Page 33 of Believe In Us

“Liam I…”

He interrupts me before I can refuse. “Just dinner Jade, as friends, it can be at Scottie’s Diner, informal and fun. Unless you are otherwise tied up?” he asks shyly, looking down at his football cleats before looking back up at me, slightly afraid of my response. I laugh at his choice of words. Yeah well Sebastian sure enjoys tying me up.

“No I’m not otherwise tied up if that’s your weird way of asking if there is anything going on between Silver and I,” I say, hoping it’s the right thing to say. I know I shouldn’t lead Liam on but he said we’d just be going as friends, and I’ve come to notice I’m seriously lacking in that department.

“So then dinner, this Friday at Scottie’s. I’ll pick you up,” he exclaims, the excitement obvious in his voice. I simply nod, giving him a warm smile, well as warm as I can give, internally laughing at his enthusiasm.

“Catch you later Walker,” I say before turning away and running toward the track.

Three laps into my warm-up, I ran into Stella and Scar barely emerging from the locker rooms and heading over in my direction. It’s nearing the end of March but the heat today is no joke. My ponytail is sweaty and my gym polo is glued to my body like a sticky layer of skin. I reach back to pull it over my head, looking around and making sure no teacher or coach is nearby to give me any shit about running in just a sports bra, but quickly decide I don’t fucking care if they do given that the cheer squad is down the field practicing in much less. I immediately spot Kinsley, cheer co-captain of course, since Carrington is in charge, wearing miniscule shorts and a sports bra that looks more like a swimsuit top. I roll my eyes at the way a crowd of guys huddles around them watching their practice.

“You keep rolling your eyes like that and they’re going to get stuck,” Scarlett mocks, as she and Stella walk up to me. So I do what I do best, roll my eyes and give her the finger.

She laughs, something I haven’t heard from her in a while, as she starts stretching on the track. “You know the bitch has been running her mouth about what happened on New Year’s,” Scar says, and I know exactly what she’s talking about.

“God I can’t stand the sight of her, I swear I see fucking red!” Now it’s Stella’s turn to laugh, as she turns to look in the direction my glare is focused, right toward the gossiping bitch.

“So it’s true then?” Stella asks, referring to the lovely story Kinsley’s been going on about how things went down at the New Year’s Eve party down at the beach. In her unhinged little mind, some three-way fantasy of hers was about to play out but fuck it if I was going to be any part of that. I left Bass naked and with the worst case of blue balls when the bitch showed up claiming to want in and he wasn’t so quick to turn her away. In his “defense” he said his drunken mind was taking longer than usual to react, but I was in no mood to fall for his bullshit. The only downside, he wasn’t the only one left heated and wanting.

“Not the way she’d like to remember it,” I hiss, turning to where we hear Liam barking orders at his teammates.

“We also heard Walker came over here earlier,” Scar teases, changing the subject, her unspoken question evident in her mocking tone of voice.

“The gossip mill around here works overtime I see,” I sneer, irritated that everyone is always in everyone’s business. “But he did, wants to take me out to eat on Friday,” I add, as if it’s no big deal. Both their jaws drop open acting as if in fact it is a big deal. They turn to each other exchanging a suspicious glare before turning back to me.

“I guess he didn’t learn his lesson at Bass’s party,” Scar mumbles under her breath.

“So are you going to go out with him?” Stella asks, her eyes suddenly going wide as if terrified of my answer. What is it with these two today?

“Yes, I’m going out with him on Friday,”

“Like fuck you are,” Bass yells, suddenly appearing out of fucking nowhere. I turn abruptly coming face to face with the gorgeous bastard and Ace smirking at his side before walking over to hug my sister.

“And why the fuck not?” I ask, popping my hip out and placing my hand teasingly on my waist. His eyes roam over my body and I swear I see smoke emerging from his ears and nostrils as henotices I’m wearing nothing but my gym shorts and a sports bra, bearing a decent amount of cleavage and ending just above my rib cage. His anger turns to desire as I seductively puff out my chest and tilt my neck slightly to the right giving him an eye full of the skin he loves to run his tongue across. Bass is a neck guy. He loves to kiss them, lick them, bite them, and wrap his hands around them.

His eyes snap out of their lust filled trance as they come back up to meet mine. They’re clearer today, the gray coloring almost transparent as they watch me. “Because I fucking said so. I guesspretty boydidn’t get the memo this weekend about keeping his hands off what belongs to me. Maybe someone needs a refresher course.”

“Fuck off Bass,” I shout, pushing at his chest but failing in making him move even the slightest bit. “In no way, shape, or form am I yours. You need to get that through that thick fucking skull of yours you stubborn ass.” I’m fucking pissed, fuming, and practically foaming at the mouth at his cockiness and overconfidence. But instead of pissing him off he starts fucking laughing. Like a full-blown bent over, unrestrained, juvenile laugh joined in by Ace, Scar, and Stella. Now I’m in killer mode.

“Oh Little Wolf, you are out of your ever-loving mind if you think you don’t belong to me.” His body straightens as he approaches me, slowly closing the distance between us, his thick and broad shoulders shielding me from the field around us. My body starts to tremble, not in anger but in desire as his scent fills my nostrils, the notes of bergamot and pine I love, putting a spell on me. My pussy begins to ache, clenching as I squeeze my thighs together, almost losing my balance, reaching my hand up to his shoulder to steady myself. Fuck these goddamn hormones and mood swings. I go from playful, to pissed, to real fucking horny in 2.5 seconds. It’s infuriating.

His hand reaches out to wipe the sweat beading at my temple, moving to my chin, running his fingers over the soft skin of myneck, and down to the perky swells of my breast before he roughly grabs my waist pulling me into him. “You are mine Jade Wolfe, mind, body, and fucking soul. Don’t you forget it.”

And he just turns and takes off toward the parking structure located to the left of the gym, walking like he didn’t just lay an unsolicited claim on me. But god fucking dammit if he isn’t right.

Chapter

Eighteen

BASS

Idrove straight home to the beach house after that little spectacle Jade caused in the middle of the track field on Monday, acting as if she had a say in who she could date. All fucking week, every chance I’ve gotten which have been few since she’s managed to avoid me, I’ve made it my goal to remind her who it is that she wants and if she’s going to go out with anyone it’s going to be me. I swear my baby is clueless sometimes. Jade’s mine and only mine, she needs to get that through that gorgeous thick head of hers before heads start fucking rolling, and I don’t mean hers or mine, but of that fucker Liam Walker and any other crazy bastard who dares to make a move on her. I’ve decided to stake my claim. It’s about damn time everyone at the academy understood that Jade Wolfe belongs to me, even if she’s late in the game, and I will be doing just that tomorrow night when she goes on that little date with the soon to be dead bastard.

It’s fucking Thursday, so first, it’s off to see the old man.

“Today's meeting is slightly different, son. With Wesley gone,there’s going to be a shift in the way we do business,” his crass tone shows that he’s been contemplating making his move for quite some time. Although my father’s relationship with the dead asshole went beyond just business, I know deep down he wanted Wesley out of his way. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d planned to take over, were the bastard not already dead.

“All of a sudden we are going clean father,” I sneer, mocking him, “Are you going to tell me you’ve suddenly found you had a soul and are going to dedicate your work to helping the poor and saving the whales.”

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