Redemption (Forgiven Series) (6 page)

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she snapped.

I put my hands up in surrender. “Whoa, Em, calm down.”

“I will not calm down. Lauren is one of our friends, not one of your groupies you can fuck and throw away after one night,” she snarled.

I took a step back from her only to have her move forward into my personal space. Wow, it was so much better to be on Emily’s good side. I knew this, but I still couldn’t resist the pull I’d felt toward Lauren all night.

“Em, I only kissed her. I haven’t taken her anywhere.”
Yet.
There was no way I was saying that out loud though.

“She’s had a shitty couple of days and she doesn’t need you taking advantage of that.” She shoved her finger into my chest.

“What happened?” I asked, genuinely interested. She’d seemed so happy in there tonight that I just couldn’t imagine what Emily was walking about.

“It’s none of your business, just back the hell off,” she said as she started to walk away.

I grabbed her arm and pulled her back to me. I was starting to get pissed. She couldn’t tell me to stay away from Lauren and not give me a reason. “If you want me to back off then you better damn well tell me why,” I snapped.

She sighed, shaking her head and dropping her arms to her side. “She caught her boyfriend cheating on her the other night. So she really doesn’t need your ‘standard’ treatment.”

“Who cheats on their girlfriend?” This was something I just didn’t get. I might have been a pig on some level but I also believed that if a guy decided to be exclusive then he should stick to it.

She laughed humorlessly. “Oh, you know him. But seeing that look on your face I’m not sure I want to tell you who it is.” A slow grin crept across her face. To anyone else it may have seemed like an ordinary smile, but I knew Emily. That smirk spelled trouble. “Then again maybe I should tell you and let the chips fall where they may.”

Why was I so pissed off anyway? Broken and angry chicks just weren’t my thing, but she seemed fine all night and I was curious. Lauren either didn’t care, or she was excellent at hiding her feelings.

“I know I’m going to regret asking, but who was it?”

“Ryan Bartlett.”

Damn, I knew I wasn’t going to like it. I couldn’t stand him. He thought he was God’s gift, on and off the field. “How did she meet an asshole like him?”

She gave me a curious look. “On the field. Lauren is the varsity pitcher for the softball team.”

Hot
and
an athlete? How have I not met this girl before tonight? “Interesting,” I mused.

“Get that look off your face. You are not sleeping with her!” Emily snapped.

“She seemed like she was fine tonight,” I argued.

She looked over at Lauren. “She wants to pretend she’s fine, but I know she’s full of it… which is exactly why you need to keep your hands to yourself.”

I really wasn’t sure what to do. I couldn’t deny the connection I felt as soon as I saw her, but I also didn’t feel like taking on Emily, who was right—Lauren didn’t deserve a one-night stand. Then again
I
didn’t have to decide anything. Lauren was a big girl so she could make the decision.

“I got it, but it doesn’t mean that I can’t ride to the bar with her and get to know her better, especially since you guys didn’t even introduce me to her until now.”

“We knew exactly how you would react once you saw her. You’d start thinking with the head that doesn’t contain your brain.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “So you’re saying that I can’t just be friends with a girl. I manage to be friends with
you
,” I fumed, probably because I was pissed about her assumption, even though, again, she was right.

She stood there for a second longer before placing a hand on my arm. “All right, but please behave yourself once we get there and no making any moves on her.”

Wow, this sucked. I had to find a way around Emily’s rule. “What if she makes a move on me?”

“Then it’s her choice not yours.” She shrugged her shoulders but I could tell she wanted to say more. It actually surprised me that she was biting her tongue instead of letting me have it again.

With the conversation apparently over, she turned and walked back to where Andrew and Lauren were talking about the party.

“All right, let’s go,” I announced and everyone moved to their cars.

We climbed into the car but before she had a chance to switch on the engine I put my hand in hers and she stilled. “Lauren, can I ask you a question?”

She groaned and kept her head facing forward. “Emily told you didn’t she?”

“She did. I’m sorry about the kiss earlier.”

I could tell she didn’t want to talk about it but finally she turned to me and said, “Please don’t apologize for that. Emily seems to think I’m not ready to move on.”

