“Thanks for sharing,” I grumble. “Adam, this is Drew’s friend, Brody.”
Adam quirks his head to the side and asks, “Have we met before? You look really familiar.”
I bite my lip to hold back my laughter. HIPPA laws prevent me from saying a word about how they met, but if Brody gives him the info, it’s fair game.
Brody takes the empty seat beside mine. “Hmm, can’t say that we have, Aiden.”
“It’s Adam, actually.”
“Adam. My mistake. So, tell me, how do you know my girl, Rainey?”
I kick him in the shin for acting like they’ve never met and deliberately saying the wrong name. He retaliates by pinching my leg, right above the knee, making me yelp.
Adam clears his throat as he carefully watches our exchange. I’m sure he can sense how much I want to smack someone upside the head right now. And when I say someone, I mean Brody.
“Besides the fact that she’s my fiancée? Rainey and I met at work initially. I’m a physician at North Seattle Memorial.”
“Oh, a doctor, huh?” Brody says. “Fancy.”
Adam narrows his eyes at Brody. “I suppose you could say that.”
“Why are you being such an ass?” I whisper shout.
Brody takes a sip from his longneck and winks at me in reply.
“Okaaay...” Devyn says to defuse the sudden tension. “Adam, do you play pool? We can play doubles—you and Rainey against me and Drew.”
Adam and Brody continue their silent stare down, so I answer for him. “Adam’s great at pool.” I leave my seat and sidle up to him. “He’s great at everything.”
Adam smiles and kisses me softly. Brody is grumbling about something, but I can’t make out the words.
“What about me?” Brody gripes.
I glare at him. “What about you?”
Drew interrupts as he stands from his chair. “Adam, are you up for a friendly wager? Best two out of three?”
Adam takes my hand as the four of us walk to the billiards area. “You’re on.”
Chapter Nine
BRODY
What the fuck is happening right now? I’ve been sitting here for the past twenty minutes watching Dr. Douchebag shoot pool with my friends. Repeat after me, kids: Interloper. I grow more and more irritated whenever I see them laughing at something he says. I become downright hostile whenever he touches Rainey, which is a lot.
I knew her fiancé was a doctor, but I didn’t know he was the same doctor that witnessed one of the most humiliating moments of my life. The guy is practically ancient, but I’m man enough to admit that the ladies notice him. Every fucking woman in this joint has noticed him. I blame George Clooney for making the salt-and-pepper thing sexy. Now, every woman out there thinks these old dudes look distinguished. Excuse me for a moment while I go puke up my lunch.
How the hell am I supposed to compete with someone that saves lives for a living? I’m sure he can easily afford to romance the shit out of her too, considering he’s been practicing medicine for so long. Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking—that I’m being ridiculous. That I have no right to be angry that she’s with someone. Well, fuck you very much. That guy is one helluva cockblock and I don’t like it.
As I watch him charm the pants off of everyone in his orbit, I actually start to doubt my game. I’m not trying to sound arrogant, but I’ve never had trouble getting the girl. If I wanted someone, she’d be mine with little to no effort. I don’t mind a challenge—I was actually looking forward to sparring with Rainey—but she’s not giving me much to work with here.
One thing my buddy, Drew, is good for is dishing out the dirt. No joke, the guy gossips like my grandma at the beauty salon. According to him, their engagement is new—a few months at best—and they’re in no hurry to set a date for their nuptials. That gives me hope. Most chicks I know would insist on setting a date and reserving the place as soon as that ring was on their finger. Rainey’s lackadaisical approach tells me that she has reservations, whether she realizes it or not. I know I wasn’t imagining that spark between us—I’ve never felt anything like it my entire life. I also know that I’m damn good at reading people and that woman wants me. Ferociously. I feel like I would be doing a disservice to all mankind if I didn’t explore that. I hate the fact that I have to go back to Boston for another year. I don’t like the thought of not having any influence in her life...of what might happen between her and the doc before I move back home permanently to give him some real competition.
You’re probably asking yourself why I’m so obsessed with this chick, right? Well, join the fucking club because I ask myself the same question every damn day. I barely know her; I’m aware that I sound like a nut job. I can’t explain it though. She has this je ne sais quoi quality about her, and I don’t use fluffy French words lightly. It’s more than her looks, which to be clear are exceptional—she’s the perfect combination of a porn star and the girl-next-door. What’s confounding is that she’s the first woman I’ve been interested in knowing on a deeper level. Usually, all I care about is whether they want it hard and dirty or slow and dirty. Reverse cowgirl or doggy-style? Face-sitting or getting licked from behind? I’m sure you get the point. I’ve had girlfriends in the past, but not a single one of them made me behave like a caveman stalker. Call me a dick if you want, but I just wasn’t that into them. Rainey is in a class all her own and with the way Dr. Dipshit is looking at her, I’d say he knows that too.
Fuck.
I run my hand over my face and take a deep breath. I can’t keep watching the train wreck in front of me; I need to get out of here before I punch someone. I chug the remainder of my Heineken and head straight for the front doors. Right before I reach them, Drew calls my name, asking where I’m going.