Love Tap (9 page)

My mouth dry, and heart beating wildly I sway with him. Trying to take Chloe’s advice and let go. Glancing across the bar Chloe has two thumbs up and a big cheesy grin on her face. I’m going to kill her.

Slowly my eyes drift to the left and I spot Camden and some curvy brunette strutting from the back room where all the commotion was coming from.

My chest seizes when his eyes catch mine. I look away, trying to keep up with Chase’s rhythm so I don’t lose my balance.

Biting my cheek I glance back up, curious if he’s watching me. I’m not going to lie, I kind of hope he is watching me. I want him to get jealous. But he’s not just watching me…he’s walking toward me. His jaw clenched, and eyes fierce as he marches forward.

I stop dancing, and swallow hard.

Camden grabs my hips, and presses his groin into my front with such force the wind is nearly knocked from me. His arm candy stands back with her arms crossed and watching awkwardly.

Chase grinds on my back side as Camden covers my front.

Holy shit.

I’m being sandwiched.

My heart sinks, and I panic internally. I try to sway my hips with theirs but I’m off beat.

I raise my hands to wrap around Camden’s neck, but think better of it and lower them at my side. Looking up Camden looks at me with angry blue eyes, before lowering his head next to mine.

“Trying to tease me won’t work,” he whispers into my ear. “You’ll just get hurt in the end, and I’ll be the asshole.”

I suck in a sharp angry breath, and press my hands against his chest and shove him back a step.

He looks down at me, his eyes pinning me where I stand. There’s so much hate and tension building between us you could touch it. I ball my hands, and stare back. The song fading into the background.

“Want to go get a drink?” Chase asks from behind me, completely oblivious to the stare down between Camden and I.

“That sounds great,” I reply, never taking my eyes off Camden.

Stepping past Camden, I stop and look up at him.

“Maybe you should reflect on how you’re treating me before bitching about being labeled the asshole.”

Back at the table, Chase sits next to me and I glare at a smiling Chloe.

Commotion catches my attention and I find Camden and the model-like woman standing at the end of our booth.

“Camden, this is Chloe and Tate,” Chase introduces.
“I know who they are,” Camden snaps as he sits down uninvited next to Chloe. His smiling bimbo sits on his lap and I grit my teeth wishing they’d leave. He’s purposely flaunting her in front of me and I’m not sure how much more I can take before I snap.

“The gym!” Chase slaps the table. I jump, not sure what he’s going on about. “You’re the girl who was at the gym today. I knew I saw you from somewhere.”

Giving a tight lipped smile, I nod.

Peering up from under my lashes I catch Camden staring at me with hooded eyes. I didn’t get much of a chance to look at his face earlier. But now I can’t help but ogle him. His blond hair falls into his eyes, and his nose has a scar across it giving it a crooked look. He wears it well though. His eyebrow is missing a few hairs dead in the center, giving him that tough guy persona. He has grown so much since I’ve seen him last.

“So how do you guys know each other?” Chase interrupts our staring contest.

“I grew up with them.” Camden shifts the brunette on his lap. Her white top about to bust at the seams from her large breasts. “But that’s history.”

“Give it a rest, Camden,” Chloe snaps.

Taking another swig of my beer, Camden is still staring at me. As if he’s expecting something. Maybe he wants me to say I’m sorry.

“Look, Camden—”

“Save it.” His voice is laced with so much hate it burns through my chest. I’ve seen him angry at a lot of people growing up, but he’s never talked to me like this before.

“Excuse me?”

His eyes shoot to mine.

“The shit about to leave your mouth is about as real as a pair of double D’s.”

Chase coughs, casually looking the other way as Camden insults me in front of everyone.

“Hey, you can’t even, like, tell tits are fake if you get the right doctor.” The bimbo chimes from the sidelines. She pulls the neck of her shirt down and an overly tanned, large, breast pops out. Dark nipple and all just sitting on the table. I look around to see if I’m being punked.

“See, no scars.” She smiles at everyone, as if she just showed us baby pictures and not her bare breast in the middle of a crowded bar. “Feel them.” She grabs Camden’s hand and plows his palm over the top of her nipple. His hand is large and covers a lot of the exposed skin. My fingers dig into the table. My body defies my jealously and my nipples perk at the thought of Camden’s scarred hand fondling my own chest.

“Look at that Tate, no scars.” Camden slides his hooded gaze from his hand to me. Fire licks up my limbs, and my cheeks feel like they’re ready to combust.

“Hahaha! Fuck you,” I snarl before pushing away from the table, done with Camden’s games. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to strangle him so much before.

“You can feel if you want,” Bimbo offers.

Ignoring her, I grab my purse and head toward the car.

Reaching outside, my chest constricts with the incredible urge to burn this fucking place to the ground in a fit of rage.

Why in the hell did I come back here? Sure, I was miserable in LA, but at least I wasn’t feeling like this. Camden doesn’t want an apology, he wants to hurt me.

Sprinkles of cold rain pelt my skin, cooling my flustered state.

“Tate!” that low growl with an undertone of silk calls after me and I cringe.

Ignoring him, my feet crunch into the gravel from the parking lot.

Fingers wrap around my bicep and I’m turned around before I realize what is happening.

“Why did you come back?” Camden is face to face with me, his chest heaving. I tear from his grip, staring at him with a vengeance.

My lips part to answer him, and the skies open up allowing a harsh rain to fall. “Tell me! Why you are here, damn it. You at least owe me that much!”

“I came back to mend things with my family and go pro, I told you that.”

“Why do you want to go pro? Why here?”

My eyes sting, my heart beating so fast I can barely catch my breath.

