Sidelined (4 page)

I pick my mug back up and lift it. “Still drinkin’ my coffee.”

“Fine. Can you get your feet off my table?”

“Sure thing.” I drop them onto the chair next to me.

“And the chair?”

“We makin’ requests?” I raise my eyebrows. “You wanna go put some clothes on? Because I know you’re naked right now and that towel can be ripped away from your body pretty fucking quickly.”

Macey tightly clasps the top of the towel and storms into her room. She slams the door behind her, and I grin widely because I know for a fact there’s no lock on that one.

“All right.” I get up and follow her into the room.

She’s opening her towel, but she quickly closes it around her body again and jolts around. “Jack! Get
out!
I need to change!”

I arch an eyebrow at her. “Baby, I fucked you last night, and I’m pretty damn sure my mouth was all over anythin’ you’d wanna cover.”

“That is not the point!” she hisses. “Your ass. Out of. My apartment. Ten minutes ago!”

“
All right
,” I reply.

“Thank you.”

I grab her hands and tug her against me. She cries out and slaps her hands onto my chest, and I circle my arms around her so she can’t move.

“Get off!” she yells.

“Sweet Jesus, I much prefer your mouth doing somethin’ other than talking,” I mutter. “What the fuck is your problem with me, Macey? The only time you appear to like me is when I make you come.”

“That’s because it is.” She narrows her eyes.

“Still doesn’t tell me your problem, babe.”

“My problem is you!” She pokes me in the chest. “I told you last night. You and I are cut from the same cloth.”

“Ahh.” I lower my mouth to her ear. “So what you’re saying is that you’re pissed that I’m still here.”

“Well, yeah.”

“Listen to me.” I pull back, one of my arms sliding up her back and over her shoulder to her jaw. “Baby, you fuck a guy the way you fucked me last night—
both
times—he ain’t gonna leave the next morning. You fuck a guy the way you fucked me, he’s gonna need coffee and bacon before he even thinks about leaving your sweet ass behind. You get me?”

She stares at me, her dark-blue eyes blazing anger, and thins her lips.

I lean my face in toward hers. “You get me?”

“I get you,” she says through a clenched jaw. “But it doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“True, but it means you gotta get used to it.”

“Like hell it does.” Her words fall on a heavy inhale.

I smirk. “And you fuck a guy the way you fucked me, he’s sure as shit coming back for more.”

“Hell no, he is—”

I silence her argument with a kiss, winding my arm tighter around her waist. Macey shivers and eases her hands up to the sides of my neck, leaning up on her toes.

“That says otherwise, M,” I whisper against her lips. “I’ll call you.”

“You don’t have my number!” she yells, storming after me when I release her and walk to the front door.

With my hand on the doorknob, I turn, smirking. “Wanna bet?”

I
s he for real? Is he
for fucking real
?

He’ll call me? For what? A booty call? A filler when he can’t find another girl to scratch his itch?

Jack Carr and his magic cock can kiss my sweet ass.

And not in the literal sense, ‘cause, well, he already did that, and it isn’t too bad.

But still. He can metaphorically kiss my ass and shove his call where the sun doesn’t shine, because I’m not answering it. I’m not even going to acknowledge it. So there.

I blow out a long breath and drop my head back onto the sofa.

“Okay, I don’t get the problem,” Ryann says. “A super-hot guy with the ability to provide multiple orgasms wants to fuck you and your panties are all twisted up in your intestines about it? Hello? Macey Kelly? Are you in there, honey?” She leans over and knocks her fist against my head.

I bat her hand away. “I like sex, Ry, but I am not a booty call. I will not be the chick he decides to sleep with because he has nothing better to do.”

“So call him.” Leah smiles. “Make
him your
booty call.”

“I don’t do booty calls, either!”

“Neither do I,” Ryann snorts, “but I totally would if he bought me real coffee and bacon. I mean, hello. Come on, Mace!”

“Real coffee and bacon!” Leah repeats. “I would totally have done a booty call with Corey if he’d offered me
that
.”

“No, you wouldn’t have,” I reply, lifting an eyebrow. “You would have demanded the coffee and bacon first and then run away like your booty was on fire.”

Leah opens her mouth to argue, but then she tilts her head and shrugs. “Well, yeah. I guess.”

Ry rolls her eyes. “Look, Mace. He’s like…inhuman, okay? He’s hot and he can provide multiple Os?” She covers her face with her hands and mumbles, “Why is this even a conversation topic? Why are we not outside and him inside?”

I purse my lips, but they soon curve into a smile. “Ry, hon? Are you all in a twist over Cole?”

“La la la la la!” Leah sings, her fingers in her ear. “Future brother. La la la la la!”

