The Christmas He Loved Her (Bad Boys of Crystal Lake 2)

The only damper was Raine. There was still a lot of unfinished business between the two of them, and now that he was sticking around, the sooner he got it out of the way, the better. He thought of everything he wanted to say—of everything he needed to say—and his gut tightened.

There was no way he could move on until he cleared the air.

He’d called Raine a few hours earlier, thinking he would swing by, but got her voice mail. He’d left a long, rambling message telling her about the house and not much else.

Jake sighed. A lot of memories at Wyndham Place.

“Here you go.” Sal interrupted his thoughts. “And if she don’t like it, well…” Sal shrugged as his gaze swung toward Lily, a glare lighting up his small, round eyes something fierce.

“I’m sure it will be fine, Sal.” Jake grabbed the wineglass and shoved off from the bar.

“It’s not fancy like what she wanted, but it’s all I got and it will have to do.”

It was nearing nine o’clock, and the band would be going on soon. Jake wound his way through the mess of tables, most of them full, and nodded to the familiar faces that he saw.

“Here you go.” He placed the glass in front of Lily and watched as she tried to hide her disdain for what was in front of her. Her nose wrinkled briefly, and then she sighed.

“It’s…” She glanced up at him with a confused look in her eyes. “It’s, uh, bubbly.”

Jake slid in across from Lily. “I know.”

Lily frowned and took a sip, her face screwing up as she shoved it away. “It’s…it’s…”

“Yeah, it’s Cold Duck.”

Lily groaned. “Seriously? This is all he had? I know it’s a dark, smelly grease pit, but Cold Duck instead of real wine?” Lily stared at him. “Seriously?”

Jake leaned back in his chair and glanced at the stage. “Yep.” He angled his head. “You want tequila instead?”

Lily narrowed her eyes. “Sure. Why the hell not?”

Oh Christ, here we go.

Jake’s grin widened. “The last time we did tequila shots—”

“Don’t you dare! You said you’d never bring that up again!” Lily was laughing loudly now, her chuckle unrefined and generous. “Hold on, redneck, I’ll score us some real liquor.”

Lily slipped from her chair and disappeared into the dark at the same time the house lights went down and the band took the stage. It was a local act, Shady Aces, and he was pretty sure they’d been around the last time he was home. A mix of blues and hard-edged rock, the young guys on stage were chock-full of energy and attitude.

Jake settled back into his chair and watched them. There was something wild and untamed about the group, and he found himself growing more than a little wistful at the camaraderie he sensed. He’d had that once. A long time ago, back before his world had imploded.

Back before the constraints and damage of adulthood had taken over.

Lily came back as the band ripped into their second song, with six shots of tequila on a small tray, balancing it like a pro. If he didn’t know better, he’d have guessed she’d waitressed at some point in her life, but considering the golden spoon and all, he highly doubted it. She set it down in front of him, shoved three shot glasses his way, and sat down beside him.

She licked her lips, aware the guys in front of the stage had turned around fully, their interest in the band gone as soon a she’d waltzed by their table, swinging her hips in a way that would make any man look twice.

Carefully, dramatically, she put a glass of tequila against her lips, winked at him, and then tossed it back like a hardened barfly.

Jake did likewise. They settled into an easy hour of music, and he let every dark thing inside him go. He knew it would come back, but when h

e was with Lily, it was easy for him to forget.

It was closing in on ten when the band finished their set and the DJ filled the empty noise with a selection of slower songs.

Lily leaned back and stretched. “I like this place.”

Jake snorted. She was so full of shit. “Really.”