The Bet (The Bet 1)

He ended up driving back to the house around 1:00 a.m. It wasn’t worth staying over with her if she was going to be such a snatch.

He fumbled with the lock and let himself quietly in the house. Where exactly was Kacey staying? He forgot to ask. He took the stairs two at a time and bumped right into Travis, who was exiting one of the guest rooms.

“What are you doing?” they asked in unison.

Travis scratched his head and looked back at the room he’d just come out of. “Uh, Kacey had too much wine so I wanted to make sure she made it to her room.”

Jake wasn’t buying that. He wasn’t an idiot.

“So you gallantly helped her up the stairs and fought off the monsters and dragons in order to protect her honor?”

Travis rolled his eyes. “You done? I’m tired. I need to go to bed. Just don’t bother her, okay?”

“She isn’t your concern, Travis. I’ll bother her if I want. I’ll jump right into that bed and screw her senseless, and it still wouldn’t be your problem. This isn’t about you.”

Travis hurled Jake against the wall. “If you dare touch her again, I swear I’ll kill you.”

“Touch her?” Since when had Travis turned into such a prude? “I’ll touch her if I want, and again it’s none of your business.”

“What the hell is wrong with you!” Travis released him and cursed.

“Nothing.” Jake straightened his leather jacket. “Just lighten up, okay? I’m over it, she’s over it, we’re both over it. Seems the only person still hanging on to the past, big brother, is you.”

That ought to show him. Jake sneered and knocked on Kacey’s door, then quietly let himself in, leaving Travis glaring from the hallway.

“Hey sweetie, I’m back.” Jake kissed her forehead. She didn’t look drunk or confused. If anything, she was flushed, her lips swollen. God, he had forgotten how beautiful she was. Her hair was splayed across the pillow. She sighed and tilted her head toward him.

“Work okay?” she mumbled.

“Yeah.” His voice cracked, and he couldn’t focus on anything but the feel of her skin when he caressed her face again. “It was fine.”

And then he couldn’t help himself. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t actually touch her, but he was a guy and allowed stupidity to rule his common sense. His lips grazed hers, tentatively, and then harder as he pushed her into the bed.

Travis burst into the room like a freaking knight in shining armor, then cursed when he saw Jake hovering over Kacey.

“Bro, can I help you? We’re kind of busy.”

Travis’s eyes flickered to Kacey, who seemed to disappear under the covers, and then back at Jake. “You’re right. It’s none of my business what you two do. I don’t give a damn. Good night.” He slammed the door.

Geez, his brother needed some sort of anger management. What the hell did he care if Kacey and Jake had something between them still?

Kacey nudged him. “You should go.” Her face was wet with tears. Was she crying?

“Why are you crying? Is everything okay? What’s wrong?” All the questions came out in a rush.

“N-nothing,” Kacey stuttered. “I’m sorry, Jake. I had way too much wine. I didn’t mean to kiss you.” She turned her head and closed her eyes.

“It’s fine.” But it wasn’t. In fact everything would have been going in an entirely different direction if Travis hadn’t barged in on them.

Maybe it was for the best. After all, he knew it would only lead to him hurting her again. He wasn’t really a one-girl kind of a guy. But she provided something so tempting he had trouble pulling away. Maybe it was memories of their friendship together. Or the way she smiled and teased. He shook his head. He really should have gotten laid tonight. Things would have been so much easier.

He kissed her one last time on the forehead and let himself out of the room, grinning smugly as he passed his brother in the hall. Apparently his older brother was going to play chaperone. Fine with him.

He stopped before going into his room. “She’s sleeping. I’m sure she’s tuckered out after all that excitement.” With a wink Jake stepped into his room and slammed the door, enjoying immensely the sound of his brother’s curses all the way down the hall.

Chapter Fifteen

Kacey wished she could disappear into the covers when her cell alarm went off at 8:00 a.m. What in the world had she been thinking last night?