Her spine stiffened and she turned her back on him deliberately.
There was something about him that made her nervous. He was so… male. She'd never seen anyone that masculine in her life. He was like a lion or a gorilla at the zoo.
He looked cold and hard, no matter how handsome or chiseled his face was. And that body… Jesus, he did look like a Viking! Strong, lean and ruthless.
He made her nervous. Very, very nervous.
Kaylie was chatting about some of the people they'd gone to high school with as Janet struggled vainly to get her emotions in check. The drinks weren't helping.
Yes, she was nervous. But she was also aroused. She crossed her legs and pulled her top up in the front. When she snuck a look behind her, Jack was openly leering at her.
No, not at her. At her legs.
She felt overly warm in the bar suddenly. As if they'd turned up the heat like the sauna at the dance studio where she practiced sometimes. Not that she danced anymore. It was painful to even think about.
She’d lost everything when she injured herself. Her hopes and dreams. But she’d also been freed of the relentless pressure.
Freed from the expectations of her dance company, the press, her parents and herself.
Especially her parents.
She licked her lips and nodded when Donnie offered her another drink. He was lording it up all night, bossing the prospects around. His merry blue eyes made her feel comfortable.
Jack's black gaze did not.
Devlin slid his arm around Kaylie.
"You about ready to go?"
She nodded, a light blush tinting her cheeks. Janet looked away, not wanting to interrupt their intimate moment. Kaylie had said that Devlin was always trying to get her alone.
She’d said that he was insatiable. Janet had begged for details but Kaylie refused to say much. It was obvious that whatever Devlin wanted to do when he got Kaylie alone, was more than a little bit naughty.
It was also clear that her friend didn’t mind a bit.
"Come on Janet, I'll drive you home."
She waved goodbye to Donnie as Dev threw a couple of twenties on the bar. He didn’t have to pay for drinks in his own place. It was just a courtesy for Donnie and the other bartenders.
Janet couldn't resist one more glance across the room while Kaylie pulled her jacket on and gathered her purse.
Jack was just where he'd been all night. He was staring toward them again. He could have been looking at any of them. Kaylie, Dev, even Donnie behind the bar. But she knew he wasn't.
He was looking at her.
Chapter Six
Jack
“Ready to do a run by?”
Jack grunted in agreement. It was late and the scene at the bar was still going. But they were gone, so he could leave.
She was gone.
He hadn’t stopped thinking about her since she walked out the door.
There were fifty reasons he could not pursue the girl, no matter what his dick was saying. As they pulled out onto the road he reminded himself of them, starting at the top.
1. She was a good girl. Classy. She would never go for a dirtbag biker.
2. He didn’t need anyone. He just wanted her for some Godforsaken reason.
3. Even though she was friends with Kaylie, who was a sweetheart, he had a feeling Janet was another type of girl altogether. Those flashing eyes screamed high maintenance.
4. She wasn’t short but she was still tiny compared to him. He might break her.
5. She was a rich girl. A normal, on steroids. The kind of person he sneered at.
6. She would want things if he fucked her. And since he didn’t just want to fuck her once, he would have to give those things to her. And he couldn’t.
7. She probably wouldn’t fuck him anyway.
8. But maybe he could try. Make an effort. It would be worth it for just one touch of that silky skin.
9, He didn’t do sweetbutts, or regular girls. He didn’t do women for the most part. Not for a very long time.
10. He didn’t like messy. Janet was messy. A hot mess, literally.
He could go on and on. It was a fruitless exercise. Jack knew he might never see her again anyway.
He’d certainly never dare to touch her.
But he could think about it. Indulge the fantasy. He had a feeling he couldn’t stop if he wanted to.
They pulled to the outskirts of town and killed their lights. It was a run down part of the suburban sprawl. An area that used to be nice, but wasn’t anymore.
A part of town that time had passed over.
They watched the house for an hour, staring at the crappy split level that one Officer Grant called home. He’d been warned that he was on parole with the club. They were probably going to hurt him at some point, but for now, they were just looking for an excuse.
He’d stayed the hell away from Kaylie and the club, not even daring to get takeout from Mae’s since everything went down.