Remember Me: Oakville Series:Book Two (10 page)

“It’s about time you got my girl here,” Holly says as she comes up behind us and wraps Amber in a hug. “Say goodbye to your man quickly then meet us over at the booth. Girls night starts now.” She kisses my cheek and off to the table she goes. That woman is a bundle of energy. I don’t know how Paul keeps up with her.

“Well, I guess I better get over there,” Amber says. Before she can pick up her drink, I scoop her up and set her on my lap. “Don’t worry, you’ll be able to keep an eye on me all night.” She thinks I don’t want to let her go because I’m worried about her. Normally, that would be the case, but not tonight. Too many people here care for her and will protect her at all costs. So for once, I am relaxed when it comes to her safety.

“That’s not the problem, princess.”

“What is then?” I grab her hips and pull her against my lap tighter so she can feel just how much I want her. Her eyes widen and she grins at me. Why should I be the only one turned on and left hanging? Might as well show her what she can have later when we get home.

“Do you feel what you do to me? I’m gonna have a difficult time watching you all night without taking that sexy little ass of yours into my office and bending you over my desk,” I whisper in her ear so only she hears me and gently bite her earlobe. Goose bumps form along her arms and her breathing picks up. She grinds her ass harder against my already painful erection and I suck in a harsh breath. There’s no way in hell I’m going to survive tonight. Maybe I can convince her to come into my office for just a few minutes.

“No. I’m not going to your office with you.”

“How did you know that’s what I was thinking?”

“Just a... feeling,” she says as she rubs her ass against my cock again. Damn. This woman is going to kill me. At least I’ll die with a smile on my face. Slowly, she slides off my lap, looking over her shoulder to make sure Paul isn’t watching. Before moving away, she reaches down and tightly grips my cock in her hand as she puts her lips right up to my ear. “I promise it will be worth the wait.” She moves her hands so that they are resting on my shoulders and places a sweet kiss on my lips then smiles up at me. “Don’t get yourself too worked up tonight. Before you know it, it will be time to take me home.” With a sly grin and a kiss on the cheek, she’s gone. I watch her walk to the booth in the back where her friends are waiting with a little extra sway in her hips, just enough to tease me.

“Looks like the two of you have gotten a lot closer over the last week,” Paul says as he slides a beer in front of me.

“Let’s just say that I’m no longer sleeping in a chair.” I give him a wink.

“Good for you both. I’m happy to hear things are getting back to normal.”

“You and me both.”

“Not as happy as I am. It’s about time you get your ass back in here and work,” Clark says as he sits down next to me. Paul and I both look at him with shocked expressions on our faces. Clark is usually very quiet and serious. He looks between the two of us, smiles, and shrugs his shoulders. Paul hands him a beer.

The three of us sit there for a while talking about the bar. My eyes keep wandering over to Amber’s booth. I wonder if there will ever come a time when I won’t think she is absolutely the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes on. She looks so happy, laughing and talking with her friends. I wasn’t sure if I would ever see her like this again. It makes me happy and gives me hope that we are finally going to be able to have the life we’ve dreamed of.

“Who is that with Amber, Taryn, and Holly?” Clark asks as his eyes study Becky from top to bottom. All the years I’ve known him, I don’t think he’s ever shown interest in a woman. His time away from work is devoted to his two sons, Mason who’s nine and Skylar who’s six. He love’s those boys with everything he has. His girlfriend took off five years ago and hasn’t tried to contact him at all since. Not even to see how the boys are doing.

“That would be Becky. Amber met her while she was in the hospital. She was her nurse and I’m pretty sure she’s single,” I tell Clark as I notice a smile spread across his face. She’s very pretty; I can see how she’s caught his eye. Paul places a tray of drinks on the bar in front of Clark.

“Why don’t you bring these over to the girls for me?” Paul asks Clark, giving him a reason to go over there. He smiles as he grabs the tray and walks over to their table. Becky looks up and smiles at Clark.

“Looks like there might be a little love connection starting up over there,” I say to Paul before taking a pull of my beer.

“It’s about damn time that guy finds a woman and has a little fun.”

“I agree. Well, guess I’ll go take care of some of the paperwork that’s piling up on my desk.” Grabbing my beer, I turn toward Amber. She looks over and waves. I give her a little nod and walk back to my office. I need to give her some space and I’ve been neglecting my duties here. I don’t know what I would do without Paul and Holly. They’ve been running everything for me while I take care of Amber, but it’s time for me to take back over.

Concentrating on paperwork, I don’t notice Marcus walk into the room. Standing in front of the desk, he clears his throat to get my attention.

“You have got to come see this,” he says, trying not to laugh.

“What’s going on?”

“You have to see for yourself. You wouldn’t believe me otherwise.” It must not be anything bad. He is laughing, after all. I get up and follow him out. The music is blasting from the speakers, yet I can still hear people cheering and whistling. What in the hell is going on out there? I look over at Marcus, hoping to get some kind of idea, but he’s laughing so hard, tears are running down his cheeks. I recognize the song that’s playing, it’s
Country Girl (Shake it For Me)
by Luke Bryan. When the bar comes into view, I come to a dead stop and Marcus plows into the back of me.

