Chapter 13
“Would you two cut the shit? We’re here to have a guy’s night out, not a pissing contest,” Brad said to the two men glaring at each other. He looked heavenward and sighed, “This is fucking ridiculous.”
“He’s the one being an asshole,” Mitch said, shoving Jason.
Jason shoved him back harder, sending his friend into a parked pickup truck. He pointed a finger at Mitch. “Stay the fuck away from her.”
“Oh, fuck off, you sanctimonious asshole. You don’t want her, but you don’t want anyone else to have her? She’s not your property!”
Jason felt his jaw clench tighter.
“What are you going to do when she starts dating some other guy? Huh, tough guy?” Mitch pushed him.
“Someday soon, this little friendship of yours won’t be enough for her and she’ll go to another guy and you won’t have her anymore.
Have you thought of that?” Mitch snorted.
“She’s a beautiful, funny, and sweet woman.
A lot of guys would give their right nut for a girl like her! ”
Jason felt all the blood drain out of his face.
He stood there as the reality of Mitch’s words slammed into him.
One day, it would be another man Haley would talk to, watch games with, or just sit in absolute silence with her, and worst of all, it would be another man holding Haley in his arms at night.
“Fuck…” he gasped.
“Oh great, you broke him! Are you happy now?” Brad demanded. “Come on, buddy, we’ll get you fixed up with a cold beer and a plate of hot wings. How does that sound? Does that sound good?”
Numbly, Jason nodded.
Brad scowled at Mitch, who looked shocked by Jason’s reaction. No doubt, the man probably expected a good shoving match and a few outbursts. Jason suddenly going quiet was absolutely frightening.
“I hope you’re happy!” Brad yelled at Mitch. “You broke him!”
“I was just pissed…I didn’t know…I…” Mitch trailed off, shrugging helplessly as he helped Brad steer a very numb Jason into the bar. “Look, I’m sorry. I just thought you didn’t think that I was good enough for her. Shit. I didn’t realize that-”
His words were cut off when Brad shook his head. Mitch looked at Jason and nodded. He clearly wasn’t ready to hear any of this. Jason wasn’t aware his friends were talking. He couldn’t focus past the idea of another man touching Haley.
His Haley.
“Please, stop!” a woman screamed as they pushed a still frighteningly quiet Jason inside.
They spotted a familiar-looking tall woman being held back by two women who were trying to calm her down while they looked nervously at a small group of men. Suddenly the group parted.
All three men stood in shock as Haley hit, well, sort of slapped with her fists in a windmill-type fashion, a large man who looked more pissed with her assault than actually hurt.
“You don’t ever touch her again!” Haley yelled as she continued her weird-ass assault.
“Shut up, bitch!” the man said, shoving Haley away. She stumbled back and hit the floor hard.
Jason saw red as he stalked over to the asshole and punched him, sending him slamming back into the bar.
The man bent over in agony, cupping his nose. “You broke my nose, asshole!”
“If you ever lay another finger on her again, I will fucking kill you. Do you understand me?” Jason promised with barely restrained fury.
The man tried to glare only to wince. Finally, he nodded.
“Good,” Jason said slowly as he turned around and grunted when his little grasshopper ran into him as she attempted to renew her attack.
“Haley!” Jason said, trying to snap her out of it. She ignored him, trying to swing at the guy or whatever the hell she was doing. With an exasperated sigh, he threw her over his shoulder and headed for the door.
“You’re lucky, Ted! Next time, I will kick. Your. Ass!” she yelled.
Jason gave her bottom a patronizing pat. “I’m sure you have him quaking in his drawers, my little grasshopper. No need to scare him.”
She grabbed the waist of his jeans to help push herself up so that she could glare at the bastard. “Ass whooping! Next time, I’m not holding back!”
“Tell him to watch his back!” Mitch suggested, laughing.
Jason nearly rolled his eyes when Haley did just that. “Let’s get you home before you have the man wetting himself,” he said, sighing heavily.
“You’re lucky, punk!” she yelled, making him grin.
She was just so damn cute.
Haley grunted and kicked the covers off them.
