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Instead, I went back to ignoring him, which was hard to do with his arms around me. I focused on the music and people watching, my anger slowly fading.

He was looking out for me in his own bossy as fuck way. He wanted me to be safe. It was kinda sweet, minus him being a jerk.

I wasn’t booking us any BFF getaways, but at least he didn’t seem to hate me.

I shifted a little and his arm tightened around me again. Moving my head to the side, my cheek slid against his chest as I looked up at him.

“Jake?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t feel like you have to watch over me all night. I’m fine, really. Go have some fun.”

Jake looked down at me for a few seconds before looking back at the stage without saying anything. When his arms stayed around me, I sighed dramatically before turning back to the show.

Oh no. Woe is me. I have to watch an awesome show in the arms of a hot guy. How will I ever survive?

When the music ended, the lights came up and brought me back to reality. I pulled away from Jake, his fingers trailing my skin as he dropped his arms. I turned to say goodbye when he unexpectedly grabbed my hand and began walking. I focused on maneuvering through the crowd, but Jake didn’t seem to have that problem. He moved with confidence and everyone got the hell out of his way.

I saw the other guys, except Z, with some women at the bar. As we approached, the men were trying not to look at Jake’s hand holding mine.

They were also failing.

“Pipe, what’d you think?” Kase asked when we reached them.

I pulled my hand from Jake’s and threw up the horns. “That was definitely in my top five shows.”

I heard a deep chuckle next to me. “Hey, darlin’.”

“Rhys! Your place is the freakin’ best!”

“Good to hear,” he said, handing me my shrug.

As I took it, I got on my toes and leaned over the bar. I grabbed the front of Rhys’ shirt and pulled him closer. I saw a look of surprise in his eyes a second before I pressed my lips to his cheek. “Thank you for letting me come. It was one of the best nights of my life.” Releasing his shirt, I lowered myself back down.

Rhys looked down at me, his expression shooting from warmth to pure heat. “I had a few of those cookies, darlin’. I’m definitely looking forward to experiencing more sweet from you in the future.” He walked towards the other end of the bar and signaled Jake to follow him.

God, Rhys was sexy. His eyes were such an amazing color, and I was right about his smile coming easy and often. And those dimples? As a woman, I appreciated the view. I liked it even more knowing that his looks weren’t the only appealing thing about him.

I just needed to work on transferring some feelings, finding time and energy, and having the nerve to go for it.

That’s all? No biggie.

Turning to Kase, I stood back on my toes as he dipped down a bit. I moved his surprisingly soft dreads and kissed his cheek, too. “Thanks for inviting me and setting this whole night up, Kase. It was awesome.”

Kase looked down at me and grinned. “Music’s to be shared with good friends, hot chicks, and hot chicks who you know are gonna turn into good friends. You leaving?”

“Yeah, I gotta head out. Lots of cakes tomorrow. Let Jake know I said thanks.”

“I just experienced how you say thanks, Piper. I don’t know if my delivery will be as good as yours. My beard probably tickles.”

I laughed. “Good point.”

“I’ll walk you to your car,” he offered, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

“Cool, thanks. See ya guys!” I waved to the rest of the group before Kase and I headed towards the exit.

When we were almost to the door, I heard a deep voice rumble, “I got this.”