I blew out a breath. “We are going to havesomany words later on about what being nice means.”
Jay clenched his candy between his teeth and sucked in a way that should have been obnoxious and not remotely sexy but somehow managed to be both. “Orrr, we can revel in the good karma points I earned us both. You’re welcome.”
“Karma’s not going to mean shit if we don’t survive the trip,” I grumbled… but I drove the van out to the parking lot anyway, to save poor Chet a second run through the rain.
“Are you telling me Chet looks homicidal?” Jay lifted a hand toward the guy who’d dived so deeply into his trunk, he was only visible from the knees down. “Did he tell you the story about his Chrissea?”
“No. And I didn’t want him to,” I added when Jay opened his mouth to expound on the subject. “Also, I have no idea what a homicidal person looks like. I doubt they wear signs that say ‘FYI, I’m homicidal.’”
“If you want to see homicidal, maybe look in the mirror right now.” He folded his arms over his chest. “And the story about his girlfriend was extremely moving.”
“Yeah? Well, Jeffrey Dahmer had a moving cover story, also.” I pulled up behind Chet’s car, popped the gear shift into park, and glared at Jay. “And the only person I’m inclined to murder right now isyou, which I’m pretty sure would be considered self-defense when I tell them about the kidnapping.”
“Hush.” Jay pushed my arm. “Chet’ll hear you.”
I wasn’t sure which part of that he didn’t want Chet to overhear, but I was so relieved that Jay was acting normal again—giving me shit and grinning at me like he’d decided to overlook the whole sketchy I-fantasized-about-my-best-friend-while-fucking-someone-else thing—that for once Ididhush. Temporarily.
Chet slid the side panel of the van open and threw in a pair of giant black trash bags and another, smaller grocery bag before climbing in himself.
“Shew!” He stuck both hands in his long hair andshook them, sending water droplets flying around the van. “It is damper than a fish at a wet T-shirt contest out there!”
“And now in here, too.” I side-eyed Jay in a way that made it clear I blamedhimfor the musty odor that now overlaid the perfume in the van.
Chet snorted like I’d made a joke. “I sure do appreciate this favor… uh… what were your names again, boys?”
“J… Jerry,” Jay said with a tight smile. “And it’s no problem.”
In the rearview mirror, Chet’s gaze met mine. “And you?”
“Tom,” I lied smoothly as I pulled out of the rest area and onto the highway.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Jay roll his eyes at me likeIwas the one responsible for this foolish scenario.Not even.
I cleared my throat. “So, Chet, you’re a musician? That’s cool.” I glanced down at Jay’s lap and the CD he was still holding. “Tell me all about it. Do you write your own music? Are you anything like Ari Friedrich? ’Cause that dude’s talented as fuck.”
Jay’s eyes rolled back further.
“You know, Idowrite my own stuff from time to time. But this go ’round, I covered some tunes from Jayd Rollins. He’s a, um… close, personal friend of mine? So, like, I knew he wouldn’t mind.”
“You’re friends with Jayd Rollins?” Jay twisted in his seat. “Really?”
“Yep! You a fan of his?” Chet asked.
Jay faced forward again. “Depends on the day,” he said darkly.
“Who’s Jayd Rollins?” I demanded. “Sounds pretentious.”
I ignored Jay’s glare.
“Who’s Jayd Rollins?” Chet demanded. “Tom, my man, you’re missing out. He’s only, like, one of the most talented singer-songwriters on the planet. Blows Ari Friedrich out of the water.”
Jay looked slightly mollified by this, and my lips twitched. “Impossible,” I proclaimed. “Ari Friedrich paints glorious pictures with his words. Plus, he’s hot.”
“No, no, for real. And Jayd’s good-looking, too!” He wrinkled his nose. “Kinda short, though.”
“Short.” Jay looked down at his own long legs. “Really?”
“No one looks the same in magazines as they do in real life, Jerry,” Chet explained patiently.
