I shake him off. “Kade, it’s fine, really! You’re great. You did nothing wrong. Actually, you did everything right.”
His smile dims. “I feel like there’s a ‘but,’ and a ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ coming.”
My only response is a guilty frown.
“Is it true, you and Jack?”
I shrug. “No, not entirely. We weren’t together and have not been together. We haven’t slept together.”
He slaps the tabletop. “Listen, TMI. I won’t judge you even if that is the case. Jack’s a solid guy. He deserves to be happy. He’s been alone for a long time. While I gotta say that I wish I were him and you were mine, if I need to lose out to another guy, he’s the one I’d pick.”
I let out a breath and give him a hug.
“I’m going to get out of here and let all this settle,” says Kade. “I hope we can be friends because you’re a cool girl, Jessi.”
I put out my hand for a handshake, and he nods as he takes it. “Friends.”
“Friends.” As Kade takes off, he salutes Jack.
Sonny comes running over. “OMG. Both of them in the same room? What the heck happened to Jack’s face?”
“Shh. Don’t make it obvious.”
She grabs me by the shoulders and herds me toward the bathroom. As soon as the door shuts, she rounds on me. “Spill it.”
I push her hands off my shoulders. “Okay. Okay. I chose Jack. We talked, and he is ready to pursue something, but he said I had to pick him and end it with Kade or whatever we had was done, because he wasn’t interested in sharing.”
She gasps. “Wait, Jack said he doesn’t want to share, like you guys are exclusive, a real thing? Are you serious? This is big, girl. Jack doesn’t date. He must be mega into you. Natasha is going to flip her shit. I hope I’m here to see it.” She fixes her hair in the mirror and smirks.
“Well, I really like him. So, we’ll see where it goes. There’s already one major issue, though.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m not sure we have a real future. I want to get married and have kids.” I press a finger to her lips before she can interrupt. “I’m not saying I want to marry and have kids with Jack yet—slow down. What I’m saying is I know I want that more than anything. But Jack doesn’t.”
Sonny gives me a sly grin. “Jack also doesn’t date, but here we are.”
I rock back on my heels. “I’ll never pressure him or hope he changes. He’s had women do that, and I won’t do that to him. I’m not sure where that leaves us, but for now, I’m not going to worry about it.”
“Okay. But girl, what’s the deal with Jack’s face?”
I slide lip gloss over my mouth to buy some time before responding. “I feel horrible. He got it defending me because of what happened at the theater.”
“Seriously? Who did that?”
The door creaks open and two other women step in. Sonny and I shuffle back to the bar and I beeline toward Jack.
One of the girls gives me a beer as I take a seat.
“I’m good,” I tell her. “I could have gotten it. You don’t need to wait on me!”
She tips the bottle, pointing behind me. “Oh, I think you’ll want it.”
I spin around. Natasha and her friends sit in the back corner, clearly talking shit about me—like I give a crap. I turn my attention back to Jack and giggle as he ogles me up and down. He sets his hand on the back of my stool, and I magically skid next to him. Then I groan. “People are going to think something is going on with us.”
He whispers in my ear, “So let them. Also, why does your hair always smell so good?” His breath tickles, so I squeeze his face between my neck and shoulder. He goes on, “Now, why would we care if people thought something was going on between us? Ithought I made myself clear. You are mine. I want every asshole in here to know it.”
I clench my thighs together, and as if on cue, dampness springs between them. How does Jack know how to turn me on with only his words? “What about them?” I tilt my head toward Natasha and the other bikers.
