Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 125135 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125135 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
“Actually,” Lala answered, “we’re getting ready to go out dancing.”
“Oh, nice.” I nodded. “You deserve to unwind. You haven’t been out with friends—besides me—since you got here, from what I can remember. Right?”
“Well, I don’t have too many girlfriends here.”
Lala looked really cute, dressed once again in a black leather skirt and her off-the-shoulder Debbie Harry shirt. Her hair was off-the-charts wild too—just the way I liked it. Her friend wore a tight green dress with tall leather boots. They were definitely dressed to go clubbing.
“Where are you guys going?” I asked.
Lala looked over at her friend for guidance. She wasn’t the one making the plans.
“Zanzibar,” Tia said. “You know it?”
“Yeah. I pretty much know all of the dance clubs.”
“You’re the drummer, right?” Tia grinned.
“That’s correct.” I nodded.
“I could tell.”
“Because I look homeless or something?”
“No, because you’re super hot. Most drummers I know are.”
Lala looked ready to crawl out of her skin, so I decided to put her out of her misery.
“Anyway, ladies. I should let you get ready. I hope you have a fun night. Just wanted to check in and say hi, Lala, since it’s been a couple of days.”
Lala perked up, seeming relieved that I was halfway out the door. “Okeedokee.”
But then her friend called after me. “Wait! Why don’t you come out with us? The more the merrier!”
I turned. “No, I don’t want to interrupt girls’ night.”
“But it’s not girls’ night.” She turned to Lala. “You invited one of the other guys already, didn’t you?”
I froze. Hold up. Say what? I narrowed my eyes. “Is that right…”
“Uh…” Lala sighed. “Brayden is coming out with us, yeah.”
What the fuck? I took a slow breath in to calm myself. Before I got all pissy, it occurred to me that maybe she was trying to set Brayden up with her friend; that was probably the only excuse that wouldn’t totally offend me. But still, she could’ve asked me to hang out, too. She’d specifically chosen not to.
Tia got a phone call and wandered over to the corner of the apartment to talk in private. I took the opportunity to grill Lala.
“So…” I crossed my arms. “Brayden. Since when do you invite him out with you?”
“Okay…” She sighed. “I know it seems weird, especially since I didn’t tell you. But Tia had asked me to introduce her to one of my single guy friends. And Brayden was the first person who came to mind.”
I decided to mess with her. “That’s interesting. Because I’m single. Why didn’t you want to introduce her to me?” I snapped my finger. “Oh, let me guess. You think I’m too much of a manwhore or something? So you chose Brayden?” My eyes seared into hers. “Or…is it something else, Lala?”
What looked like a faint rash started to form on her neck as she lowered her voice. “I don’t know why I chose Brayden. And I knew she would want you if she saw you. I just—”
Before we could get into it any further, Tia returned from her phone call. Now that I knew fucking Brayden was going out with them, I decided to take Tia up on her offer.
“You know what?” I flashed an evil grin. “I don’t have any plans tonight. If it’s not a girls’ night, I think I will join after all.” I turned to Lala. “If you don’t mind.”
Lala blew out a long breath and shrugged.
A half hour later, it was all aboard the Clusterfuck Express, also known as an Uber SUV Brayden had called to pick us all up. It turned out to be a bigger group than anticipated, since Brayden had also decided to invite Owen, who apparently had a rare night off where he wasn’t buried in work. I had to wonder, though, if Owen wanted to come merely to keep an eye on me when it came to Lala. Pretty sure that was it.
Brayden seemed somewhat interested in Tia, asking her some questions about her job and flashing that flirty smile he was known for. But unfortunately, Tia only seemed to have eyes for…me. Whoops. Not only had she asked Lala if she could switch seats to be next to me, she kept placing her hand on my knee as she talked. I wasn’t one to get uncomfortable from such things, but I felt awkward because I sensed Brayden getting annoyed. He could be competitive sometimes—especially when it came to me stealing his thunder. But you know who was getting even more annoyed? Take one guess. Yeah. Lala sat there looking miffed, and her eyes kept landing on Tia’s hand whenever she touched me.
Owen was being Owen and seemed disinterested in the entire thing after having forced himself to go out. He certainly wasn’t expressing any interest in Tia. He was probably one of the pickiest dudes I knew. He had to be equally as mentally stimulated as he was physically attracted to someone. In the past, I’d been the opposite: it didn’t matter to me if a hot girl had marbles. But lately? I could definitely relate to how Owen felt. Brains and beauty got me off these days. More specifically, scientists with crazy-curly hair who wore hot-ass thongs and carried vibrators in their purses.