At that moment, I was already planning a strategy on how best to kick the guy in the gutter so he’d leave for good.
My thoughts were interrupted by a gentle pat on my shoulder.
“I told you, you could pull it off,” Bailey said, his expression obviously delighted because of the crowd’s reaction.
“I never really sang for a crowd before. But thanks for making me do it.”
Although I was not particularly excited about meeting Jen’s new friend, something told me that I have to keep an eye on this one. I didn’t want some douchebag playing with her emotions. And my douchebag alarm was ringing all over the place with this new guy hanging out with her.
Jen was looking at this guy with stars in her eyes. I swore that must have been how Juliet was whenever she looked at Romeo. Silly and stupid! No wonder Shakespeare decided to kill them off.
I replaced Brett behind the drums for the next song. I played with all the God-given talents I have. Bailey didn’t ask for it, but toward the end of the song, I went on for a full minute of drums solo instead of hitting the cymbals as practiced. I twirled the sticks between my fingers before hitting the snare and then threw one into the air and hit the cymbals as if I were possessed.
The crowd was on its feet again after the song and Bailey called out my name before announcing that we were up for a short break.
The guy called Nicky Atkins was just staring at me with an eyebrow raised, trying his damn best not to look impressed.
Brett was shaking his head when I approached him. “You will get me kicked out of the band, bro.”
“Try and keep up then,” I teased.
It was finally time for me to meet this guy who may soon break my best friend’s heart.
When I stood a couple of feet away from him, I realized that he was a foot taller and I could almost fit my entire frame in his. I was slender, but that hadn’t been a problem… until now. Now that I’m trying to scare off the guy who wants a piece of the only person I hold dear. Now that I feel the need to defend my place in my best friend’s life. Now that I think I could very well have just met my match.
His light brown eyes were darting as he stared at me as if he was trying to pierce through my ice-cold shield.
Jen threw her arms around me and said, “Kenny! You were amazing up there!”
I chose not to say anything. I have a feeling that this guy was surveying the hurdles he had to go through to get into Jen’s pants and he’d just spotted his biggest obstacle: me.
“I want you to meet Nicholas Atkins,” Jen continued. “Nicky, this is Kenny Clarke.”
The guy extended his hand and waited for me to shake it. I contemplated between shaking his hand like a normal person would or pulling him in for an arm throw just to show him who he shouldn’t be messing with. The latter sounds very appealing, indeed. I took a moment before I finally shook his hand. He gave my hand a squeeze and when I looked up at him, he was looking at me intensely, with the corner of his lip curving into a crooked smile. I couldn’t help but think he was sizing me up or probably thinking of the best way to eliminate an obstacle.
I immediately withdrew my hand. His eyes twinkled in subtle amusement and it made me want to punch the smile off his face.
You’re a dead man. I almost said out loud.
I gave him a look that was meant to say, Nope, buddy. You and I are never going to be friends, no matter how charming you think you are.
“So, do you go by any other name besides Kenny?” he asked.
I raised a brow at him. “Yes. My stage name was supposed to be Factor Offner. Fac Off for short,” I said, without blinking.
He looked shocked at first, then he quickly composed his face.
Yeah. At least he isn’t that dumb.
He cleared his throat and asked, “How long have you been playing with the band?”
“A couple of months now. Kenny is an amazing drummer,” Jen replied.
I didn’t know whether I should be happy or bothered about Jen answering for me. Happy because I didn’t really want to speak to this prick. Bothered because I’ve never seen Jen this excited to talk about me before, as if she was ready to sell all my secrets just to have something to talk about with this guy.
The more interest she shows in him, the more I grow worried. This guy is older and more mature. He knows how to wrap girls around his fingers. I’m afraid Jen will be falling for his tricks in no time.
“You look like you were born with the drumsticks, and you sing pretty well, too.”
“I’m just standing in for my injured cousin. This is a temporary gig for me.”
“But it would be fun to watch them more, right?” Jen piped in, dangling another chance for Atkins to ask her out, much to my frustration. She was never this enthusiastic to date a guy before.
“Until when are you substituting for your cousin?” Nicholas asked.
