Page 18 of Love You Like That (Excess All Areas 4)

Jase shook his head. “I’m waiting for Cerys.”

“You can’t wait for Cerys. She’ll be a while and it’s not safe for you to be wasting time back here. You need to be gone before most of the crowd leaves this building. Let’s go.”

“Not until I know Cerys is safe.”

“She’s safe,” Ed assured. “Get in the car. You’re causing a potential security issue.”

Jase scowled, but Alex placed his hand on his shoulder. “He’s right. It’ll cause more of a problem if you wait. The fans out there will count us out. They’ll know you haven’t left. And the crowd will get bigger. Plus, she’s a big girl, Jase. And this is her job. You’ve got to let her do it.”

“Fuck this shit,” Jase complained as he got in the car and pulled out his phone. “This is not how every night is going to go.”

Chaya and Zoe climbed in, followed by Ben. When Alex was finally seated next to Chaya, they sped off to the hotel.

“Okay, babe. Stick with Ed… Yeah, I’ll let you know.” Jase slipped his phone into his hoodie pocket.

“Everything okay?” Alex asked.

“Just since the listening party when Cerys got hurt, I’m itchy about leaving her on her own at stuff like this.”

“I can imagine that’s tough. She’s got the crew and the arena security with her though. She’ll be well looked after.”

“Thanks, mate,” Jase said, letting out a long sigh.

“What’s the plan?” Alex asked, giving Jase some space.

“Me and Chaya are hitting the bar down the street from the hotel. Grabbing some food somewhere along the way. Want to come?”

He looked over at Zoe, but realising she’d been left out again, he leaned close. “Sorry for leaving you out of the conversation. We’re heading for beer and food. Come with us.”

“Are you asking me to go out for drinks when we get back?”

Alex nodded.

“Thanks. But I think I’m going to stay back at the hotel. Finish up some work.”

Alex studied her closely. Not knowing her well enough, it was hard to determine if that was what she really wanted or was skipping out for other reasons. But he figured it was the latter. “It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. Come with us. It’ll be fun.”

With a huff, Zoe agreed. “Fine. What are the plans?”

Thirty minutes later, Alex entered the hotel lobby and scanned for the others. Only Zoe was there, people watching. While he’d showered, put on dressier jeans and a V-neck cardigan with nothing underneath, Zoe was still wearing the loose jeans and white shirt she’d been wearing earlier.

He waited until she was facing him before he spoke. “You didn’t change?” Mentally, he smacked his forehead for asking such an obvious question.

“Didn’t feel like messing up another outfit I’ll only be wearing for a couple of hours.”

“You’re deliberately making my job harder?”

“What job?” Zoe slipped her phone into her little black purse.

“Hooking you up?”

He’d unexpectedly thought about Zoe while he showered. His dick had hardened, and he’d rubbed one out while thinking about her tight body tied up against a St. Andrew’s Cross, which would be fucked up if it hadn’t been so damned hot.

For a moment, he’d considered the two of them. But he’d seen the way Zoe had watched Luke and Willow. He’d seen the envy, the way she’d looked away and sighed.

What he was willing to offer would fall way short of what she needed. No matter how badly he wanted to love someone, he always seemed to mess it up. Or worse, no matter how open-minded someone was at the beginning, their opinion of him changed as their relationship progressed, crushing his heart. So, he was back to his plan. Hooking her up with someone else as quickly as possible, removing the temptation of something that would never work out.

She stood and put her arms out to the side. “Are you suggesting I should ice the cake to get laid?” The indignant look on her face made him laugh. He liked her straightforward and ever so surly humour.

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