“Damn! A little warning would be nice,” Marcus whines. Ignoring him, I make my way closer to what has everyone else’s attention. Every eye in this bar is captivated by the show Amber, Holly, Taryn, and Becky are putting on. Amber’s eyes are closed, arms raised above her head, and she’s swinging her hips to the beat. Watching her dance like this has me thinking of her in some sexy lingerie and high heels in front of a pole. However, if I’m thinking like this, so are ninety-percent of the males in here. Now I don’t know whether to be pissed or turned on. Then, I notice the smile on her face and how much fun she’s having. Amber doesn’t do things like this. She doesn’t like people watching her; always afraid they are judging her. I can’t believe she’s out there. So, turned on it is. At least with the girls out there dancing no one will notice the erection I’m now sporting. I take a quick look around, just in case, before I adjust myself. I see Paul and Clark watching with a puddle of drool at their feet. I quickly pull out my cell phone and take a quick video. I have a feeling Amber may not remember this tomorrow and it’ll be fun to tease her with. Plus, it’s just plain hot. I wouldn’t mind being able to see it any time I want to.

“You realize we’re not the only guys drooling over them, don’t you?” I say as I come up to stand beside the guys. Coming out of their daze, they start to look around. Every male eye in the bar is on our girls. Luckily, the song comes to an end. Paul tends to be a little on the jealous side and I can tell he wasn’t too thrilled with the way people were looking at the girls.

“It’s nice to see Amber having so much fun. She really deserves to let loose a little bit,” Clark says to me.

“Yeah. For a while there, I was worried I’d never see her smile again.” Honestly, I didn’t think she was ever going to wake up. I was so close to giving up, I didn’t think any of this would be possible again. “I’m one lucky guy,” I tell him, noticing his eyes haven’t left Becky since I walked out here.

“I hope someday I’ll find the kind of love the two of you have,” he says, a sad smile playing on his lips. I hope he does, too. If anyone deserves it, he does. Who knows, the way he keeps eyeing Becky, there may be something there.

“Hey, handsome! Enjoying the show?” Amber slurs as she throws her arms around my waist. I have a feeling my plans for later tonight are shot, but it’s worth it to see the smile on her face.

“Eh...it was okay,” I tease, earning myself a slap on the chest. I lean down slowly and whisper in her ear, “It was the hottest thing I have ever fucking seen.” Goose bumps immediately break out across her skin. The other two giggling girls come over and pull her back to their booth before either one of us can say anything else. It’s probably a good thing. Last thing I need is to go on stage with a huge boner.

The guys and I head up to play our set. It really feels good to be playing again. I didn’t realize how much I’ve missed it lately. I wouldn’t change anything I’ve been doing, though. Amber needed me, and she will always be my first priority. The entire hour we are up there, the only person I can focus on is Amber. Every song I sing is to her. This night is something we’ve both desperately needed. For the first time in a while, there’s no dark cloud hanging over my head. I am one hundred percent happy.

I
T’S BEEN
two months since I’ve been back working at the center and luckily, I’ve been able to come in and pick up where I left off. It’s almost like I was never away at all. There’s only one thing that’s different, and that’s Jax. He’s been acting really strange toward me. Most of the time he seems to be avoiding me, and when he isn’t, he seems cold and distant. I don’t understand what’s gotten into him. All the years we’ve been friends, he’s never acted this way.

I had mentioned seeing him and Leena at the fair. Maybe that’s what upset him. He told me he didn’t have the heart to send her back home. There was nothing there for her and he is the only family she has. I just don’t buy it though. There’s something else going on. I know in my gut the two of them are up to something. I just wish I knew what it was. I never would have believed before the accident that Jax could be capable of hurting me. Now, I’m not so sure. Since the accident, I see things a lot differently than I did before. I can see the things in Jax that everyone else did from day one — all of those mannerisms that made them so suspicious of him.

Beasley is checking into Jax and Leena’s backgrounds. I feel a little bad at times for doing it, as if I’m betraying him by going behind his back, but too much has happened to me over the last year, and I can’t afford to take any more chances. It’s time that I worry about my family and myself. Better safe than sorry.

For the last few hours, I’ve been sitting at my desk, attempting to work, but concentrating has been a little difficult today. Standing up to go the file cabinet, I instantly fall back into my chair, feeling lightheaded. I close my eyes, hoping it will stop the room from spinning. Sweat beads along my forehead and my mouth begins to water.
Oh no!
I quickly jump up from my desk and run into to the hallway, almost plowing Holly over in the process. Damn, I forgot I was meeting her for lunch. The thought of food only makes me feel worse. Holly must know I am going to be sick because she is opens the door to the bathroom for me. I hear the door close behind me and feel her pull my hair away from my face as I empty the contents of my stomach. She lays a damp paper towel on the back of my neck and my body instantly becomes cooler.