Page 61 of Alpha Jax

“So how’s it going?” Boyd asks Kyla, and I can’t help but smile. Guess he’s shifted his interest.

As Boyd and Kyla chat each other up on one side of me and Logan and Vienna are having a flirty conversation on the other, I can’t help but feel a little bit left out. I sip on my beer, glancing across the bank to where Jax and the other alphas are hanging out. As usual, he’s looking good enough to eat in nothing but a pair of teal swim trunks with his tan, toned upper body on full display. It’s impossible not to notice how many sets of eager eyes are also cast in his direction, single females hungrily checking out Jax and the other eligible alphas.

I don’t know if it’s the beer buzz, but I’m suddenly battling some strange emotions. The first, possessiveness- the urge to walk over there and drape myself over Jaxon and let all of these other bitches know he’s mine. Then there’s a kind of jealousy I’m fighting over the fact that my friends beside me can openly talk and flirt with one another, while Jax and I have to avoid each other to preserve our secret. I try to shake it off, kick those emotions to the curb and remind myself that this is the way it has to be.

Jax isn’t mine and I have no claim over him. The two of us have an understanding that this is just a physical thing, a casual hookup. And that’s all we are. All we’ll ever be. Stolen moments behind closed doors, subtle glances when nobody’s watching. A secret to keep. We’ll never be able to openly flirt like Logan and Vienna or Kyla and Boyd, and we’ll never be a couple. Given our set of circumstances, I can’t allow myself to want anything different.

Jax’s pale blue eyes meet mine, and I swear there’s longing in his gaze as he takes a sip of his beer, staring at me over the top of his cup. Maybe he’s feeling some of the same confusing shit I am right now. Maybe he wants to come over here and talk to me as badly as I wish he could. Or maybe it’s just the beer buzz.

“Why haven’t you guys gotten in the water yet?” Fallon teases as she walks up the bank toward us in a sky-blue bikini, wringing out her ponytail. “It feels great!”

She’s flanked by her friend Shay, who nods enthusiastically in agreement.

“So great that you guys are getting out?” I challenge, arching a brow.

“Drink break,” Shay supplies, turning at the waist and waving at a couple of guys in the water, calling out to them. “If you want a beer, you’d better come and grab one, I’m not gonna bring ‘em out to you!”

The two dudes are striding up onto the bank a few moments later- I recognize them as Connor and Judd; friends of Fallon’s that she introduced me to on our first bar night in Goldenleaf. As the four of them start heading for the kegs, I realize that I could use a refill, too, and stroll over to join them. Judd’s got the nozzle in his hand, filling cups for the others, and I step in to wait my turn.

“So are you gonna come swim or what?” Judd asks me as he moves the nozzle to my cup and starts to fill it, pumping the tap.

Not gonna lie, Judd’s a good looking guy. If I wasn’t completely infatuated with Jax at the moment, Judd would probably be a contender. He’s covered in bulky muscle, cocky as hell with a dangerously charming smile- draped in red flags which means he must be my type. What can I say? I know how to pick ‘em.

“Not sure,” I breathe, watching Judd’s eyes as he rakes them over my body slowly.

“C’mon,” he urges, returning his gaze to mine as the corner of his mouth tips up into a half-smirk. “You look like you need to cool off.”

I arch a brow in amusement. “Oh yeah?”

Judd narrows his eyes intently. “Definitely. You’re lookin’ hot, babe.”

“Jesus,” I snort, chuckling. “Does that line actually work on girls?”

He doesn’t get embarrassed that I called him out- his smirk just deepens as he finishes filling my cup with beer. “Usually. Though you must be one of those hard-to-get girls, huh?”

I shrug, pulling back my full cup and bringing it to my lips. “Guess so.”

Fallon, Shay, and Connor have wandered over join Kyla and my other friends, so Judd and I head over that way, too. We chat for a little while as we drink our beers, and I’ve gotta admit, Judd’s growing on me a little bit. He’s definitely got a certain charm to him. Still, every so often, I can’t help but glance Jax’s way, and somehow he catches me every time. Either that, or he’s keeping an eye on me, too.

“I’m going back in,” Shay announces, finishing her beer and tossing the cup into a nearby bin. “Anyone else?”

Fallon tips back her cup, downing the rest of her own drink. She wipes at her mouth with an arm before saying “I’m in!”

Judd’s already finished with his own beer, and he glances into my empty cup. “Well?”

I give a little shake of my head. “You guys go ahead.”

“Aw, c’mon,” he coaxes, flashing a smile. “Or do I gotta drag you in kicking and screaming?”

“Yeah right,” I laugh, but then he’s tossing his cup toward the bin, darting behind me and wrapping his thick arms around my waist and lifting my feet off of the ground. “Put me down!” I scream, laughing, flailing my limbs.

He starts carrying me down the bank as I kick my legs and tug at his arms with my hands. “Judd, I mean it! Let me go!” I laugh.

He releases my waist right at the edge of the swimming hole, my bare feet landing in the cold water. I spin and kick some of the water at him, pushing at his chest playfully. “You’re the worst!”

“Or I could be the best you’ve ever had,” he winks.

“Ugh,” I grimace, shoving him again. “Another line, seriously?”

---