“I was actually thinking of quitting the band tomorrow,” I replied acidly. If Jen was being obvious about her interest in dating him, I was being bolder in dropping hints that I wanted him to stay the hell away from her.
Either he was being persistent, or just plain dense. In an amused tone, he said, “Great! Then I wouldn’t miss your last show. I’ll be here tomorrow. Same spot.”
Jen almost jumped up her seat in excitement. “Super! You think you can pick me up tomorrow?” she asked, batting her eyelashes again.
She was really getting on my nerves. There were plenty of boys who were after her for years. She was practically letting me get rid of them, but this guy? She was throwing herself at him and he was missing all the warning signs I was throwing his way.
“Hey, I always pick you up and drop you off, remember?” I reminded her.
“Well, maybe it would be fun if I pick you up and then we’ll go get her together,” Nicholas said to me. “You would probably be too tired after your show.”
Jen’s eyes lit up again. “Great! It’s a date then,” she said without waiting for me to decline Nicholas’ insulting invitation. Then she excused herself to go to the ladies’ room.
I waited to make sure that Jen was out of earshot before I raised a brow at Nicholas and shot him an undisguised look of annoyance. “Man, you don’t know who you’re talking to. I’m Ken Clarke. I never get tired.”
He gave me a crooked smile and replied, “And I’m Nicholas Atkins. I never give up.”
Seriously? Is this guy mocking me?
I was about to retort with something nasty, but Brett called me from the stage.“Ey, Ken! We’re up!”I turned back to Nicholas and gave him a scowl. “We are not yet through!” I said in the gravest tone I could manage.Instead of being offended, threatened, or intimidated, Nicholas gave me a contended smile. In a voice barely hiding his amusement, he said, “Oh, I’m actually counting on that!”I was scowling as I took my seat in front of the drums.“Bad mood, eh? Don’t let him get through to you. Don’t let him linger in your thoughts too much,” Brett said.I raised a brow. “What do you mean?”“That is Nick Atkins. Every guy in this town wanted to be him. Every girl wanted to date him,” he replied before going backstage.I glanced over at their table again. Jen had returned to her seat and was giggling at something that Nicholas said.As I twirled the sticks around my fingers and hit the snare, I thought, No. Not every girl in this town would want to date you. I promise you that!***“Sp
“Uhm, I don’t know where to go from here,” Nicholas said as we reached Jen’s neighborhood.“I thought you were a boy scout. You found my house,” I said.He looked at me from the corner of his eye for a second, and then he looked back on the road. “Your father is a prominent man. Your house is the biggest on the block. Everybody in this town knows where you live.” He stopped on the side of the road. “Now, which way?”I gave him directions. By the time we arrived at Jen’s house, we were officially thirty minutes late. I felt bad for making her wait but smiled to myself for a mission accomplished. Jen was going to freak out and be mad at him! And I’d be around to watch. For a moment, it would provide entertainment, enough to make me forget about the foul terminologies my father chose to use on me.Jen was already pacing in front of her gate. I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling.Good luck, Nicky! This is very impressive!“I’m sorry, we’re late. I found it difficult to find your hous
“Excuse me, why are we here?” I demanded.He simply shrugged. “Well, we already passed your house. You didn’t even notice.”“And you just decided to take me somewhere else?” I asked angrily. “What is wrong with you?”“I saw your father standing in front of your house, sending off some his friends. I just thought you wouldn’t want to have another encounter with him. Figured you can use some time off from him?”He was right. I would not want to face my father again. But that does not mean I want to be alone with him!“We’re not friends, Atkins! Why do you think I needed help from you?”Nicholas stared at me for a moment and then he nodded. He straightened up on his seat and started his engine.“Alright, whatever you say, princess,” he murmured.“Stop!” The tone of my voice made him stop on his tracks. He turned around raising a brow at me.“Don’t call me that ever again!” I snapped. Then I turned away from him. “And… yeah, maybe I can stand sitting here next to you for another ten minut
I was in no mood to deal with this guy right now unless I wanted my fist connecting to his jaw.Great! I should have let the blonde share my table.“You didn’t think she was nice?” he asked.“Nope.”“Too blonde for you?” he asked again. When I didn’t reply, he persisted, “What’s your type? Blondes, brunettes, redheads?”Seriously, why does he want to know?I raised a brow at him. “Why do you assume that I like girls?”He raised a challenging brow. “Do you?”“That’s none of your damn business!” I snapped.I was pissed off that he was asking me annoying questions as if he was trying to get to know me and all my secrets, all my weaknesses.That actually reminded me why I went here in the first place. I wanted to clear my mind and re-strategize. I have to find a way to beat Nicholas to his game.As I looked at him, I realized what he was doing. He was trying to conquer me without launching a fight. He was trying to get my approval without asking for it.Well, then. Two can play this game.