“I came back because I was miserable, and I wanted… I wanted to come home.” The words come out as if I was a homesick child wanting their parents. “I wasn’t doing what I wanted, I was doing what I thought was the right thing to do.” I continue, hoping to come off a little more mature.

Rain sticks to his lashes, his shirt outlining his chest perfectly.

A commotion catches my attention behind him. His date is stumbling in her ridiculous heels, as she tries to cover her head with her tiny purse. Makeup running down her face like melted crayons.

“She’s nothing like me.” The words fall from my mouth before I can stop them.

He glances at me, his thumb rubbing his chin.

“Exactly,” his reply comes quick, and hard.

It’s a knife to the chest.
Fuck I hate him!

I blink rapidly, not sure if it’s tears or rain that are falling down my face. My head replaying moments of him and I as a kid, ones my heart won’t let go and make things like this much harder to get through.

“You really are an asshole, you know that?”

He scoffs at me, looking away.

Turning, I jerk the car door open, just as Chloe reaches the driver side.

Getting in, she stalls, her mouth opening and closing as she searches for the right thing to say.

“Tate, he’s not doing anything to keep you his, so why are you hurting yourself trying to make him happy?”

She’s right. I’ve been nothing but nice when he’s done nothing but been a jerk since I got back in town. He’s had his time to be angry about past events, but now it’s getting personal.

“Let’s just get out of here.” I cross my arms, anger and hurt fueling my body like poison.

Camden

The taillights fade into the night’s rain. I’m feeling so many emotions I feel dizzy. It’s not from drinking though, I haven’t had a drop. Running my fingers through my wet hair I look at the ground wondering if the hate and longing for Tate will eventually sort itself out.

“Baby?” a voice coos from behind me, her hand resting on my shoulder. I don’t even know her name. Cathy, Cindy? Fuck I can’t remember.

Chase is standing by the door to the pub, a beer in his hand as he stares at me with a smirk. Is he toying with me?

Marching toward him, my hand curls into a fist. My jaw locking from rage.

“I told you,” I point at him, “stay away from her!”

“What do you care?” His face smug. “Aren’t you more of a boobs than brains kind of guy? That girl there is hot, and way out of your league.”

Before I can think about what I’m doing. My fist collides with his face. My knuckles splitting from the contact, the pain a fucking rush. All this pent up anger and conflict releasing on Chase.

His beer falls to the ground breaking. His hands fisting my shirt and shoving me off him.

Wrapping my arm around his neck I put him into a chokehold, as my vision turns red.

“Any woman in this town, you can have. But that one, I specifically said to stay away from!” My face burns from the adrenaline torpedoing through me, the urge to split this fucker’s head open is overwhelming.

“Fucking get off!” Chase struggles and I shove him against the brick building, not nearly done with him.

“You’re going to fucking regret that.” He roughly pushes the hair out of his face and I get a step up to him. “You better get out of my face,” he threatens.

“Or what?” I taunt, hoping he does something to awaken the beast inside of me.

“Guys!” Cindy states from the side, catching my attention. Fuck, maybe her name doesn’t even start with a C.

I shake my head, and step away from Chase.

“Who is that bitch?” Chase asks, wiping the rain from his face.

“She’s nobody. Just stay away from her.”

My jaw suddenly aches, and I realize I’m gritting my teeth to near cracking.

His eyes widen, and an evil smile crosses his pretty boy face.

“She’s that girl you were talking about awhile back isn’t she?” He nods knowingly and my chests constricts. I got drunk a few years back, and a girl that was at an after party looked just like Tate. Needless to say, she became the topic of conversation in my inebriated state.

I was hoping I’d forget about Tate and I haven’t spoken about her since. When I stopped talking about her, I stopped thinking about her.

“Just do what I fucking said, and stay away from her.”

“Why?” he asks flatly.

“Because you’re no good for her.” I don’t beat around the bush. Nobody is good enough for Tate. I sure as hell ain’t but I’m not about to watch her with someone else either.

“Oh, is that right? And you think you are giving what you’ve done?”

I step forward, ready for round two with him. “Go, while you’re still able to!” I threaten, my hand pointing to the parking lot. I don’t know what he thinks he knows about me, but I’m done with his shit.

He holds his hands up, stopping me.

“Just saying, don’t be so quick to judge. I’m going back inside to get a beer. Cici, you want one?” Chase asks. I glance at her, remembering her telling me her name now. Wow, I really am an asshole. She looks at me with makeup smearing down her face from the rain.

She shoves past me and takes Chase’s hand. He smirks at me arrogantly, but I just throw my hands up at them.

I couldn’t care less.

I don’t want to be around anyone, especially a female right now.

Turning I kick at the pavement, ball my fists and yell into the night.

Chapter Six

12 Years Old

Tate

Stepping outside, the summer sun blasts me in the face. Holding my arm up I shield my face until my eyes can adjust to its brightness.

“Mom, I’m going out!” I holler through the screen door.

“Oh good, make some friends, honey!” I can’t help but roll my eyes. She’s always pushing me to make friends. Friends are lame. I would go see Chloe, the new girl that moved in at the end of the school year, but her mom sent her to summer camp. What kind of mom does that? Summer camp. Summer is for being home and being lazy. Anyway, I like Chloe and she seems to like me. She’s sassy, and funny. She’s so funny I even overlook that she’s a big girly girl.

“Where are you going?” Journey opens the screen door and pops her head out. Her blonde hair is braided, and she put on way too much of Mom’s makeup. She’s going to be in so much trouble.

“Nowhere, stay here, Journey.” I point to the front porch. She’s younger than me, and is always following me around.

“Whatever.” Rolling her eyes, she goes back inside, letting the screen door slam behind her.