Scandal:The Complete Series(56)
He waves back at Nate and then shoves Brad who’s been chatting up a blonde girl. “Look who’s here,” Jax says.
“Hey, Nate dog,” Brad speaks up, picking up his drink and blowing a kiss at his new friend as we move over to Nate’s table.
“I didn’t know you were a regular,” Jax says, punching Nate’s shoulder.
“I’m not,” Nate says. “Just a guest, bro.”
“Who’s with you?” Brad says. “Do I know her?”
“Brad thinks he knows every skirt in town,” Jax says.
“When did I say it was a she?” Nate says.
“A guy?” Brad says, eyeing Nate. “I didn’t know you had it in you, man.”
“It’s a friend, you freak,” Nate says as he brings his drink to his lips.
Nate is powerfully built with short brown hair, blue eyes and a ruggedly hot face. He doesn’t have Jaxson’s finesse and poise. There’s some real darkness behind his blue eyes, like something’s on his mind, something unpleasant.
“Career must be good, Jax,” Nate says. “I see your ugly mug on every fucking magazine in the world.”
“Fucking sickening,” Jax says. “My face is going to be like the Macarena. Everyone’s going to be sick of it.”
“I’m already there, bro,” Brad says.
For that, I punch Brad’s shoulder which mostly just hurts my hand.
“I’m just saying,” Brad says. “Nate, can you believe Jax has a serious girlfriend now, lucky son of a bitch. She even hits dudes for him.”
Nate’s eyes focus on me. “Sup?” he says with a nod that gives me a shiver in places, which makes me clear my throat.
“Hey, I’m Ella,” I say, offering my hand.
Nate looks at my hand but doesn’t take it. “Nate. Pleasure.”
Jax takes my lonely hand from the air and pulls me into his chest, officially staking his claim, when a man joins us at the table whom I vaguely recognize.
“What’s up, Johnny?” Jax says.
Ah, the doorman.
“About that thing,” Johnny says. “Wolf’s underground.”
Jax nods at Brad and they both stand up. Jax gives me a fierce look. “Stay here with Nate,” he says.
“I don’t think so,” I begin to say, but Nate’s hand is on my arm already as if the two men have exchanged telepathic signals.
“Ella, I’m not going to argue,” Jax says in a voice harsher than ever before.
I watch helplessly as Jaxson and Brad vanish behind the main stage. I know where they’re going. I’ve been down those stairs, too, when Jaxson took me down to the basement and to the dream chambers.
“Sorry about not taking your hand,” Nate says.
“Whatever,” I say. I glance around the place while I figure out the logistics of my situation. “Not a big deal.”
“I have a rule,” he says. “Leave the good girls alone.”
I allow myself to turn and open my eyes wide so I can roll them clearly for him. “That’s a fucked up rule.”
He laughs. “Jax has good taste,” he says. “And he’s better than the rest of us. Kid’s got a heart.”
“Yeah,” I say. “You might want to look into getting one of those.”
“Cool,” he says. “I’ll put it on my bucket list.”
“Where’s that friend of yours?” I’m hoping I’m not being too obvious about the fact that his friend coming back could give me an escape route.
“Around,” Nate says, vaguely, before he returns to his drink.
Right, I get it, his friend is downstairs where the real action takes place. It makes me wonder why this Nate chose to stay upstairs, by himself.
“So, how did you meet Jaxson?” he says.
I bend my face at him. “Seriously, dude? We’re going to have this conversation that is as interesting to you as a pimple on a monkey’s ass while Jax might be in danger?” Fuck. Not smooth.
“Let me just say that I find monkeys especially interesting and how exactly is Jax in danger?”
I’m not sure how much I should tell him or if I should tell him anything at all but what are my choices? I need to be down there and hear what this Wolf character has to say about my stepsister’s death with my own ears.
The fact that this guy respects Jax decides it for me.
“Madison Starr was my sister. Wolf might know who killed her, except there’s a slight possibility Wolf himself knows too much or maybe even,” I say, stopping cold in mid-sentence when Nate holds up his hand.
“Don’t finish that thought,” he says. “Not in here.” His expression betrays zero surprise. Who are these people? He takes me at my word for everything I have just said like it’s just another night at the Peach Corner.