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  Alec shrugged, “Anyone’s better than Jamie.”

  “Hey!” Jamie protested, glaring across the table at him.

  “Still,” Briar persisted, ignoring Jamie, “You hate to lose. You’re competitive. Why don’t you pick someone else?”

  I rolled my eyes. Duh! He likes you!

  Alec smiled one of those sexy, panty-dropping grins he gave his fans, “Winning isn’t everything Briar-Rose.”

  His voice deepened and he tugged gently on one of the springy curls hanging in front of her face. “Play with me,” he asked huskily, “It’ll be fun.”

  Briar swallowed and her eyelashes flickered. I could tell that she’d been affected by Alec’s lethal charm. He was the sweet and sensitive one of the boys in the band, but that didn’t make him any less sexy. He hadn’t pushed his hair into its usual short Mohawk tonight. Instead, the soft, dark strands were messed in sexy, sleepy disarray. His usually warm and kind hazel eyes were lit with heat and sex.

  “Sure,” Briar agreed after a deep breath. She grinned widely, her dimples cutting deep grooves in her apple cheeks. “Sound’s like fun.”

  “Are you and Mason playing?” Jamie asked Candy with a scowl.

  Candy wrinkled her nose, “No. Mase is disk jockeying. I’m going to dance and get drunk.”

  Jamie sighed, but it turned into a wicked grin. “Hell, more women for me then if you four are too busy playing with sticks,” he said with a laugh, giving Donny a friendly shove.

  “Four?” one of the randoms at our table asked.

  “Donny, Fredi, Alec and Stone,” Jamie supplied, looking the guy over with a frown, “Who are you?”

  “He’s a friend of mine,” Briar supplied nonchalantly, turning toward the guy with a smile, “Fredi’s a lesbian.”

  The guy looked back and forth between Fredi and Donny, the confusion clear on his face. Briar sent him a knowing smile and gently patted him on the head. “Don’t worry about it, Patrick,” she mumbled on a low laugh, “They’re just as confused as you.”

  Jamie got up from his chair and sort of bounced with pent up energy. “You guys up for a band practice?” he asked, clearly antsy to get hold of his guitar.

  I felt Stone hesitate beside me, before nodding slowly. He squeezed my thigh beneath the table briefly and stood up with Alec, Fredi and Donny. I discretely rubbed where he’d touched as the band said goodbye, hoping to numb the hot impression his strong hand had made.

  Briar grinned when the rest of the crowd left, leaving Candy and I as the table’s only other occupants. “Thank God they’ve finally left,” she said, sitting down next to me in Stone’s vacated seat. Candy moved closer as well.

  “We’ve got to talk strategy,” Briar explained, her blue eyes gleaming with excitement.

  “Strategy?” I asked curiously.

  Candy’s cheeky grin rivalled Briar’s. “She means we have to prepare you for this weekend’s competition. Make sure you and Stone win.”

  “But what about you and Alec?” I protested.

  Briar snorted and waved a hand airily. “I suck at pool,” she admitted, “I’ll try to keep us in as long as possible, but it’s up to you and Stone to kick everyone’s butts.”

  “Especially Fredi and Donny’s,” she added with a small growl.

  I didn’t say anything. I didn’t see how we could form any kind of magic strategy that would ensure we would win. I played rather well and so did Stone…what else could we do?

  A lot, I found out as they dragged me upstairs to choose an especially distracting outfit and teach me the art of bending over…

  ***

  “I still think this is a little much,” I protested for the hundredth time as Briar and I walked toward the Uni Club that weekend.

  Briar groaned. “Quit complaining,” she begged me, “You look amazing and it’s not that revealing. You’re wearing full length jeans for Christ’s sake.”

  “I might as well be wearing nothing,” I grumbled. The skinny leg jeans moulded to every inch of me in a skin-tight fit. It had been hell trying to get them on and I dreaded taking them off…or trying to go to the bathroom…or even getting enough give in the fabric to bend over the pool table.

  It was midday and the tournament would start in little under an hour, continuing past dinnertime and into the night. Briar had managed to clothe me in the raciest thing she could, whilst keeping my look fairly casual. I wore a pair of chunky heels on my feet and my hair was tied up in a messy bun, both deliberate decisions made by Bri. The heels were to make my long legs look even longer and to compliment my ass. The bun was to leave my neck and shoulders bare. My top was loose fitting, but strapless, with the overlapping material at the fitted breast cups leaving peeks at my slowly growing cleavage. When I bent forward, the curved tops of my breasts were clearly displayed. The top was breezy and comfortable and I liked the white and pink tie-die material. I didn’t look particularly slutty…but I knew I’d attract many male stares and some pissed off girlfriends. Great, I thought sarcastically, I just love attention.

  Stone didn’t look happy when he met us at the door. His eyes ran over my jeans and breasts, his jaw clenching. He turned a sharp glance at Briar, who rolled her eyes and grinned.

  “Do you like it?” she asked cheekily.

  Stone didn’t say anything.

  “It’s a distraction,” I explained in a small voice, feeling distinctly uncomfortable.

