Page 14 of Just One: Box Set

Chapter Three

V egas truly was the city that never slept.

Jackie had wandered the Strip, hopping from bar to bar, downing more drinks than she could count, until she ended up in a tiny hole-in-the-wall bar near her hotel.

She knew she should go back to her room, but the thought of running into him —Carter—kept her from returning.

Feeling a little more than just buzzed, Jackie rested her head on the cool wooden surface of the bar and sighed. The woman behind the counter tapped the bar near her head. "Need me to call you an Uber?"

Jackie lifted her head and grinned through the fog of alcohol. "Nope," she said, popping the word. "Just a water—and maybe a minute to rest."

"I got her," a smooth voice washed over her, and a familiar hand rested on her back. "How much have you had to drink?"

Jackie squinted at the man standing beside her. "Why are you here?" she asked, trying to clear her vision. "I'm fine."

"I think I should help you back to the hotel."

"No. Absolutely not," she said, her voice slow and deliberate. She slapped her palms on the bar. "On second thought, I want another shot. Have one with me."

"You've had enough," he said, shaking his head.

"You're not the boss of me," Jackie stiffened under his touch. "Either commemorate this momentous night with a drink, or back off!"

The bartender glanced between them. "Do you know him?"

Jackie looked at the man beside her, his sturdy frame vaguely familiar. "Do I know you?" she asked, squinting again. "Yep. Guess I do. But if he doesn't drink with me, you can shoo him away. I'm drowning my sorrows."

"We were at a wedding together," the man replied, his hand running gently along her spine. "Why are you drowning your sorrows? Your best friend just got married. You’ve had a lot to drink, and you’re out by yourself. Let me make sure you get home safely. I don’t want anything to happen to you."

"I don’t want to go home," Jackie groaned. "And of course, I’m happy for my bestie—but he’s here." She let out a frustrated sigh. "I need to have sex with a hot guy and get over him."

The man beside her stiffened. "Who's here? And wait… you want to have sex with a stranger?"

"Yes. Otherwise, I’m going to stay in love with a man who doesn’t want me."

A low growl rumbled from the man she thought she knew. "How do you know he doesn’t want you?" His fingers dug into her shoulder. "Jackie, how do you know?"

"Because he kissed me and ran away. Maybe I’m a bad kisser," she murmured, the words more for herself than anyone else. Then, a thought struck her. She blinked rapidly, as if trying to make sense of it. "Kiss me."

"What?" The man glanced at the bartender, who shrugged.

"I said… kiss me. It’s the only way I’ll know if it was me. Maybe I suck at it."

"You don’t suck," he whispered. "Trust me."

Without hesitation, Jackie grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him toward her, pressing their lips together.

He resisted at first, but soon enough, he surrendered, his tongue slipping into her mouth.

The kiss was soft at first, but as his fingers tangled into her hair, everything shifted.

This kiss was life-altering, burning every trace of Carter from her mind.

Sparks coursed through her body as she pressed into him, and in that moment, she knew—this was the kind of man who could mend her heart.

"Marry me," she whispered, pulling back from the kiss, the words slipping out before she could stop them.

"Huh?" He stared at her, wide-eyed, his hand still tangled in her hair.

"You have to marry me. It’s the only way to get him out of my system forever."

"Marry you?" he repeated, his voice full of shock. "Because you don’t want to love him, but you do?"

"God, yes," Jackie groaned, dropping her head. "I’ve been in love with him forever. And then he kissed me. I need you to marry me, please. You give me the tingles, and I’m afraid that tomorrow will come and you won’t want to give them to me anymore. If you marry me, you’re stuck with me forever."

"You’re drunk," he pointed out gently, though she could hear the hesitation in his voice.

"Don’t care. I know what I want. Please… we don’t have to tell Harley."

Confusion flickered across his face, but it was quickly replaced with a mix of frustration and something deeper.

"I don’t know," he whispered, his palm running down the back of his neck.

"How would we be married and not tell your best friend?

Besides, Harley and Archer would kill me.

" He muttered the last part, which was likely not meant for her to hear.

"Fine." Jackie threw back the shot waiting on the bar and slid off her stool. "If you won’t, I’m sure I can find someone who will. We’re in Vegas, after all."

Wobbling as she stood, she pressed her hand against his arm, which immediately wrapped around her wrist, steadying her. "Whoa, hold up, Jackie. Let’s talk about this for a minute."

"What’s there to talk about? You’re the second man to refuse me, and I’m done with rejection." She yanked her wrist free, nearly falling over in the process. "Move. I’m going to find the future Mr. Brooks."

"Pretty sure you’d be Mrs. Whoever you marry," he said, his voice steady as he followed her.

"I don’t need a babysitter," she slurred.

"Your stumbling feet say otherwise. How about we just hang out for a bit? And if you still want to get married in an hour or two, then I’ll take you myself."

Jackie spun around too fast, causing him to bump into her. "Really?" she asked, looking up at his blurry figure, struggling to recall his name. His face was familiar, but through the haze of alcohol and her missing contacts, he was a vague, attractive blur.

"Yes. God help me, but I will."

"So, hang out with you for an hour, and then you’ll take me? You gonna find me a husband while you're at it?"

He chuckled softly, pulling her against his chest. "I’ll do it. But first, let’s talk about why you’re so desperate to forget this guy."

"Ugh. You sure you want all the details? Wait… what’s your name? I know you were at Harley and Archer’s wedding, but between losing my contacts, crying, and the alcohol, you’re kind of a hot, blurry mess."

"Seriously? You’re willing to marry me, but you don’t know my name?"

Jackie could feel the tension rolling off him. "I’d marry a stranger at this point if it meant I could forget about him."

"Hugo," he sighed. "You can call me Hugo. You really don’t recognize me?"

"Nope. Sorry, Hugo. If I weren’t three tequila sunrises and about four whiskey sours in, I’d probably be able to ID you. But the alcohol has messed with my head."

"Another reason we should just sit down and talk. Marrying someone right now would be a huge mistake."

"No. A huge mistake was kissing the guy in the storage closet at work."

Hugo choked at her comment, his eyes narrowing slightly. "What?"

"Nothing," Jackie waved it off. "Let’s just sit."

They navigated through the crowd and found a corner booth. Hugo sat across from her and flagged down a waiter. "Two waters, please."

"Um, no thank you. We’ll take a shot of vanilla vodka," Jackie insisted, flashing Hugo a grin.

He shook his head. "No, you need to sober up."

"I don’t want to be sober. Sober me makes bad decisions."

Hugo sighed but nodded to the waiter. "Just one."

Jackie clapped her hands in excitement. "That’s what I’m talking about!"

As they waited for their drinks, Jackie tried to focus on the man sitting across from her, but it was no use. He was still a blurry blob, and the alcohol had only made it worse. She knew Hugo was right—Vegas made people do crazy things, and this was one of them.

"Tell me about this guy," Hugo said. "Why do you think he doesn’t want you? Have you asked him?"

"No, and I won’t. He kissed me even though he had a girlfriend, then avoided me afterward. He probably thinks it was a mistake."

"And the other girl? Are they still together?"

"No. He dumped her, but he still hasn’t talked to me. I’m just… irrelevant, I guess."

Hugo leaned back in his seat. "Maybe now’s your chance. You should tell him. If someone like you was in love with me, I’d want to know."

Jackie laughed bitterly. "Well, if you’re as good in bed as you are at kissing, I might just fall in love with you by morning."