More Than Exes (8 page)

It was time to be a little bad.

A
lexis stood alone in front of the bar, watching the band on stage. Her leather jacket had been left in her car, and in her tight jeans and tiny, V-necked top, she radiated a cool, sexy confidence I found irresistible. She’d had that same confidence when we were younger, too, but now it had an edge, like she wasn’t afraid to be herself. It made me want her even more.

I moved behind her, fitting myself against her back, and whispered her name in her ear. I didn’t need to say anything else. She turned her head and met my eyes with a look of desire that matched my own. Her hand reached up to circle my neck, drawing my head down to hers, and I gave in to her siren call.

Our lips touched for the first time in three years. It was everything I remembered and more. Like waking from a long coma. A bright sunrise over a dark sky. The first hint of spring after a long winter. I was truly living again, in the way I normally only felt when I was on stage.

The kiss started slow, an awakening, an exploration, a forgiveness of our past mistakes. I teased at her mouth with my own, opening her wider, wanting more, wanting everything. Her lips were amazingly soft and sweet, like candy I’d tasted long ago and had finally rediscovered. I wrapped my arms around her hips, holding her flush against me. She groaned and dug her fingers into the back of my hair, pulling me even closer.

She turned in my arms to face me. “I guess this means you’re giving me a second chance.”

“I guess it does.” I lowered my lips to hers again.

Our bodies fit together perfectly, like when we’d hugged except this time we didn’t hold back. I slid my hands down to cup her butt, pressing her against the front of my jeans. Our kiss deepened, mouths hungry for each other, bodies desperate to be together again. We couldn’t get close enough, couldn’t get enough of each other. She clung to me like I was her savior, and I kissed her harder, flicking my tongue across hers, nibbling at her lower lip. Her fingers gripped the top of my jeans and tugged on them, like she wanted them gone. If she kept this up, I would rip her clothes off and take her right there on the bar counter.

This was all moving so fast, but I didn’t care. This was exactly the kind of thing my brother did, and after being apart from Alexis for so long, I didn’t want to go slow.

“Let’s go to my car,” she said, breathless. “The backseat…”

“My thoughts exactly.”

We broke apart, and the rest of the club came into focus again. The crowd pressing around us in the dark. The clink of bottles behind the bar. The music blasting from the speakers. The lights illuminating the band on stage. I checked the time. About an hour before our set. No one would miss me if I slipped out for a few minutes.

I took Alexis’s hand, the action so familiar I could almost believe we’d never broken up. She gave me a knowing smile and let me lead her through the club, weaving between other couples and head-banging fans. I couldn’t get us out of there fast enough. My brain had shut off and my body had taken over, with only lust and primal urges controlling me now.

This might only last one night. I didn’t care. I’d take one night with Alexis. As long as I reminded myself it was just sex and nothing more, I’d be fine. If Jared could do it, so could I.

Alexis slid her hand up my arm, pressing her body against my side as we walked, and all rational thought disappeared again—except for one warning flashing through my head, reminding me that I didn’t have any condoms. We had some in the van, but the van was gone.

I stopped and turned to Alexis. “Wait. Do you have a condom?”

Her eyebrows jumped up. “That’s a bit presumptuous of you.”

Oh, shit. I was the biggest ass in the entire world. I was literally the worst guy ever. “I’m sorry, I’m such an idiot. I didn’t…um, I just thought…”

She laughed and nudged me with her hip. “I’m kidding! We totally need a condom. Or five.”

A slow grin spread across my face. “We don’t have
that
much time before my set…”

“For later, then.”

There was going to be a later? Now I couldn’t
wait
to get to her car. “Give me one minute.”

She gave me a long, lingering kiss that I didn’t want to break away from. “I’ll meet you at the car.”

I found Jared backstage, sipping a beer and staring off into space. For once, he was alone. Where were all his groupies? He looked so lost in thought I almost hated to disturb him, but he snapped out of it when he saw me. “Hey, Kyle.”

“Hey.” I leaned close to him, lowering my voice. “I, uh…” Damn, this was embarrassing. I’d never had to ask my brother for this before. “I need some condoms.”

His eyebrows show up. “You need some right now?”

“Um…yeah.”

He laughed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, yanking me close. “No way! Who’s the lucky girl?”

“It’s not that big a deal,” I muttered, pulling away from him. It wasn’t
that
rare for me to get laid.

“I’m just proud.” But then his grin faded away. “Hang on. Who
is
the lucky girl?”

“Alexis.” I stared him down, preparing for another lecture. I already knew everything he would say, and I didn’t care. Yes, it was a mistake. Yes, I might get my heart broken again. Yes, I knew the risks.

Yes, I wanted to do it anyway.

But the lecture never came. Jared reached into the inside pocket of his leather jacket and yanked out a long strip of condoms. Way more than I would ever need tonight. Could he possibly use all those in one evening? No wonder he was so popular with women.

“Just be careful,” he said.

“You gave me plenty of condoms for that.”

“Not what I meant.” He shook his head and opened his mouth like he wanted to say more, to give me older brother advice that I’d likely ignore, but then he seemed to change his mind. “Have fun.”

“Thanks.”

I shoved the condoms in my jeans and headed for the exit, but just outside the door, I was stopped by Todd. He moved in front of me, trying to block my path.

“Emo boy,” he said. “Where you running off to?”