She seemed a little too flippant for it to be the truth and I wasn’t really sure why but I didn’t want to hurt her. This wasn’t my normal thing, but the more time I spent with Lauren the more attracted to her I became. Causing her more pain was not the way to get her into my bed for tonight, or more nights to come.

Wait, hold the train. Since when had I considered sleeping with someone for more than one night? Whatever, it didn’t matter. I still wanted her and nothing was going to change that. Although I’d promised Emily I wouldn’t try anything, I still had hope that Lauren would eventually make a move on me.

“How about we forget about the asshole and go and have a good time?” I asked. I wanted to get her mind off of Ryan.

“That sounds perfect.”

The drive to the bar was quicker than I would’ve liked. I wanted more time alone with her before Emily was there, watching my every move. We were just heading in to the bar when I remembered something important and stopped in my tracks. “I forgot to ask, do you have a fake ID?”

She smirked. “Of course I do.”

I liked this sassy side of her. It was doing crazy things to my dick. How the hell was I going to keep my hands to myself tonight? Damn you, Emily!

We walked in and took seats at the bar. Emily had made sure to be only a minute behind us. She must’ve been serious about me staying away from Lauren but unfortunately for her, that wasn’t going to happen. I never backed down from a challenge and Emily’s warning had made it one.

I turned to Lauren. “What do you want to drink?”

“Rum and Coke.”

“No sissy drinks for you then,” I winked which earned me another one of her dazzling smiles.

I turned to the bartender and order our drinks just as Emily and Andrew sat down next to us, probably to keep an eye on me.

“Hey, I’m gonna head to the ladies room, be right back,” Lauren said, picking up her purse and moving in the direction of the bathroom.

My eyes followed her and Emily snapped her fingers in my face. “Remember, hands to yourself.”

“I heard you the first time,” I scowled, pushing her hand away. I shot Andrew a look but I knew even he couldn’t control her.

Thankfully he realized I’d reach my limit and took her to the dance floor. Good move because I was going to lose it if she didn’t back off. Normally, she scared the crap out of me, but tonight I was just pissed. She acted like I was the world’s biggest man-whore and maybe I was, but none of the girls I took home were under the illusion that there would be anything beyond that one night. If Lauren wanted that one night then that was up to her. It really wasn’t any of Emily’s business.

I’d calmed down by the time Lauren came back from the ladies room. She sat back down and immediately grabbed her drink from the bar, downing half of it before she turned to me. “So, how much crap has Em given you about paying attention to me?”

My head snapped in her direction. “What do you mean?”

She laughed. “I know that’s why she’s shooting dirty looks from the dance floor. She’s afraid that I can’t handle you.”

“And what wouldn’t you be able to handle?” I asked devilishly.

“Apparently you’re known for your one-night stands.”

I choked on the beer in my mouth.
This
girl was blunt. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” she said, turning to look me in the eye. It was as if the fragile girl who’d caught her boyfriend cheating was gone, and in her place was a woman willing to put it all out there.

We sat there staring at each other while I tried to wrap my head around what she was saying. Earlier she seemed shy, but now I wasn’t so sure. Her behavior was extremely erratic. Maybe she had more to drink than I thought? Or maybe she’d decided that she didn’t want to be taken advantage of anymore and was going to get the upper hand. But even more important than that, I didn’t understand why it mattered so much to me what she thought.

“You didn’t expect me to be so honest, did you?”

I shook my head. “Not really, at least not without a few more drinks in your system.” I moved my gaze to hers. “So, since we’re being honest, I think you’re hot as hell and would love to dance with you right now.”

“Horizontally or vertically?” she asked, but then her cheeks blushed scarlet. “Oh my God, I can’t believe I just said that.”

Hearing her say that, plus the gorgeous color in her cheeks, had my dick hard in seconds. What was this girl doing to me? I’d never had this kind of reaction to a girl before. I shook my head.
Get it together!

“How about we start with vertically and maybe move to horizontally later at my place?”

She leaned over and put her lips on my ear. “I’m still not so sure about that but we’ll just have to see where the night takes us,” she whispered.

