Tozzi took one look at the blonde Jared was with and shook his head. Jared whispered something in his ear, slid something across the counter and the bartender walked away without further argument. The girl—and she was a girl—looked up at Jared with an annoyed expression. I was instantly angry. He had chosen to be with her and she was bored with him.
Beth stumbled back to the table. “Cab’s on its way.”
“Let’s wait outside,” Kim said, pulling me with her.
Just before I looked away, Jared raised his eyes to meet mine. I was glad that he had seen me, then he wouldn’t be so surprised at the fury I would unleash on him the next time we happened upon each other. My anger gave me the distraction I needed to turn away. I shook my head in heated disbelief that he’d shown up with such a fake looking sl—
My arm pulled in the wrong direction. “Nina, don’t go,” Jared said.
“What are you doing here with her?” Beth sneered.
I looked down at my arm and then glared up at Jared. He removed his gentle hold on me so as not to offend me further. “Just…wait a minute. It’s not what you think.”
“I don’t think anything,” I snapped.
Jared sighed. “Yes, you do. If you would just give me a moment to explain….”
In the next moment Ryan was standing beside me, eyeing Jared. “She’s leaving. You need to step back,” Ryan said in a low, hostile voice.
Jared turned his head away from us, laughing off the threat. He turned to look directly at Ryan, and I recoiled as his eyes turned from warm pools to steely blue.
After a few tense moments, Jared looked down at me. His eyes softened again. “Nina, I don’t want you to leave upset. Just hear me out.”
“I don’t think I will,” I said, turning away from him. His hand shot out to catch my arm once more. Ryan grabbed Jared’s arm and I could see that in seconds the situation was going to escalate.
A petite hand shot out and gripped Ryan’s wrist, bending it back just enough to incapacitate him. Ryan cried out in pain.
A feminine but firm voice came from behind Jared. “I’m just going to tell you this once. Don’t put your hands on my brother.”
“Okay! Okay!” Ryan begged.
“All right, Claire, that’s enough,” Jared murmured, watching me. He sighed at the horror that emanated from my eyes as I watched her draw her hand back from Ryan’s.
“This is my little sister, Claire,” Jared explained with chagrin.
My eyes shot a confused look at Claire, searching for some sort of offense taken by her, but there was none. He was telling the truth.
“Your sister?” I asked. From my peripheral vision, I could see Ryan rubbing his wrist.
Claire watched Ryan, seeming both irritated and concerned, almost as if she had regretted hurting him. Jared noticed the way she looked at Ryan as well, and they traded a strange glance.
“I didn’t want you to think…,” Jared trailed off, looking at me, “I’m sorry. About the other day, it’s difficult….”
Claire rolled her eyes and made her way to the bar. Jared whispered in her ear as she passed.
“Behave yourself.”
“Whatever,” she snapped.
Claire made herself comfortable on the bar stool and ordered a water, keeping to herself. After a few moments, her eyes flashed to Ryan and then back down to her drink.
Jared turned to me again, obviously wanting to pick up where we left off. His eyes wandered beside me to where Ryan was still standing.
“It’s okay, Ryan,” I whispered, touching his arm. I noticed Jared stare at my hand as if it would burst into flames.
“Okay?” Ryan repeated, still rubbing his wrist. I didn’t miss the edge of uneasiness in his voice.
“Yeah,” I smiled.
Ryan walked with Kim and Beth to the wall beside the door to join the rest of the group we came with. They all made a poor attempt to pretend they were watching for the cab.
“What are you doing here, Jared?” I snapped my head back to meet his eyes. He muttered something under his breath, briefly surveying the room full of people that were staring at us. I cocked my head and leaned so that I was somewhat in his line of sight. “Jared?”
“I didn’t want you to think I was with Claire. She insisted on coming in,” he said, looking back to me.
“I’m not sure why you’re here at all,” I crossed my arms and glared at him.
Jared noted the stubborn set of my chin and sighed. “I’m here because of what happened the other day. The look on your face when you walked away…I couldn’t just let you think that I didn’t….that I wasn’t….,” he was struggling with the truth, and it was aggravating me.
“Just say it!”
He winced at my tone. “I have these…feelings for you. And when I saw you over here, with that same look on your face, I was afraid you’d never speak to me again if I didn’t explain.”
“You have feelings for me?”
His face fell. “I can’t get you out of my head.”
That simple sentence had my heart pounding through my chest. He lightly cupped my jaw and brushed his thumb against my cheek. His touch sent a jolt of electricity throughout my body from my head to my toes.