to get off the table and find Oakley, but a hand skates up my leg.
“So, I was thinking,” the jersey-guy begins. “How about me and my buddy take you upstairs for a little while?” His hand travels higher, coasting up my thigh. “We’ll take real good care of you, gorgeous. Promise.”
Deep down, I know it’s not a good idea, but it’s better than thinking about my mom and how much I hate that she’s not here. Or how my dad’s in prison for my birthday and…
Tears prickle my throat and I have to clear it before I speak. “I—”
Don’t get a chance to finish that statement because Jace grabs the guy’s hand and bends one of his fingers backward. “Touch her again and I’ll break the other nine.”
The dude in the jersey screams in agony as he lunges for Jace, but Cole and Oakley grab him.
While Jace grabs me.
“What the hell are you doing?” I scream as he picks me up and tosses me over his shoulder like a rag doll.
Oh, boy. The ground looks way too far down from up here.
“Have fun,” Oakley says as Jace turns us around. “We’ll take care of the dogs for you.”
I have no idea what that means, and I don’t have time to wonder because Jace charges out of the living room like a man on a mission.
I slap at his back as he walks out the front door. “Can you put me down?”
“No.”
That’s it. That’s all I get.
“Oakley has my purse.”
“Oh well.”
“It’s my birthday,” I remind him, hoping he’ll concede.
He checks his watch. “Not anymore.”
Bastard.
“Can I at least have another shot before we leave?”
I’m gonna need it to survive another car ride with him.
“You’ve had more than enough already.”
“Then you should probably put me down before I puke on you.”
He chuckles darkly. “Knock yourself out.”
“I’d much rather knock you out,” I mumble as he opens the passenger door of his car and drops me into the seat.
A vulgar smile curves his mouth. “I bet you would.”
Then he slams the door.
I’m grumpy, a little dizzy, and very confused as Jace reverses into his driveway.
“I thought you said I wasn’t allowed in your house?” I chirp in a taunting voice.
His expression is impassive. “You’re not.”
I’m perplexed when he gets out of the car and comes around to my side.
I mock gasp when he opens my door. “Wow, who said chivalry was de—”
I yelp when his hands fasten around my waist, and over his shoulder I go for the second time tonight.
“I can walk, you know,” I tell his lower back.
He grunts.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask when his movements come to a halt and I hear the click of a latch.
Silence.
However, the opening and closing of his gate, along with the grass below us, tells me we’re in his backyard.
“What, did you dig a grave for me or something? Planning on burying me next to Bianca’s rabbit?”
Nerves crawl in my belly, mingling with the alcohol. Oh, shit.
Why else would he be carrying me against my will into his backyard? In the middle of the night no less.
“Holy shit, you freaking psycho. Do not kill me and bury me in your yard.”
He doesn’t say a damn thing to ease my anxiety.
A moment later, the grass turns to cobblestone.
“Jace! I swear to God!” I pound on his back as the pretty teal glow from his inground pool comes into view. “Put me down, asshole—”
I scream when he lets go of me and I plummet into a chasm of cold water.
I sputter and cough as I come up to the surface. “What the fuck?”
Hands in the pockets of his jeans, he shrugs innocently. “You told me to put you down.”
Narrowing my eyes, I prepare to tell him off, but then a horrifying realization hits me.
My heart sinks when I see the black heels with red-soles floating on the other side of the pool.
“You asshole.” I swim over to them. “These are Louboutins!”
“Lou—what?” His face twists. “Who even are you right now?”
One by one, I throw them at him. “These are my aunt’s, you idiot. She lent them to me tonight and now they’re ruined.”
He doesn’t look at all concerned. “They’re shoes. If she’s upset, buy her another pair.”
I want to scream because he doesn’t get it. “They’re eight-hundred-dollar shoes. It will take me at least six weeks to earn the money at Top of the Muffin. I was trying to save for a car.” Frustration jams in my throat and I slap the water. “Not everyone