Chapter Five
Ria
“Oh, my God.” I lunge forward, throwing my arms around him, his muscular arms tightening around me.
“Hey, Ri,” he whispers into my ear, sending a warm feeling through my body. Bergamot and pepper invade my nostrils and the smell has my eyes fluttering closed.
Realizing I”ve probably clung to him longer than is appropriate. I release him, stepping back and adjusting my dress, craning my neck to look up at him.I forgot how much taller he is than me, which isn”t hard as I stand at a tiny 5ft 2, but he is as gorgeous and strong as the last time I saw him when he returned from Afghanistan five years ago with my brother. Jack had the sense to leave the military, but Noah was still running from our past and wasn”t ready to come home.
I let my eyes graze over him from head to toe, taking in his light brown hair, dark blue eyes, and broad shoulders. He has an air of confidence as he stands in front of me. God, has he always been so... gorgeous? Of course he has, he”s Jack Lawson. The boy I grew up with. I was just his friend”s little sister though, so he never looked at me the way I wanted him to. Nothing ever happened between us, so why am I nervous? It”s just Jack. He spent every weekend and some weeknights hanging out at our house throughout high school.
“How the hell are you? It”s been a few years.” My eyes roam over his black suit pants and a crisp white shirt with sleeves rolled up to his elbows and I can see a touch of the tattoo I know he has coming down his left arm. Jesus, he looks good.
“Last time I heard you were still living in Miami with Harry and Brad and opening up clubs?” I say, trying to act like I don”t check his Instagram.
A deep throaty chuckle erupts from him and I didn’t know a laugh could be a turn on till this very moment. “We’ve moved back and opened up a new place with Chris.” He gestures over to Chris, who is practically eating Nancy”s face off.
I curl my lips in disgust and look at Jack, who makes a gagging expression.
He turns his attention back to me and a moment passes between us, charged and heated as his blue eyes bore into mine, holding me hostage. His throat bobs slowly as he swallows, and I track the movement staring at the strong column of his neck. My pulse spikes as I swipe my tongue across my lower lip, wondering what the hell is happening to me. Why is it suddenly roasting in here?
“So you are staying for a while”? I force out, trying not to sound too hopeful.
He nods thoughtfully. “Yeah, I think so, at least until the new club is up and running and we will see from there. If I find a reason to stay, I could be convinced.” Excitement blooms in my stomach and my cheeks heat at the idea of Jack staying in New York.
“Sounds great. So you’re keeping well? You’re looking good, you feeling good?” I stare at the ground, willing it to open up and swallow me whole. “Uhh, I mean—”
He interrupts me, tucking my hair behind my ear that’s fallen in front of my face during my ramble. I look up to see his eyes creasing up at the corners in what I presume is amusement. “Yeah, I’m feeling good, Ri.”
A desire to flee washes over me and I frantically look around for my girls to take the heat off me. “Gabs, Ali, come here.” I wave them over and as Brad and Harry appear, standing next to Jack, both looking excited to see me.
“It”s been ages, Ri. How are you? How”s Noah?” Harry asks after hugging me, and I notice the touch of concern in his voice.
“He’s good. He is about to be deployed again. Should be home by Christmas. He misses you guys.”
“I swear to fucking God, Ri. If I have to look at her eat his face like that any more, I”m going to gouge my eyes out and ram them down her throat,” Ali slurs, making me wonder how many drinks she’s managed to down tonight.
“Well, who”s this little pocket rocket?” Harry shouts over the music, as he moves to get closer to Ali and holds out his hand.
“And your name is?” she barks back, crossing her arms, looking him up and down.
“The one you”ll be screaming tonight.”
I clamp a hand over my mouth, stifling a laugh. Oh, she”s going to have fun with this one.
“It’s Harry,” he leans in so she can clearly hear him.
“Ali, but you can call me Alice.” She extends her hand.
“Alice, who the fuck is Alice?” he sings
Ali stares at him deadpan, not a hint of amusement on her delicate features.
“The song,” he explains, taking her hand in his.
She”s still staring at him like he”s an idiot.
“Smokie?” he says, trying to get her to understand the joke
Fuck, this is awkward and funny.
We all start snickering into our glasses, passing glances between us, but I notice that Jack’s eyes are locked on me. My cheeks heat from the attention, my ego getting a boost from the way he’s looking at me.
“I liked the look of you and then you opened your mouth and now I have the ick,” Ali says as she pulls her hand out of his and wipes it down her shorts before she heads towards the bar.
