Page 174 of Just Wait

Mal stands next to one of the high-top tables, talking to several beautiful women.

My eyes narrow.

The chick next to him inches closer, resting her hand on his chest. His arms are crossed, which screams that he’s not interested, but she still runs her hand over his pec.

He smiles and says something as he takes a step back.

She follows.

He shakes his head, and I’ve had enough.

“Sorry. I’ll be right back,” I tell Riser, shoving myself off the couch and crossing the room in purposeful strides.

Mal might be too polite to tell her to fuck off, but I’m not.

I’m maybe three feet away when she starts teasing her hand down his stomach.

I try to remind myself that he’s a rock star.

The world doesn’t know he’s taken.

I stop dead in my tracks.

He’s really not, though.

We haven’t had any conversations about exclusivity.

In fact, I’ve pushed to not call this a relationship. Even if the fans did know he was dating someone, not all of them would care.

Mal grabs her hand, shaking his head. He releases it, and his eyes dart around. I don’t love that he looks straight-up terrified when his gaze meets mine. He’s done everything right to set me at ease and discourage handsy fans. He can’t help the way other people act, but I know he’s likely worried how I’ll react.

As he backs up against the wall, the woman follows him, planting her hands on his hips.

She stretches up, getting close to his mouth.

He sidesteps, and she kinda falls forward into the wall.

I snort.

He swipes his hand over his face and takes off toward me.

I meet him in the middle. “Are you okay?”

At the same time, he blurts out, “It wasn’t what it looked like.”

I’ve heard that before, and my mind decides it’s the perfect time to replay the night Theo cheated on me. Shaking away those thoughts, I refocus on Malcolm.

“Really?” I ask, planting my hands on my hips. “Because from here, it looked like she tried to kiss you, and you chucked her into the wall.”

“The first part, yes.” Mal frowns, glancing over his shoulder at the woman. “Damn. I didn’t think I threw her into the wall. Do I need to go over there and apologize?”

“Nah.” I laugh. “I was just messing with you. You handled the situation very well from what I could see.” I wrap my arms around him, burying my face in his shirt. “What did you tell her?”

He loops his arms over mine, pulling me into his chest. “I, uh, told her that I have a girlfriend.”

“Is that right?”

“Yeah, she wouldn’t back off.”