carter
It takestwo seconds with her on my arm for shit to hit the fan.
One moment, I’m walking to the bar with her, hand on the small of her back. I’m talking to Lowesy, who is by my side, cracking stupid jokes. The next second, some idiot in a gray dress shirt and too-tight pants saunters right into our space like he was personally invited.
Doesn’t look at me. Doesn’t look at Lowesy.
Eyes are on her.Onlyher.
Arden glances over her shoulder at the same moment Dec and I trade a look.
And she lights the fuck up.
“Noah!” She flings herself into his arms and out of my grasp. He winds his arms around her back like he’s done this a hundred times before—like he’stouchedher before.
Fake or not, I am one jealous motherfucker.
I reach up to scratch my jaw, ignoring the itch in my fingertips. I feel Declan watching me carefully, but I refuse to meet his eyes. I’m going to see a warning in them, and I can’t bebothered to acknowledge it. I won’t hit the guy. For all I know, that could be her cousin, but I’m immediately on edge.
“Dolly,” he says with a laugh. “How’s it going? Haven’t seen you in a while.”
Dolly?
Yeah. Hate that.
Arden pulls back and smacks his chest lightly. The move catches me off guard. It’s completely unlike her. At least, the ‘her’ that I know.Thatwas flirty as shit.
She isaware that those rules we set are rules she alsohas to follow, right? That includes not flirting with the fifth Jonas Brother. Yes, Frankie counts. There are four of them. Five, if you include Noah Tight-Pants.
“Where the hell have you been?” she says. I glance at Lowesy then, but he’s now looking anywhere but the two of them and isdefinitelyavoiding looking at me. He stares at the bottles behind the bar, eyes squinted like he’s memorizing the labels. “How am I supposed to jab a needle in a six-foot-four, three-hundred-pound man without you there to hold them down?”
Alright, this is definitely not her cousin. You don’t use that tone with a relative. My fingers itch a bit more intensely. I shake them out by my side.
Not your actual girlfriend, Carter. Ease up.
Still, the disrespect from this idiot makes me want to double down instead. You see her here with two guys by her side, with my armliterallyaround her, and you put on a performance like this?Without acknowledging me in the slightest? Without introducing yourself?
I know a rat when I see one.
“Ah, come on,” he teases, and that’s my breaking point. I don’t like the way he said that. No specific reason why.Just don’t.
I clear my throat, stepping forward to insert myself right between their little reunion. This ends now, or it ends bloody.
Declan goes rigid beside me, ready to jump in, his interest in the bottles gone in a blink.
“Seems like you didn’t see me standing here.” I smile, but it’s not a kind look. Menacing. Territorial. I thrust my hand between us. I never let my eyes leave his. “Carter. Arden’s boyfriend.”
I feel Arden tense beside me. We’re going to have a little talk about that later.
Noah’s eyes dip to my hand for a moment. His gaze snaps back up to mine, and I can tell within half a fucking second that I’m standing in front of a cop. He flashes me a tight smile, but places his hand in mine anyway.
Shit. He’s got a good, firm handshake. That’s fucking annoying.
“Yeah, I know who you are, big guy.” He breathes a laugh, and his eyes go right back to my girlfriend. “Thought you weren’t dating him?”
It’s like I’m still not fucking here.
My brow furrows, jaw ticks, and I glance over my shoulder at Arden. They’ve talked about this? They’ve talked aboutme,and she said we weren’t together?