“Marry me,” Harry shouts after her as he chases after her.
“Oh, he”s going to love her,” Jack grins. “He”s used to women falling at his feet.”
“Ali takes no prisoners. Hope he can handle her,” I tell him as I look away from Ali and Harry’s exchange and look directly at him for a beat longer than I should and I feel something, something I haven”t felt in a long time.
Brad interrupts whatever I’m feeling when he takes Gabby’s hand in his and kisses the back.“Brad,” he says with a nod.
“Gabriella,” she replies softly, her cheeks flushing. He might look like he”s from an episode of Prison Break, but underneath all those tattoos I know he’s a gentle giant.
“That”s a beautiful name. Can I get you another drink?” He gestures towards her empty glass.
“Don’t be long. Tara is coming round with the dare cards in a minute,” I remind her.
She nods and they vanish into the crowd, leaving Jack and I alone.
“What are dare cards”? Jack asks, his eyes focused back on me. More specifically, my lips. I trap my bottom lip between my teeth, forgetting all about the question he just asked me and instead imagining what it might be like to really embrace that single life I talked about earlier.
“Ria?” The way he says my name is so smooth and deep that I suppress a shiver.
“Yeah?” I say breathlessly.
“Dare cards?” He smirks.
I shake my head, regaining my focus. “Right. Dare cards.” I repeat. “It’s a game where we randomly pull a card out and we have to do what it says. Could be anything from taking a shot or dancing naked on the bar…”
“Well, I’m glad I’ve got a front row seat for this game.” He places his hand to my lower back, encouraging me to sit at a nearby table, sending a bolt of electricity zapping through me. I slide into the leather booth and I expect him to sit opposite but he sits next to me, so close our thighs almost touching.
The way his arm flexes and the veins pop when he rubs his hand over his five o”clock shadow has me salivating while we sit reminiscing for what feels like hours, reminding me how easy he always was to talk to.
“It”s been a weird adjustment. It took some time, but leaving the corps was the right decision,” he tells me when I ask about him leaving the Marines.
“And your mom and dad? I bet they were happy you left.” I smile at the memory of his mom”s chicken pot pie she would send over with Jack. Everyone knew what our mom was like, and those little gestures of kindness meant everything to me and Noah growing up.
“Yeah, my mom especially. She never wanted me to join. My dad encouraged it, said it was ‘character building’.” He does a great impression of his dad.
“I’m proud of what I did, but it’s not what I wanted anymore.”
“And now you are this big fancy club owner?”
“Yeah, something like that,” he chuckles. “I get to work with those clowns daily, so I can”t complain.” Averting his eyes to the bar area, he looks over to where Harry and Brad are mingling with the group of people.
“But enough about me,” he says leaning in a little closer, steepling his index fingers and pointing at me. “How are you, Maria Jones? How”s life? You’ve got two girls now, right?”
Smiling at the thought of my girls, I nod. “Well technically I am Maria Kennedy now, but yeah, Lexi is four now and Elle is nearly seven months”
His face falls and he lowers his hands to the table. “Of course, I forgot you got married. I hope your husband knows how lucky he is.”
I nervously twirl the stem of my cocktail glass,
“So how is Alex?” he says with a clipped tone. “Still traveling a lot?”
“Erm, actually we separated a couple of months ago,” I say awkwardly, avoiding his gaze.
“Oh… I”m sorry to hear that.” There is a distinct change in his tone. He doesn’t sound sorry at all.
“Really”? I knew deep down my brother and Jack didn’t approve of Alex when I introduced them to him. I should have known then it wasn’t going to work.
Shaking his head. ”Not really,” he smirks and drops his gaze to my lips and I can”t help but do the same to him, drawn like a magnet as he leans closer, overwhelming my senses with his spicy scent. I have to grip the table to stop the dizziness that being so close to him has caused. ”He”s a fool if he lets you go, Ria.”
I think I”m going to combust, my heart racing from his proximity. Is he flirting with me? Or am I that sexually frustrated? I even thought the mailman was trying to flirt when he said he had a big package waiting for me to unwrap in the back of his van. Turns out he had an actual package for me, which was my new vacuum. Who am I kidding? No one is going to want an unemployed single mother of two.
I’m destined to spend my days alone with Nugget and maybe with one of those battery operated boyfriends Ali raves about.
