Page 62 of The Foul Out

Silently I glared at my friend, hoping he could read thewhat the fuck?in my expression. Because this woman wasn’t his normal type.

He dropped his arm from around the chick and stepped back. “Excuse us, ladies. We’re going to grab refills.”

I fell into step with him as we headed toward the bar in the corner.

“What’s up with you tonight?” I asked when we were out of earshot of the women.

“I asked Ashley to come, but she blew me off.” With a sigh, he ran a hand through his hair.

“Ashley?” I stopped short. “Like Piper’s Ashley?”

He grabbed my upper arm and pulled me along with him.

“Yes,” he hissed. “And keep it down.”

“But I hired her to work with Piper.”

“And you hired me to pick up your dry cleaning. I didn’t realize either position required a vow of celibacy,” he snapped.

I frowned at his reaction, totally confused by the un-Cam-like behavior. “It doesn’t, man. I just didn’t realize.”

“It doesn’t matter.” He waved me off and ordered a whiskey.

“Seems like it does.” I eyed the drink as the bartender set it down and Cam immediately picked it up and tossed it back. “You’re upset. So what happened?” I asked as the bartender set a beer in front of me.

Frowning, Cam spun his now empty glass in a small circle. “She apparently just got out of a relationship, and I’m not the type of guy you get under in order to get over someone else.”

I scoffed. “Ashley did not say that.” I may have been ignorant of the way my friend was pining over her, but I’d been around this girl enough to know she didn’t talk that way.

“Close enough.” He shook his head and held up a hand, signaling for another glass of whiskey. “Basically, I’m a nice guy,not someone she’d want to rebound with, and she’s not ready for more than that.”

“Sounds like all you need is a little patience.” I patted his back and took a sip of my beer.

Grunting, he peered over his shoulder. I set my beer on the bar and turned too. Instantly, I zeroed in on the red hair across the room. Harper’s hair was always up in a bun or a braid or a twist. I’d never seen it down before tonight. She’d done that thing women do when they make their hair have waves without the curl. And between that and the hunter-green sweater that kept slipping off her right shoulder, I had struggled to take my eyes off her since she walked in.

There were a lot of sexy women in this room. Any direction I looked, I’d find another tight dress, another set of high heels, another pair of long lashes, many of which were being batted at me. But not one of them could compete. Harper wasn’t even looking for attention, yet she was theI could spend forever watching hertype of beautiful.

I frowned. Because currently, she was glowing as she smiled at the neighbor.

“It seems like Harper is long over her ex,” Cam said beside me, picking up his second glass of whiskey. “Definitely a single and ready to mingle situation. So maybe don’t dick around and let someone else get into those tight-ass leggings.”

I reared back, and in doing so, I slammed into the bar behind me.

Cam gave me a concerned once-over. I stared at him in return, slack jawed. Because once again, that didn’t sound like Cam. For weeks, he’d been telling me to stay away from her. Every time he’d witnessed me dancing a line with her, he’d been loud in his opinion.

I balled my hands into fists at my sides when the implication of what he’d said finally registered.

“Sorry,” he added, quickly holding up a palm. “Not trying to be disrespectful to her. I adore Harper. She has grit and personality. I’m just in a mood.”

Still annoyed by his comment, I crossed my arms over my chest. “And smarts. And she would probably verbally eviscerate you for talking about her.”

He dropped his head back and guffawed. “But man, you like her. For the first time since I met you, I can see that you genuinely like a woman.”

I brought my beer to my lips and took a slow sip, giving myself a second to collect my thoughts. Was he right? Was that what this sensation was?

She was hot, and I was attracted to her, but I’d known that the instant I saw her. But I’d forced her into thenot allowedbox. Or I’d tried. Across the room, she was worrying her lip. The move had my gut tightening. What if I stopped fighting it…?

I shook that thought off. That wasn’t what Cam meant. He was talking about other types of feelings.

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