn’t because we’d only been friends for a month. If Chase wanted Brianna and Gavin to know about him, he’d tell them.

“Don’t tell me you dropped your panties before he told you anything about himself,” Mariska remarked.

I leveled my eyes with her. “Don’t be a bitch,” I warned her. It was wise that she didn’t make a comment about Chase’s scar, because I didn’t think I’d be able to let that pass.

A weighted silence hung in the air
. “I was being a bitch,” Mariska said.

After
Mariska showed us the most recent photos of Pete, Brianna and I gave her a tour of the house.

Chase

Beth looked like she was in her own world as she goofed around with her friends on the dance floor. And I loved watching her have a conversation with them as they adjusted their moves to each song. They all looked happy when a country song came on, because they got to rest their feet some. Beth had this burgundy sleeveless top on with two thin strings that went around her neck and a generous scoop in the front, but it was a tease because when I looked down, there was a matching tank top sewn underneath it. The leopard-print black pants she had on with the cute little black shoes was just enough to emphasize the dip on her lower back and her backside curve out even more. Her friend Mariska had her hair in curls just like Beth, and wore a dark maxi dress. Rylan and Amberlynn were in the arcade section, and since that was in my direct line of vision and I hadn’t seen anyone in there, there was no doubt that they were fooling around. Jake was dancing with some girl. But it didn’t escape my attention that he had been staring at me every few seconds throughout the night even while flashing his perfect white teeth at his dance partner.

“How’s Jared doing?” Joel asked
Millie.

She quirked a brow at him
. The orange feather earrings she was wearing matched the orange in her tattoo.

“Jared’s good
.” She tilted her head. “If he’s not too tired from work, he’ll come and wait until I close the bar with Gavin.”

“Where’s Emilio tonight?”

“He has the night off.” She handed me another club soda with lime. “But you know if he doesn’t have anything to do, he’ll come here and end up working.”

“Yeah, I’ve seen that happen
,” I said as Millie handed other customers their drinks and crackers.

“I am gonna get
a platter of tostonos,” Joel told me. “You wanna split an order?”

I nodded and looked at Millie. “Let’s do two orders of tostones. They’ve gotta be hungry.” I leaned my head towards the girls.

“And a light beer,” Joel added.

W
e’d polished off our plate of tostonos and the crowd had doubled as expected, but Joel, Jake, and I were still able to see the girls. Rylan and Amberlynn had decided to take whatever they’d started in the arcade section back at his house. The Looney Tunes ringtone came on and I stood up to get my phone out of my pocket, knowing that it was Pierce. But it had gotten so loud in here that I’d have to shout to make sure he heard me, so I went outside.

“
Pierce,” I said as I walked through the doors and passed by Gavin and another guard.

There was no response and I grunted because my phone was acting up. I repeated myself and then hung up. I called Pierce back and it went straight to his voicemail. Maybe his phone had died or he’d shut it off for some reason. He should’ve been at La Floridita by now. I headed towards the front of the bar again when Jake came out as if he was looking for someone
, and clearly that someone was me. I liked making him wait to see when I’d go to the men’s room so he could step to me. It was much better to talk to him out in cool, fresh air.

“You got a minute?” he asked me.

“Yeah, let’s talk down the block so the girls don’t see us.”

Jake walked in time with me and we stopped when we reached the middle of the block.

I shot him an expectant look.

Arms crossed
, he peered at me. All of that pretty-boy demeanor was gone, and in its place was his hardened gaze. “Beth’s one of my sisters,” he started. “Are you with her to hit it and bounce, or are you serious about her?”

“What do you think?”

Jake’s nostrils flared, but I really didn’t care. He’d been grilling me all fucking night. “I think you better answer…my question.”

“I’d better?” I huffed and let out a bitter laugh.