“Are you going to whoop the sheet’s ass as well? Should I run to safety?” Jason asked, biting back a huge smile that was threatening to take over.
“It’s hot!” Haley said in a cute, little whiny voice. “And stop making fun of me. I totally kicked ass tonight,” she said with a sniff. “They might even have to ban me from the bar after tonight.”
He blinked. “For what?”
She rolled over onto her back away from him. “What do you mean for what? I started a brawl!”
“Really? When?”
“What do you mean when? You were there. You saw me kicking some ass!”
“That weird thing you were doing with your hands?” Jason asked only to add, “I thought you were having a seizure of some kind,” when she nodded.
She gasped and gave him a playful shove. “Jerk! I totally kicked his ass tonight and I could kick your ass.”
Jason looked at her for a moment before he burst out laughing. The entire bed shook as he laughed, probably harder than he’d ever laughed in his entire life. Tears streamed down his face as he gripped his side as a cramp started.
“Hey! Stop laughing at me! I’m a major threat, damn it!” her serious tone had him laughing harder. Damn, she was really killing him here. “Keep it up and I’m going to kick your ass with my fists of fury!”
Somehow, he managed to laugh harder. He really didn’t think it was possible, but he did.
“That’s it!” Haley snapped as she sat up, quickly straddled his hips and grabbed his arms. She tried to pin his arms down by his head.
His laughter became more controlled as he quickly turned the tables on her and rolled over, pinning her beneath him.
He didn’t bother pinning down her hands.
Really, what was the point? He’d seen her in action, after all.
“Alright, my little grasshopper, kick my ass. I’m ready,” Jason said, grinning down at the small woman that was just too fucking adorable for words.
He made sure to keep his hips raised. No point in torturing himself, especially since she was only wearing a tiny camisole and pink cotton panties.
She began pushing at his chest, trying to shove him off.
When that didn’t work, she tried to kick him, and he thought she may have tried to twist his arm.
It was just sad.
“Come on, my little grasshopper, I’m ready any time you are. Show me some of that fury.”
Haley shoved and pulled harder, but still, he didn’t move.
“Seriously, I’m ready whenever you are,” Jason assured her.
She groaned loudly as she increased her attempts. Still, she couldn’t budge him.
He couldn’t stop himself from taunting her. She was just so damn cute. “Aw, is my little grasshopper getting tired? Where’s all that fury gone? Come on, let’s see those moves-”
She cut his words off with a kiss, surprising the hell out of him. It was a quick gentle brush of her lips over his, but it knocked him on his ass. Haley dropped her head back on the pillow, staring up at him while she worried her bottom lip between her teeth.
Jason hovered over her, panting for breath that had nothing to do with laughter. That kiss… That innocent, sweet kiss hit him harder than every make-out session he’d ever had in his life.
“Jason?” Haley’s broken whisper brought his attention back to her lips.
This was over. He was going to climb out of bed, apologize to her, walk her back to her house, and put some distance between them.
He wasn’t good enough for her. He treated women like shit and had no clue how to treat someone as special as Haley.
She deserved a man who would make her his entire world.
A man who would take care of her, hold her, and love her. And he was not that man.
“Haley, I-”
His words broke off on a groan as Haley’s mouth covered his again.
She brushed her lips against his enticingly.
His entire body went rigid as he forced himself not to respond.
He couldn’t do this to her. As much as it would hurt both of them, he couldn’t give in to her.
His body shook with the need to kiss her back and lower his body onto hers, but somehow, he found the strength to fight it.
He wasn’t kissing her back.
There, she had her answer. She just had to go and kiss him to find out how he felt about her. She couldn’t just ask him like a normal person. Not only had she just wrecked everything between them, but she was also horribly embarrassed. Peachy. Just freakin’ peachy.
She felt the tears sting her eyes as she looked up at his handsome face. He was not going to see her cry. She absolutely refused to let him see how badly this hurt.
“Excuse me,” Haley mumbled softly, breaking away and pushing at his chest. He didn’t fight her this time.
He moved off her. She was so close to breaking down and begging him to forget what just happened.
She jumped off the bed and headed for the bedroom door.
