Jake and Briar had always had an easy, friendly rapport. It never bothered me before, but seeing any man, even one I considered a brother, put his lips on her, irked me now that she was wearing my ring.
“Don’t be so sure,” Briar said, her lips twitching. “Having to spend the evening with that piranha is not my idea of a good time.”
Jake clucked his tongue. “Now, now. I know I can count on you to play nice with my date.”
She patted his cheek, smiling sweetly. “As long as she remembers who brought her, we won’t have a problem.” Briar turned to face me. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a quick call to make. Be right back.”
“No problem.” I gave her one last kiss, telling myself I was just trying to sell our fake engagement, but I knew I was doing more harm than good, since we were supposed to be breaking up publicly tomorrow.
Jake watched her walk away, whistling under his breath. “How does she get more beautiful every time I see her?”
“Hey, asshole,” I said, glaring at the back of his head. “Eyes off my fiancée.” Jesus. I was even trying to sell it to the guy who knew it was fake, making myself look like an idiot.
Jake laughed as he turned to face me. “Whatever you say, boss.”
“Amber? Really?”
“You should be thanking me,” Jake said, lowering his voice as he took a step closer. “Did you see Briar’s reaction? I thought she was going to lose her shit.”
“So, you were trying to piss her off—”
“I was trying to make her open her eyes.” Jake looked me in the eye. “And see that what you guys have is real.”
I should have known my best friend wasn’t trying to screw me over by inviting my ex. He was trying to help me, in his own misguided way. I’d confided in him that my feelings for Briar were getting too real and I wasn’t ready to move out of her house. Obviously, he thought if he backed her into a corner, she’d be forced to admit she had feelings for me too. But Jake didn’t know Briar as well as I did. The armour protecting her heart was solid. I hadn’t discovered a single chink.
“I appreciate that, but there’s no way Briar is going to let Amber get under her skin. The girl has too much pride—”
“You’d have to be blind not to see how pissed Briar was that I brought your ex.”
I rolled my eyes as I sipped my drink. “I’d hardly call Amber my ex. We had an understanding. It was totally casual.”
“For you maybe. I think the lady got in a little deeper.”
I shrugged. “I can’t help that. I was always upfront with her about what I wanted and didn’t want.”
“Yeah, and what you want is Briar. You’ve got her, technically, so what are you going to do to keep her?”
I’d never told Jake I wanted to keep Briar, but he wasn’t an idiot. There was no point trying to deny it. “I don’t know.” I watched Briar make her way to the bar, totally obvious to the dozen male admirers whose gaze followed her. “We agreed I’d move out tomorrow, call off our engagement.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“No, but what am I going to do about it? That loser is behind bars. The threat is gone.”
Briar was chatting up the bartender, making him laugh. Even the innocent interaction made my gut clench. I didn’t want to watch her flirting with other men, but I’d set myself up for this torture when I agreed to her fake relationship proposition. I should have known better than to think I could sleep with her every night and not acknowledge the feelings that had been simmering just below the surface for years.
“You think she has feelings for you?”
I glared at Jake, wishing he’d back off. It wasn’t like my friend to pump me for information about women. “How the hell should I know?”
“You could ask her,” he said, looking amused. “You know, try manning up. Tell her how you feel about her. Ask if she’s feeling it too.”
“You’re out of your mind.” Briar wasn’t some random woman. She was my best friend’s sister. Our paths would cross and I didn’t want it to be awkward when they did.
“No, you are.” Jake stepped closer, invading my space. “Anyone can see you’re in love with her, Lennox. Yet you’re going to walk away, like a goddamn pussy, because you don’t have the guts to tell her how you feel? That’s messed up.”
“Get out of my face.” I knew it was messed up. But pride and fear were a powerful combination. “I don’t need you to tell me how to run my life. You’re not doing such a shit-hot job with your own, Mr. King of the One-night-stand.”
“You think if I had a shot with a woman like Briar I’d be stupid enough to let her walk?” He shook his head, looking disgusted. “I’m just biding my time with those one-nighters until I find the real deal, man. You’ve already found it. You’re just too stupid or scared to admit it. And that’s not you.” He looked me in the eye. “Don’t. Screw. This. Up.”
