The Avoidance of Love (The Daniels' Sisters Book 2) (13 page)

Coops took pity on me and entertained me a little while on the phone until I sobered up some. He’d been out painting the town red with Lana last night and still hadn’t recovered. I’d warned him to be careful of going out with her, but as grandma always said, those who cannot hear must feel. Lana just kept going until she crashed, but could still wake up perfectly peachy and early the next morning ready to go.

By the time Coops hung up to nap and recover, the race had started. I took my seat next to Brielle who still hadn’t seemed to notice that I’d been propped up at the bar for close to an hour.

Once the race started, most people left their seats to get as close to the glass as possible. The frequent
hell yeah’s
and
there goes my man comments
made me want to elbow Brielle in her ribs hard! Why couldn’t she just watch the race quietly like a normal person?

As predicted by most, Jace won the race. Luke and Zack followed him closely. When we went down to meet them they were buzzing with energy. It was hard not to get caught up in the euphoria.

I locked eyes with Jace from across the room. His rich chocolate swirl eyes drew me in. My breath left me and once again, it was just us in the room. He was coming closer, dodging the people who were greeting him, making his way to me. His gaze was predatory, and I wanted to be his prey. His look was one that promised he would use my body in every way possible and I would love every minute of it and beg for more. I wanted him to make me beg.

He was almost in front of me when she intercepted. Brielle. She briefly looked over her shoulder and gave me an ice-cold glare. If looks could kill, I’d be a dismembered heap on the floor. When she turned back to him, I couldn’t hear what she whispered to him, but he seemed to look at me with some sort of uncertainty that I couldn’t decipher.

“I’ll see you later at the after-party, Mara.” He called out and then turned and left with Brielle.

What had I been thinking? Stupid ideas of love and romance always led to heartbreak. I needed to make sure it didn’t happen to me.

I RODE BACK to the hotel with Luke again. He didn’t ask me if anything was wrong, it was obvious from my face that something wasn’t right.

We all headed to our rooms to get ready for a night out to celebrate the teams’ success. I felt like shit. Deflated and dejected. I looked in the mirror after I got out of the shower and mentally chastised myself. This was not me. I did not pine after men who didn’t want me. I didn’t pine, period.

I left the bathroom and started to get ready. The dress Lana had picked for the night fit perfectly. I was going to have to thank her for her choices. I put on as little make-up as I could manage. I hated that melted face look you got when you began to sweat in a club and all your make-up slipped down your face. It was never a good look.

I dried my hair the best I could and left it down again. I was going to pay no attention to the fact that since meeting Jace, I had left my hair down more often than I ever had in my life. I was paying even less attention to the fact that whenever he saw me with my hair down, he looked like he would take me on the floor no matter who was around.

There was a short rap on my door just as I was grabbing my bag to head downstairs to meet everyone. I opened the door to find Luke.

“Wow. You look amazing.” He gave a little wolf whistle to emphasize his point and I couldn’t help but grin. My ego needed the boost.

“Thanks, Luke. You don’t look too shabby yourself. You didn’t need to come and get me. I’m perfectly fine to walk downstairs myself.”

“You didn’t look yourself earlier in the car; it looked like you had the weight of the world on your shoulders. So, I thought I’d come and distract you with my devilishly good looks, which you wouldn’t be able to resist if you weren’t so into Jace.” My smile faltered at the mention of Jace’s name. I couldn’t help it. “Ah, so it was Jace that was the problem. What did he do?”

“Nothing at all.” Luke was studying my face, and I was squirming under the scrutiny.

“So I’m guessing that was the problem. He should have done something, and he didn’t.” He paused for thought and then continued. “If I’m making the correct guess, I’m going to assume this has something to do with Brielle.” I didn’t bother to correct him. “Mara, Brielle is no threat to you. She’s had her sights set on Jace for years. I’m not going to lie for him and say that he hasn’t been with her because I’m pretty sure, in the past, he has, but it would never have been anything more than a one-night stand. I’ve never seen him look at any woman the way he looks at you and we’ve been friends a long time.”

I gave Luke a half-hearted smile. “I appreciate what you’re saying, Luke. I really do, but it doesn’t matter. Jace and I are never going to happen.” He studied me a bit longer, and I was afraid he was going to keep the current subject going so I changed it. “Come on, Luke. According to my sister, I never have fun. Since this is one of the rare occasions where I’m away from home, why don’t you help me let my hair down tonight?”

He held out his arm for me to take. “What sort of gentleman would I be if I didn’t oblige such a beautiful lady?” I giggled, leaned into his arm, and we strolled down the hallway.

Everyone was already downstairs at the bar drinking when we got there. Zack came straight over and hugged me before I had a chance to take in my surroundings.

“Hey, Mara. Did you see the race? Wasn’t I sex on wheels?” I couldn’t help but laugh. Zack was a bag of energy that never stopped.

“You were amazing, Zack.”

“You scrub up well, Mara. I’m gonna expect several dances with you tonight.”

“Um, I’m not so sure Zack. Maybe one.”

“We’ll see. We’re gonna tear up the dance floor tonight, lady. Make sure those are your dancing shoes.” I shook my head. I don’t think anything I said right now could discourage him.

I scanned the room for Jace; my eyes were drawn to him in a room. I wasn’t surprised to see that Brielle was draped over him, but it hurt nonetheless. Jace saw me looking and whispered something to Brielle before coming over to me. Brielle looked over in my direction and scowled. So much for us being friends.

Suddenly, Jace’s lean, muscular frame was in front of me and that was all that mattered. At some point, Luke and Zack had left my side, but I hadn’t noticed when.

“Hey.” It was almost a purr. Did men purr? I thought that was women. Either way, his voice flowed through my body and I knew at that moment that there would never be another man who would have this type of effect on me. I wanted Jace in the worst way.

