The Winning Ticket (Circle of Friends #1)

32. Id Want You Even If You Were Wearing A Paper Bag

brIANNA

32

Morgan is already way past tipsy and has started to whine about how much she misses Chris. Annelisa and I have done our best to distract her through the high tea and the light dinner we’d arranged back at the apartment, but now that we are heading into the city, it’s obvious she’s hoping we’d planned for the bucks party to meet us out.

“Have you heard from Will about where they are yet?” I ask Annelisa quietly, hoping Morgan can’t hear me from where she’s walking ahead with Tara and Kylie.

“Yeah, they are at that new club, apparently. Do you think we should tease her some more and take her somewhere else first, or should we just give in and head straight there?” Annelisa asks, taking a sip from the water bottle she’s had with her all day.

I glance over to Morgan, who has her arm looped through Kylie’s with her head on Tara’s shoulder, and smile. “Let’s just head there. She will be much happier once she’s with Chris, and then we won’t have to worry about keeping her happy anymore. But remind me to pay her out for how co-dependent she’s become because you’d think they’d never been apart before, the way she’s been carrying on.”

“You know they’ve never had a night apart since they moved in together, right?” Annelisa asks, and I stare at her with my mouth open.

“Are you serious? How is that possible?”

Annelisa shrugs. “Beats me, but that’s just how they are. I thought maybe she’d be okay, but guess not. They’ll probably end up going home together, so you won’t have to worry about her staying at the apartment after all. Maybe the guys won’t be staying out in their hotel rooms either,” she says with a wink, a small smile on her lips when she pats my arm.

I’m distracted while we spread the word amongst the rest of the group that we’re heading to Opalescence now.

Annelisa couldn’t possibly know anything about Jake and me… right?

The fifteen of us continue walking along Adelaide Street in various stages of intoxication, and I cringe when one of the girls almost falls in her sky-high stilettos. While I’ve had a few glasses of wine through the course of the day, both Annelisa and I have remained sober. Kylie has also refrained from drinking, and Tara was never much of a drinker, to begin with, but some of Morgan’s other friends have been drinking heavily since we got back from the high tea, and now I’m just praying we can all get into the club.

I catch a glimpse of my reflection in a window as I pass, and I’m pretty confident that Jake will have trouble keeping his hands off me in this dress. As I’ve put a little more weight on, I’d had to go shopping for a new dress, and have discovered my boobs have also gone up a cup size, so when I found the little black dress with the plunging neckline, I’d been excited to be able to fill it out properly. It’s low in the back as well, covering just my lower back, which means I’ve had to go bra-less. Basically, this dress left little up to the imagination, and I was looking forward to his reaction when he saw me.

We reach the line to get in, and the bouncer waves us through once Annelisa has a word in his ear. She is on a first-name basis with the owner, who is apparently a big fan, and it means we don’t need to line up with the rest of the crowd waiting to get in.

I grab Kylie’s hand before we can all get separated once we get inside. “Go and see if you guys can find a table or the guys, and we’ll get a drink tab started.”

She nods and takes Morgan’s hand again before heading off into the crowd. Annelisa and I go to the bar, and she tries to flag down a bartender.

I feel a hand slide across my lower back before resting on my hip, and I tense briefly but relax when I recognise the smell of Jake’s cologne.

“That dress should be illegal, Little B,” he says in my ear, pressing up behind me, and I shiver at the sensation of his breath on my neck.

I glance over at Annelisa and am relieved to see she’s distracted by Will. He has wrapped his arms around her from behind and is swaying with her in time to the music while she tries to get the attention of someone behind the bar.

“And why’s that, JJ?” I ask, leaning back into him slightly.

“Because no one should be allowed to look this hot,” he replies, sliding his hand slowly up under my hair that is hanging loose down to my lower back.

His hand pauses where my bra would typically be. “It’s going to be difficult keeping my hands off you, knowing you’re just walking around without a bra on.”

I turn to smile at him over my shoulder. “Oh yeah? Is this turning you on, Mr Boyd? You like a woman in a little black dress?”

He glances over at Will and Annelisa before answering. “You turn me on, Bri. I’d want you, even if you were wearing a paper bag.”

His words shouldn’t affect me the way that they do. I shouldn’t be this excited to know he would want me even without the fancy clothes, but I can’t hide the smile that spreads across my face.

Jake steps to my side when Annelisa finally gets the bartender’s attention. She sets up a tab for our group, and Jake does the same for the guys. Once we get our drinks, the guys lead us through the crowd to the VIP area they’ve booked. The rest of the women have already found them, and we explain the process with the bar tab before officially clocking off from bridesmaid duties. Now that both groups are together and Morgan has found Chris, it’s time for us to let our hair down.

After two hours, I don’t trust myself to be near Jake anymore, who keeps shooting me heated gazes from where he’s sitting at the table, so I grab Kylie and Tara and drag them out to the dance floor.

