JAX (The Beckett Boys #2) - Olivia Chase Page 0,45
back home?” I’m careful to keep my voice light.
She puts her glass down with care and says in a tone just as light as mine, “A couple of days after graduation. My parents got a hotel room so they can come to my ceremony, then they’re gonna help me move all my stuff.”
“If you need help, holler.” It’s an inane thing to say. Of course she doesn’t need my help. I’m just the guy she’s…seeing? Dating? Fucking? I don’t know. Whatever we are, it isn’t that serious.
Even though the discomfort in my chest seems to want to think otherwise.
“Jax?” a sultry voice from behind me says. I turn in my seat to see Harlow, a girl I had a brief fling with last year, standing before me in a server’s outfit. She laughs and puts her hands on her hips. “I never would have imagined seeing you in a place like this. Not quite your style, right?”
I roll my eyes and stand up, giving her a hug. I’m not quite sure why we stopped seeing each other. She was a lot of fun in the sack, that’s for sure—the girl had no boundaries, would try anything once.
She embraces me and tries to gives me a warm kiss on the mouth, but I turn and give her more of my cheek. Then she pulls back and eyes Brooklyn with interest. “And who’s this?”
“This is Brooklyn,” I say, waving a hand at her.
Brooklyn is a little stiff, but she offers her hand. “Pleased to meet you…”
“Harlow,” I fill in.
“And how do you two know each other?” she asks.
Harlow gives a throaty laugh. “How does anyone know Jax?”
Fuck. I can see Brooklyn’s spine straighten, and she stands and puts her napkin on the chair. “I need to go to the restroom. You two can…catch up.” Before I can say anything, she takes off.
“That one’s uptight,” Harlow muses. “Not your usual type.”
“Well, that was tacky to say,” I tell her with a frown. “What the fuck did you expect? I’m out on a date with her.”
“And she doesn’t know about your reputation?”
“She knows all about me.”
Harlow studies me, and she grows serious. “Honestly, I’m kinda surprised anyone would be okay with it. I know I couldn’t handle it. Kudos to her.”
Oh, right. Now I remember why we split up. She told me she loved me and I balked. Upon thinking about it, that was kind of a dick move on my part. “Hey.” I frown. “Um, about how we left things…”
She laughs and pats me on the cheek. “Jax, I’m perfectly happy now. I’m engaged to someone else. No worries.” She glances over her shoulder. “Shit, gotta go. Talk to you later.” With that, she leaves, weaving between tables to go serve customers.
I resume sitting and nibble on spinach dip. But I’m kind of unsettled. It takes several minutes for Brooklyn to return, and when she does, it’s like a cardboard cutout version of herself. Her smile is so fake it looks painted on.
“I’m starving,” she declares as she takes a tiny bite of bread. She puts it down on the little plate in front of her then swallows her wine down so fast it’s gone almost before I can blink.
“Whoa, slow up there, darling,” I tell her with a stilted laugh. “You okay? We need to talk about something?”
“Absolutely not,” she declares. “Everything’s great, right?”
“Except since Harlow came over, you’ve been acting weird.” I’m not good at pretending, and I don’t want to sit over dinner and be fuck-all awkward. “So why don’t you just tell me what you’re thinking and get it off your chest.”
“What could possibly be wrong?” she lobs back. “Just another girl from your past.”
“I’m not ashamed of my past.” I can feel irritation welling in my chest. “I’ve never pretended to be anything other than myself. You knew who I was from the start.”
“Yup.” She grabs the bottle and refills her glass to the top, then takes a hearty swallow. “Sure did. No surprises here. Everyone knows Jax and his great reputation. He’s a love ‘em and leave ‘em kind of guy.”
Her bristling condemnation of my personality makes me say in a tone stronger than usual, “What the fuck is going on here? Why is this making you mad all of a sudden? You’ve never given me shit before about it.”
“I’ve also never had it rubbed in my face like this before.” Her tone grows sharp as she stares daggers at me. “That was rude and insulting.”