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She watches me for a moment, and she must decide she likes what she sees before letting it go. “Okay,” she says with a nod, “Out of everyone on campus, you’re the only one who knows the real Jaxon, so I’m going to take your word for it.”
“Thank you,” I smile as we head around a corner.
“So, what do you think is holding him back?”
“My guess is that it’s because I left him before. I mean, he’s a man. He isn’t going to admit that he’s scared of getting hurt, but I think that’s what it is. I hurt him really bad when I left, and I don’t think he trusts me anymore.”
“Well, that’s a simple fix. You need something to prove to him that you’re in it for the long haul,” she says.
“And what would that be?”
“I’m not sure you’re going to like the idea, but I’m just going to put it out there. It’s totally artificial, but I think it just might work,” she says, before becoming mute and concentrating on her run. Great. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what the little she-devil has in mind.
We turn another corner and a grin tears across my face as we see the hockey team heading our way on the opposite side of the road. But today, we’ll play it smart. I’m not getting thrown over any shoulders this morning. The boys get closer, and I can’t help but grin at Jax.
I have absolutely no plan in mind, but I give him an evil smirk and cross the road to run directly in front of him, the same way he had done to me. His eyes narrow with suspicion and my smirk only gets bigger, but he doesn’t move.
Damn it, the asshole is calling my bluff.
He jogs closer, and I do the only thing I can possibly think of. “Get ready to bolt,” I murmur to Bri as I reach behind her and pluck the little water bottle out of the special waistband of her shorts.
I pop the lid as quickly as possible and drench Jax just as fast. His mouth pops open as he registers what’s going on, and I see the look in his eyes before he even moves. I scream for mercy and take off like a bat out of hell, dragging Brianna behind me.
He’s much faster than me. He always has been, but he allows us to get away, and once we turn the corner, we have to stop to catch our breath, slowing to a dawdle. “He’s going to get you back for that,” she warns me.
“I know,” I grin, absolutely loving these little games with Jax. “I can’t wait.”
We get back into our jog when another runner passes us and does a double take. “Oh, hey,” he says, backing up and jogging backward in front of us so that we don’t have to stop. Something pulls at a memory as I take in the guy’s face, but I can’t for the life of me remember what it is.
“Um, hello,” I say as Bri gives him a slightly awkward wave.
“You’re Cass, right?” he asks with an odd look in his dark eyes, a look that tells me he doesn’t actually need my clarification. I can’t explain it, but something is putting me on edge with this guy. I give a hesitant nod before he continues. “I’m Matt. I’m kind of that dickhead who groped you at Micky’s the other week.”
“What?” I ask in shock as I stumble over my own feet.
Holy shit. This is the guy who practically attacked me at Micky’s. Had Jax not been there, I probably would have ended up bruised and bloodied in the back alley behind the bar. Actually, what am I saying? He did leave me bruised.
“Yeah,” he cringes. “I, ahh, just wanted to apologize about that.”
“Oh, um,” I say, a little uncomfortable, desperately needing to get away from this guy. “Yeah, it’s fine,” I say hoping that’s enough to send him on his way.
“What?” Brianna barks out in horror with wide eyes, startling us both. “It’s absolutely not fine,” she demands, then gets right into the guy’s face as rage flares in her eyes. “You touched her when she said no. You ground your dirty, sweaty body into her when she said no. You kissed her neck after she said no. You wanted more when she struggled against you,” she continues as her face starts turning red. “You bruised her skin and tried to force your hand down her pants. None of that is fine. She was lucky that Jax was there to knock your sorry-ass out or she probably would have ended up in the hospital completing a rape kit.”
Woah. Go, girl.
Matt’s eyes grow dark and angry, and he leans over Bri, getting back in her face. “I’m not a rapist,” he spits at her. I notice his hands beginning to clench into fists at his side, and it looks like he’s physically trying to hold himself back from hitting her.
