Sizzle (Bad Boy Rockers) (Volume 1)(21)

Both of them left me standing at the door of the restaurant, wondering what the hell had just happened as goose bumps rose across my skin. I wasn’t turned on. No I wasn’t. Keep telling yourself that. God, I needed to talk to Callie.





Chapter 15


Jack


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“Jack, slow down. My legs aren’t as long as yours are,” Mia whined. “What the hell’s gotten into you?”

I pulled up short and turned to look at her. Shaking myself mentally, I took a deep breath. It wasn’t Mia’s fault. It was mine. I was pissed at myself for being so damn hot for Thalia.

When Thalia had brushed up against my arm, my dick had twitched, and then the minute we’d touched, thigh to thigh, it had wanted to come out and play. I’d tortured myself by keeping my thigh against hers. It had been too damn long since I’d felt a longing for someone, and in truth never like it was with Thalia. We’d only just met, so I had no idea what the hell was going on.

“Jack?”

“Sorry Mia. I was miles away.”

“You’re getting just like Daddy. Whenever we go out anywhere he’s always thinking about work,” She said coming to a stop beside her car.

She wouldn’t be so calm if she knew what, or rather who, I’d been thinking about.

She opened her car door so I moved into her space, and waited until she was seated, before I asked, “Do you want to do something tonight?”

Mia looked as shocked as I felt. I hadn’t meant to ask her that, because spending more time than I had to with her wasn’t what I wanted to do. Still, I did need a distraction from the thoughts running through my mind.

“Maybe another night.” She patted me on the hand. “You know I don’t like going out midweek.”

“Okay. I’ll see you later.”

Stepping away from the car, I watched her drive out of the lot. Running my hands through my hair, I turned and walked towards the boat rentals.

My brother was a f*cking idiot for taking Thalia out on the lake when she couldn’t swim. I knew a life preserve stopped you from drowning, but not being able to swim and stuck in deep water would scare the shit out of anyone. Hopefully that wouldn’t happen, but I planned to make sure it didn’t, regardless of how much it pissed Liam off.

Just about to walk around the corner to the boating house, I bumped into my brother. “Where are you going?”

“What are you doing here? I thought you were going off with Mia and what about work?” Liam did his usual act of avoiding a question by asking his own.

“You finished?” He gave me the look. “First I’ve come to make sure you don’t do this half assed, seeing as how your girlfriend can’t swim. Second, Mia is getting her hair done and some other girly shit and thirdly, I’m not in the office for a few days. Does that answer your questions?”

He frowned. “Go and help Thalia into her life preserve, while I go and get something.”

He left me heading towards his car. What an ass. His girlfriend needed help and he left her to her own devices.

I stayed where he left me wondering what the hell to do. Thalia turned me on to distraction so being close to her wasn’t the wisest idea, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to settle unless I checked her preserve out first. Damn, who was I kidding? I wouldn’t be able to settle until she was back on dry land.

Praying for strength, I turned the corner to see Thalia struggling with the straps on the preserve, looking nervous. Walking over to her, I moved her hands away gently. Her eyes filled with a combination of relief and surprise when she saw me.

“You don’t need to do this,” I whispered.

She met my eyes and shook her head slightly.

“Tell Liam you’ve changed your mind.”

She nervously licked her lips with my eyes following the movement.

“I can’t. I’ll be okay. Please don’t worry about me, Jack.”

Ignoring the worry comment, I told her, “My brother is an idiot.” I tightened the straps and made sure the one she’d managed to do herself was fastened correctly. “I’m going to hang around while you’re out there, okay?”

We stood practically chest-to-chest. I reached up with my hand and took hold of one of her dark curls, which wrapped around my finger before I moved it behind her ear.

“Thalia....”

“Okay, you ready?” Liam said, reappearing out of the blue.

I pulled my arm away and stepped back. “She’s all fastened in.” I moved my eyes away from Thalia to glare at my brother. “You better take it easy out there. Just remember your passenger can’t swim.”

“Fuck, what the hell is wrong with you? I’m not stupid. She’ll be okay with me. We’re just going on a gentle sail on the SMOOTH LAKE, nothing rocky. Stop worrying ‘mom’.”

Fucking hell, he was going to be meeting my fist before long.

“Thalia, come on. Ignore Jack, everyone else does.”

All I wanted to do was strangle my brother, but instead I shoved my hands into the back pocket of my jeans.

“That’s not nice, he’s done nothing but help me, which is more than I can say for you. You know I’m frightened of going out there,” Thalia told Liam, after hitting him in the chest.