Page 52 of Not So Happily Ever After (British Bad Boys)
“I don’tbelieveit.”
“What?”
“It’s Jake again.”
I pause, my bottle of beer halfway to my mouth. “Again?”
She crosses her fingers, takes the call, and switches to speakerphone. “Hey, Jake. What’s up?”
Jake’s voice fills the room. “Mac! You gotta get over here. My hair’s on fire!”
We stare at each other. “Is he high?” I mouth to her, and she shrugs and shakes her head.
“Jake,” she says in that calm manner she used with him in the hospital. “I’m sorry. Did you say your hair was on fire?”
“Yes. Well, notnow. We put it out. But myhead.”
I cover the mic with my hand. “Shouldn’t he be calling an ambulance? Why’d he ring you?”
“Because I’m on speed dial.” She groans and takes back her phone. “Do you need to go to hospital? Is that why you want me to come over?”
Fuck that. I’ll call Baz and get him to take care of the little drama queen.
“I don’t need to go to hospital,” Jake says. “Rafe’ll fuckingkillme. You’ve gotta do something. Myhair.” He ends on a wail that hurts my ears.
“Look, I can’t just drop everything and rush over. Do you want me to contact Baz for you?”
That’s more like it. At least we’re on the same page when it comes to Jake.
“No!” There’s no mistaking his panic, and as we lock gazes, I can see where this is heading. “I can’t face anyone like this. I can’t goon, Mac.”
I cover her mic again. “He’s good at this emotional blackmail shit, isn’t he?”
“Yes. But what’s he done to his hair? It doesn’t sound good.”
I slam my beer onto the worktop. “Fine. Tell him we’re on our way. Wait. Better find out where he is, first.” He might be in Scotland, for all we know.
“Okay. Where are you?” She sounds as though it’s no big deal being dragged out at night to massage over-inflated egos.
He gives the address, and I don’t fucking believe it. As soon as she ends the call, she exhales a long breath. “Wow. How about that? Jake Myers only lives five minutes away.”
“Fucking great. I hope he doesn’t know that.” Not that he’s got my number on speed dial, and he never will. But that’s beside the point. “And that’s irrelevant. It’s more than five minutes from Notting Hill.” Wait, does Jake know that’s where she lives? The more I think about this, the more pissed off I get. “He’s got a fucking nerve calling you.”
“I meant to ask Baz to delete my number from Jake’s phone but completely forgot.”
That reminds me. “He’s called you before? Why didn’t you tell me?”
She shrugs. “It was no big deal.”
“I thought we were in this together?” I’m only half joking. “He didn’t make you do a house call before, did he?” And this time I’m not bloody joking at all.
“No, and stop being such a bodyguard.” At least one of us finds this funny.
“Did you tell Lucas?”
This time she slings me a frown. “Why would I? I told you, it was nothing. He was freaking out because he couldn’t get the hang of his crutches. I told him to get a wheelchair. Happy now?”
“There’s no need to get pissy.”