“Hey.” I suddenly felt very self-conscious and shy. Feelings that were foreign to me. I automatically looked away, so I couldn’t see him watching me, taking in every inch of my face. His palm came up and cupped my face, turning my cheek so that all I could do was look at him. “You’re riding with me tonight.”

“Okay.” He slipped my hand in to his and led me out of the hotel.

“What about everyone else?”

“We’ll meet them at the club.”

I followed him out in to the warm night air. I thought we were going in one of the cars that we had travelled in earlier to the race but we stopped in front of a bike. I froze. I’d never been on the back of a bike before. Something about them always struck me as unnecessarily dangerous. They just never looked stable.

“Can we not go in a car?” Jace eyed me as if I’d said something completely absurd.

“Have you never been on a bike before?”

“I’ve never needed to.” He laughed and shook his head before handing me a helmet.

“Well, I’m glad I get to be with you for your first time.” I still wasn’t convinced that I wasn’t taking chances with my life by getting on the thing, so Jace used his methods of reasoning which involved grabbing me by the waist and pulling me into a kiss so fierce I would have done anything he asked. His lips seared mine with a fire that I wanted to bathe in. I was powerless against him and it warmed something inside of me to know that he could do this.

When he broke away, he kept his forehead against mine. He was breathing heavily and so was I. He continued to leave me breathless and a voice inside of me said I never wanted to take another breath without him.

“Come on, Bonbon. Let’s head to the club.” He kissed me on my temple and led me the bike. Gently, he placed the helmet on my head, making sure it fit comfortably. I wanted to ask him why he had two helmets in the first place. Was he so sure I would come with him? Or would he have asked Brielle, instead. I pushed those thoughts right out of my mind before they ate away at me and caused me to ruin the most intimate moment that I had with Jace and definitely any other man in my life.

The ride to the club was like nothing I had ever experienced. Riding behind Jace, I took full advantage of being able to wrap my arms around his body. His chest fit into my palms perfectly. Every turn he made pulled me in closer. Even with the helmet on, I could take in his scent. He was going fast, but still I felt safe.

After a little while, he pulled off the road on to a side path that ran adjacent to the road we had just left. I started to hop off the bike as gracefully as I could to ask what the problem was. However, Jace jumped off first and held me in place. He removed my helmet carefully and then sat back in front of me on the bike, only this time, he faced me.

“Why have you been avoiding me so much?”

“I haven’t. You’ve been busy and I’ve had a job to do while I’ve been here. I guess our paths just haven’t crossed much.” That was sort of true.

“I missed you.” He took my hands in his and played with my fingers. “I thought about you all day today. I can’t seem to get you out of my head, no matter what I do. You’ve taken me over, BonBon; I want to return the favor.” He released one of my hands to let his own trail across my collarbone. His touch made me shudder in an absolutely erotic way.

“I’ve thought about you every day from the moment I laid eyes on you. There’s no one that’s ever captivated me more. You challenge me and excite me all at the same time, and I’m telling you the truth when I say I don’t think I can ever get enough. You keep rejecting me and I’ll just keep following you until you let me in, BonBon. I’ll make you mine even if I have the wear you down.”

“So this is just a game to you?” That hurt and suddenly I was angry. Was Jace just playing a game because I’d turned him down and bruised his ego? He was probably used to girls like Brielle who couldn’t get enough of him and I just presented a challenge.

“What? No! You don’t understand, BonBon. Before you, I never wanted the things that I want with you. I’d never felt the things you make me feel. Like there’s something more to life than bikes and partying.”

“Oh. But, Brielle . . .” He cut me off before I could continue.

“BonBon, I’m not a saint. I’ve partied and I’ve partied hard. Brielle and I have never been in a relationship, but we have been together. That was a long time ago and we’ve remained friends through the years. I know she expects more, but she’s not the one for me. I’m hoping one day she realizes that and she’s able to move on before her life and a real chance of happiness passes her by.”

“Have you ever considered actually telling her any of this?”

“I have on more than one occasion over the years, but all I ever end up doing is hurting her, and she doesn’t deserve that. She’s been good to me.” He looked off past my shoulder a little lost in thought. “She’s been there a couple of times when I’ve needed someone, and I’m grateful for that.”

“That could be because she’s always up your ass so no wonder she’s there.” I couldn’t prevent that catty comment from coming out. I was jealous that they had that connection. Something based on time that I couldn’t eradicate or replicate with the click of my fingers.

Jace was laughing but my glare made him stop. “Don’t worry, BonBon; she’s got nothing on you.” His face became serious and I couldn’t break eye contact with him. “Nothing.”

He slid in closer to me, his palms now rising up my thighs under my dress. His hands came back down to cup behind my knees so that he could pull my legs to wrap around his waist. We were so close and I was sure he could feel the heat pulsating from my core. Jace made me a wanton slut in the best way and I didn’t want it to change.

We sat there lost in our moment together, with no interruptions, just taking each other in. He played with my hair while I stroked his arms and when he did finally hold me close, he caressed my back while I absorbed his unique scent.

“We should get to the club.” I whispered in his ear; close enough for my lips to brush against his ear I felt him shiver.

“Or we could forget about the club and go back to the hotel.” He leaned back so I could see his suggestive eyebrow wiggle.

I playfully slapped his chest and scooted back to let him know that we would be going to the club. He kissed the back of my hand and got us ready to take off on again.

It didn’t take us long to get to the club, which looked busy when we parked outside. Jace helped me off the bike and took off my helmet before giving me a swift peck on my nose.

He guided me to the club entrance where we were let in ahead of the queue much to the annoyance of some of the people that had been standing there waiting for entrance.