Ruthless Kings - Laura Lee Page 0,21
side. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug. “It’s just a feeling I have.”
“I’m seeing her this weekend, so I’ll talk to her then. Since she’s still supposed to lie low, we’re just gonna order pizza and watch movies.”
Well, well. Looks like the guys and I have a girls’ night to crash. Jazz will want to string me up by the balls if I show up at her house before a full week has passed, but she’s not likely to maim me with an audience, so I’ll take my chances. She’s about to see firsthand why my persistence always pays off.
If she had any doubts about the legitimacy of that statement, they’ll be erased by this weekend.
CHAPTER EIGHT
JAZZ
“Hey, chica!” Ainsley bursts into my room, two reusable grocery bags hanging off her arms.
“What’s in the bags?”
She smiles. “What else? Chips, popcorn, candy. You can’t watch a movie without loading up on copious amounts of junk food.”
I chuckle. “I thought we were ordering pizza?”
“Already did,” Ainsley replies. “One large pineapple and black olive for you—which is disgusting, by the way—and one triple pepperoni for me.”
“Hey, don’t knock it until you try it.”
“Nope.” She shakes her head. “Never gonna happen.”
“It’s your loss.” I shrug.
Ainsley looks around the room. “So, where should I set up? DoorDash says the pizza should be here in about ten minutes.”
“The main theater room is in the basement, but I really don’t feel like going down two flights of stairs. If you don’t mind lounging on a sectional, we can use the game room down the hall.”
“Sounds good to me.”
“I just need to pee real quick. Meet you there?” I slide out of bed and head toward my en suite.
“Sure thing, Jazz.”
When I finally make it into the game-room-slash-mini- theater-room, Ainsley is already playing the first movie. I smile when three black Honda Civics appear on the giant screen, their drivers on a mission to hijack a semi-filled with electronics.
“God, I love this movie.”
“Me too,” Ainsley agrees. “If we play ‘em back to back, we should have time to get through the first three installments before I need to jet.”
I shake my head. "Nuh-uh. As far as I'm concerned, the second and third movies don't exist. We're going straight from the first to the fourth."
“I’ll give you that.” Ainsley laughs. “The only good thing that came out of either of those two movies was the addition of Ludacris’ character.
“Totally,” I agree.
I find a comfortable position and spread a fuzzy blanket over my legs. Just as I’m reaching for the bag of popcorn Ainsley had set between us, the door bursts open.
“Somebody order pizza? The delivery guy arrived right after me. Talk about perfect timing.”
My head swings around to find Bentley standing in the doorway, two boxes of pizza in his arms.
“What the heck are you doing here?” Ainsley took the words right out of my mouth.
Bentley takes a few steps forward, and right behind him are his two besties. Ainsley's grin stretches across her face as she spots Reed. I'm pretty sure I have the exact opposite expression on my face as I look at Kingston.
Bentley sets the pizza on the coffee table, flips the lid, and grabs a slice of pineapple olive. "Why else would I be here? I heard we're watching movies."
“Hey!” I shout. “That’s mine.”
He takes a huge bite, plops down on the middle of the couch, and makes a funny face as he chews. “That shit’s nasty.”
I roll my eyes. “Here’s a solution: Don’t eat my damn pizza.”
Bentley starts picking off the olives and flicking them into the box. “Nah, this works.”
While Bentley and I are arguing about the pizza, Reed sets the drinks down and takes a seat next to Ainsley. The only remaining spot on the couch is to my right, which Kingston quickly occupies, effectively wedging me between him and Bentley.
Great.
“So much for giving me time,” I mutter.
Kingston's stupidly full lips tilt up in the corners. "One of these days, you'll learn patience is not my virtue."
“Oh, trust me, I’m already well aware of that.”
Now he’s full-on grinning. “Then what’s the problem?”
I shoot daggers at him with my eyes. “You. You are my problem. I swear I’ve mentioned this before.”
Bentley swings his arm over my shoulders. "Pull them claws back in, kitty. C'mon, what's the big deal? We're all just here to chill and watch some movies. Hell, I'll even order more food, so you don't have to worry about sharing your gross-ass pizza."
“My pizza is not gross,” I pout.
Bentley laughs.