Page 56 of Alive At Night

I couldn’t even hear what they were saying. The four of us sat at the bar, Juniper on the far end and me on the other. And this was the first time in a very long time—possibly ever—that I wished the distance between us could lessen. But only so I could hear what she was saying and know for certain I had the right to be annoyed by it.

Cameron sat next to me, with Noah on the other side of him, and even he kept getting drawn into their conversation, which appeared increasingly animated and featured a lively, transformed Juni. Nothing like last night’s version of Juniper St. James.

I tossed back my beer, a light lager with not nearly enough alcohol to numb the feeling in my chest. Why the hell had I suggested this or thought it was a good idea?

“Don’t worry.” Cameron nudged me just as I was about to order another drink. “They’re not talking about you.”

“I’m not worried.”

“…besides Julian being a killjoy.”

Juniper’s voice suddenly carried across the bar, loud enough for me to make out the words.

It was almost as though she wanted me to hear her.

Cameron winced. “Okay, I take that back.”

Despite knowing better than to take Juniper’s bait, I leaned forward over the weathered, wooden bar top to glare down at her. “Excuse me?”

She smiled, but it was wicked. An invitation to spar. “I was telling Noah about the party this past weekend.”

A quick glance at Noah told me my friend was having difficulty holding his tongue.

Just like Grayson had when he met us at the Bellflower,Noah wore a hoodie and a ball cap pulled low over his face. While he hadn’t escaped notice, the attention wasn’t overwhelming, either. Not yet, anyway.

“Iwas the killjoy?” I glared down the bar at Juni, wondering how she figured that when she was the one who fell asleep in my goddamn bed. She’d certainly killed the joy of sleeping. And not for the first time. And not for the last, considering how little I’d slept this entire week.

“Gotta admit,” Noah cut in. “It’s hard to imagine that, knowing Jules.”

Juniper kissed her teeth. “There was a perfectly good motorcycle in the garage, and he wouldn’t even take me on a ride.”

Noah laughed heartily, cutting me a look. “My motorcycle?”

I nodded. “We were drinking. Didn’t think you’d appreciate me taking it out like that, considering all the work I put in on it.”

“You’d be right.” Noah looked back to Juniper. “Safety first, sweetheart.”

Biting my tongue, I sat back in my seat. But not before I grabbed Cameron’s drink and finished the rest of it off. This was his fault. He’d interrupted me before I could order another one and then jinxed this entire conversation.

With the alcohol drained and my self-restraint hanging on by a thread, I pushed back from the bar. Fuck this.

The pulse of the bar thumped around me as I dodged around the other patrons of the Bellflower, needing to get away. Needing to be alone. But only a few seconds after stepping into the alleyway and soaking in the crisp evening air, Cameron joined me. I walked away from him, though, not really wanting to hear anything he had to say.

He let me, staying by the door. A silent watchdog. At least until he couldn’t keep it in any longer.

“Julian…” His sigh echoed between the rising brick walls. “Come on, man.”

“It was stuffy in there,” I said, my hackles rising in automatic defense.

“I don’t get you,” Cameron said, ignoring me. “If it bothers you so much, why’d you set them up?”

“It doesn’t bother me,” I grunted, knowing Cameron would see right through that lie.

“I’ve never known you to be a bullshitter, Briggs.”

Yep, that reply checked out.

When I started to shake my head—despite knowing he was right—Cameron continued.

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