She didn’t care about her clothes or anything else at the moment. She just needed to get out of there.
“Haley!” Jason called after her. “Let’s talk about this!”
The last thing she wanted to do was talk about this. She ran out his front door and across the yard and raced to her front door. Barely able to see through the tears that were now flowing freely down her face, Haley grabbed the key she’d hidden beneath the front step and let herself inside.
She locked the front door and ran to her bedroom.
She locked her window and pulled her curtains shut, knowing that Jason would just come through the window and try to joke his way out of this.
She didn’t want to joke about this. This hurt!
Her heart was broken and she’d just lost the best friend she’d ever had because of her own stupidity.
A sob broke free and then another until she was sobbing uncontrollably. She dropped onto the edge of her bed and buried her face in her hands as she let it out. She was too tired to fight it anymore.
Warm breath tickled her hands as strong fingers gently pulled her hands away. She averted her face so that she wouldn’t have to face him as he knelt in front of her. She just couldn’t.
“Will you look at me?” Jason asked softly.
She bit her bottom lip and shook her head.
“I’m not…Haley, I’m just not good enough for you. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Haley shrugged, wanting him to get to the point quickly and leave. At the moment, she didn’t trust herself to open her mouth, afraid that she’d just embarrass herself more.
“You’re too good for me, my little grasshopper,” Jason said softly as he laid his forehead in the crook of her neck. “You could do so much better than me without even trying, Haley. So much better.”
His voice dropped as he continued, and he sounded like he was in pain, but still, she said nothing. “You’re kind, smart, funny, you have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever met, and you’re sweet. God, are you sweet.” His hands slid up her sides and gently rubbed up and down.
His breath came quicker against her skin and Haley wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around him and hold him one more time, but she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t handle it if he pushed her away again.
“Do you know how sweet you are, my little grasshopper?” Jason’s voice was hoarse as his hands moved lower to her hips and slid back up until his thumbs brushed beneath her breasts and then down again.
He pressed a kiss against her neck almost as though he couldn’t help himself.
A pained groan escaped him when he did it.
“I should walk out of here and never come back and let you go meet some nice guy who will give you everything in life that you deserve.” He pressed another kiss to her neck and she barely bit back a moan.
His hands slid down her sides and this time when they moved back up, they slid beneath her shirt.
Large, warm hands moved up her sides only to stop right beneath her breasts.
They hesitated there for a second before continuing their journey back down.
He continued to kiss her neck almost desperately.
The next time his hands moved up, he ran his thumbs along the underside of her breasts and groaned.
Haley’s head dropped back while her hands fisted in the comforter. She still hadn’t spoken, but for other reasons now. She was afraid if she spoke that she would break through to him and he would realize what he was doing and leave her. Heaven help her, but he had her too desperate to chance it.
“I need to leave.” He pressed an open-mouthed kiss to her neck and gently sucked while his hands moved further up only to teasingly brush over her hard nipples.
They moaned in unison. “It’s the right thing to do…
the um…the um…” His hands made another swipe, this time gently squeezing her breasts before moving back down.
“I um, I shouldn’t want you…I shouldn’t…I care for you so much, my little grasshopper. That’s why I should…I should,” he groaned loud and long, “you’re so sweet.”
Haley decided enough was enough. He obviously wanted her as much as she wanted him. Well, she hoped he did, at least. Taking a deep fortifying breath, she leaned back, dislodging his mouth from her neck. He looked dazed as he tried to figure out what just happened.
Haley held his gaze as she reached down and grabbed the hem of her shirt. Hoping that she wasn’t wrong about him, she pulled it off and tossed it on the floor.
Jason froze. His hands stilled on her hips as his jaw clenched tightly. He locked eyes with her and she had to bite back a smile as he struggled not to look down. He lost that battle several times.
He sucked in a reverent breath as he allowed his eyes to linger on her breasts. He mumbled something about not being a saint before looking back up. He studied her face for a long moment.
“You do know that you could do better than me, right?”
She rolled her eyes and gave him a watery smile. “Well, duh.”
“As long as we’re on the same page,” Jason mumbled before his mouth came crashing down on hers.