  Stone looked back at me, his eyes going for another trip over my body, lingering in some places longer than others. His eyes were both annoyed and amused when they met mine again. It certainly is, they seemed to tell me.

  Sorry, I tried to communicate with my own.

  “C’mon GG,” Briar persuaded, “You know you love to win…”

  He stared at Briar for a tense moment, before grunting and rolling his eyes. He grabbed my hand and pulled me close to him, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and moulding half of my front to his side as he walked us into the club. It was a little difficult walking with my body at such an angle, but I didn’t complain. Although awkward, it was surprisingly comfortable being pressed against such a warm, hard body. I didn’t think Stone would listen to any complaints either.

  Eyebrows were raised as we walked through the already packed club. Male and female pairs of eyes watched our progress with curiosity and interest. Some faces looked surprised, a few female ones disappointed or annoyed, but one face in particular stood out to me as we joined our friends. She was not happy and I trembled a little under the intensity of her hateful glare. Thankfully, she retreated, taking her two sheep-like friends with her. I had a sinking feeling that she would seek me out later though. Chloe didn’t seem like one to avoid a confrontation. Nor was she one to give up on something she wanted.

  Fredi grinned at me as she handed me a glass of Coke from the jug they’d bought. “Ready?” she asked me in challenge. I nodded shyly, a little uncertain and uncomfortable at how much this competition meant to them. I didn’t like being responsible for whether Stone won or lost tonight. It was intimidating. Donny offered me his bar stool but I shook my head. There was no way I’d be able to sit down in these jeans.

  “Comfortable?” Fredi asked with a knowing chuckle. I blushed and snuggled a little closer to Stone.

  “Yes, I’m fine,” I lied. I frowned as I stared back at her. There was something different about her face…her eyes. Was…I was sure that it was her left eye that was green and her right blue. But I must have been wrong, because a green iris sparkled in her right eye and the left one shone blue.

  “Why are you staring at me?” Fredi asked bluntly.

  I blanched. “Sorry,” I muttered, “I just thought your eyes looked different.”

  Fredi’s frown disappeared and she laughed. “Sorry,” she said with a big smile, “I switched my contacts over. I do it to every few months or so to confuse people.”

  She leaned forward and whispered, “My eyes are really grey.”

  “Oh,” I said, feeli
ng a little better. I moved away from Stone and set my camera down on the table, fiddling with its functions. Stone moved up behind me and peered over my shoulder. I jumped in surprise, but slowly relaxed. It seemed Stone wasn’t going to let me move far away from him tonight. Was he protecting me from horny, drunk men? That was fine with me. I wasn’t particularly keen on being ogled and even less thrilled about the idea someone might try to touch me. Stone still scared me, but I was content to let him watch over me tonight.

  “Ooh!” Candy said excitedly as she and Mason joined our group, “Are you going to take some photos Evie?”

  I nodded with a small smile. “I thought I’d send some to my family,” I told her quietly. Cooper, Zane and my sisters were always asking me to send them photos. Usually I just sent them pictures of the Darwin family, but now that I was in Alice and actually had a life, I thought they may like to see some pictures of my new friends and the kinds of things I’d been doing.

  “Awesome!” Candy said, pulling Mason close, “Take one of me and Mase!”

  I blushed under everyone’s stares, but obliged her, taking the shot on the digital setting (rather than on film) so that I could send it more easily via email. I took a picture of the band together, and hesitantly let Alec take a picture of Briar and I, as well as one of me and Candy.

  A man rang a loud bell and stepped up onto the stage to open the competition. Stone and I weren’t up to play straight away and neither were Alec and Briar. Briar managed to get Stone to let me go and dragged me to the bathroom. She giggled as we pushed through the door. “Stone seems to like your outfit,” she said happily.

  I pulled a face. Was she insane? From what I could see, Stone didn’t like my outfit one bit. Did he hate cheating? Was he concerned about other men disrespecting me? ...Could he possibly be jealous? I dismissed that last thought as being fanciful and waited in the line behind Briar impatiently. She turned to me suddenly, a curious expression on her face.

  “I never asked you what happened with Stone last weekend,” she said slowly, “I should have warned you that Stone doesn’t like it when women he…when women get that drunk.”

  I looked at her curiously, but she didn’t tell me anything further. I blushed as I recalled what had happened that night.

  “He…he pushed me into the shower and blasted me with cold water,” I told her.

  Briar chuckled and lifted an eyebrow. “Why did you blush just then? Did he strip you first or something?”

  I turned a deeper shade of red and shook my head firmly. “No,” I whispered, “But…later, when we went to bed…he…he kissed me.”

  Briar froze, then squealed excitedly. “Really?” she exclaimed, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  I blushed again and fiddled with my jeans, worrying again about how I was going to wiggle them down to use the facilities.

  “Did he sleep with you?” she asked.

  “He slept in my bed,” I said quickly, “We didn’t…”

  Briar nodded in understanding, looking more cheerful than I’d ever seen her. “Have you kissed since then?” she asked, “I can’t believe I haven’t noticed.”