The feel of her breath on my skin sent the blood rushing straight from my head. This girl was definitely messing with me, but it didn’t make me want her any less.

I put my hand out to help her down from the barstool and felt the heat between us as she touched my fingers. Pulling her behind me, I led her to the middle of the dance floor. She came easily into my arms and we began to move together just like we’d done at the party earlier. This time, however, she turned around and danced with her back to me. The feel of her ass moving against me had need coursing through my veins. Slowly, I moved her hair over her shoulder and lowered my lips to the back of her neck. Hearing her moan softly, I kissed my way up her neck to the spot just behind her ear.

“Josh,” she sighed and brought her hand up to wrap around the back of my neck.

“Your skin tastes as good as you smell,” I whispered in her ear. I could see the rise and fall of her chest and knew her breathing had sped up. Nothing was going to keep me from having her.

By the time we left the dance floor we were both a hot, sweaty mess. Moving through the crowd toward the bar, we found Emily and Andrew. Over a round of drinks we talked about Caleb and Angie. Emily and Lauren were gushing over how romantic Caleb was. I could tell Andrew wanted to talk about Emily again but he knew better so we talked about football, but I couldn’t keep my eyes from wandering to Lauren.

After a few more rounds I noticed Emily glaring at me. Shit, what had I done now? I wasn’t talking to Lauren and I knew I wasn’t acting like a drunken ass because I’d switched to water while they’d all carried on with their shots. Granted my reasons for switching were less than honorable—if I had any chance of something happening with Lauren I didn’t want any issues with my…
performance
—but Emily didn’t need to know that. I just didn’t get what her problem was.

“Em, stop trying to murder him with your eyes,” Lauren ordered.

“Lauren…”

Lauren was staring Emily down. I wasn’t sure if it was her or the alcohol talking, but she wasn’t going to deal with Emily’s mouth. “Don’t ‘Lauren’ me. I’m a big girl and can make decisions for myself,” she snapped.

Wow, I didn’t think I’d ever seen anyone take on Emily like that—I know I certainly wouldn’t do it. Caleb was the only idiot I knew who’d attempted it before, and that hadn’t ended well. Remembering how she’d reacted the time when he practically broke into their apartment to talk to Angie, locking her out in the process, I cringed.

Emily turned her head away, and threw her hands up. “Fine, but don’t come crying to me when things play out exactly like I told you they would,” she warned her with an edge to her voice.

Andrew and I stood back, watching the argument play out. There was a pause while we waited for something to happen, but neither of us had a clue what that might be and Andrew looked ready to bolt if things got ugly. Thankfully, Lauren decided she didn’t want to play any more games. She rolled her eyes and grabbed my hand. “Come on, let’s go.”

She practically dragged me out of the bar. I’d had women excited to go home with me before, but nothing like this. I wasn’t even sure what
this
was. We reached Lauren’s car, but I stopped at the front. She’d had a lot to drink since we arrived and it wasn’t like she’d stuck to beer.

“Are you okay to drive?” I asked cautiously. She was already pissed off and while I didn’t want to make it worse, I didn’t want her to drive if she was drunk.

She thought about it for a second, “I’m not sure. I don’t feel that drunk, but I probably shouldn’t take the chance.”

I’d only had a few beers, and hadn’t had anything to drink in about two hours. Lauren on the other hand, had been matching the others drink for drink and with her tiny frame, I was worried about how much was still in her system. “How about you let me drive and I’ll take a cab back to my place once I’ve got you home?” I offered.

“I can’t make you run around like that. It’ll make me feel bad,” she pouted, tilting her lips in an educated way that was more than a little seductive.

Damn it. For once in my life I was trying to be a gentleman, but she was making it so freaking hard. Screw it. She knew what she was getting in to, and she obviously wanted me as much as I wanted her.

I grabbed her hand and tugged her over to the passenger side of the car. Taking the keys from her hand I popped the locked and open the door to help her in. Quickly, I moved around the front of the car and hopped into the driver’s seat.

I looked over at her. “I’ll take you back to my place, you can drive home in the morning.”