We made our way to the three pompom girls on the dance floor.They saw us coming and I immediately saw the interest in their eyes as we approached.I forced a smile on my face. This was the first time I would do this but there was no way in hell I’d let Nicholas beat me in this game.We probably have the same goal: get the other to sleep with a stranger, hopefully the one with the huge I have STD sign on the forehead.“Can we join you, ladies?” I asked politely.I could tell they were ecstatic to dance with us. Trixie was the girl who had long black hair, dressed in a black skintight dress that ended decently above her knees. Elle was the cute redhead with pixie hair, wearing skintight jeans and a Sabrina top. The provocative girl wearing a white dress that left nothing to the imagination was named Saucy, which sounded more like her stage name than her real name.I smiled at Saucy. She was my target tonight. “Hi, Saucy. This is Nicky,” I said to her, putting my hand to Nicholas’ back
I pretended not to be affected. “Fine,” I said coolly. “What do you want me to do?”Nicholas turned to the waiter. “Give us a round of—”“Vodka?” I suggested.Nicholas shook his head.“Tequila?” Elle piped in.After looking thoughtful for a while, Nicholas said to the waiter, “The Green Fairy.”I blinked back at him.The fuck?“That’s illegal!” I protested.“Was.” Nicholas raised his forefinger in the air. “It was illegal, right, Tofer?” he asked the waiter.The waiter nodded. He turned to me and said, “We’ll make it an enjoyable experience for you. We have a mix called Hypnosis. It’s perfectly safe, with none of the ingredients that banned the Green Fairy before.”I turned to the ladies, checking if they were keen to the idea of drinking what was once believed to have hallucinogenic effects. But all I saw were excitement on their faces and enthusiasm in their eyes. Shit! I did not see this coming.Nicholas was grinning. I could tell he was really enjoying himself. The waiter returne
I slowly turned around and found Nicholas standing in front of me, with only a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was still dripping from the shower. I could not help noticing his firm biceps, a set of six-pack abs, and all other things designed to make any girl avert her eyes, bite her lower lip and occasionally steal sinful glances at the lower region of his body.As I looked at Nicholas’ perfect physique, I was reminded of why Jen was drooling over him, or why Saucy was trying her best to get into his pants. I could tell he was also gifted in that department.God, this is awkward!I swallowed hard as I gathered composure and found the strength to speak without squeaking. “G-good morning,” I said in a weak voice, my eyes still glued to the abs he was displaying in front of me. My glance started drifting lower to his belly button and then—“Dude, you okay?” he interrupted, prompting me to look up to where his eyes were.Shit! What was that?I shook myself back to reality. “Wha
Nicholas led me inside the diner. I didn’t know what I was expecting. The usual maybe. Stool chairs and a counter where they fry the burgers and the fries, checkboard design flooring, stainless steel tables and leather seats by the window, people still dressed in the clothes they wore the night before, much like myself. However, when I stepped inside the diner, I was pleasantly surprised.The smell of homemade muffins filled my nostrils. I was reminded of my mother’s kitchen when I was a child. An upbeat music was blasting through the speakers. The floor was rather made of shiny, dark brown wood. The wooden tables and wooden chairs were occupied by patrons within the range of forty-five to sixty. Lively abstract paintings adorned the walls and the ceiling had red, brown and white lamps.The man frying the burgers by the counter looked to be about sixty years old, and so were the cashier, waiters and waitresses. There were also little people working as waiters and waitresses.I was im