Jagged Edge

Oh man, I should have punched Shane after all. “Bullshit. It’s just an arm band. Celtic.”

“Hidden symbols in it,” Shane nods sagely. “That’s what I meant. Ocean did it for him. They’re brothers.”

“Since when are you so chatty, huh?”

Shane gives me the finger, chuckles, and ambles off to find something to do with the damn black T-shirt I picked, leaving me alone with Ethan.

He’s frowning. “Did I step on any toes? Sorry, man, hadn’t meant to.”

In the face of his disarming smile, I stand down. “Nah, it’s fine.” I rub at the inked band on my arm, and I swear the matching ink over my heart hums and itches. There are hidden symbols all right, words in fact, disguised as your typical Celtic band.

But I don’t feel like talking about it to Ethan. Or anyone here. If there was one person I’d tell all about it, had he asked… that would have been Jason. I’d ask about his tats, his scars, and I’d tell him about mine.

But he never asked. And it’s not gonna happen anyhow.

“Did you do time in prison?” Ethan asks, and God, I’m gonna go after Shane and hit him hard, I swear.

“Ignore Shane. His sense of humor is sick. Never been to prison. Now, if you’ll excuse me—”

“So Riot didn’t come for you?”

What the fuck is he talking about? “I thought Riot and company came because Corey dragged them along. You know. Because the guy has a crush on you.”

He looks startled. “Who, Corey?”

“Erm, yeah?” Oh come on… How could he miss it?

Ethan looks past me, and I turn, following his gaze to where Corey is standing together with Seth and Riot’s girl, Paxtyn, talking. He’s dressed in gray pants and a white button-down shirt, his blond hair glinting like pure gold in the overhead lights. He laughs at something Paxtyn says.

Then his head swivels our way, slowly, as if he’s felt our gazes on him.

He smiles and nods.

“I didn’t think…” Ethan jerks his gaze down to the pile of T-shirts on the table. The tips of his ears are turning red. “I mean…”

Cute. “Not your type?”

“It’s not that.”

I study the handsome Corey as his smile falls and his mouth settles into a thin line. “You’re not into men?”

Ethan chokes again. It’s a miracle I haven’t killed the guy today. “It’s…”

“Sorry, man. None of my business.” I lift my hands. “I’ll get out of your hair.”

“No, I like… men. That’s not the issue.” He frowns. “There’s another guy.”

Oh! Okay. Shit. “Better break it to Corey gently, then.”

At least Corey will know where he stands, then.

“Yeah.” He nods, and I decide it’s time for me to make myself sparse before I do any more damage.

Still… “You said you thought Riot was here for me. What did you mean?”

Ethan blinks, then looks up at me as if he’d forgotten all about me. “He’s here to check on something about an MC that’s out of line.”

I take a step back, feeling as if he just swung a sledgehammer at my chest. “Seriously? What’s Riot to do with gangs? Isn’t he a gym owner?”