***

Bethany

Once guys started to get in between us, we left the dance floor and went to the bar to get some drinks. Joel had told me Chase was talking to Pierce outside after I’d asked him. And I didn’t think much of it until Pierce had called him. I
glanced around and Jake was gone. I strolled out of La Floridita. Chase and Jake were talking in the middle of the sidewalk. I knew that I was the topic at hand.

“Guys,” I said when I was in front of them and I linked my arms with theirs, “let’s go inside. Pierce will be here any minute.”

Even though they displayed some reluctance, they complied and I blew out a sigh of relief. Jake understood that I didn’t want him to give Chase a hard time. As my gaze shifted between both of them, I couldn’t tell if they had been on the verge of arguing of if they’d sorted out any possible differences.

Gavin raised a thick brow in question and I let him know that everything was okay. This was his job. I’d be furious with Chase and Jake if they got into an altercation here. It would reflect badly on Gavin, so I understood that he was concerned as our friend and
, most importantly, as an employee.

Mariska scowled at Jake when we
were back at the bar. Jake, however, gave her a quick half-hug and drank some of the beer he’d ordered, while Brianna and Millie talked.

I tightened Chase’s arms around my midriff and
swung my gaze to him. “What happened?” I asked him in a barely audible voice.

He skimmed the pad of his finger at the nape of my neck. “He’s looking out for his sister,” he replied
, and it made my heart swell for Jake. I knew he didn’t want me to be like Cindy. He’d said that Cindy may have been an innocent, love-struck dummy in the past.

“Hey,” Pierce said to all of us.

We all said hello to him when Jake and he stared at each other.

Pierce brought his hand to his chin and then snapped his fingers. “Did you come for the campus
tour I did with Nathalie, one of our admissions counselor?”

“Yup, last fall,” Jake said. “I knew you looked familiar.”

“Are you coming to UM?”

“We both are.” Jake made a gesture between he and Mariska.

Pierce stood next to them and they started asking him the same questions they’d asked me about my first year of college.

An hour later, the big booth had finally been vacated and all of us sat down. Gavin had stopped by during his bathroom break. I’d had half of my second wine cooler.

Brianna stopped laughing with Mariska when Derek and that girl he’d brought here and to the Paloma bar gave her a fake wave as if they were her friends. And since there was only one stool left, Derek sat on it and the girl parked herself on his lap with her legs wound around him. They kissed for minutes. Even if Brianna directed her gaze somewhere else, it was impossible not to notice them. Derek had his shirt unbuttoned lower this time, revealing abnormal-looking muscles saturated in baby oil.

“Is that your ex…Derek?” Joel asked
Brianna.

Brianna
swigged her piña colada and nodded. I think she was too choked up to say anything.

“He bulked up and now he thinks he’s Rocky,” Pierce said. “You wanna leave, say the word. We can go
to my penthouse.”

“It’s fine,” Brianna said
. “I am not leaving because of him. We were here first.” Her tone was strong, but the hurt was written all over her face.

Jake
braced his arm about her. “Okay, but you can change your mind anytime. It’s understandable that you don’t wanna be subjected to that.”

When Derek and his date weren’t sucking each other’s face
s anymore, Millie served them their drinks. In a matter of minutes, Derek stared at our table, and his date didn’t seem to like it one bit. When I looked back at Brianna, she was kissing Jake. Giggling, Mariska shielded the side of her face with her hand and Joel’s eyes danced with rapture as he took in this make-out session. Were Chase and I that bad around our friends? My brother was kissing my friend. Jake had kissed and slept with many girls because he could. Brianna was more than just another girl. And as much as I loved Jake, he didn’t deserve her. Although I was worried about Brianna possibly being clingy with Jake, I couldn’t prevent this from playing out however it was going to.

***

Chase

Me:
Come inside. Bri’s ex looks like he’s about to start something.

Gavin:
On it.

“At least this phone isn’t giving me problems with sending texts. I couldn’t hear you when you called,” I told Pierce.

“I didn’t call you.
” He furrowed his brow. “I called Joel.”

