“Fine, huh?” I quip.
“Yup. Totally fine.”
“I guess it means we’re doing this.” I take a deep breath. “Why does it kind of freak me out?”
“Because you have no idea what you’re signing up for,” Lexie returns. “But that’s a good thing. It means you haven’t let your guard down all because of a pretty face.”
“What pretty face?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Pick one,” she tosses back at me. “Ford, Roman, Jagger, the quiet one who likes to undress people with his eyes.”
My jaw drops, and I shove her shoulder. “Lexie!”
“What? Am I wrong?”
“Kind of,” I laugh. “Hawke’s never been anything but a complete gentleman during our limited interactions. The question is, why isn’t it the case for you?”
“And that sounds like a Hawke question, not a Lexie question. Now, if you’ll excuse me, we have a show to watch.” Turning toward the beat-up television in her family room, she waves me off and reaches for the remote.
Well, I guess that’s that.
15
JAGGER
Icheck the time on my phone, then tuck it into my back pocket as Annie paws at my arm. She’s been talking for a solid ten minutes, and I’ve been over it for nine.
“I thought we weren’t supposed to have those,” she teases.
Huh?
“Your phone,” she clarifies with a laugh that reminds me of nails scraping on a chalkboard. “Aren’t we supposed to leave those in our cars?”
Reining in my annoyance, I reply, “Perks of running these things.”
“I can think of a few more perks, if you’d like.” She pets my bicep again, her long, pointy nails tickling my skin through my T-shirt before she trails them down my forearm and back again. I should like the feeling. Normally, I do. But tonight, it feels like ants crawling beneath my skin. The realization only irritates me more.
We invested way too much money into tonight, and if it doesn’t pan out, I’m gonna seriously kill my little brother. He’s been working day and night, trying to get everything ready while promising it’ll make a splash and will earn back our investment by the end of the night. I, however, am not so optimistic. Add inall the money I lost during fight night a few weeks ago, and I’m ready to lose my shit. Then again, Ford’s the numbers guy, not me. Maybe I should have a little more faith.
And maybe pigs can fly.
The muscle in my jaw twinges. I spread my legs and shift on the throne in the center of the amusement park, trying to focus on what’s in front of me instead of my shitty attitude and the never-ending list of what if’s that love plaguing me. The carnival was abandoned at least two decades ago after someone died on one of the rides and the family sued. Instead of trying to stay open, the owners closed the gates and declared bankruptcy. Now, it’s another location in the rotation for Harden Nights.
As Hawke approaches, Annie jumps to her feet, vacating the throne on my left for my brother to take. He doesn’t ask her to, but the girl knows better. Everyone knows better.
Call it anotherperk.
“Find me later,” she coos, stepping off the main stage and into the crowd.
I won’t. Not likely. But I’m too lazy to announce it to the world, let alone fill Annie in on the truth. She’s nothing but a prop. And so am I. Besides, she got what she wanted. A moment in the spotlight. On stage. Beside one of the Harden brothers. Yeah, Annie will be fine.
“Did I interrupt anything?” Hawke’s ass hits the cushion, and he spreads his legs wide, mirroring my position as he studies the side of my face. “Because you look…”
He doesn’t finish his sentence. And maybe he doesn’t need to. I can read between the lines, and he knows me better than anyone. I look like shit. I look on edge. I look like I’m about to hit someone. The options are endless, and all are true.
“Listen,” he mutters. “Just came to tell you she’s here.”
I turn to him. “What did you say?”
