A/N: Do you guys know how long it took me to find a picture of this guy with a shirt on? I mean, I'm not complaining about his lack of clothing, but c'mon now. Anyway, please vote or comment, and thank you all for getting this story over 5,000 reads!! Enjoy the chapter :D
Damn, damn, damn! Just walk around the car, Aubrey. If you act like you don't see him, he probably won't notice you, either.
Internally groaning, my body came to a halt when I heard the beep of a car horn. I didn't know what I was expecting, though. He was parked only a few feet away from me, so how could he not see the people that entered and exited the building?
It wasn't that I didn't want to speak to him; it was just that his idiot of a brother would surely be making his way out of the building at any second. After all, I'd just had the wonderful privilege of talking to him.
Snapping my head in the direction of the parked car while flinging a hand to my chest, I acted as if I was startled by the loud noise. Furthering my performance, my eyes squinted, zooming in on the person behind the steering wheel. After a couple of seconds, they grew wide again, making it seem like recognition finally set in.
Adrian waved, clicking open his car door and resting an elbow on the roof when he stepped out. With his lean body, tousled bronze hair, and dazzling white smile, I was momentarily stunned.
Geez, what the hell do their parents look like?
"Hey! I'm glad I ran into you." Jogging to pull me in for a hug, the older of the brothers was full of excitement. "How have you been?"
Uncomfortably wringing my hands, my eyes kept glancing from the man before me, to the door I had previously exited from. The sun was setting, creating a bright, painful glare against the glass of the building, and making it difficult to see anyone coming out of the structure. I bit my lip, thinking of ways to nicely end the conversation. Adrian was one of the sweetest people I'd ever met, and it hurt to know that I might have to hurt him if I wanted to get away.
"Good, I guess. How have you been?"
"Alright, I'm just waiting to pick up Rhode. He's pretty upset about something, so I'm taking him out to talk about it."
"That's nice of you." Immediately, my thoughts ran to my own sibling. Now that she was back home - looking like it might be for a while - I wondered where our relationship would go. I still couldn't tell if her apology from the night before was genuine, and doubted that we would ever become as close as the Harper brothers, but we could still try. "Well, I hope you two enjoy the night."
Leaving was worth a shot, but when Adrian saw my body shift away from him, an arm was thrown over my shoulder.
"Thanks, and I'm so glad we're friends now, Aubrey." We were? Why didn't I get that memo? "And since we are, I wanted to ask you something. How would you like to come to Rafi's birthday party next weekend? The whole family will be there, and mom is excited to meet you since I might've mentioned a certain someone that has Rhode on a chase. So, what do you say?"
What did I say? My first thought was hell to the no, but that would've been rude to repeat out loud. Plus, I would be going for the baby, not for him or his brother-okay, maybe he was fine, but it definitely would not have been for his ass of a sibling. Instead of declining, I grinned up at my friend, not having the courage to turn him down.
"I wouldn't miss it!"
"You're the best, hon. And I know how exhausting work can be, so I'll let you get outta here." Adrian placed a kiss to my temple, squeezing me into a hug before letting go. "On second thought, would you like to spend the evening with me and Rhode?"
That was my cue to leave, but as usual, things didn't work out in my favor.
"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to impose-"
"I think that's a great idea." Stepping from behind Adrian, Rhode emerged with a wicked smile resting on his lips.
Of course he thought it was a good idea, just like how he thought bringing Serene to my house was one too. Obviously, he wasn't aware that his ideas freaking sucked! In my short time knowing him, I realized that anything involving Rhode Harper was not good a good idea. And what was with him coming out of nowhere to finish peoples' sentences? Creep.
"Uh, don't you two have something important to talk about?"
"No worries, we can save that for another time." Rhode came to stand next to Adrian, locking gazes with him. Looking like a silent conversation between the two men, ended with Adrian turning to smile warmly at me, his hazel eyes soft and pleading.
For some strange reason, I didn't want to upset Adrian. He was one of those people that you couldn't bear to offend or say no to, or else you'd beat yourself up over it later. Being the pushover I was when it recently came to him, I put a smile on my face and accepted his invitation for the night-just for him, though.
Less than a half an hour later, the three of us were seated in a dimly lit, cozy booth of a bar & grill located in the city next to ours. According to the older Harper, Tito's had the best live bands in the area, plus, they made the 'meanest margaritas'. I had yet to be the judge of that.
