Hooked by Love (Bellevue Bullies 3)

“Good, maybe then that singer guy won’t try to steal ya from me.” He doesn’t even smile. He’s serious and I’m breathless.

Blinking, because what the hell do I say to that, I just look at him. How did this get so intense? Ah, who am I kidding? It was intense the moment I met him.

“Let’s go,” I say, still trying to catch my breath. His hand slides into mine as I pull away, but I don’t get far before his other hand catches my chin.

“You did great, Avery. I’m thoroughly impressed by you.”

A grin pulls at my lips as I lean into his hand. “Well, thank you. It’s easy to say you were my biggest fan.”

He nods, his own lips curving. “That’s my plan.”

He presses his lips to mine softly but only for a second before he reaches for my guitar and looks at me. “Ready?”

No. I’m not. But I don’t tell him that. I can’t.

I mean, how do you tell someone you’re unable to move because you’re trying not to fall like a sack of boulders for them?

I still haven’t recovered from the moment onstage when Jace kissed me as we head to across campus. Jace, though, he’s great. Animated as all get-out, and even though I’m dealing with my own demons, I can’t help but laugh.

“Like, seriously. I wanted to barf everywhere.”

Laughing, I shake my head as my hand wraps around his thumb, his hand molding around mine. I don’t know why I’m holding his hand. I mean, come on, we aren’t together. But it’s like, any time I’m around him, I have to touch him. It’s hard not to, and he doesn’t make it easy to resist when he’s touching me too. Even if it’s just a brush of his hand or a bump into my shoulder, we somehow end up holding hands.

I know, it’s been maybe twenty-four hours since the first moment I met him, but it’s just so crazy. We are walking, talking about his family so I feel even I know them. He’s so candid, so personable and honest, it’s hard not to fall victim to him. To want to be his.

Oh, Jesus, did I just think that?

I need to stop because I’m pretty sure this is how it was with Caleb. I fell hard and fast and then…

Shaking my head to get rid of the thoughts, I squeeze Jace’s hand, making myself smile as I say, “It couldn’t have been that bad. He just wants to date your mom.”

He gives me a deadpan look. “So I’m guessing your parents are still married?”

I smile. “Yeah.”

“Okay then, you don’t understand the awkwardness of it.” His grin slowly fades as he looks out in front of us. “The split was nasty. My dad is a cheating bastard and my mom is the greatest person in the world, which is why it was so bad. She’s just so good, you know?”

Nodding my head, I look at him. “Yeah, I bet.”

“And so we’ve all been recovering from it, because we were like the perfect family. Yeah, my dad can be a dick sometimes, but we were a unit. He went to all our games, supported us with my mom, and I thought they loved each other. That he loved us enough to be faithful to us, but then it all went to shit.”

“That blows.”

He nods. “Yeah, but like I said, we are trying to find our footing. Because when he left, he left. Took everything. Thankfully, me and my brothers were on full-ride scholarships, so that’s why we were able to come here. But man, he really did a number on us.”

“Wow.” I really don’t know what to say. I can see the pain on Jace’s face and it hurts me. Like, guts me when really it shouldn’t. This isn’t my problem, it’s his, but it feels like my problem. It’s clear he hasn’t gotten over the betrayal of his father or the pain of watching his mother hurt over the whole thing. He’s still hurting. “So is that why you wanted to be a player?”

He laughs, rolling his eyes. “I am a player, thank you.” He just laughs harder when he meets my cynical gaze. Shrugging, he looks away. “I just don’t want to go through what my mom and sister went through. They both were cheated on and hurt bad. I don’t want that.”

“Who does?” I say sullenly, and he nods.

“Exactly, but anyway, it’s been like two years and Mom has been really down, really only living for us. So I guess I should be happy she wants to date.”

“You should. That’s nice.”

“It’s just weird, you know?”

When he looks at me, I smile. “Not really. Sorry.”