Page 44 of Second Shot

There’s no cat and mouse with Jessica. She’s making it clear she’s a sure thing. I glance over at Gabe and find him still talking to the twink. Frustration eats at me as I watch the other guy run his hand down Gabe’s arm. Is Gabe actually interested in that guy? Is he going to take that guy back to our motel room? He wouldn’t do that,right? That would be pretty tacky. Even I wouldn’t do that. If was going to bang Jessica, I’d go to her place out of respect for Gabe.

Jessica touches my arm, bringing my focus back to her. “I get off in ten minutes,” she coos, lightly trailing her fingertips down my forearm. “Want to have some fun after I get off? We can go back to my place.”

If I wasn’t hoping Gabe might want to hook-up with me, I’d probably take her up on her offer. Gabe has never said we’re exclusive, and the way he’s eating up the attention that guy is giving him makes me assume he’s no longer into me. Maybe going home with Jessica would be a good way to distract myself from obsessing over Gabe. But my dick isn’t even a little hard at the idea of sleeping with her. I want Gabe. But when I look over at him, the Twink is practically sitting in his lap now. It looks like Gabe has made his choice.

Jealousy jabs at me and I pull my gaze from the two of them. I don’t own Gabe. He’s free to screw whoever he wants, just like I am. I meet Jessica’s brown eyes, and her smile is salacious. My gaze drops to her full breasts, straining the buttons on her black top. I’d probably enjoy my time with her. She has a great body and she’s really into me. If I turn her down, I might have to witness Gabe screwing that twink in our motel room. I don’t think I can handle that.

I open my mouth to tell Jessica I’ll wait around for her, when Gabe suddenly appears beside me.

“Hey, Caldwell, you ready to get out of here?” His voice is gruff and his eyes are cool and blue, like the deepest parts of the ocean. “We have an early flight home tomorrow morning.”

“Uhh.” I glance around but there’s no sign of the twink. “Where’s your friend?” I try to keep the jealousy out of my voice, but I’m not sure I succeed.

He doesn’t respond to my question, he just takes hold of my arm in a bruising grip. He addresses Jessica. “Sorry to ruin your plans for later, but this one needs to get to bed.” He all but drags me off my bar stool, toward the door.

Behind us I hear Jessica mumble a disgruntled, “Sure, have a good night.”

The rest of the team is milling around, obviously breaking up the party for the night. Unfortunately, Foster spots me and Gabe halfway to the door.

“Oh, this is interesting,” he says loudly enough that several guys turn to look. He’s grinning mischievously. “Jacobs is cock-blocking the sexy bartender. Very protective of our boy Caldwell, aren’t you Jacobs?”

All eyes turn to me and Jacobs, and uneasiness ripples through me. But Gabe just shrugs, unfazed by Foster’s ribbing.

“Someone’s got to defend Caldwell’s honor,” he says dryly

“Hey.” I scowl. “I don’t need you to babysit me.”

He ignores me, digging his fingers into my arm. “Can you imagine Caldwell with that bartender? She’d eat him alive.”

The guys laugh, my face warms, and the moment passes. But I catch the way Foster’s eyes linger on us for just a moment longer. He looks inquisitive. Foster often comes off like a goofball, but he’s sharper than he lets on.

Outside, the February air is sharp enough to cut through the alcohol haze, and our breath forms clouds in the space between us. The streets are mostly empty except for a few locals heading home from their own nights out. The air carries the bite of mountain cold mixed with the sweet smell of wood smoke from chimneys and the distant scent of pine sap.

The streets of Twin Pines have a rustic feel. Old-growth Douglas firs tower over the main drag, their massive trunks wrapped in decorative lights. The buildings are mostly brick and timber, with hand-painted signs advertising local businesses. A vintage logging truck sits parkedoutside the hardware store like a monument to the town’s lumber mill roots.

“Seriously, what happened to your friend? That the red-haired guy?” I repeat, hugging myself against the chill of the night. Jacobs still has hold of my arm, which I don’t really mind. “I thought you two were going to hook up. You were vibing hard.”

“I had no intention of sleeping with that guy,” Jacobs mumbles, letting go of me and shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Could have fooled me.” Even I can hear the jealousy in my voice, but I can’t seem to keep my mouth shut.

“Don’t be dumb.”

“I’m not. I’m being dead serious.” I stumble a little and with a grunt, Jacobs helps steady me. The motel is only three blocks away, but it feels a lot farther after a bunch of beers, nachos, and chicken wings. “You two seemed really into each other.”

“I could say the same thing about you and the bartender.” He glances over, his eyes dark. “You seemed to be getting alongverywell.”

“Yeah, we were.” My tone is flippant. “Until you interrupted us.”

Gabe stops walking and turns to face me. His expression is strained in the glow from anearby streetlight. There’s also something close to jealousy glittering in his eyes. Seeing that sends a happy thrill through me.

“You were actually into her?” he rasps. “If I hadn’t dragged you away, was she who you wanted to spend the night with?”

I consider lying, if only to save face. But he truly seems upset, so instead I grudgingly say, “You were flirting so much with that guy, I figured I needed to make other plans in case you brought him back to our motel room.”

He narrows his eyes. “You thought I’d bring a guy back toourroom?”

“I don’t know.” I drop my gaze because he looks mad. “Seemed like maybe you might.”

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