19. Romy
19
romy
“ T hanks for that,” Lina said, patting Reed’s solid chest as she and I slid out the back seat of his four-door Dodge Ram.
Reed’s jaw ticked, but he didn’t say a word while Lina breezed past him, his eyes following her ass in her Daisy Dukes. He shut the door behind us, quickly returning to his usual glower.
Jude waited for us, taking my hand as if it was the most normal thing in the world. I smiled up at him. He looked good tonight in his tight, black T-shirt, showing off his sleeve tats and delicious muscles, with dark-wash jeans that hugged his sculpted ass. He wasn’t wearing his hat tonight, his dark hair tousled in a careless way, curling around his ears and falling across his forehead. Jesus, I wanted to run my fingers through those locks. Where was the nearest secluded wall I could get pushed up against?
It was a warm night, so I opted for a yellow, floral sundress with a pair of cowboy boots. No bra. I felt bold and wanted to dress up, like I needed a “power suit” to help brush off Hazel’s call, so I chose something that made me feel sexy. Jude confirmed it was the right choice with the way his eyes appraised every inch of me. It made me feel formidable.
He leaned down to whisper in my ear, his lips brushing the outer shell. “You look fucking incredible. I’m dying to know what’s under that dress.” I felt my pulse pick up, knowing he’d find nothing.
We followed Lina into the loud bar.
I gave Jude my sexiest smirk. “I guess you’ll have to find out for yourself.”
His already-blazing blues heated, and his hand didn’t leave mine, pulling me behind him as we weaved through the crowd toward the bustling bar.
The billiard table was abandoned tonight for other entertainment. The cover band was loud in the small bar, sending the rumble of the bass through the soles of my boots. People were dancing and singing under the glow of the neon cowboy and beer signs.
Sage and two other bartenders were slinging drinks for the tourists and regulars who packed the only bar in town.
“Can you go bother someone else?” Sage was saying to Christian when we joined him at the bar.
“Baby, you know you bother me, too.” He wagged his brows, leaning across the bar to snag an olive from the prep board and pop it in his mouth.
“Get your grubby hands away from here,” she scolded, pushing his hand away.
“Ooh, do that again.” He exaggerated a full-body shudder before reaching his hand out to her.
“Oh, thank God you’re all here,” Sage said to us, giving Christian a side-eye. “What can I get ya’ll?”
Jude exchanged fist bumps with Christian.
“Whiskey sours for Romy and me and the pilsner on tap for Jude,” Lina ordered. “Oh, and a soda for that one,” she said dismissively, pointing out Reed who found a seat at the bar.
Sage glanced at Reed.
“A coke, please. I’ll take it here,” he ordered in his gruff voice.
“You got it!” Sage went right to work.
“You sure, bro?” Christian asked Reed, but Reed only grunted.
“Ordering for me now?” Jude turned to his cousin.
“I invited you all, so I’m in charge of our outing. Gotta ensure we have fun, and if it means making sure you’re not a grumpy ass, then yes, yes, I will order for you,” Lina said, putting her hands on her hips.
Jude chuckled. “At least you know my order.”
“Besides, I’m here to make sure Romy has a good time, and you’re a vital part of that.”
“Fair enough,” he said, giving my hand a squeeze. I squeezed back.
Lina pulled me away from Jude. “Come on, let’s go grab a table. You got the drinks?” She threw the last phrase over her shoulder. It was more of a command than a request.
“I got the drinks,” he confirmed.
I followed Lina over to a high-top table with four chairs. It was far enough in the corner that we would be able to talk over the thrum of the electric guitars and chatter, but it was close enough to the band that we could still enjoy the music.
The band was playing a Zac Brown Band cover when Jude and Christian came over with our drinks.
Jude sat beside me, his hand immediately going to the leg of my chair, grabbing it to draw me closer. He sat sideways, his legs bracketing me while his arm rested across the back of my chair. He was so close, I could feel the heat emanating from him.
I took a gulp of my cold drink.