While we waited for our appetizers and drinks, I couldn't help but become intrigued by the band on stage. It wasn't because they covered Chet Faker's Talk Is Cheap - a favorite of mine - but because watching the lead singer made me momentarily tune out all the crap that had happened lately, even with a piece of it sitting directly in front of me.
Though he sat on a stool, the singer's hands and body moved in sync with the music, accenting the lyrics as they flowed past his lips. His eyes were closed for almost the entirety of the song, and when they opened during the last line, a wave of warmth crept down my body, filling it with the emotions from his midnight depths.
He has a spotlight shining on his face, and there's a crowd of people separating us. There's no way he's looking at me... Right?
As the last note died down, I was released from his gaze, my muscles relaxing and heart rate returning to normal from the trance he had me in.
"That's the end of our set for tonight. Thank you all for listening."
Much like his singing - though, slightly deeper - a rich, gruff voice projected through the microphone. I internally laughed when the front-man briefly waved to the mass of people before helping his bandmates haul their equipment off stage. It was only coincidental that he locked gazes with me from across the room, but in the few seconds of us holding contact, it felt as if we were the only two in the building.
"-Aubrey?"
"Hmm?" My attention turned back to the two brothers; one with a worried look on his face, the other with a knowing expression as he sipped from his straw.
I'd been so out of it, not realizing our beverages had been delivered to the table.
"I said," Adrian dragged out the second word, leaning closer to me. "they were really good, huh?"
"Very."
I nodded, not able to control my eyes as they drifted back over to the small stage. Next to it, the band was surrounded by your typical groupies just waiting to be taken somewhere by one of the members to... well, you get the idea. Attached to the lead, a girl with hideously dyed red hair and jean shorts that looked more like underwear, rubbed up along the side of his body, like a cat that desperately tried to get your attention. The interaction between the two was short-lived, because once again, his dark eyes captured mine, and it didn't seem so coincidental the second time around.
"I'll see you later, alright?" Pouty lips mouthed to the girl in front of them while a hand gave her elbow a squeeze. Anyone watching the two could see that he wasn't interested, and it was oddly satisfying to see the humiliated look on her face as he walked away.
That satisfaction only lasted for about three seconds, which definitely wasn't enough time for me to look away from the man that caught me staring at him-again. Shifting my position in the booth, I busied myself by watching Adrian bob to a mix played by a newly taken over DJ. It was bad enough that I was already uncomfortable, but with Rhode casually sipping on his Coke and glancing at me every so often, plus the approaching figure of the lead singer dodging through the throng of swaying bodies, my anxiety multiplied by ten.
"Are you alright? You look like you've just seen a ghost." Rhode's green eyes burned everywhere they looked on my increasingly pale face.
If ghosts had tanned skin, wore leather jackets and military boots, then yes, I had seen one, and it was now only a few feet away from us.
"Fine." My head lowered, eyes focusing on the peach colored liquid in the glass before me. When a pair of denim covered legs came to stand at the end of our table the same time our basket of wings was delivered, my margarita was suddenly the most interesting thing I'd ever seen.
Rhode was the first to break the silence that stretched over our heads, trying to be friendly, but the distaste in his voice was still clear.
"Nice job up there, man."
"Thanks." Cutting straight to the chase, he continued. "Would it be a problem if I joined you guys? Everyone here seems to think we're famous, and you three seem pretty normal."
At the same time Rhode said, "You should probably get back to your bandmates," Adrian responded with, "Not at all!"
Adrian, I really like you, but sometimes you need to learn to keep that mouth shut.
Despite what happened during the previous night, I still wanted this one to end smoothly. Sitting at a table with three men whom I found incredibly attractive - two of them being possibly available to me - would most likely ruin my plans of keeping everything calm. The one space left for Mr. I Can Make Love to You with Only My Eyes, was on my side of the booth.
Yippee.
I was secretly hoping that the front-man would take a hint based off my body language and leave so I could ogle him for across the room, but when Adrian's foot nudged mine, I knew he wasn't going anywhere. Within the next few seconds, I was squished up against the brick wall of our booth-my doing, not because our new friend forced me into that position.
