Page 86 of The Jester and His Outlaw: Part One

Sure enough, there he is, looking like sex on a stick. He’s watching me. His eyes bounce back and forth between Brett and me and even from here, across the yard, I can see the flames of jealousy lighting up his icy blues.

Face set, body tight.

A petty part of me wants to be glad he feels this way while the rest of me just wants to jump into his arms and crawl into his skin until I am immersed with no way out.

Brett glances over his shoulder and his mood falters a hair. He turns back to me.

“Thank you, Brett. This is stunning.” I tear my eyes from the magnet that calls them home and spin the bracelet on my wrist. Brett fingers the charms with a soft smile.

“You’re welcome. It looks as good on you as I thought it would. Maybe sometime we can go charm shopping and add to it.”

“Yeah. I think I’d like that.” As much as I want to stay with him and talk and avoid Riggs, Brett gets up, kisses my cheek, wishes me a happy birthday, then leaves.

Stealing a peek at Riggs again, I stand, unsure of what I’m going to do. If I go over to him, I’m not positive what I’ll say. I’m not having the best time at my party, but I don’t want it to get worse and I don’t want the good mood that Brett gave me to spoil.

I need to talk to him, damn near to the point I might perish without him, but he may not have come to the party to see me.Dumbass. Riggs doesn’t do social events. Why else would he be here?

Riggs heads in my direction, the expression on his face determined and pissed.

Great. We’re doing this now.I’m not sure why he would be so pissed, it’s not like I did anything, not even with Brett. Before I can get far, though, I learn quickly why he’s so upset.

Fingers around my wrist jerk me back, and I stumble a couple feet before I’m planted against a chest. A scent I hoped to forget a long time ago wraps around me and it isn’t good. Jonas’ arms ensnare me and his cheek comes to the side of my head. His beard snags in my hair as he nuzzles me.

I inch away from him, drawing in on myself. His touch disgusts me and he reeks of desperation, booze, and body odor. The way he sways, stumbles and struggles to keep his hold on me shows that he’s on something else as well. It wouldn’t be hard to take him out, but Jonas is crazy. His parents have deep pockets, deeper than my own parents’, and embarrassing him now could cause a lot more problems than I can afford.

“Get off me, Jonas. You’re drunk.”

“Yeah? So? I can still get it up,” he slurs. What the fuck is he even doing here? I bet my parents invited him, still not willing to believe that I broke up with him. This is probably their idea of trying to get us back together.

“Not with me you can’t.”

Jonas pushes me forward while still holding my shoulders to look down at his hips. His hard-on couldn’t be more demanding of attention.Gross, dude.“No, I’m pretty sure I can.”

I wrench free from his grip and spin around on him. His arms hold his own torso now that I’m out of his space.Moron.He gazes drunkenly at his hands, then up at me, disbelief painted across his brow. He pouts.

“You left me.” He reaches for me, fast for how inebriated he is, and latches on to the skirt of my dress. The threads snap in an audible succession. My eyes go wide, my irritation expanding. Heavy footsteps thud as Jonas clutches me to him once again. I push with my palms against his chest, but he won’t budge.

“I left you months ago, Jonas. You just can’t seem to get the message.”

“Why couldn’t we work together? I was good to you. Bought you things, fucked you.” My stomach coils from both his words and his stench. What the hell did I ever see in him? He used to smell good, at least, divine even. Not as good as Riggs now that his scent traps me every time, but Jonas smelled appealing at one point.

“You turned me into a monster.”

“I turned you into a badass,” he smirks, half-cocked, and peers down at me through hooded lids. His hair is messy, his eyes glassy, distant, and bloodshot. Tiny, angry veins crawl through the whites, a warning that I need to get the hell away from him. A reminder that he is unstable, that he smells so disgusting for a reason.

I give his chest another good shove and the lock of his fingers separates. I fly back, tripping over the stupid heels I agreed to wear.

Long, strong, steady arms envelope me, hauling me into yet another chest. I close my eyes, giving myself a second to take in who has me and push away the memories, the pain of his rejection last night. He’s here to stop Jonas. That has to count for something, right?

“You’ve got two seconds to leave,” Riggs warns from behind me, his body tense, the corded muscles of his forearms flexing dangerously. Veins pop from beneath his skin, and there is a slight tremble in his hold of me.

“Or what?” Jonas chuckles with the least bit of care over Riggs’ warning.

“I’ll tell the police and your family where I saw you last night. What you were buying.” With that, Jonas’ head snaps up, and he sobers.

“I’ll fucking destroy you, Sutton. Destroy you.” I’ve never seen Riggs fight, but Jonas is an imposing figure. I wouldn’t want to face him. However, I have a feeling Riggs isn’t going to back down.

“I was destroyed a long time ago, asswipe. You can’t take anything from someone who’s already lost everything.” Riggs releases me like I’ve suddenly caught the plague and my heart stops beating for a moment. He steps out around me but makes no further attempt at touching me.

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