The Bad Boy and the Other Bad Boy

Chapter 24

The bass of the music was making my chest vibrate. I tipped my head back and let loose a plume of smoke into the air, then washed the taste out of my mouth by chugging the whole cup of whatever was in that cup. The guys cheered in appreciation, but I barely heard them.

A girl with red glitter like mine across her cheeks drifted into the kitchen, wearing a tight short red dress, her friends in similar outfits in tow.

She pressed her body against my side as she reached for a red cup. She pulled back and met my eyes as she raised the cup to her lips, telling me with her eyes that she had done it on purpose.

I met her eyes for a second, and suddenly she had her lips pressed against mine, her tongue slipping between my lips. I was frozen for a second before I pushed her off me. She pulled away, wiping her lips, grinning. Her friends were shrieking with laughter behind her. She turned and smiled at me one last time over her raised shoulder, then with a flick of her hair she had followed her friends out of the kitchen.

My friends were dying of laughter and shock, slapping me on the back.

"Why didn't you want her? She was hot, I'd take her. " Someone was hollering in my ear.

I wiped my lips on my t-shirt, shouldering past him, grabbing another red cup on my way out.

I knew I had probably made them mad, but I had already drunk two full cups of whatever that stuff was and I was starting not to care.

The throng of people parted for me once again as I walked down the hall to the main room, not sure who I was looking for. I threw the contents of the cup in my hand back until it was empty, some of it spilling over my jacket.

I turned into through the entrance way of the main room, the music getting louder as I did, the bass of the music thrumming the air in my lungs.

The room was filled with a crowd of twisting bodies. They were lit by the DJ stage against the opposite wall. Again, faces turned towards me. The crowd began to part slowly, two seas peeling away from each other.

In the middle of the room, there was a long red and blue recliner with gold decorations. A girl with a shimmering gold dress was straddling someone on it, her mouth against his, the lights from the DJ setup illuminating the couple, and glowing through her short blonde hair.

Sirena.

And underneath her slowly moving body was Wilson.

JAX

It took my eyes some time to focus, the room dark but lit with flashing neon lights.

He was like Adonis or whatever, an angel. The room parted for him. The lights gleamed across the red glitter on his cheekbones, glancing off his dark curls, his lips full and red.

I couldn't move for a second, couldn't breathe. His black, black eyes were staring right at us.

At me.

ROCCO

His eyes were open, turned to the ceiling, as Sirena turned her head to him deeper, his hands on her waist as she leant forward.

Then his eyes slid across, landed on me. Tonight, and always, he looked like he had never felt emotions in whole life. His skin was glowing, smooth as marble. His cheeks were stained glittering ice blue, like where tears would be if he was crying. They matched his eyes. I didn't understand how Sirena wasn't getting frostbite from touching him.

Although maybe it made sense. I felt like I was burning up from his stare.

My heart was thudding out of my chest. Or was that the music?

His icy eyes on mine, he reached up and pressed a hand to the back of Sirena's neck, crushing their kiss deeper.

JAX

How do I make him see me. How do I make him see me.

ROCCO

I felt like it was just us, unmoving, as the room rotated slowly around us. I felt like blood was rushing to my face, red as the glitter Mal had painted on me.

JAX

He was moving now, crossing the room under the flashing lights. I could barely breathe in ecstasy.

ROCCO

I'd lost control. It was always hard not to. It was always too hard not to.

JAX

I barely had time to push Sirena off me and out of the way, before he was on me, his fist crashing into my jaw.

The blood that immediately filled my mouth was better than any drug I had ever taken.

I kept my head down, sucking all of the blood into the middle of my mouth, my eyes on his shoes in front of me. I lifted my head and spat directly on the middle of his cheek, my blood staining his skin.

He flinched, jaw tensing, black eyes on me. His sleeve went slowly up to his face to wipe it off.

I stood up out of the recliner, vaguely aware of everyone gathering around us, shoving each other to get a view, but no one wanting to get too close.

He was so close in front of me, radiating heat. How could no one else feel it.

I could hear Sirena yelling something behind me.

Then I pulled back my fist, aiming a retaliation punch at his jaw.

He was ready, of course, arm shooting out to block me. That was until my other fist slammed into his stomach.

He was so close that I heard the air go out of him. Even winded, he was still strong enough to tackle me and throw me to the ground, immediately straddling me, hand around my throat.

He raised his other hand to deliver a thudding blow to the cheek he had originally hit first.

At the moment, I felt the vulnerability of my own body, even though the adrenalin dulled the pain.

I heard the rasp of air in his lungs - his hand was tightening around my throat. I felt that primal panic build up, arching my back, thrashing, digging my fingers between his that were around my neck, and pulling them sharply back. He gave a shout of pain and let go, giving me time to suck air into my lungs. I felt the presence of people in black clothes starting to surround us, but barely. I shoved myself up and swung my fist, feeling it land on his face, probably giving him a bruise that would match mine.

Then suddenly my Cobra boys were on me, pulling me out and away. Wolverines were also pulling Denver off me, onto his feet. They were shouting obscenities at the Cobras, shoving and grabbing fistfuls of their jackets, their faces dark. My Cobras were retaliating though, shoving back, their faces hateful. My mind was fuzzy, dull. A huge fight would break out if I didn't do something.

"Stop. " I yelled hoarsely. "Cut it out, boys. Not needed. This is personal."

My guys backed off, still glaring at the Wolverines, and that was the last thing I saw before everything went black.