  “Not like that,” I admitted, “Just a few friendly pecks.”

  She frowned, her smile slipping. She huffed in annoyance. “Stupid man,” she muttered under her breath. She didn’t say anything further because we’d reached the end of the line. When we came out, Chloe and her minions were standing at the sinks. Her eyes lit with malice as I walked out of my stall and she turned abruptly to confront me, not caring that everyone in the bathroom was watching us avidly.

  “So,” she purred in a deceptively charming voice, “Eva…”

  “Evie,” Briar corrected, standing supportively at my side.

  “Evie,” Chloe corrected with a sneer at Briar. She turned her poisoned, sugar-sweet voice back to me. “Just out of friendly curiosity…what’s the deal with you and Stone?”

  “What do you mean?” I asked with a frown.

  She frowned back. “How long have you two been…fucking each other.”

  I gaped at her in shock. “We’re not,” I said in a small voice.

  “Haven’t given it up yet?” Chloe said patronisingly, “Well aren’t you sweet. No wonder he is paying you so much attention. It won’t last you know. Stone is a very private and lonely man. He needs someone that understands his moods and peculiarities.”

  She paused and grinned wickedly before adding, “Someone who can satisfy his sexual needs.”

  Briar bristled. “Evie is Stone’s girlfriend and I very much doubt he’d like you talking to her this way Chloe,” she warned.

  “But, I’m not-” I tried to deny her claims, but Chloe cut me off.

  “Girlfriend hmm?” she said shortly, standing a little taller, “Since when?”

  Briar shrugged. “Fairly recently,” she said blithely.

  Chloe glared at her, but smiled sweetly at me. “Well I’m so glad that he managed to move on,” she said, touching my shoulder in a deceptively friendly gesture, “He was so…crushed when I left him.”

  Briar snorted. Whatever, she mouthed at me. I bit back a smile.

  “We’ll have to go on a double date sometime,” Chloe continued and I realised that she hadn’t stopped talking and I’d missed her spiel about her latest ‘boyfriend’.”

  “Stone doesn’t double date,” Briar said stiffly.

  “He will for me,” Chloe shot back.

  Fredi came through the bathroom door and eyed the situation with a big grin. “What’s going on here?” she asked joyfully.

  “Just congratulating Evie on her relationship with Stone,” Chloe said smugly, “Did you hear? They’re a serious item.”

  Fredi laughed. “Of course I know, Chloe,” she said, looking her over as if she were brain dead, “I’m one of his closest friends. Besides, it isn’t half obvious.”

  Wow, I thought, Fredi is a pretty convincing liar!

  Chloe scowled and stormed from the bathroom, her little friends scrambling after her. Fredi grinned at me. “Donny and I won our game, cutie,” she bragged, “Stone’s looking for you. You two are up in five.”

  I was suddenly hit with a bundle of nerves and I shot a worried look at Bri.

  “You’ll do fine,” she assured me, pulling me out of the bathroom, “Just remember what I taught you about distractions.”

  I blushed and wondered if I’d be able to pull it off. I didn’t have that much self-confidence. We’d barely left the bathroom, when Stone found us. He gave me a very small encouraging smile and wrapped his arm around my waist as he guided me to the table. I glanced at our opponents and hid a small smile of my own. These two would be easy to distract. They were already perving on everything female in the room as they chalked up their cues. I let out the breath I’d been holding.

  Here we go.

  THIRTEEN

  We passed through the first round easily enough. Stone and I worked well together, communicating silently with our eyes, giving each other advice. Stone was a constant presence at my side unless it was his turn to shoot and I steadily became more confident with my ability to distract the other players. I often positioned myself directly in their line of sight, bending forward slightly as they bent to take their shot, or fondling my cue suggestively. Stone helped as well.

  Sometimes he’d pull me close to him and ease my shirt up my back to reveal the g-string peeking out the top of my jeans. Other times he’d draw attention to my bare neck and shoulders by trailing his fingers over them and playing with the top of my top. Once, he even stirred up his beer and handed it to me so that it’d froth over and I had to cover it with my mouth to save my outfit. That one definitely got their attention. Stone’s too. I’d licked my hand and the neck of the bottle clean for good measure, amused at how simple it was to freeze half the occupants of the club with one small action. Briar and Candy had given me a less than discreet thumbs up for that little trick.

  When we weren’t playing, Stone held me tightly, not
letting me out of his sight, nor letting me touch any alcohol. After last time though, I could hardly blame him. Several guys were still eyeing me up and I was grateful that I had a big man to discourage them. Stone was watching Briar closely too and I smiled to myself at how cute his protectiveness was. Being Stone’s friend definitely had its perks. I frowned, wondering whether Stone had ever kissed Fredi or Briar they way he’d kissed me. I didn’t like the sick feeling that thought caused in my stomach. Somehow it seemed incredibly wrong that he should’ve touched them that way. I shook my head. I doubted that he had. He treated Briar like a younger sister and Fredi like one of the boys.

  So what was I?

  A potential fuck buddy?

  A friend he liked to kiss?