Page 9

Jett has decided to forgo his usual favorite flamingo shirt for something arguably more abhorrent. A shirt entirely formed of little versions of Gary the Goat's face. Tate, his brother, is dancing beside him, because after he’s had two whiskeys, he becomes just as unhinged as Jett. It’s nice to see him like this, because he’s been a sullen asshole the last few years.

And finally, I spot my little brother, Ace. Harper is nestled into his side, gazing up at him, laughing. His hand is on her bump, as if the rest of the room doesn’t damn well exist. Because, to them, it doesn’t. Hence why he’s brought his wife to my bachelor party.

As I head to the bar, I clock Jett out of the corner of my eye, darting towards me so fast his hat tips off his head. Tate laughs and picks it up behind him.

“Late to your own party,” Jett says, stepping in line.

I stop, watching as Jett nods to the bartender, and I close my eyes. Please god no.

The room falls silent, and the music shuts off. I glance at Ace, who is biting back a grin, while Hunter is doing the same.

“What have you done?” I ask Jett under my breath.

I nearly jump out of my skin when the room erupts with explosions of confetti. After a second, music starts blaring again and everyone cheers. I clench my fists as a banner falls from the ceiling beams that reads: Mr. & Mrs. Sterling.

I blink at the sign, and everyone fucking mocking me as Tate shoves a bottle of whiskey in my hand.

“You might need this,” he says.

I clear my throat and down the contents.

“It gets better,” Jett says under his breath as he leans in. I’m hoping he doesn’t have another version of that shirt for me to wear.

I run a hand over my stubble. “How could it possibly get any better than this?”

The door that leads to the offices opens, and a string of absolutely drop-dead gorgeous women in sparkly underwear and heels strut out. There must be thirty of them, and they’re walking right towards me.

“For you, cuz,” Jett says with a cackle.

“You hired me thirty strippers?” I ask, before drinking more whiskey. “That’s a lot, even for me.”

He nods, looking awfully pleased with himself as the women disperse around the room. One is already straddling a guy in the booth, and he appears to have died and gone to heaven. Hunter and Ace are now hiding in the corner of the bar with Harper, too scared to go anywhere near one of these women for fear they’ll get their dicks chopped off. Lola would absolutely kill Hunter if he got a dance. And I’m pretty sure Ace bought Harper here to protect him against Jett's insane plans.

And well, Ace, he wouldn’t anyway. His dick only works for Harper—actual words from his mouth.

“Why don’t you get a dance, Jett? I’ll call Violet so she can watch?” I say, turning to him with a grin.

His eyes go wide. “You wouldn’t dare.”

I arch a brow, pulling out my phone. “Wouldn’t I? I thought she was just your friend.”

The worst kept secret on Sterling Ranch is that Jett is obsessed with Violet. And I think she is the same about him too. The man dropped everything to be at the birth of her son recently. And he ain’t even the father.

“She is my best friend, Colt. And she’s hormonal as hell. Please don’t upset her.”

Jett Lawson has gone as pale as a ghost over upsetting his friend. That makes me pause. We love Violet. We took her in as one of our own. We’re glad she has Jett to look out for her.

“I’m fuckin’ with you, Jett.” I laugh, resting my hand on his shoulder and leaning in. “But if you ever try and throw me a surprise party again, I’ll tie you down and make you watch me fuck one of them,” I say under my breath.

He bites his lip, with a frown, as if he’s debating something philosophical.

“That would be a punishment?” he finally retorts.

I roll my eyes. “You want to watch your cousin fuck a girl?”

“No. I wouldn’t be lookin’ at you, Colt. I’d be watching her. Don’t make it weird.”

The second I feel a hand on my back, I find the handle of my gun and slowly turn around. A rich sandalwood scent fills my nostrils, and I know exactly who it belongs to.