Imagining the base of my glass as a stress ball and gripping it for dear life, I paused, thinking about my behavior.
What was I doing? Cowering away from an uncomfortable situation was not something I did. I pushed from the bricks, finally turning to get a good look at the man seated next to me. When my eyes landed on him, I certainly wasn't disappointed.
"I'm Aubrey." With a confident smile, I began the introductions. Pointing diagonally from me, I named the rest of the table, not sure what title to give the man seated opposite from me. "This is my friend Adrian, and his brother Rhode."
Flirting wasn't a strong-suit of mine, so I didn't bother coming up with any cute remarks. Over the years, I'd also come to realize that if a guy was interested in you, he'd pretty much let you know.
"Gage." He nodded to all of us with a glint in his eye, settling more comfortably onto the bench. When he moved, an intoxicating scent clouded my senses. If temptation had a smell, it would've definitely been him. "Have you all been here before?"
Rhode wasn't up for small talk. Since Gage closed the gap between his body and mine, the clenched jaw on the other man's face was pretty noticeable.
"First time. What about you? Does your band do gigs here often?"
Why was I so awkward? The close-to-monotonous tone of my voice made it seem like I was interviewing him rather than just having a normal conversation.
"Not as often as we'd like. This place has the best crowd we've ever performed in front of, but it's always booked. So, in exchange for the cost of low advertising space in my uncle's magazine, the owner lets us do a few songs whenever we're in town." He shrugged, reaching over to run a finger down my sweating glass. It seemed like an innocent action, but there was a seductive quality behind it. "This looks good. May I?"
"Sure, go ahead." My approval didn't matter, though. The rim of the cup had been brought to Gage's mouth before the words left my own. As he swallowed the cool liquid, the bobbing of his Adam's apple caught my attention, my eyes moving to focus on a vein that ran down the side of his neck. I gulped when I noticed the light dusting of facial hair covering his jaw-a weakness of mine, and my strength was slowly diminishing.
Bold, I like it... Wait, snap out of it, Aubrey! You're in a place full of people, plus a guy you've already slept with. Now is not the time to be thinking about screwing another on the table.
"Mm." A deliciously pink tongue swept out to lick the corner of his lips. "Sweet."
My face burned as I pried my eyes from the man beside me, directing them across the table as if nothing had happened. Adrian looked between me and Gage, then down at his almost empty cup. It wasn't only me who noticed Rhode gripping the edge of the table while burning holes into the front-man's face, and the older brother stopped it before it could go further than that.
"Damn, I finished off my drink. Come with me to get another one, Rhode."
The man next to me didn't seem to mind, though. He remained calm and relaxed, even while there was someone across from him that looked like he was ready to attack at any possible second.
"No." Rhode snarled, resting his bent elbows over the small table. "Call a server over."
"Do you know how long that will take?" Not taking 'no' for an answer, Adrian grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him out of the booth. The last thing mumbled from his mouth was something along the lines of, 'Stop being so fucking immature.'
When the two were out of hearing distance, and Adrian looking like he was struggling with trying to calm his brother down, Gage turned to me with a smirk, cocking his head to the side as he peered into my eyes.
"He's more to you than just your friend's brother, isn't he?" Instead of answering, my shoulders slouched, giving all the confirmation he needed. "I mean, it's kind of hard to ignore the guy when he looked like he wanted to rip my dick off."
Holding up a hand, I stopped Gage from saying anything else related to Rhode castrating him, even if there were times when I'd thought about doing the same to the other man. "Thanks for the lovely imagery."
"Don't mention it." Thick eyelashes fluttered down into a wink. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened between you two? You know, just so I can get an idea of what I'm dealing with."
Dealing with? What does he think is going to happen after tonight?
"Well, you kind of did just ask before I could let you know if I minded or not, but there's nothing going on between us now, if that's what you're wondering."
"Good to know, and does he realize this? The guy looks like he's dying for you to give him some type of attention. It's kind of sad, you know? I know how he feels."
After Gage basically said he felt sorry for Rhode, I laughed-well, more like snorted in disbelief at his 'sympathy'.
"Right, says the guy that was being all hot and flirty with me in front of him. If you felt so bad for him, why did it seem like you were deliberately trying to piss him off?"