“None of your business.” I didn’t have time for his shit. I brushed past him, but he grabbed my arm hard.

He smirked, digging his fingers into my skin. “Almost time for us to go on. You ready to get your ass handed to you?”

I yanked my arm away. “Fuck off, Todd.”

He got right up in my face. “You think you’re so fucking cool, with your tattoos and your black clothes, but you’re not. You’re a loser, and tonight I’m going to prove it to everyone.”

He started laughing, like his words were hilarious, and I had that urge to rip his head off again. When I was in middle school, kids like him had bullied me because I’d been the weird, scrawny kid who always wore black and didn’t really talk to anyone. Jared had always defended me, and now I made a fist the way he’d once taught me.

“Get out of my way.”

“You’re
all
losers,” he went on, like he hadn’t heard me. “Like Hector. He should be mowing my lawn, not playing drums. And Jared? He’s the biggest loser of them all. He works as a bartender! Talk about a waste of a college education.”

That was it. I could put up with him talking shit about me, but once he’d brought the other guys in, it was over. I’d ignored all his other crap this evening, but I’d had enough. Normally, I’d walk away or try to smooth things over. Good guys didn’t get in fights.

Unfortunately for Todd, I’d just decided to stop being a good guy.

I slammed my fist into his eye. It hit with a loud
smack
, and pain shot through my hand. It’d probably be harder for me to play keyboard tonight, but it was worth it to see Todd stagger back, clutching his pretty-boy face.

“You son of a—” Todd lunged for me but stopped when Hector appeared at my side.

“You don’t want to do that,” Hector growled, the muscles in his arms flexing.

Todd stood up straighter, holding one hand over his eye. “Whatever. It’s almost time for my set, anyway. I’ll deal with you two later.”

He stalked off, and Hector snorted. “Coward.”

“Where did you come from?” I asked as I massaged my hand and stretched out my fingers.

He gestured across the parking lot. “I was sketching over there when I heard you two arguing. Nice shot, by the way.”

“Thanks.” I’d thought about hitting Todd many times before but had always stopped myself. Somehow that only made it sweeter now.

“I’m just sad I didn’t get to punch him myself.”

“Don’t worry, there’s still time.”

He grinned and slapped me on the back. “You okay?”

“I’m good.” My hand hurt and I was a little shaky from the adrenaline, but that would wear off soon. Mostly I just felt
alive
.

I could get used to this being-bad thing.

A
lexis had parked at the very end of the lot under a broken streetlamp, giving us a tiny bit of extra privacy. She sat on the hood of her MINI, leaning back with one foot propped on the front bumper, and a rush of lust flooded me at the sight. She crooked a finger at me, beckoning me to her.

I took Alexis in my arms and kissed her like I was making up for all the years we’d been apart. Her nails grazed up my arms, along my tattoos, and she kissed me back even harder, like she needed to show me how much she regretted leaving me. And with my lips I showed her that I forgave her, that I wanted this as much as she did.

For tonight, at least, she was mine again. I wanted to taste every inch of her.

I started with her neck, kissing my way down the smooth, pale skin. I stopped just below her ear, focusing on a spot that had always driven her wild. She moaned and leaned back against the hood, pulling me down against her, spreading her legs around me. I loved hearing her make those noises, knowing I did that to her. I loved feeling her body underneath mine again.

I dipped lower, kissing along her collarbone, down the V of her shirt, across the top of her soft breasts. She gripped my hair hard, holding me to her chest, and for once, I was thankful I’d let it grow so long. I wanted to yank her top off, but we were still out in the open, where anyone could see us. Not that I cared much at the moment.

I moved back up to claim her lips and slipped a hand under her shirt. She gasped against my mouth as I slid my fingers across her smooth stomach up to her lacy bra, cupping each breast in my palm and tracing her nipples through the fabric. She arched up, legs wrapping around me, drawing me closer, grinding her body against my hips.

Her little, breathless cries did more to turn me on than she could ever know. I was harder than I’d been in years, practically bursting through my jeans to get to her. Her hands slid down to finger my studded belt, like she knew what I needed. She undid the buckle, and it made a soft
clank
as it hit the hood. Then she reached for my jeans, popping them open, relieving a little pressure there.

Someone whooped behind us, and we froze. I lifted myself off Alexis and glared at the two guys walking past, ogling us like they’d never seen two people making out on the hood of a car before.

Alexis slipped out from under me. For a second, I worried those guys had ruined our night together, but then she opened the car door and climbed into the backseat.

“You coming?” she asked in a teasing voice.

I grinned at her. “Soon, I hope.”

She laughed, and I followed her inside. The backseat of the MINI was bigger than you’d expect from the outside, but there still wasn’t a lot of room to move around in. At least the windows were tinted, giving us some privacy. I sat beside her on the dark leather seats but hesitated. This wasn’t my style, hooking up with someone for a quickie in the back of a car.

But this wasn’t some random girl I’d just met in the club. This was
Alexis
. We’d been each other’s firsts. We’d learned how to please other people by practicing on each other. I knew her, inside and out—or, at least, I had once. I wanted to know her again, in every sense of the word.

“If we’re going too fast…” she started, her face etched with concern.

“No,” I said. “I want this. I want you.”

“Good.” She put her hands on my jaw and pulled me to her, kissing me hard. And just like that, my brain shut off again.