“Aren’t you a star pupil?”
“I am very good at assignments.”
It was a good thing we weren’t even tipsy because otherwise, I would have dismissed Jax’s sudden proximity as a product of alcohol consumption.
My skin heated as he placed his hand on the side of my neck. His thumb ran up and down my Adam’s apple. I swallowed, waiting for more.
“I really missed you, you know?” he asked in such a low voice I struggled to hear it over the noise of the bar.
“I missed you too.”
Our eyes connected. The air around us felt electrified like we were in the eye of a storm.
“Jaxon?”
We both jumped away from each other when the voice called Jax’s name, and I didn’t miss the tension that radiated from him. “Trent.”
The guy Jax had his eyes on was about my height, with jet-black hair and bright-green eyes. Next to him was a big guy who rivaled Jax in height and build. Simply put, the guy was a tank.
“Well, well, Jaxon. It’s been a hot minute.”
“Not long enough,” Jax replied, squaring his shoulders.
The guy smiled, and if he didn’t look so arrogant, he would almost look sexy.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us?” the guy asked, looking at Jax like he was stripping him naked before his eyes settled on me with something between disgust and curiosity in them.
I turned to the guy. “I’m Tanner. Can you give us a moment?”
The guy furrowed his brows but nodded before waving at the bartender. “I’ll get this round. Can’t wait to catch up.”
The big guy remained silent.
I pulled Jax to a private corner close to the bathrooms.
“I’m calling it. Clearly, there’s something between you two. Give me the CliffsNotes, and I’ll play it however you want,” I said.
Jax gave me an inquisitive look. “We met in training and dated for five years. Different units. He left the Army three years ago, and for a while, we only saw each other when I was on leave. I thought it was serious, but he clearly didn’t because when I came back one time, like a bad cliché, I caught him in bed with another guy.”
“The big dude?”
“No, another one.”
Jax’s expression was hard to read, but I could tell he wasn’t as chill about seeing this guy as he tried to make it.
“Are you in love with him?”
“No. Not anymore. Maybe I wasn’t then either, but I didn’t know it at the time.”
“You thought it was real.”
Jax nodded. “I don’t know what he’s doing here. He mentioned once having family in Vegas, but I never thought…”
“Do you trust me?” I asked.
His usual easy smile returned to his lips. “I’m scared to answer that question.”
I placed my hands on his chest, reveling in the feel of his breath catching a little.
