Page 54 of Needed You

The two men let out belly laughs. “That”—Nolan tips his beer bottle at me—“is a lie.”

These guys are so frustrating, but my eyes trail over to the corner of the room, partially blocked by the stage. I only catch the arm of Dare’s jacket as he pushes his hair back and lets it fall forward again while he talks to someone.

“I don’t know what to tell you guys,” I say. “Nate was my best friend, and I—we—spent a lot of time over there. You guys were there too!”

“Yeah, but Darian Archer never wanted to see us naked.” That was Nolan. He kisses his fiancée’s cheek as she comes back to the table.

“Shut the hell up,” I say to them, putting my drink down.

They’re not wrong, though, and maybe that’s the worst part. Ignoring their taunting looks, I push myself away from the table and start walking toward the back corner, where Dare went to meet with his friends. My heart rate speeds up as I approach, and I tried to play it off, but I can’t deny it. There’s something blooming between us.

I’m just not sure I’m ready to share it with everyone yet.

Dare is sitting in one of the comfortable chairs in the back corner, and there’s a guy on the arm of the chair, his hand on the back of Dare’s neck. He’s rubbing it, and Dare has his arm resting on the guy’s thigh. My skin prickles.

Dare sees me coming and smiles. But then the guy sitting with him makes eye contact with me, and my heart drops to my feet. It’s unmistakably the same man Dare was with that first night I saw him near the bathroom. The guy who was slamming him against the wall and dry humping him.

Is this a boyfriend? I know I made a huge assumption, but I didn’t think Dare had someone serious in his life since he didn’t seem to hesitate to come home with me after the lake. Of course we haven’t talked about anything yet, but . . . why is this guy here? And why is he all over Dare? And why do I feel so possessive over him? After we make eye contact, the man leans over and plants his lips on Dare’s temple.

My blood is boiling as jealousy rolls through me, and I know that I have no right to feel this way. Dare goes to stand up, and the guy drags his arm down Dare’s back, stopping just at his ass when Dare steps toward me. I shove my hands in my pockets.

“Hey.” automatically comes out of my mouth.

He smiles, those beautiful pink lips turning up at the corners. “Hey, yourself,” he says quietly.

I take a step closer to him. I can smell his shampoo and the leather of his jacket. I can also smell that he smoked before he came here tonight. It’s so earthy with some spice and just so him. I take another step and go to reach for him, but I stop as the other man comes up behind him and puts an arm around him.

This prick is trying to claim him. I don’t like this guy.

“All good?” I hear him say to Dare, nuzzling his nose into Dare’s hair.

Dare smirks at me but doesn’t turn to the guy. His eyes stay connected to mine. “Yeah,” he breathes out. “I’m fine.” His tongue darts out, and he licks his lips.

My fists are clenching and unclenching. It’s taking all I have in me not to grab Dare and carry him away from this creep like a caveman.

“I’m going to leave. I wanted to see if you wanted to come with me.” I point over my shoulder to the door.

The man he’s with wraps his arm around Dare tighter. “We’re good,” he says, nuzzling his nose into Dare’s hair again.

I continue to stare at Dare, trying to keep my breathing regulated so I don’t do anything stupid and start something with this guy. I have a sick feeling in my stomach watching him paw all over Dare. My Dare.

The asshole raises an eyebrow at me. Dare continues to smirk, now bouncing his eyes between the two of us. If I didn’t know better, I would think he’s enjoying this little pissing contest.

The next moment sends me into a tailspin when the guy reaches across Dare’s face, grips his chin, and turns him to look at him. Then, he kisses him. He kisses Dare, right in front of me. My vision tunnels, and I can’t breathe.

I stumble backwards slightly and turn around, heading straight to the door. The room is spinning, and I need some air. I have to get outside before I pass out.

I make it to the car, get in, and start the engine. I’m a mess of emotions, and I don’t know which one is winning right now. I also know that I have no place to be mad about this. Dare and I messed around a few times. There was nothing definitive about our hooking up, and I never even asked if he was seeing anyone. We were definitely not exclusive. We’re barely even friends.

So why am I so upset?

Chapter 28

Darian

Shit. Lev looks like he’s going to be sick.

I push Lance off of me, but he gives me a hard time, pulling me back by my hand.