Page 35 of Dirty Pucking Tease

"Yeah." I sighed. "He's so closed off."

He eased to a stop sign. "I think a lot of it comes from our parent's divorce." Leaning forward, he looked both ways before surging forward. "It was a pretty nasty divorce, and unfortunately, they didn't keep us out of the middle of it. We had to watch the fights, and they wanted us to choose. Like I said, it was nasty, and Syn and Jax took it hard."

"Do you think that's why he keeps himself and his feelings at a distance?"

"Probably. Be patient with him and give him time to work out his struggles with his own feelings. He'll figure out what he wants. Hopefully, it's not too late."

"It would be nice if he trusted me enough to talk to me."

"Kai, I don't think he even understands the reason he is the way he is." I nodded. He swerved into the driveway and stopped in front of the garage.

"What about you? You going to have a conversation with Cam?"

He shrugged. "I don't know."

"You should probably figure it out. Rockfest is next weekend." Then it hit me. "Holy shit! Rockfest is next weekend." He nodded. "We will never get tickets now."

"I already got them." A rueful grin split his face. "I have six tickets. You can invite your new partner if you want." Rock Fest was a three-day rock festival. I wasn't sure if Parker and I were ready to share a tent yet.

"Yeah, maybe."

Trystan and I strolled into the house, and he headed out back; I assumed to get high, and I headed upstairs to see if Jax was home.

22

Standing outside Jax's closed bedroom door, I chewed on my bottom lip. Jax never closed the door from my bedroom through the bathroom to his bedroom. So, either he had company or didn't want to be bothered. Blowing out a heavy sigh, I twisted around and sulked back to my room. I wanted to talk to Jax, but it would have to wait.

I stripped out of my clothes and pulled on a fitted purple tank top before climbing into bed and snuggling in with my back to the bathroom door I left open so I could hear if Jax came out.

Everything made so much sense now that I talked to Trystan. Trystan, Jaxtyn, and Syn had issues when it came to dating, and it made sense that those issues stemmed from their parents' divorce. I knew that Liz and Bryan had a nasty divorce, and even after all these years, the two couldn't be in a room together for more than a few minutes without fighting, but I never realized what an impact that would have on their children.

The door handle from Jax's room into the bathroom jiggled, and I sucked in a breath, praying that it was Jax, not some girl using the bathroom after their late-night sex. I didn't bother rolling over to see because I didn't want to know.

A few seconds later, my bed sank in, and Jax slid in behind me, wrapping his arms tightly around me.

"I'm sorry, Kai," he whispered, the heat of his breath brushing the shell of my ear. I didn't move a muscle. "I've been an ass, and I'm really sorry, but I don't want to leave you alone. I said I would help you, and I meant it."

"That's the problem, Jax." I shifted out of his arm and flipped over, facing him. "You're not helping me. You're giving me a complex. You're building my confidence just to turn around and shatter everything you built."

"Kai." His tone was thick with sorrow as he reached out, cupping my face.

"No, Jax." I cut him off. "I don't want your 'sorry.' I need you to be all in or all out."

"And what does being all in entail?" His gaze lingered on my mouth.

"You let me explore the wide world of sex with you and a friendship. It means if you need space from me, you talk to me. You don't ghost me like I'm another one of your Puck Bunnies."

"You're not."

I shrugged. "I wouldn't know because that's how you act."

His throat flexed on a hard swallow. "I'm a dick."

"Yeah, a little bit."

"So, you're proposing friends with benefits, no strings attached?" His thumb grazed over my bottom lip. "Is this friendship exclusive or open?"

"That's the other thing we should discuss." He raised his brows. "You can't act like a jealous boyfriend whenever I go out with someone, especially when we both know you're not. I know you think you are protecting me, but I need to date to learn to navigate the dating world."

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