"Hey," He chuckled, his breath tickling my ear as he leaned closer to me. "I never said I played fair. Now, what was this about me being hot? I tend to think of myself as sexy."
"How about cocky and we'll call it a day?"
"Works for me." Devilish lips curved over his teeth, my eyes rolling at his nonchalance. "I've got an idea, are you up for it?"
Thinking about the thoughts Gage possessed in his head made me a bit skeptical. "That depends on what it is, and I'm afraid to ask."
Swigging down the rest of my drink without permission, a shrug was thrown in my direction.
Rude!
"It's nothing bad. We're just going to have a little fun." Anyone with a brain could tell that his version of fun would differ from mine, but I found myself imagining what we would do. My silence was used as a space to continue. "It's simple. Make him jealous."
"Why would I want to do that?"
Sighing like it was the most obvious thing in the world, Gage nodded his head in a livid Rhode's direction. "Whatever went down, clearly isn't over. I'm no relationship expert, but I'm calling it like I see it."
"Okay, and what is it that you think you see?" Trying to keep my cool was harder than I thought. I didn't like it when people tried to intervene in my personal life. It had that name for a reason.
"The guy is beating himself up over something he did to you, and I'm guessing you're giving him the cold shoulder because he hasn't apologized for it yet."
Well, shit. Didn't he say he wasn't an expert?
"So?"
Gage faced me again, raising an eyebrow and looking genuinely impressed with himself. "You're not denying it, so you must be interested in what I have to say. Like I said, I've been in his shoes before, so when I say kiss me, do it."
Yep, he's crazy.
"Don't you think making someone jealous is a bit petty? Plus, if I wanted to fix things with him, I could do it myself. I don't need some guy - who, let's be honest, I'll probably never see again - to help me."
"Ah, someone's getting angry." There was that grin again, though it wasn't a smiling matter. "I never said it would be tasteful, and being a stranger makes me the perfect person. C'mon, Aubrey, he'll come crawling to you-begging for your forgiveness. But if you don't want my help, that's okay. Good luck with everything."
When I heard begging, my curiosity was piqued. My hand shot up, grabbing the sleeve of Gage's jacket and pulling him back down when he tried to leave the booth. I didn't even want a relationship with Rhode anymore, just an apology for treating me like an idiot and acknowledging what he'd done wrong. It wasn't right to string someone along, tell them you loved them, and then stomp over it all the next chance you got. If he was happy with Serene, I'd let them be, and clear the tension-filled air between us. The trip to Boston might start a new chapter in my life if it went well, and I didn't want to take that step with any ill feelings toward the people I used to know.
According to Gage, his plan would make Rhode see what he was missing, causing him to work things out with me. I still thought it was dumb, but didn't have anything to lose.
"Fine, I'll do it, but why am I getting the impression that this is for your benefit too?"
"Hey, this is a win-win for everyone." An arm draped over my shoulder drew me closer to his warm body. "And in about two seconds, just go with it. Pretty Boy is making his way over here right now."
Before surprisingly soft lips separated my own, I didn't get a chance to look past Gage to see Rhode. What I thought was supposed to be a simple peck, turned into something greedy-the two of us fighting for control. When a hand reached up to hold the back of my neck, a breathy sigh flowed from my lips, my own hands itching to come in contact with Gage's body and resulted with one resting on his firm thigh.
My parted mouth was used as an opportunity for Gage to nip at my bottom lip; once, twice, then gently tugged as he deeply inhaled. Briefly, we separated before claiming each other's mouths again, completely blocking out everything around us. When our tongues met, the taste of my margarita was sweeter on him than when it was in my glass, making a rush of dizziness pass over me.
I pulled away, gently pushing broad shoulders back for me to breathe in some much needed air. The feelings coursing through me were intense, different from what I'd ever experienced with Rhode. They weren't bad... just unexpected.
His presence above us was noticeable, but I couldn't bring myself to look at his face. When I did, I wished I hadn't.
"Can we talk?" Rhode's voice was eerily calm, his eyes almost as dark as Gage's as he looked down at me.
"Sure." My voice was weak, barely audible as my accomplice scooted from the bench to let me out. At that point, I knew I would have to face Rhode on my own-something I had been mentally prepared for. Well, that was the case until the actual moment came.
Everything had gone according to plan, so why did I feel so damned guilty?