I knew the rules, and I saw the line.I wasn’t breaking them, and I wasn’tcrossingit.
But damn if flirting with Ari hadn’t made me say things I shouldn’t even have been thinking.How many times did I have to tell myself she was off-limits before I got it through both myheads?
Standing next to the pool table with a hard-on, watching her walk across the floor to talk to her brother,my best friend, did the trick faster than you could saybadplan.
I knew what I had to do—end the game and get the hell out of this bar before I did something stupid, like get close to her again and catch a hint of the coconut scent coming from her hair.Or maybe it was her skin.I didn’t know, but the fact that Iwantedto know firsthand was badenough.
Shutting it down was my only option.A shaft of regret stabbed into me when I sank the eight ball and Ari’s expression deflated.It reminded me of how she’d looked when a kid in her class picked on her, and I had to go make threats to ensure it never happened again.Except this time, I was the one whocausedit.
It made me an asshole.Not surprising, since that’s what I was good atbeingnow.
“Here, I’ll put your cue up.”I took it out of her fingers, careful not to breathe again until Isteppedaway.
Heath held out Ari’s phone to her as I returned.“Your boyfriend texted.Might want to tell that douchebag to fuck off once andforall.”
Wait.A.Goddamned.Second.Ari has aboyfriend?
Her gaze slammed into mine, a thin veil of guilt slipping over her features.Thatansweredthat.
If my hard-on hadn’t already been gone, it would have died right then.Never again would I make the mistake of turning my attention on a woman who was involved withsomeoneelse.
Ari strode to Heath, yanked the phone from his grip, and unlocked the screen to readthetext.
Even though I wanted to walk out the door, I followed them back to the table, and Heath took that as his sign to fill me in on thesituation.
“You’ll never believe this jackass.He’s not nearly good enough for her.I don’t get why she doesn’t cut tiesforgood.”
Ari stiffened at his words.“You know I can hear you, right?I’m standing rightfreakinghere.”
“Good.Then hear this—Carlos is bad news.You need to drop him.”Heath was acting like the protective older brother he’d been on occasion, but there was one difference now.His little sister wasn’t all that littleanymore.
Ari turned her icy gray eyes on him.“When I want your opinion on my love life, I’ll ask youforit.”
“But—”
“But nothing.Besides, I was going to tell him we were over the next time I talked to him anyway.I was going to do it before,butI—”
“Didn’t have the nerve to break it off?”Heathasked.
“Look, I was busy, okay?This isn’t exactly something I can delegate to Esme or Erik and have them dealwithit.”
“No, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t suck it up and get him out of your life.Forgood.”
Heath’s adamant tone surprised me.This Carlos guy had to be an asshole for Heath to hate him this much.I would have said it was a case of no one being good enough for his little sister, but this feltdifferent.
“Is he abusive?”I didn’t intend to ask the question, but it came outanyway.
Ari’s gaze cut to me.“No.Of course not.”Her eyebrow didn’t twitch, so I knew she wasn’tlying.
“Then what the hell is wrong with him?”There had to be something, otherwise Heath wouldn’t be talking about him like he needed killing.Even without having met the guy, I didn’t like him.No one was good enough for her.Especiallynotme.
“Look, I’ll deal with him when I feellikeit.”
It was obvious from the finality underlying Ari’s words that the subject was closed.Heath didn’t look like he agreed, but he kept his mouth shut and didn’t sayanythingelse.
Ari’s fingers flew across the screen as she tapped out a text in response before shoving her phone in the side pocket of her purse, where Heath must have snatched it when the text chime camethrough.
“I think I need another drink.What about you two?”Ari grabbed the bottle and sloshed a measure of whiskey into all three of our glasses, but didn’t wait for me or Heath before tossinghersback.