Get a grip of yourself, Ria
I am dragged away from my pitiful thoughts by Tara, Nancy’s chief bridesmaid, who glides over, looking like a Victoria”s Secret model. Her gaze rakes over at Jack like he”s going to be her next meal and I can’t help but frown at her blatant perusal.
“Games are starting, Ria,” she tells me before she turns towards Jack and purrs, “And I”m coming back for you later.”
My pulse races and irritation prickles my skin at the thought of Tara getting her perfectly manicured claws into him. But then I remember that he’s my friend and I don’t have any claim on him.
I stand and place my hand on his shoulder, shuddering as I feel his muscles beneath my palm. “If I have to do something gross that involves a man, then I’m coming to you, Harry or Brad. I’ve seen some of the men in here and not a chance in hell am I asking Mr. Burns over there for his boxers.”
We both turn our attention to a creepy little man who looks the type who is going home to get off with his hand and a bottle of lotion to the photos he”s clearly taking on his phone of the girls in here. I shudder at the thought.
Jack stands, closing the space between us until his hand wraps around my forearm, holding me in place. His head dips to my ear, his words dusting my skin. ”Pick me.”
“W-what?” I stutter, confused, my brows furrowing.
”Pick me for your games, use me... in any way you need tonight.”
Holy shit.My pulse spikes, and my knees almost buckle.
“Well, that’s an offer a girl can”t refuse. Just don’t leave, okay?” I straighten up and do my best to walk away with some sort of grace. Please, don”t let me fall down these stairs.
“I wouldn”t dream of it, sweetheart,” he calls after me.
I can feel his eyes on me as I head toward the girls, and I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face. What am I doing? He doesn’t want me. He’s just entertaining me. Don’t read too much into it, Ria, but God, does it feel good. Even if it”s just a bit of harmless fun for one night, I”m going with it.
The dares have started by the time I reach the group. “My turn,” Tara squeals as she pulls a card from the pack one of the other girls is holding. “Remove your bra without getting undressed and swing above your head in victory,” she reads out loud.
Giggling like a schoolgirl and biting her bottom lip, she confesses, “Sorry ladies, I’m not wearing a bra so I pass my dare too…” Scanning the group, she points to Ali.
Letting out a disgruntled moan, Ali stands and climbs up on her chair. She fiddles under her crop top for a few seconds before pulling her bra free effortlessly and whipping it around above her head.
The crowd cheers and Ali dances in victory. “Yes, girl. Get it off,” Harry bellows from across the VIP area where him, Jack and their friends are sitting. Ali, like the classy bitch she is, launches her bra across the room at him before giving him the middle finger. Keeping his eyes locked on Ali, he stands and saunters toward it. Then he picks it up and sniffs it, making us all groan as he shoves it into his back pocket, his stare telling us all what he wants to do to her later.
“Ria, it”s your turn, pick a card,” Tara announces, fanning out the pack of hot pink cards. I choose one from the middle and turn it over.
Do a tequila shot off a man”s body.
Oh, shit.
“Girls, can one of you do this?” My voice is shaky. “I am a mother, for Christ”s sake, and still legally married,” I whisper to my friends, hoping they’ll understand.
“No,” Ali says sternly. “You are separated, and being a mom is irrelevant. You’re allowed to have fun. That doesn’t stop when you have kids.”
“Come on, Ri, have some fun. You deserve it and what happens on the bachelorette stays on the bachelorette,” Gabby reassures me, putting her arm around my waist.
I let out a big huff. “Okay, fine, let”s do it.”
“Atta, girl,” Ali cries, slapping me on the back. “Oh, Jaaaaccckkkk Your body is required.”
I turn and glare at her while I panic about whether I can do this. With Jack.
“Oh, come on, the man hasn”t stopped looking at you all night. He”s game,” Ali says, reading my mind.
I open my mouth, but it closes just as fast when I’m spun around to find Jack standing in front of me.
He slowly unbuttons his shirt, eyes locked on mine as they sparkle in a devilish way. I track the movement of each finger, as he reveals, inch by inch, every perfect muscle and part of his tattoo that I know runs from his chest down his arm.
My chest heaves faster the lower he gets, until finally, he’s shrugging the shirt off his broad shoulders and suddenly I can’t swallow.
My entire body hums to life at the Adonis in front of me and I have to lick him… Jesus, how do I get myself into these situations?
“Where do you want me?” he purrs, the deep timbre of his voice giving me goosebumps.
I feel my body temperature skyrocket. I gulp. Oh, fuck.