Page 47 of Reckless
That’s what she meant. I knew it, and yet it still irked me.
“Stop worrying about me, Mom.”
“It’s my job as your mother to worry about you, even when you don’t want me to.” She let out another sigh, this one near earth-shattering. “Fine, go to your party, but I swear to God, if something happens, I will find a way to lock you inside this house.”
I knew that was as good as I would get from Mom, so I gave her a smile before bouncing out of the room. Sucked that Jacob had to come and basically be my shadow for the night, but that was something I couldn’t get out of. And sneaking out of a house like this would be impossible, unless I wanted to scale the fence.
I mean, I liked to think I was reasonably athletic, but I wasn’t that good.
The next hour and a half I spent getting ready: doing my hair, my makeup, choosing an outfit that said I cared a little bit but at the same time I didn’t want to try too hard. It was a difficult balance to achieve with an older t-shirt and some frayed jeans. I figured I’d wear my leather jacket, the one labeled slut, but then I wondered if that would be too much. After all, the slut addition was by Brittany’s hand, so having an entire crowd see me in the jacket might cause them to riot or something.
Hell, I’d seen enough horror movies to know that wasn’t a good idea, so I decided to go for a zip-up hoodie instead, leaving the zipper open.
I was in the process of doing my makeup when I heard arguing in the hall. Two male voices, one of them so familiar to me it caused my thighs to clench in remembrance. Jacob Hall. Technically David Hall, but if he wanted to keep going by Jacob, that was fine. He would always be Jacob to me.
Those scars…I couldn’t say I ever imagined that they were from a fire he’d set himself when he was younger.
A killer. I was literally surrounded by killers here, and the strangest part was, I liked them. Each and every one of them. My body reacted to theirs, my heart skipping a beat anytime they were near me. I liked being close to them, feeling them, loving them.
What the hell was wrong with me? Any sane person wouldn’t want one killer boyfriend, let alone three.
And then there was Archer, the liar. The one who let himself be blackmailed into a relationship and decided to point the finger and put all of the blame on me when the shit hit the fan.
No, he and I were starting new. Tonight was a testament to that.
“She should not be going to a party,” Jacob’s voice was stern in the hall. “With everything that’s going on, it’s stupid.” I knew he was only tempering his swearing because he was talking to Ollie. If he’d been talking to me just then, that statement would’ve been peppered with a few fucks.
“Jacob, I tried. Her mother tried. Jaz is vehement about going, and I’m not going to force her to stay here,” Ollie spoke, ever the peacekeeper. I couldn’t help but wonder if his peacekeeping tendencies were the reason his twin sons took advantage of him and did all the crap they did years ago. “That’s why I called you back here. You’re going with her.”
Jacob was silent for a few moments, and I finished applying my mascara, picturing the look on his haggard face. I shouldn’t take such pleasure in annoying Jacob, but I did. I had from the very beginning, and even though we were together, that wasn’t going to change. Bugging him gave me life.
Before Jacob got the chance to respond, I was finished with my makeup and went to my door, throwing it open to view both men in the hall and give them a wide grin. Ollie stood, still wearing the same suit and tie combo he’d worn earlier, wishing Jacob would simply accept what he’d said and move on. But, knowing Jacob, the man would do anything but.
The second I appeared, Jacob’s hazel eyes turned to me, fury in their depths. “You are not going to any party,” he stated, as if he had any right to tell me what to do.
I set my hands on my hips, and the gesture drew his stare. It was a good thing both he and Ollie were looking at me now, otherwise Ollie might’ve seen how slowly Jacob’s stare traveled along me. Really, it was a wonder why no one had caught on to us yet.
Hopefully no one would. Ever. That wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have with my mom.
“You don’t get to tell me what to do,” I said. “I’m going to that party, whether you’re being my creepy shadow or not.” With a shrug, I grabbed my hoodie and my phone and pushed between the men, heading down the hall to the stairwell.
Ollie was slow to follow, but Jacob was right on my heel, hissing, “It’s stupid, Jaz.”
“Yeah, you said that before, but I don’t care. I want to go.”
We landed at the base of the stairs when Jacob muttered, “Remember what happened last time you—”
I whirled on him, stopping him from saying anything else. If Ollie wouldn’t have been ten feet back up the stairs, I would’ve given him an attitude I knew would’ve driven him crazy. “I remember what happened, but tonight’s not going to be a repeat of that night.” In my hand, my phone buzzed, and my eyes dropped to the screen. “Archer’s out front at the gate.” I shot Jacob a smile as I cocked my head. “Coming, bodyguard?”
Jacob looked like he had a few choice things to say to me right then and there, but with a quick glance over his shoulder at Ollie, all he could do was strain a frown and follow me out of the house. His vehicle was parked just beyond the steps to the front door, and further out I could see Archer’s headlights outside of the gate.
“Get in,” he said. “I’ll drive you to the gate.”
“I’m not helpless,” I said. “I can walk—”
“Get. In,” he growled out, practically throwing himself in his car.
I rolled my eyes, knowing I best get in, otherwise he’d never let me hear the end of it. Jacob could be so annoying sometimes, you know? With a frown, I got in his car, and he waited a moment to start it up.
