Page 97 of Take What You Want

Smirking, I continue, “She loves you, man. You could walk up to her right now without a ring, without any plan, in your trunks, and I’d bet my entire fortune that she’d say yes.”

“I know, I know. I just…she deserves it to be special.”

My friend, the romantic. Although if any of us were capable of it, it’d be him.

“If you need help with anything, you let us know.” Walker takes a long sip of his Diet Coke and then stares at it, like the drink personally offends him.

“What about you?” Hayden asks him.

“What about me?”

Hayden nods his head in Scar’s direction. “You guys thinking about that next step yet?”

Something shutters behind Walker’s usually playful gaze and he runs a thick hand through his hair. “Not yet.”

That takes me back. It seems to do the same to Hayden.

“No?” I ask. They’ve been together for two years now.

Walker shrugs but it’s stiff. “We’re not rushing anything. Scar’s touring schedule is crazy right now, and I’ve been spending a lot of time in the studio, too. It’s just not something we’re thinking about.”

He eyes his girlfriend with an unreadable expression, which throws me off because out of all of us, Walker has always been the easiest to read. He wears his heart on his sleeve and it’s disarming to feel like he has a bit of a wall up with us.

“Everything okay between you two?” I ask carefully.

He immediately cracks a smile, but it lacks its usual enthusiasm. “We’re good.”

I peek at Hayden and he looks just as confused as I do. Alright, well, at least he’s not in on something that I’m just being left out of. While the four of us have always been best friends, Hayden and Walker have always been just a little closer, like me and Reid.

Well, not exactly like me and Reid.

Hayden, being the good friend he is to Walker, but the little shit he can be, turns the attention to me by asking, “What about you? Have you been seeing anyone lately?”

I glare at him because while I haven’t confirmed anything to him, I know he knows that Jane and I are more than friends.

But the relief on Walker’s face that the attention is off of him soothes a bit of my annoyance. At least until the guilt sweeps in that I have to sit here and lie.

“No,” I say, hoping I sound convincing. “With the whole deal with Kerra and working on my album, I haven’t really had time.”

“That’s never stopped you before,” Walker says, and my heart rate spikes, thinking he might be onto us. But when I meet his eye, there’s no suspicion there; only curiosity.

I shrug and decide to play into the stereotype I’ve fallen into for years. “No, it hasn’t. But you know me, it’s not like I’m trying to settle down like you fuckers.”

Walker laughs, and I ignore the bitter taste of my lies. Hayden’s eyes burn into the side of my face, but I purposely avert my attention, staring out at the water.

My life suddenly feels like one giant lie. I’m lying to the public about being in a relationship with Kerra. I’m lying to my best friends by not admitting that I’m in a relationship with Jane.

Well, not yet anyways.But if I have anything to say about it, that will change.

Soon.

25

JANE

Ipull at the side of my bikini top, trying to keep it in place. This suit was my favorite when I bought it, but now standing between Scar and Carter who are both half my size, I wish I opted for something a little more full coverage today.

Although as uncomfortable as I feel, Nikolai doesn’t seem to pick up on it. If anything, he’s been taking in more than his fair share of my body as we eat lunch and lounge by the pool. His gaze follows me like a missile, and every time I meet it, he smiles slyly. He’s bold about checking me out amongst a group of people he should be hiding it from, but no one seems to notice.

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