We dance together for several songs, and Kylie smiles suggestively at a guy moving slowly closer. I shake my head with a laugh when she presses her back to his chest and practically purrs when he runs his hands down her sides before gripping both her hips, and they grind together in time with the music. Within seconds, his friends arrive and circle Tara and I. Tara shoots me a wide-eyed look. She’s never been a fan of this type of thing, and I’m not feeling particularly comfortable either. I take her hand, and we continue dancing together, hoping they will get the hint that we’re not interested, but they press in closer.

Suddenly, a hand tightens around my wrist, pulling me out of there, and Jake wraps his arms around me while he holds me to his chest. I see Will doing the same for Tara and breathe a sigh of relief when she follows him off the dance floor. I look at Kylie, but she smiles and continues dancing with Mr Handsy while his friends move off to find someone else.

“Thank you,” I say, looking up at Jake.

“It wasn’t entirely noble. I couldn’t handle seeing those guys that close to you.” His expression is unreadable, but I can feel the tension rolling through him, even as he moves us in time with the music. As a musician, he’s always had a pretty good sense of rhythm, and I move with him easily.

“Jealous?” I ask.

He slides his hands down to my hips, gripping them tight and pulling me closer. “Insanely,” he growls in my ear.

I raise my hands and tangle my fingers in the hair at the back of his neck. “Someone is going to see us,” I mutter in his ear, and I shiver when he runs his nose lightly down my throat.

“I don’t care,” he replies.

Despite my concerns, I grind against him.

“Fuck, Bri," he says roughly. He raises his hand to my chest, running his thumb over my right nipple, which is on high alert through the fabric of my dress. “You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you right now.”

“Oh, I’m pretty sure I do,” I say, holding his gaze while I slowly run my tongue over my lower lip.

I feel him harden against my abdomen, and his eyes darken. He looks over my shoulder briefly, grips me by the wrist and leads me through the crowd, further away from our friends.

Once we’re out of sight, he turns and pulls me towards him, crushing his mouth to mine. I kiss him back, rising further onto my tiptoes and pushing my chest into his. He moans against my lips while our hips grind together, and he runs his tongue along my lips. When I allow him access, he kisses me hungrily while holding me firmly in place, one hand gripping the back of my head and the other pressing against my lower back. My hands are splayed across his back, and I have to fight the urge to bring my leg around him, having only a small amount of awareness of the crowd around us.

“I want you so much right now,” he says, kissing my neck.

It takes all my self-control not to let him take me right here on the dance floor. “How much longer do we need to stay?” I ask, rubbing myself against him.

“I think we have to wait at least another half an hour.” He chuckles when I groan before kissing my temple. “Just think about how good the sex will be once we get into that apartment. I can’t wait to rip that dress right off you.”

After another kiss, he urges me back to our friends, saying he’ll follow in a minute. Most of the others are well on the way to drunk. Morgan is sitting sideways in Chris’s lap, kissing him hungrily while his hands roam all over her. Various other people I don’t know are also making out or downing more drinks. Annelisa looks ready to call it a night, leaning into Will’s side with half-closed eyes, and Tara is discreetly checking her watch. Kylie is still dancing with the same guy on the dance floor but nods in my direction when she sees me checking on her.

“I’m going to close out the bar tab,” I say to Annelisa, and she nods.

Will squeezes her shoulder and follows me to do the same thing while Annelisa tells the others. I ignore their groans, knowing the main group, sans Kylie, is ready to go home.

“So… You and Jake.” Will raises an eyebrow at me while we stand at the bar together.

Shit… had he seen us earlier?

“Me and Jake what?” I ask, trying to seem as though I have no idea what he’s talking about, but he continues giving me the same ‘big brother’ look while he shakes his head.

“You know exactly what.”

I swallow, wondering if it’s worth trying to deny I know what he’s talking about. My silence is answer enough, and Will sighs.

“Just be careful, Bri. The last thing the group needs is the drama that will go down if Morgan finds out you guys have been sneaking around behind her back.”

We close out the bar tabs in silence, and I try to ignore the dread gnawing at the bottom of my stomach. When he turns to go back to the group, I grab his sleeve.

“Don’t say anything to Annelisa, please. She won’t want to keep it from Morgan, and… I’m not ready for her to know anything yet. We’re just hooking up. It’s not serious,” I plead.

“Not serious? Bri, this is Jake. If it’s not serious, you need to put the brakes on this now because he’s held a torch for you for as long as I’ve known him. And I know you felt the same way back in school, and I’m betting you still do now.” He shakes his head and sighs, momentarily looking up at the ceiling before looking at me again. “Annie already knows, but don’t worry, we’re both well-practised at keeping secrets.” He turns and walks away, and I’m left pondering what on earth he meant by that.