My smile switches to a grin. “All right. Topic changed.” I look at Ryann and mouth, “Right?”

She ignores me.

I laugh.

My phone rings.

My eyes widen as I stare at it on the coffee table. “Is that…”

“Jack?” Ryann finishes, leaning forward.

“Yup,” Leah continues.

“Already?” I shriek.

“Answer it!” Leah reaches for the phone, but I dive forward and grab it first.

“No!” I hiss.

“No? M, you there?”

My eyes widen even more, and I jab at the “end call” button before I throw the phone behind my sofa. “Fuck!”

It rings again, and Leah runs over to the sofa. I hold my arms out and push her onto the cushion next to me. She screams and giggles at the same time.

“No!” I yell, falling on top of her.

“Ryann!” Leah calls over the shrill tone of my phone.

“On it!”

“Noooo!”

Ryann jumps on top of me and launches her arms over the back of the sofa. “Got i—ahh!”

I tickle her sides, and she squirms, falling to the side, but she holds her arm up with my ringing phone in it, victorious.

“Shit!” I move toward her, but Leah’s arms wrap around my waist and hold me against her.

“Hello?” Ryann answers. “Jack! ... Macey? ... No, she’s, er, busy.” She grins at me. “Six o’clock? ... Tonight? … You’ll bring dinner? … Tell her to get bacon? … Sure, sure. … Okay. Bye.”

“Bitch!” I snatch the phone back from her. “Why did you do that?”

“Did you listen to any of our conversation before he called? Girl, all you gotta do is buy bacon and let him fuck you. Is that so hard?” Ry raises an eyebrow.

“No, but it’s not in the five-year plan,” I mutter, swinging my legs around when Leah lets me go.

“Nothing ever is,” Leah says quietly, resting her head against my shoulder.

“But,” Ry starts, resting her head against my other shoulder, “if the five-year plan is gonna get messed up, Jack Carr isn’t a bad thing to mess it up with.”

I pat their heads and sigh. “What’s he bringing for dinner?”

“Pizza. Pepperoni. Double.”

“Aw, hell.”

Phone. Purse. Boots.

Okay.

Ry said six o’clock, and it’s five forty-five, so I have fifteen minutes to get away from my apartment and to my mom’s in Pasadena. And I am
totally
leaving my phone at home. That way, I can’t be tempted to answer his inevitable call. Not that I would be.

I mean, I’m kinda bummed at the prospect of running out on a double-pepperoni pizza, but I’m sure the local pizza place would understand my jacked-up predicament.

I wind a light scarf around my neck, grab my keys, and head toward the stairwell. My stomach rumbles, and mentally, I slap myself. I should have had something to eat before I staged my escape. My very late escape.

I dive into the parking lot and into my car and fire up the engine. Betty the Beatle and I tear away like bats out of Hell and join the traffic flow on the street. And really, I’m glad that Jack doesn’t know what my car looks like, just in case we pass each other. But I’m not going to look at the other side of the road because I know he has pizza and, damn, I want pizza.

I turn the radio up to silence the noise starting up inside my head and sing along to Ed Sheeran. His album pumps from my speakers, and I focus on the song as I drive. And drive.

When I finally arrive at my parents’ house, I groan. There’s a red car in the drive, which means my brother, Calvin, is here. If he is, his girlfriend probably is, too. Awesome.

I love my brother’s girlfriend.

Like I love an empty bottle of tequila when I’m dying for a shot.

I brush my bangs from my eyes and walk to the front door. I knock twice then push the door open with a, “Hello?”

“Macey!” Mom cries, and seconds later, she appears in the hallway. “Hi, sweetie!”

“Hey, Mom.” I hug her tight.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

“Last-minute decision.” I smile sheepishly. “Just needed a change of scenery.”

“Of course!” She kisses my cheek and places a hand on my back to guide me into the living room. “Calvin and Amy are here.”

Lovely.

“Hey, Cal,” I say, looking at my brother. “Amy,” I add, glancing at her.

“Mace!” Cal cries, untangling his arm from Amy’s shoulders and standing to hug me. “Where the hell have you been?”

“At college. At work,” I mutter into his embrace. “You have my number too, you know?”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” He laughs and sits back down. “I’m busy.”

“Sure you are.” I roll my eyes and drop into the armchair opposite him.

“Hey,” Amy says, butting in. “How are you?”

“I’m good,” I answer, trying not to hate her on sight.

Really, she’s that stereotypical L.A. girl. You know the ones—fake tits, fake hair, fake nails, fake face. The ones doing whatever it takes to break out in the movie world. The ones who take a boyfriend then ditch him as soon as something better comes along.