Into the Deep - Young Samantha - Страница 12

The place was crowded.

“Claudia!”

We looked over at a table near the stage to see Beck standing, waving us over with a grin. Cutting through the tables, my legs started to tremble as I caught sight of Jake and Melissa sitting in the seats closest to the stage. My eyes quickly jumped from them to Rowena sitting next to Jake and Denver. There were a couple of empty seats at the end of the table and I was relieved that I’d get to sit far enough away from the happy couple to breathe.

I was surprised by the way Beck greeted Claudia. It wasn’t the kiss to her cheek—Claudia returned that comfortably and the whole thing suggested they were as platonic as they claimed. However, my eyes drifted down as Claudia stood on tiptoe so Beck didn’t have to bend so far, and I watched with confusion as Beck’s hand gripped Claudia’s hip and then caressed it as he reluctantly let her go.

Claudia didn’t seem to notice, but I knew her well enough to know that she was pretending. There was a slight flush on the crests of her cheeks. Still, Beck had said he wouldn’t sleep with her, so Claudia told me she had shoved her attraction to him to the back of her mind and was enjoying his friendship.

Only problem was I wasn’t so sure Beck wasn’t having a hard time with his decision to not sleep with her. This was only the second time I’d seen them hang out and even as he greeted me, his eyes flickered quickly back to Claudia as she greeted everyone.

“Love the shirt,” Denver commented as I took a seat next to him. Claudia sat on my left and Beck sat down next to her.

Claudia laughed because she knew all about my magic shirt. I grinned at Denver. “Thanks.”

I couldn’t help it. My gaze moved to Jake and Melissa at the end of the table. He was staring at my shirt, a little crease between his brow, and I shifted uncomfortably, my eyes moving to Melissa. Her chair was tucked into Jake’s and they sat intimately close so no one could mistake they weren’t together. Our eyes met and I gave her a small smile, one she returned a little tremulously.

She was probably wondering why Jake was glaring at my T-shirt. I could explain it to her, but that would be awkward. Jake introduced me to Pearl Jam and was delighted when I fell in love with Eddie Vedder’s voice, their sound, and their stories. The T-shirt was a reminder that, if even only in the smallest way, he’d had an effect on the person I’d become.

“She’s back and she’s wearing the T-shirt.” Lowe’s voice brought my head up as he strolled over to us. He squeezed Claudia’s shoulder as he passed. “I owe you.”

I knew what he meant and only managed to stop myself from scowling. When he drew to a halt by my chair and held his arms out to me, silently asking for a hug, his bad-boy charm worked and I felt the urge to scowl disappear. I stood up and laughed Lowe off like his flirting was no big deal. We hugged and my skin flushed for a different reason as I felt the hard muscle of his back under his light T-shirt. Grinning, I looked up into his blue eyes and decided Claudia was right: Lowe was hot and he thought I was hot. That was flattering and distracting and just what I needed.

“Denver, take a shot of me and Charley together,” Lowe nodded at his friend and pulled me into his side, his arm tight around my shoulders.

Denver frowned. “Why?”

“Because my brother gave me shit about spending money on this study abroad. I want to post this picture on his Facebook page to make a point that I made the right choice.”

“Oh, God,” I groaned. “I hope your lyrics are better than that line.”

When the group chuckled, I grinned over at them, the smile faltering on my lips when I saw Jake staring off to the other side of the room, his eyes dark. The moment between Lowe and me rewound in my head and I felt my heart stutter in realization.

It was exactly the kind of thing Jake would’ve said to me back in the day and exactly the kind of cheeky response I’d have given him.

I was about to pull away from Lowe, not wanting this distraction to turn into another Jake situation, but Denver had his camera phone out and Lowe was pulling me back into his side. His fingertips were calloused from playing the guitar and as they coasted around to cup my hip, he brushed under my T-shirt, eliciting a shiver I knew he felt and enjoyed because his grin widened. I made a face at him and he laughed so boyishly, I couldn’t help but laugh back. Later, I’d discover that was the shot Denver took, because Lowe did put it on Facebook and tagged it after friending me. It was a great photograph, us laughing into each other’s faces, holding onto one another like we’d known each other our whole lives. As soon as I saw it, it made me uncomfortable and flustered.

Lowe disappeared to the bar to get Claudia and me a drink. When he returned, Claud moved down a chair so Lowe could sit with me. Matt eventually came over to the table and sat down by Jake, and Beck announced that the band was supposed to be on soon.

Once conversation had started up, Lowe put his arm behind my chair and leaned into me. My gaze automatically dipped to his lip ring and a curious thought flashed in my eyes before I could stop it. I knew Lowe caught it because his teeth grazed the ring a second before he smiled.

“Was that a naughty thought, Charlotte?” he murmured, eyes twinkling.

I shook my head casually to cover my embarrassment. “Just wondering if it was painful?”

“Not as painful as the tat on my ribs.”

Knowing exactly what he wanted my response to be, my lips twitched. “I’m not asking you to take your shirt off.”

“Damn. I’ve got a live one.” He smiled and then dipped his head closer to mine. “Is it weird? Seeing Jake again?”

I arched an eyebrow at him, not particularly happy to learn they’d obviously been talking about me.

Lowe just shrugged. “We’ve been friends since freshman year. I knew something was up so he told me about you guys. It’s a shit situation.”

“It was a long time ago.”

“So you’re a free agent, then?”

I wondered for a second if there was a code amongst guy friends about pursuing ex-girlfriends. Clearly not, according to Lowe. I sighed. “I’m not his, if that’s what you mean.” Funny, but that was the first time I’d said it aloud since we broke up. I was no longer surprised by how much it hurt.

“Are you anybody’s?”

“I don’t think we’re ever anybody’s, and to believe otherwise will get you hurt.”

Lowe tipped his head in thought, his eyes strangely serious. “I think you’ll like my lyrics.”

“I can’t wait to hear you guys.”

“I warn you once you do, you’ll become a groupie.”

Laughing, I shook my head. “Sorry, I’ve never been a follower.”

“I think that’s a challenge.”

“No, it’s a fact. Take it as a challenge if you like, but you’ll find it a Sisyphean task.”

Lowe laughed so hard he drew everyone’s eyes. His were glittering. “Classics major?”

My lips twitched. “Psychology.”

That made him laugh even harder. “Really?”

“Nah. Criminal law.”

“You’re shitting me?”

“Nope.” I smiled around my beer, glad for Lowe and his distraction from Jake. My smile almost faltered when I caught Jake’s eyes, but he just gave me a tight smile and leaned his head to the side to listen to whatever Melissa was saying. Ignoring the sudden churning in my gut, I glanced over at Claudia to find her grinning happily at me, her gaze darting to Lowe pointedly. She gave me a wink, which I ignored, and laughed, turning back to Beck.

“Why are you studying law?”

“She wants to be a cop.”

This came from Jake and my head jerked to him in surprise. He was staring at me with that frown line between his eyebrows again. I hated that his answer was like a free kick to my heart. Claudia, sensing I was lost as to how to respond, answered for me. “Actually, Charley’s parents hated the idea of her being a cop so much that she compromised with a pre-law degree so she can apply to law school.”