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He sets me down to hold me at arm’s length, looking me up and down like he can’t believe I’m really here.
“Damn girl, you are a sight for sore eyes.” He brings me in for another hug, thankfully keeping my feet firmly planted on the ground. I really don’t need the shrimp and grits making a reappearance after all the gin I’ve consumed.
I look over at a scowling Jackson and can’t help the giggle that escapes. “Easton, this is Jackson. Jackson, Easton.” I wave my hand between them, and Easton puts his hand out for a shake. Jackson clasps it a little harder than necessary.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Abigail’s boyfriend,” Jackson says by way of an introduction.
Easton looks between us, and a loud laugh bellows out of him.
“No need to mark your territory, bud. I’ve known this girl since she was runnin’ amuck with my sister, trying not to get caught and dunked in a horse trough for some prank they pulled on my brothers and me. She the little sister I never wanted,” he replies as he scrubs a meaty palm over my hair. Of course, he would bring that up.
Jackson visibly relaxes and looks at me, quirking his brow. “Get dunked in many troughs there, Red?”
“Only when they could catch me,” I reply, trying to smooth down the mess Easton just made of my hair. “Or if their mama didn’t catch them first.” Another loud laugh from Easton has half the bar turning toward us. He’s one of those guys that every woman wants a piece of and every man wants to be friends with.
“I wish we could stay, but I have to get up and be my charming self way too early tomorrow,” I tell Easton.
“Oh yeah. Here for the big wedding and all the bullshit that goes along with it, I hear. If you need an escape, come out and see us, or just because we miss the hell out of you and want to see you again before another three years pass.”
Even though he didn’t mean anything by it, a pang of guilt hits me in the chest. Regret fills me when I realize I let a few bad apples keep me from the people I care about. The ones that aren’t going to screw me over or tell me to smile while my life falls apart. The Beauchamps would have given me a shotgun and empty beer cans to work out my frustrations, then sat with me and drank until I couldn’t remember why my heart was broken. Hell, I had to stop Hank, Julia’s oldest brother, from finding Davis and rearranging his pretty boy features. That’s the support I should have gotten from my actual family.
“I promise we’ll figure out a day for a visit before we leave,” I tell him.
Jackson and I say our goodbyes and get in the car to drive back to the hotel. After buckling in, I turn to look at him. He’s gazing at me with a soft smile on his lips.
“What?” I ask, feeling like I’m being scrutinized but not knowing why.
“This was nice. Seeing you out with the friends you grew up with. I feel like I got a little glimpse into your life.”
He starts the car and backs out of the parking space in front of the bar.
“It’s nice being home and around people that have known me forever.” Leaning my head against the seat, I close my eyes, happily buzzed and in a good mood.
“I got to see the softer side of Abigail Barnes tonight. I have to say, it was intriguing.”
“Don’t get used to it, Prince. There’s still plenty of bark in me.”
He chuckles as he drives us to that glorious bed I can’t wait to crawl into.
“Wouldn’t dream of it, Red.”
Chapter 12
Jackson
Thewomannexttome is so damn tempting. I may not have thought my plan through very well. Waking up next to her for the next week and not being able to touch her in all the ways my body screams for me to may be the fucking death of me. My fingers ache to run the length of her naked arm while she slumbers peacefully, but I control myself. The last thing I want is for her to wake and elbow me in my face because I couldn’t keep my hands to myself.
It’s nine in the morning and I know she has to wake up and get ready for her sister’s luncheon, but I’m going to lie here as long as possible and let my eyes take in their fill. I can’t do that while she’s awake. Abigail would probably laugh in my face and call me an idiot for wanting to sit here and just look at her. She’s so peaceful in sleep. Not the hellcat I usually deal with. Seeing her let loose last night shifted something inside me. God, the way she moved on the dance floor last night was temptation personified. It’s a good thing no one was paying attention to me because my body reacted like I was thirteen years old and got a hold of a Victoria’s Secret catalog.
Abigail stirs next to me, letting out a painful groan.
“Why is it so damn bright in here?” She grabs the pillow and flings it over her head.
Knowing this morning she would most likely wake up with a hangover due to the sheer amount of gin she ingested last night, I closed the curtains before falling asleep beside her, so it’s not that bright. My guess is any amount of light this morning is going to be torture for her.
“Did you know you snore?” I ask her with a smile, propping my face on my hand. She doesn’t, but it wouldn’t be us if I didn’t give her a little shit.
She whips the pillow off her head and turns to me with a glare in her eyes.
