When the drinks were placed in front of us I reached for my glass but Devlin shook his head and lifted it to his lips. With his eyes locked on mine he took a small sip before offering the glass to me. My panties dampened even more than they already were as I turned the glass so that I could put my lips where his had just been. As I took my first sip his eyes darkened and he mouthed a curse before swallowing half his beer in one gulp.
Laughing I took another drink of my wine and grabbed his hand. I didn’t need alcohol tonight. I just needed him. “Dance with me?”
With another swallow, the bottle of Samuel Adams was empty and he followed me onto the dance floor. For the next hour I wrapped myself around Devlin and let myself go to the beat of the music. I’d always loved to dance, but with Devlin holding me close even through the fast songs, it was an exhilarating experience.
As we danced he kissed me from time to time, but never more than a brush of his lips over mine. We both knew that if we kissed like we both wanted that we would end up in a bathroom stall, and Devlin would hate himself afterwards. The one time that we had done something like that he’d been pissed at himself for three days because he respected me more than that.
Our relationship meant more to him than a quick fuck in some dirty bathroom.
Sweating like crazy, I finally let him led me from the dance floor to rehydrate. We sat at the bar while he drank another beer and I sipped at my water and curled my fingers around the ends of his hair. My own hair was a light brown, with a few blonde highlights. It wasn’t as long as his, but there wasn’t very many people who did have hair as long and healthy as his. He loved my hair just as much as I loved his. When we were in bed, lying beside of each other, he would lift a few locks of my hair and kiss them as reverently as if he were kissing my skin when we made love.
Devlin leaned forward and kissed me, deeper than he had in over an hour. The taste of beer didn’t completely mask his own unique taste and I opened my mouth, silently begging him to take more. When he did I knew it was past time we left. My panties were drenched and I was throbbing between my legs for his attention.
Without warning Devlin stumbled against me. His hands caught me around the waist, righting us both before I hit the bar. His eyes asked me if I was okay and I nodded before he turned with a snarl to the man who had just pushed him.
“What the fuck asshole?” Devlin demanded as he faced Zander. “You nearly made me fall on my girl.”
I nearly groaned at the sight of Zander standing there. His glassy eyes told me he was drunk, without having to see the further proof of it in the way he was walking. He’d been drinking a more often over the last few weeks, even more so when Devlin and I started seeing each other. I knew it was because of me and I hated it. I’d never led him on, had always made it obvious that all we would ever be was friends. That didn’t seem to matter to Zander, because he’d been nothing but an angry bear to me and everyone else.
“Sorry, bro. I didn’t see you standing there,” Zander said with a sneer before turning his attention back to the bartender and ordering a shot and a beer.
Devlin clenched his fists at his sides and I could tell he was about to punch his friend. Emmie had threatened to join the tour if they got into another fight, and I honestly didn’t want to see more bloodshed between the two men. Stepping between Devlin and Zander I put my hands on Devlin’s chest. “I’m ready to go, babe.”
Aquamarine eyes lost some of their hostility when they landed on my face and I breathed a sigh of relief. “Let me pay the tab, baby, and we’ll go.”
“Don’t let me rush you off.” Zander tossed his shot of whisky back and slammed the small glass on the bar top. Picking up his beer he turned toward us. Devlin was talking to the bartender who had started his tab. I tried to ignore Zander, not wanting to make Dev any more upset that he already was. The two had once been best friends but now, because of me, they could barely stand each other. I hated that I was the cause of the rift between them.
Zander’s cold hand wrapped around my elbow and swung me around to face him. The smell of alcohol on his breath made me blink a few times it was strong. “Stay and dance with me, Nat.”
I gave him a grim smile, not wanting to hurt his feelings. Until recently I’d thought we were good friends. Now I wasn’t so sure. “I’m tired, Z. I just want to go back to the hotel and go to bed.”
“No, you want to go back to the hotel and fuck Dev.” His words made me gasp in pain because they had been like a slap in the face. I didn’t deserve for him to talk to me like that. “It’s alright. I just don’t get it, though. Dev’s won the bet, so I figured once he had been in your pants he would move on. Must be some good pussy.”
If his first words had been a slap the rest was a punch to the gut. I felt tears burn my eyes even as confusion clouded my brain. “What do you mean, bet?” I demanded louder than I’d intended.
Behind me I felt Devlin wrap an arm around me as he turned back from paying our bill. At my question, however, I felt him stiffen. Zander gave me a drunken grin and tipped his beer bottle to his lips, making me wait for a response even as I felt Devlin shifting behind me.
“The bet I made with Dev two months ago, babe. The one that he put his prized John Bonham drum sticks up for grabs against my signed Geddy Lee bass.” Another drink of beer, this one longer as his words burned like acid across my skin.
My fingers were trembling as I grabbed the beer bottle from him and threw it on the ground where it shattered and spilled what was rest of the contents across my sandal clad feet. “What was the bet, Z?” I demanded through gritted teeth.
Another shrug, as if he didn’t know or just didn’t care that his next words were going to shatter my heart. As if his words weren’t going to destroy me the point of no return. “First one to bag you was the winner. Lucky for Dev, he now has my bass.”
Devlin moved so fast I didn’t see the fist as he swung out and punched Zander. Zander stumbled back, knocking three people down in the process. I just stood there, watching with deadened eyes as Devlin jumped his best friend. I didn’t move out of the way as Zander somehow rolled and started punching Dev in the head. The glass from the broken beer bottle didn’t faze them as they rolled around, fighting.
The fight went on and on. People moving quickly to get out of their way. A table was destroyed, two chairs and numerous bottles and glasses. I remember watching a live MMA fight with Linc once, and that was what the two men before me seemed to be doing right then. They twisted at odd angels to get their punches in, didn’t seemed to care if they fought dirty or not when Zander double punched Devlin in the stomach then kneed him in the balls.
Wasn’t that a big taboo with men? Never go for another man’s package?
Devlin groaned in pain but didn’t pause in his attempt to annihilate his friend. He gained the upper hand in a move that I wasn’t sure possible for such a tall man and started hitting Zander in the ribs.
Two bouncers broke through the crowd and tried to pull Devlin off Zander. He shrugged them off like they were just bees that annoyed him. Two more stepped forward to help and finally they were able to break the two rockers apart. Both were bleeding, throwing curses at each other in a verbal battle now that they could do so with their fists.
Still I remained where I was, not even sure if I were breathing because the pain that was ripping through me was so consuming.
It was all a lie. My relationship with Devlin Cutter was nothing more than the product of Devlin wanting to win some bet against his friend. All our nights spent in each other’s arms, all his whispered words of how much he cared about me, worshipped me… They were all lies. I was nothing more than a bet. Nothing. I was nothing to him.
Terri Anne Browning, The Rocker Who Cherishes Me
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