Beautiful Rose (Beautiful Rose 1)

“Not yet, huh? You have your eye on someone then?” she asked mischievously.

I blushed. “No. I mean . . .” I covered my face with my hands. I wasn't ready for this kind of conversation. Darcy laughed and glanced back at Jack, shaking her head.

Oh shit, was it that obvious? Did she even need to ask who it was? God, if she knew then Jack had probably picked up on it, too. I groaned, suddenly feeling sick.

“Relax, Rose, it’s not that bad. I’m a pretty perceptive person. And if you ask me, it’s not just you.” I lifted my head, my brow furrowing. What did she mean by that? Before I could ask, Benj came over, followed by Ash, and then the others. I tucked away my anxieties, my eyes on Jack as he, too, walked over. What the hell had she meant by that?

Chapter Six

Jack

"What the fuck was that about?" I yelled, slamming the door shut. Harmony stood in front of me, hands on hips, her lip curled up into a sneer. I was so damn sick of all this drama. It was one thing after another with her, and I was nearing the end of my tether. Even the sound of her voice was beginning to drive me insane. It was just a constant whine in that high-pitched fucking voice. And the way she just went off at Rose for no reason? That wasn't cool.

"You're the angry one?" she gasped, her face animated with anger. "What about that little slut downstairs? Did you hire her so you can perve on her ass all night? Is that it? Give you something to think about while you're fucking me up the ass? You didn't even say anything when she said that shit to me!"

"I didn't say anything? Harmony, you attacked her! I've known her for ten seconds and you attack her for flirting with me? I don't blame the girl for fighting back. I sure as hell would've," I smirked. I couldn't believe she was behaving like this.

"You should have been on my side," she said through gritted teeth. Her voice was low, almost a growl. Yep, I could see it; slap a collar on her and she was my dog.

"You're being fucking ridiculous! Is this even about her, or does this come back to the fact that I didn't give you the job?" I asked. Harmony had never had a problem with other girls being around me before. She'd never said shit about Darcy, and she was cute—in an emo, schoolgirl kind of way.

She laughed harshly. "You think I give a shit about your job? Fuck you, Jack and fuck that skanky little slut downstairs."

"You don't know anything about that girl downstairs! I've known her for ten fucking minutes and I can already tell she has more intelligence in her little pinky than you do in our entire head! And class?" I tried to keep my breath even, and lowered my voice. "Tell me something, Harm. Do you ever wonder why men treat you like you're nothing but a piece of ass? Let me enlighten you---it's because that's all you are." I grabbed her purse and tossed it toward her, giving her an invitation to leave. "The next time you go attacking an innocent beautiful waitress, why don't you stop and think about keeping your mouth shut before someone slaps a muzzle on that filthy and disgraceful trap of yours." Harmony stared at me, mortified, before clutching onto her purse and storming out the door. I made no attempt to stop her.

The silence rang through my ears as I rested my head on the kitchen counter. My heart was beating so fast that I could feel the blood pumping through my veins. God, I was shaking. I was so angry with her, and annoyed at myself for asking her over. I should have seen this coming.

I thought it would be easier, having someone in my life who I could never love like that. But maybe it was easier not having anyone in my life at all. If only I could trust myself not to fall in love. I laughed to myself. That was it. Harmony wasn't my girlfriend. She was more like a guard dog. The only reason she was here was to stop love getting in. And I couldn't have been more obvious with the emotions that were starting to build for Rose. Snapping at Harmony was the first sign.

Holy shit, I was in trouble.

I gave it ten minutes before I headed back downstairs. There was no way they hadn't heard every single words of that fight. I felt embarrassed, and foolish that I could call someone like her my girlfriend. The guys were going to give me shit. I could handle that. What I wasn't looking forward to was facing Rose. Harmony's words echoed in my head as I pushed through the door. Skank, slut, bitch. I cringed, knowing I owed Rose an apology. I wouldn’t be surprised if she told me where to shove my job.

The guys stood gathered around the bar, their mouths hanging open. Rose and Darcy sat down the end, their faces just as shocked.

"What the fuck was that?" Ash finally

asked, shaking his head.

"That was one pissed of girlfriend...Or maybe ex-girlfriend....Hell I don't know. Someone get me a beer." I leaned against the counter, rubbing my head. Ash jumped up and raced over to the tap. Moments later he pressed a beer into my hand.

"That didn't sound very good." Rose smiled sympathetically. "I get the feeling I've stepped on her toes."

"You heard all of that?" I asked, tension wrapping around my stomach.

Her eyes met mine. She blinked, and looked away, embarrassed. "Yeah, it was kind of hard not to," she replied, wincing.

Shit. I turned around and walked forward, toward the stage. This was not good.

"I'm sorry if I exacerbated the situation. I really hope I didn't make things worse for you with her."

I turned around and smiled at Rose, who had followed me away from the bar. I sat down. "She shouldn't have spoken to you like that. I should be the one apologizing to you," I added, wetting my lips as she sat down next to me. My arm brushed past hers. She bit her lip and moved her arm closer to her body.

She glanced at me, her eyes falling on my lips as my tongue ran over them. She looked away quickly. "Right, but I didn't have to push her buttons," she murmured, tilting her head toward me. Was she talking about...The thought of her lying in the bath, touching herself flashed through my head. "I'm just saying I could have handled that better,” she added, her cheeks flaming.

"I don't know, I kind of liked the way you handled that," I chuckled. Our eyes met for a moment. She grinned back at me, like she had just caught a glimpse of the guy she spoke to for an hour yesterday.

"Will you play me something?" she nodded toward my guitar.