Page 4 of Easy Out

“All of them?” I ask as my eyes wander over to Wyatt, Hart, and two other guys I’ve never seen before talking to Nash.

Sydney shakes her head. “I can’t promise that, but Nash and Koa would leave with me.” Suddenly the DJ mixes one track into the next, and Lizzo’s Juice is blasting across The Warehouse. Shit. There is no way I’m getting out of this now.

Sydney makes her ‘this is my song’ face and starts swaying her perfectly round hips and bouncing her shoulders to the beat. I can’t say no to that face, and she knows it. I also can’t turn down my girl Lizzo.

This is the kind of music we put on full blast in our dorm room and dance like no one is watching. That’s exactly what Sydney expects me to do now.

I start moving to the back beat of the song. Stopping every now and then, locking my body to emphasize a word in the lyrics. Sydney and I dance with dramatic flair. There is nothing sexy about the way we dance together. Unlike other girls in the club, we aren’t dancing to get a man’s attention. We are doing it for ourselves.

It doesn’t take long to forget about the six pairs of eyes drilling into the back of my skull and have fun with Syd.

When the chorus hits, we sync up our movements as if we choreographed the whole routine. We haven’t. It’s Syd’s song and one we dance to all the time when we want to feel good.

Before I know it, the song is over, and we have even more eyes on us than I first thought.

One of which is a furious Emilio. I raise an eyebrow and dare him to say something. Of course, he takes the challenge. A few long strides, and he’s in my face.

“What are you doing?” He sneers. “You know the rules.”

“Easy there big guy.“ Emilio snaps his glare at Sydney. His glare would make most men cower in fear. Not Syd. She straightens her spine and lifts her chin. “If you want to join us, just ask. I’ll pencil you in on my dance card. Mkay?”

I look to the ceiling and let out a deep exhale. Placing a hand on Emilio’s chest, I push him away from Syd. “We were having fun, Emilio. It’s cool. None of that is in my routine. Let them watch. If that scares them, they aren’t prepared for what I will bring to them later.”

“Fine. Everyone is on edge. There is more competition than usual.”

“Where? I don’t see anyone here who can compete with the Kings.” A wolfish grin takes over half of Emilio’s mouth. He knows I’m right. “We got this. We will give Carter the shutout he wants. The crew, Killer, and me.” Emilio nods. Then scans the crowd.

“You know them?” Emilio flicks his eyes to his right. Syd and I swivel our heads towards the bar.

“That’s just my brother and his friends,” Syd explains. “Don’t let them scare you away.”

“Do I look like someone who scares easily, Princesa?“ Sydney’s eyes take a leisurely stroll over Emilio’s six-foot-two-inch frame. His shaved head. Tattoos crawling up his neck and biceps. Nose and ear piercings.

“They don’t scare you, but I do.” Sydney takes a step closer attempting to prove her point. Unfortunately, it backfires, and now she’s standing chest-to-chest with Emilio.

He leans down and whispers something in Syd’s ear that I can’t hear over the music. Whatever he said has put a pink flush on Sydney’s skin. She staggers back a step which triggers a cruel laugh from Emilio.

“I’ll see you later, Lo,” Emilio tells me before turning to Sydney. “Princesa,“ he says, then winks.

Sydney takes hold of my wrist, leading us toward her brother. Why I don’t fight her, I have no idea. I think I’m too stunned by what I just witnessed.

“What did he say to you? You’re blushing.” Syd looks at me, looks away, and then looks at me again. I’m getting concerned.

“Nothing I can repeat.” That sounds like Emilio. “I have never had anyone say such dirty things to me before. And I liked it.”

“Let’s get you a drink.”

“Yes. I definitely need one of those. How do you hang out with guys like that all time?”

“They don’t look at me like a Princesa,“ I snark.

“Brat,” she teases back.

What I don’t ask is how she can hang out with Koa, Wyatt, and Hart without stuttering and stammering over her words. These guys are gorgeous. Nash is too, but he’s her brother.

“Who was that?” Nash asks gruffly, as any brother would, I suppose. He’s protective of his sister. Koa is also waiting in the wings for our answer.

“Lauren’s friend.”

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