Page 55 of Dare (Fighting Fate)

Before the door closed behind me, I heard Micah murmur to Mom, and then he was following me out. I wanted to tell him to leave me the fuck alone, but I knew it would be a waste of breath. Unlocking the weight clamps, I added an extra weight to each end of the bar, and dropped down onto the bench. Lying back, I positioned myself underneath it and gripped the bar tight.

Micah appeared above me, ready to spot me regardless of the shit that just went down. Lifting the bar, I brought it down to my chest and heaved it back up again. Then I repeated it, over and over again. When my set was done, I grunted as I pushed it back up, straining at the extra weight until it was settled back into the rack.

Taking a few deep breaths, I dropped my arms above my head, trying to think around the burn.

“You’re right, you know,” Micah said quietly. “If it was Kaeli or Kara, those two would’ve been flipping the fuck out.”

I narrowed my eyes as I watched him from my upside-down position. Out of the four of my brothers, Micah was the one most like me. We both liked order and structure, and the others liked to wing it with almost everything they did. But it still surprised me that he was being the voice of reason. Micah didn’t usually do heart to heart.

“Look, man,” he said, dropping down onto the other bench across from me. “You know I don’t have that much experience with the whole relationship thing, but I’ve got eyes, little brother. I know how important it is to stick with your rules and routines and structured days. Trust me. But, from what I can see, when people find someone they like—like you obviously do with Jess—I think it’s kind of like a trust fall. You just need to let it happen and trust that everything will be where it needs to be for life to keep going smoothly. There are only so many things you can control in life, Eli. The rest you need to just let happen.”

I frowned, watching Micah press his lips together with contemplation, wondering if I was in an alternate dimension or something, because, out of all the attempted slap-in-the-face talks I’d been given, this one made the most sense to me. I didn’t know how that was possible, but it did. Maybe I was just ready to hear it now.

“Anyway,” he said, standing so he could resume his spot behind me again, “it’s like you said. You’ve worked hard to get where you are. You deserve to have someone like Jess there with you while you finish it.”

Gripping the bar again, I tried to prepare myself for the lift, but exhaustion was quickly working its way through my body. I was tired. Bone tired. And at this point in time, I had no more fight left in me. The only thing I knew right now was that I needed Jess to be all right. Because if she wasn’t, I didn’t know what I was going to do.

Chapter 39

Jess

Applying the last of my lipstick, I smacked my lips together and stepped back from the mirror. Scrutinizing myself from head to toe, I scrunched my hair a little more and smiled. If this wasn’t someone’s definition of sexy, then I didn’t know what was. Because I thought I looked damn fine.

Sweeping out of the bathroom, I grabbed my purse and started down the stairs. “I’m ready!”

Emmy’s voice sang out from the kitchen. “It’s about time! Do you want another vodka before we go?” As I reached the bottom step, I looked up at Emmy and struck a pose. Wiggling her eyebrow, she whistled. “Hot damn, girlfriend.”

“I know, right?” I said, strutting forward. “And that’s a yes to the vodka. Apparently, Amber and Amy are coming here first.”

She beamed. “Awesome. We’ll try to get a couple more drinks in before we go, then.”

Sliding onto the stool at the counter, I took the drink Emmy held out to me and nodded. When Emmy had told me Aiden and the guys were playing a secret concert tonight, I was all for going to watch. So were Amber and Amy. It had been a long time since we’d seen them play—especially at The Underground. That was the only place that was willing to give the guys a chance when they were first starting out.

Holding up my glass, I winked. “To good music, hot guys, and great sex for those who are lucky enough.”

She smirked as I took a sip. We both knew she was the only one of us getting sex tonight. It was sad, but it was true. I was so over men at the moment, I wasn’t even going to bother looking for a hookup. Although, if I wanted to be spiteful, it would’ve been a great way to show Eli what he was missing out on.

As a series of knocks and scratches erupted on the door, followed by the sounds of howling bitches, I laughed. And the trouble had arrived. Getting my catwalk groove on, I sashayed to the door and threw it open with a flourish.

Amber’s gaze traveled down my low-cut blouse, over my skinny jeans, and ended on my rocking pumps. “Oh, yeah,” she said, grinning. “That’s what I’m talking about.”

Of course, she outdid me in every way when it came to attire. She always did. With her long pink hair set in perfect barrel waves, her flawless pinup girl makeup, and her overflowing bosom, she was definite eye candy. But it was her attitude that was the real attraction. And for guys, it either drew them right in, or they ran for the hills. It was a real make-’em-or-break-’em moment for them when they met Amber.

Giving her a quick hug, I turned to Amy. “Hey, Mama Bear. Look at you!”

She beamed as she came to give me a hug. “I’m so excited. I haven’t been out with you girls for so long.”

“Girlfriend, you haven’t been out with us the way you’re going to be out with us, ever. The last time we were together like this, you weren’t even drinking age.”

She withered playfully. “Be kind to me.”

Pulling her inside, I closed the door and looked her over. Like me, she was wearing a gorgeous pair of skinny jeans, but her heels were way more killer than mine. “Damn. Are they Louboutins? They’re amazing.”

She blushed. “Yeah, Daniel bought them for me when Mae turned one. I told him Mae was the one he was supposed to buy gifts for, but he said I deserved a gift every year for bringing her into the world.”

I tossed my head back to gaze at the ceiling. “Oh my God, shut up. That’s just too freaking cute. Why can’t I get me one of those?”

Emmy giggled from the kitchen. “That’s something Aiden would do. Hi, Amy.”

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