“Bigger than that even.” Jake sighed and tilted his head to the ceiling to keep his thoughts in check. Getting over Asha had been hard. Had been almost impossible. Getting over Mabel was going to be…Fuck.
When he looked back down, Dave was watching him curiously, and Jake offered the simplest explanation he could in this overly hot, overly loud bar. “I don’t date.”
“Understatement,” Milo said. “Jake’s had exactly one girlfriend in the decade I’ve known him, and that was years ago.”
Dave’s brow creased. “So you hold out for a relationship that’s worth it.”
“Kind of, yeah,” Jake said. He had no problem explaining his situation to Dave, but he’d be goddamned if he’d do it with Brandon assigning scores to women’s bodies ten feet away.
“That’s why I’m dying to hear all about this paragon who managed to lasso my buddy,” Milo told Dave excitedly. But when Jake growled, Milo held up his hands in surrender with a laugh. “Fine. I won’t ask another question about her tonight if you’ll tell me the number of the hottest licker.”
Jake turned pleading eyes toward Dave, who sighed and said, “Number five.”
“Thanks! But don’t think I’m leaving town without meeting your girl,” Milo said. And with that he vanished, leaving Jake and Dave to try to disappear into the crowd.
“I know she’s not my girl,” Jake muttered. God forbid Dave took away the impression that he felt some kind of claim on Mabel when she’d made it clear that wasn’t what she wanted.
“Yeah, well, I wish she was.” Dave nodded toward the dance floor, and Jake lifted his eyes to see the tall blonde that he definitely hadn’t been watching for all night. She wasn’t here alone, and the whole bar seemed to tilt sideways.
When Dave turned to give him a sympathetic look, Jake realized his indrawn breath had been louder than he thought.
“That’s Aiden Murdoch,” Dave said. “He’s the drummer for the Moo Daddies.”
“I remember,” Jake said shortly. “You don’t forget a guy who looks like an underwear model.”
Dave snorted. “Oh, he’ll hate that. I can’t wait to give him shit about that later.”
But Jake wasn’t listening. “I thought she liked to keep a low profile about guys she’s seeing.” He spoke more to himself than to Dave, but his friend answered anyway.
“I was as surprised to see them together tonight as you are,” Dave said. “Maybe she needed something easy. Aiden’s not relationship material, if you get what I’m saying.”
“Afraid I do.” Jake’s hands curled into fists as he watched Mabel and Aiden playfully grinding on the dance floor. Mabel’s over-the-top shimmying only lasted about thirty seconds before she burst into a peal of laughter that was audible all the way across the room.
Hearing her maple syrup laugh almost broke him. His muscles burned with the need to grab her, kiss her, demand she tell him why she decided to go public with some new guy so quickly after the two of them crashed and burned. But they’d both set limits on their new dynamic, and well, he did have afewshreds of dignity left.
When she tugged Aiden off the dance floor, their trajectory took them right past where Jake and Dave were lurking in the shadows. She stopped short when she noticed him. He sardonically lifted his bottle toward her in a greeting, and her jaw fell open. She turned and whispered something togoddamnAiden, who gripped her shoulder briefly. Then they walked over together.
“Professional coworker,” Mabel greeted Jake. Then to Dave: “Mole person.”
The underwear model held out his hand to Jake. “Aiden Murdoch.”
“Jake Carey.” He tried not to turn it into a strength contest, but somehow in the course of that endless handshake, fingers were squeezed and masculinities were tested. Both men surreptitiously flexed their hands once they broke their grip.
“So how are the auditions going?” Mabel asked brightly.
“You don’t have to fake it with us. We all know this is soul-crushing,” Dave said.
Her smile vanished. “I bet Brandon’s being a complete pig.”
“He’s got a clipboard for notes,” Dave said. “At least he hasn’t taken their measurements.”
“Yet,” Jake said.
At Mabel’s frustrated groan, Aiden looped a casual arm around her shoulders while Dave glanced over at Jake and Mabel dropped her eyes on the floor. This had to be the most awkward four-way conversation since the Virgin Mary explained her situation to Joseph and her parents.
Mabel pulled away from Aiden, and her gaze flitted over each man’s face before she declared, “Restroom. Be right back.”
She spun on her heel and vanished into the crowd, and no, this time Jake wouldnotbe following her.