He set his beer down, his hand going to my bare knee. The chilly condensation left from his glass imprinted on my thigh, causing my flesh to pebble. His thumb stroked back and forth where the hem of my dress fluttered, nearly driving me to distraction.
I tilted my head to look up at him, his eyes heated as he took me in. His lips tipped in a knowing, adoring way. That delicious scruff begging me to scratch my nails along his jaw.
This man!
He didn’t know that I nearly called this off. I might still be in California if Brit hadn’t told me to get my head out of my ass … that I would never learn if I could trust anyone if I didn’t give them a chance. And if anyone deserved a chance, wasn’t the man who flew all the way to San Jose to fetch me worth entrusting with my heart?
“You won’t know if you don’t try,” Brit soothed, handing me a big bowl of ice cream. “You can’t keep running.”
She was right. I knew she was right. But getting over years of engrained trust issues was easier said than done, especially with Travis’s cheating still relatively fresh. All I knew how to do was protect my heart, to run before I got burned. Not how to give my trust and my heart freely.
I wanted to learn, though, for Jude. He deserved that.
So I decided to do something that scared the shit out of me—to trust.
When Jude showed up this morning, he didn’t even bat an eye when I slowly started packing, mentally debating to take this leap, dragging my feet. Thinking that if I stalled, he’d say or do something that warranted me telling him to fuck off, and then I could sit my ass right back down on Brit’s couch. Instead, he grabbed a suitcase and helped me pack, even folding my underwear into neat piles. I had no excuse.
Despite the years apart, he was still the only one who truly knew me. Knowing the right things to say to distract me from my own mental spiraling, to lend a comforting touch when I was feeling anxious, or to make me laugh when I became too serious. He even knew when I was pissed and just needed space to cool down. He had been my best friend, and I didn’t realize until now just how much I’d missed him. How I had been homesick for him.
“Drink that down,” Lina told me, nudging me out of my thoughts. “Then we’ll get you another one before we hit the dance floor.”
I was in my head. Rolling around my feelings for Jude and trying to wash away my frustration and guilt about Hazel made me withdraw.
The phone call still didn’t sit right with me. She was telling investigators, and me, it was self-defense, but could it also be premeditated? She had a note and money stashed away. Was she planning an escape? Was she thinking Jesse was going to kill her? Was she plotting to kill him before he could kill her? There were so many questions milling around in my brain, I just couldn’t see the truth through the trees. At least, not yet.
I needed to brush it off. For tonight anyway. I needed a break from my mental roller coaster.
I pounded back the whiskey cocktail.
“Damn, girl,” Lina sing-songed. “Let me get us another one.”
She hopped off her chair and headed back to the bar.
“You doing okay?” Jude asked.
Not wanting Christian to hear my business, I shrugged. I wasn’t in the mood to talk about it anyway.
“Sage is brilliant. She already had two more ready for us,” Lina said, quickly returning to her seat and handing me another whiskey sour.
“That’s why she’s my future wife.” Christian sighed, hearts in his eyes.
Jude scoffed a laugh. “Does she know that?”
“I tell her every chance I get. She just doesn’t believe me yet.” Christian took a big swallow of his beer.
Lina rolled her eyes, ignoring Christian. “She offered to fill a pitcher for you guys, too.” Her eyebrows quirked over the rim of her glass as she took a sip.
“I’m good,” Jude returned, nursing his beer. “I have a workout tomorrow.”
“When do you not have a workout?” Lina inquired.
“Bro needs to keep that impeccable bod in shape,” Christian teased. “I mean, look at him. He’s hot!” He licked his pointer finger, pretending to touch Jude’s shoulder, and made a sizzling sound.
Lina grumbled while Jude laughed, and I couldn’t help but do my own scan of his body. I pressed my knee against his, wanting to feel more of him. He answered it with his own knee press.
The band started the first notes of Blanco Brown’s “The Git Up,” and Lina just about screamed.
“Romy Miller! Come on! Get that ass up and shake it with me!”
She flew off her seat, taking my hand and pulling me off my seat.
“Hold on.” I laughed, then took another gulp of my drink before shooting Jude a wink and a smile and joining her on the dance floor.