All That Jazz (Butler Cove #1)(25)

A normal person would have responded to her comment. Now it was weird that I hadn’t said anything.

Jesus, Mary, and Joey.

Bright light and cool air hit my face as Keri Ann pulled my hand off.

“You okay?”

I nodded and tried to release a breath that couldn’t get past my lips. I ended up puffing my cheeks out.

Keri Ann reached out and popped my cheeks with a grin. “Seriously, Jazz, what’s up?” she asked again.

“I, uh, just felt weird for a second.” Had I seriously developed a crush on my best friend’s older brother? I’d known him since I was eleven. I’d had crushes on him throughout the years. Silly crushes. Childhood type hero worship. And I’d also seen him at his worst.

When he was gross.

When he was smelly.

When was annoying.

And while still annoying, now he was all grown up. And stunningly hot. And I was older, and …

Oh holy shit buckets.

I had a legit crush on my best friend’s brother. A massive one. Like huge. And for some reason it was like I’d just discovered something I’d known all along.





“YOU REALLY DIDN’T have to drive me, you know.” I was sitting in Joseph’s red pickup, leaning as far away from him as possible in case I accidentally inhaled the smell of him and moaned or something.

“Oh shut up, already. We’re almost there.” He shook his head, amused.

I kept testing myself. I’d glance at his forearm, or his thigh, or his profile and check my body reactions. It was awful. Every single damn time, my belly clenched or did this weird bubbling thing. And when he changed gears and his fingers closed over the gear stick and his thigh muscles tensed, it was excruciating. God, I needed a Pepto Bismol. What the hell had happened to me? It was like I woke up in Narnia or Wonderland or an alternate reality. Or in Erath. God, I wished it was book world Erath instead, and this was Jack Eversea I was crushing so hard on. But, no.

I grunted, disgusted at myself. “Well, you don’t have to wait on me, I’ll—”

“What? Catch a taxi home? Do you know how much that will cost? What’s going on with you?” He glanced at me before concentrating back on the road. “I offered to help you, you accepted. Now you’re being weird.”

“I’m not.”

“If I didn’t know any better I’d think you were trying to avoid me. And here I was thinking we were finally becoming friends.”

“We are. I’m not. I …” I trailed off.

“Whatever.” He shook his head. “Okay so, look, I’m glad we’re alone so we can talk.”

I swallowed, my ribcage growing tight. “Yeah?”

“So is he the guy?”

“What?”

“Chase Kennedy?”

“Who?”

Joey took his eyes off the road and looked at me, making me feel like a middle schooler who’d just forgotten to hand in my assignment.

“Oh. Chase,” I managed. “Yeah. So yeah. He’s the guy. The lucky dude,” I finished lamely, looking out the window. “Hey, can we roll these down?” I asked reaching for the window crank.

“I don’t like it.”

“What? The windows open?” I asked knowing full well that wasn’t what he meant.

“No. Him as the guy.”

“I don’t care.”

“He’s a player.”

I shrugged. “Probably.”

“He was drinking last night.”

“Aaaand?” I snorted.

“So did you have any?”

“Oh my God. Are you serious right now?”

“Yes. I think he was trying to get you drunk so he could sleep with you.”

I choked out a laugh. “On one sip of whiskey? Yeah. Right.”

“There could have been something in it.”

“Oh for f*ck’s sake, Joseph.”

“What? Don’t be mad at me just for caring about you. You’re like a little sister to me. I’d say the same thing to Keri Ann.”

My heart thudded heavily. “Well, I’m not. Your sister I mean. So quit it.”

“Anyway, why do you want to give your virginity to some frat boy player?”

“As opposed to?”

“Dammit, Jazz.” He growled, changing lanes as we crossed the bridge over the Broad River Estuary toward Beaufort. “I’m just trying to stop you from making a mistake.”

I chewed my lip. I felt faintly nauseous. Here I was coming to terms with a massive crush, and he was still lecturing me like I was his baby sister. “Too late,” I muttered. I’d managed to inadvertently make the biggest mistake possible. Developing feelings for my best friend’s brother.

“What is?”

Taking a breath, I looked over at him. “I did it already.” But obviously he thought I was talking about sleeping with Chase.

It felt like the transmission in the truck slipped, but I realized Joey had pressed down on the clutch momentarily.

Why did I just lie to him? Could he tell?

His hand went back to the gear stick, then he let go and flexed his fingers. Then he put his hand back on the wheel, then back on the gear stick. Movement of his throat swallowing caught my eye. He stared straight ahead. What was he thinking right now? God, why did I just say I’d slept with Chase?