I lifted my eyes from my phone and saw Bri’s ex
on his way to our table. We shot up and blocked him from moving past us, but he was still running his mouth. Jake and Joel were standing by the table. The girls looked very annoyed with this guy, but they didn’t look scared at all.

“After all I’ve done for you?
” Derek shouted “Waited for you to—”

“I wouldn’t finish that sentence if I were you,” Pierce
said.

Wayne, the other full-time
bodyguard, restrained the girl this guy was with after she attempted to throw an empty bottle at him. Gavin placed his hands on the dude’s shoulders. Pierce and I followed as Gavin escorted him out of La Floridita. The patrons continued to drink, dance, and watch the TV mounted on the corner of the wall across from the bar.

“Get your fucking hands off me,” the guy shouted. Gavin pinned him with a steely stare that made him bite back whatever else he was going to say. Wayne held the door open from a Miami cab company they utilized when their customers needed it. Giving the guy the finger, the girl
got inside and slammed the door shut.

“Listen carefully,
Derek,” Gavin said. “You’ve been coming to Bri’s job, where she hangs out, and asking around about her.” He pressed his palms deeper into Derek’s shoulder, so that his upper body was immobile. “Now, I am starting to think that I need to call Detective Abrams. See what he thinks about his son creeping on his ex.”

“I am no damn stalker,” Derek bristled.

“Could’ve fooled me,” Pierce said. “You sure been acting like one.”

After a beat, Derek said, “Please don’t tell my
dad that—”

“Then don’t come to Paloma’s Edge anymore,” Gavin
interrupted. “Don’t bother my sister or ask about her, either. Understand?” Derek’s Adam’s apple bobbled and his eyes drifted to his boots as he shook his head yes. “Because if there’s a next time you try to make my sister miserable, I don’t give a fuck. You won’t see it comin’; I’ll fuck with your life from every angle, you’d wish you’d gone after some other girl from the get-go.”

“His cab’s here,” Wayne shouted out to us.

Gavin shot Derek a look. “Perfect timing. Derek was just telling me that he’s gonna call it a night.”

Pierce and I
stood at the front of La Florida with Wayne. Gavin said something else to Derek that made him look like he was about to vomit.

***

Beth was at the back of my car with Bri. After the cab had driven Derek away from us, we assured everyone that Derek wouldn’t be here again. Jake and Mariska had offered to drive Bri back home, but she’d declined. Pierce stayed at La Floridita.

“Did Jake ask to sleep with you?” Beth asked Bri.

“No,” she replied.

That was a point in Jake’s favor
, because Joel had likely told Gavin about their kissing. Despite Gavin knowing that Bri was her own woman and could do as she pleased, he saw her as his kid sister. It was like he took her happiness and sadness as his own so much that it concerned Pierce and I. Tonight, Pierce had watched if Beth was having a good time and how I’d treated her, but not to the degree that Gavin would have had he been with us. Gavin had had fun with a girl at one of Pierce’s parties in his penthouse on his night off months ago, but other than that, it was like his life came second to Bri’s. And there was no sign that he had an issue with that. I know that she wanted him to do whatever he wanted and not feel compelled to put her first, but he appeared I don’t know how she’d do without his constant presence in her life.

“Whose idea was it to kiss?” Beth queried.

“Jake’s.”

Grinning, Beth made a sound that showed she wasn’t surprised.

“Mariska handed me a napkin because I was crying a little,” Bri explained, ducking her head from my view and dropping her voice. “I didn’t noticed until small tears trickled down my neck. Jake said that he’d show that asshole how it’s done, and I knew he was asking me if I wanted him to kiss me. I am not stupid.” She laughed a little. “And I don’t remember if I turned my face to kiss him first or if he did, but he can kiss. And it was uncomplicated.”

After
we arrived at the house, Bri, Beth, and Mariska were in Bri’s house. I showered and got into my t-shirt and shorts. When I reached the kitchen, Jake was at the kitchen table with a can of ice-cold beer in his hand. He hadn’t had any alcohol when we were at La Floridita.