The anger I felt was probably similar to what Tucker felt when Blake endlessly flirted with Charlie all those years. Even though Blake had moved to the Northeast after college graduation, he still made his way back to Austin to visit. And he still found a way to flirt with Charlie as much as he could before she and Tucker officially became a couple. Now that Charlie was off the market, it looked like he had set his sights on Kaelynn. There was no way I was going to let that happen.
Using my hand against her back, I guided Kaelynn into the chair I’d pulled out for her next to me.
Glancing back over to Blake, he rose a brow and smirked. When I sat down, he leaned in so only I could hear him.
“Was that your way of calling dibs, dude?”
I shot him a dirty look. “No.”
He smiled and replied, “Good to know then.”
When I reached for my beer, I shot a look over to Kaelynn. She smiled as Terri introduced her to Jim. I saw Jim extend his hand and they shook. Then Blake spoke.
“Blake Grant, how do you know Charlie?”
Kaelynn reached her hand in front of me to shake Blake’s hand. “Oh, well, um, it was actually Nash who introduced me to Charlie.”
Blake’s brow rose again, and for some reason that really pissed me off.
“How do you know Nash?” Blake asked.
A slight blush hit Kaelynn’s cheeks, causing a weird feeling in my chest. I could see the little matchmaker Charlie watching my every move.
“She’s friends with Morgan, helping her with her new business,” I answered for Kaelynn.
That caught Blake’s attention. “Really? What do you do?”
The tap on the microphone brought the audience’s attention to the stage, and everyone focused on the host. Everyone but Blake. He was still staring at Kaelynn. When he saw me watching him, he held up his hands.
“What?” he asked, then broke out into laughter before turning his sights forward. I was positive I shot him daggers, and I had no idea why.
That was a lie.
I knew exactly why. He was attracted to Kaelynn. And why wouldn’t he be? She was attractive, friendly, had a heart of gold, and was not by any means Blake’s type. He’d work at getting her into bed, then would walk away looking for the next one-night stand.
Sighing, I took another drink of my beer. When I felt Kaelynn’s body against my arm, I froze. The heat it sent rushing through my body shocked me, yet at the same time, it made my dick make my pants feel tighter.
“If you’d rather I not be here, I can say I need to leave.”
The warm feel of her breath against my neck as she leaned over to speak to me had me fighting to find my own air. I turned my head to look at her, causing her to pull back slightly. Our faces were so close together I could practically feel the pull of her mouth to mine.
“What?” I managed to get out.
“I can leave. You seem a bit agitated Charlie invited me. I totally get it, and it’s okay.”
Swallowing hard, I forced my mind to make my mouth move. “I don’t want you to leave, Kaelynn. I’m glad you’re here.”
When she smiled, it wasn’t just my chest feeling funny. It had moved to my stomach now. If I hadn’t known any better, I would swear I was on some thriller ride that had been spinning me around and upside down.
I returned the smile and had to fight to divert my wayward thoughts, so I brought my attention back to the comedian the host had introduced.
The rest of the evening was spent pretty much laughing. We had dinner, laughed, talked a bit, and then laughed some more. When the night began to dwindle down, Kaelynn excused herself to use the restroom, and Blake excused himself as well. I watched him as he followed Kaelynn down the hall to the bathrooms.
“So, are you going to sit there and let Blake go flirt with Kaelynn? Or are you going to realize you need to go take a whiz too?”
It was Terri’s voice that pulled my attention away from the retreating back of Blake.
“What?”