A moment later, I had a bottle in hand and Jackson’s arm in the other, dragging him over to the pool tables and away from the hot bartender with the shaved head. As we racked the balls, I spotted Kieran and Micah in the entryway, looking around for us. I gave them a little wave, my stomach fluttering at seeing Micah.
They made their way to our side of the bar, Kieran leading the way and Micah following close behind. I started to go to him, taking a few steps in his direction, but stopped myself before I made it to the other side of the pool table and gave another wave instead.
“Hey,” I said, trying to look casual. I didn’tfeelcasual. Panic was rising in my throat. I’d almost reached for Micah and kissed him—in public. There were so many layers of why that would have been a terrible idea that my mind reeled. Micah might be publicly out, but nobody besides Jackson, and presumably Kieran, knew that I wasn’t straight. Besides that, we’d agreed to keep it casual, temporary. Public displays of affection hardly felt casual to me anymore. Still, though, I wanted him.
It seemed like an eternity had passed since I'd greeted them, because the next thing I knew, Jackson was laughing at something someone had said and I realized I’d been lost in my own thoughts. I focused my attention on the conversation.
“Sure,” Kieran said, grinning a little and looking directly at Jackson. “But I want to be onyourteam.”
Jackson’s eyebrows rose, and his smile was as flirty as I’d ever seen it. “Deal.”
The balls clacked as Jackson broke, Micah and I standing aside. “You said you had a weird couple of days?”
He nodded, gaze fixed to the pool table. “Very weird.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Remember my awful ex?”
I laughed once, humorlessly, and nodded. “Phillip. The one with the condo and the contract.”
“Yeah, well. The contract was… weird. Illegal and unenforceable probably, but he was going to try anyway. He was trying to coerce me into marrying him.”
I furrowed my brow and tipped my head to the side. “Seriously?”
“Seriously. And to make matters worse, it turns out he’s done this shit before. One of his other exes came to find me and warn me not to sign. I’d already figured it out at that point, but I appreciated his help anyway.”
“Hey, you’re up.” Jackson tapped his stick on the ground near me to get my attention.
I stepped away to make my shot, more focused on what Micah had told me than the pool table. His ex tried to coerce him into gettingmarried? What an asshole. And to think he’d done it to at least one other person made matters even worse. I took my shot, missing the pocket because I was busy wondering what Phillip’s long con was. When I made my way back to Micah, he was leaning an elbow on our bar-height table, gaze following me closely.
I fought the urge to take his hands in mine. “Are you doing okay now though?” I kept watching the pool table as I spoke, paying attention to Micah in my periphery.
He nodded. “It’s done now. He has to sell the condo and send me the money, and if he crosses any other lines, my lawyer says we can file for a restraining order.”
“That’s a relief.” When I looked at him, his gaze was fixed on my mouth.
“It is,” he murmured. “A big relief.”
Heat burned through me as I focused my gaze on him for real, tension stretching tight between us. “So now what?” My heart thumped hard in my chest.
Micah hesitated for a second. “It doesn’t change much. I’m still just here until we see if the studio wants to keep me around.”
A lump formed in my throat, and I nodded silently, turning my gaze back to the pool table. Jackson was laughing and bumping Kieran with his shoulder, cheeks pink and a mile-wide smile.
“Yeah,” I murmured. “When do you find out?”
He shrugged. “Soon. Hell, maybe tomorrow. We’re about to wrap on the post office. They won’t keep me in limbo.”
I gave a tiny nod and looked at Micah again, my chest squeezing painfully. He stayed silent and his jaw worked, muscle flexing.
When he looked at me again, he rubbed the back of his neck. “I—”
“Do you want to get out of here?” My voice was barely audible over the music and the clacking of pool balls.
Silently, he nodded, his shoulders and chest moving as he exhaled in what looked like relief.
I put my glass down and waved at Jackson with two fingers. “I’m wiped. Gonna head out.”
