I smiled and as I pulled back, I nodded to let him know I’d missed him too.

As the guys began to play, Jake put his arms around my waist and I leaned into him, my back to his chest. He rested his chin on my shoulder, tracing ticklish patterns with the tips of his finger on my stomach through my thin T-shirt. I was lost in the feel of him, of the scent of his cologne, of the sound of his voice vibrating through me as he sang softly along with Lowe. It was no wonder I didn’t hear Rowena’s warning at first, not until she was tugging Jake back from me saying loudly and edgily, “Guys, the door.”

We jerked back from each other at the interruption, our breathing a little harried, and when we turned our heads toward the doorway, Jake instantly dropped my hand at the sight that greeted us.

Melissa.

She stood like a beacon in the crowd, flanked by two friends. The pain in her features made me want to crumple inside myself. I glanced up at Jake for direction but he was already making his way through the students toward his ex-girlfriend.

When he stopped beside her, she snapped at him, her eyes filling with tears as she gestured angrily toward me. Jake reached out to soothe her and she pulled on his shirt, her expression suddenly pleading. He ran a hand through his hair and nodded, nudging her toward the exit. Before he left with her, he mouthed an apology my way and held up his hand as if to say, “I’ll be five minutes.”

Just like that, our reunion was destroyed and all my happy was being eaten alive by guilt.

“Ye okay?” Rowena asked softly. She stood by Claudia’s side and the two of them were gazing at me in concern.

I shrugged. “I’m fine. He’ll be back soon.”

Unfortunately, Jake wasn’t back soon and I never got a text or a call as to why. By the time The Stolen’s set was finished, I still hadn’t heard anything from him and I was beginning to worry.

“I’ll walk Claudia home,” Denver offered as we were getting ready to leave the now-quiet bar. “You go back with the guys to their place. I’m sure he’s there.”

Deciding it was the best thing to do or I’d end up having another sleepless night, I followed Lowe, Beck, and Matt back to their apartment. Their common room was surprisingly clean considering a bunch of guys lived there, but then I remembered Beck telling me that Lowe was a bit of a clean freak.

Jake wasn’t there in amongst all the clean.

Lowe shrugged and pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and handed it to me. “Just hang out here with us until he gets back.”

Feeling my annoyance building, I nodded but pulled out my phone and shot a text off to Jake asking him what was happening.

No reply.

The guys attempted to keep my mind off where they knew it was wandering—into irrational jealousy land where Jake was hooking up with his ex—but by one o’clock in the morning, I was starting to get pissed. And more worried. “Do you think something has happened to him?”

Beck frowned and shook his head. “Nah. They’re probably just hashing shit out.”

“They hashed shit out weeks ago. What else is there to say?” My shoulders slumped when they all looked anywhere but at me. “Look, I’m not a bitch, okay? The expression on Melissa’s face tonight … yeah. I hate that I’m a part of that. But we’re not even together, barely, and he’s already …” Shutting me out. I waved my phone at them, not saying out loud the words I was thinking.

When it hit two o’clock, I’d gone past feeling bad about being angry and was just plain mad. What the hell was he doing with her at two o’clock in the morning?

I shot to my feet. “I’m going to go,” I muttered, grabbing my coat.

“I’ll walk you,” Lowe insisted.

“No, it’s fine. It’s two minutes away.”

“I don’t care if it’s five seconds away. I’m walking you.”

Deciding to give into his chivalry, I was brittle as I marched out of the building. I couldn’t believe how terrible the night had been, a night I’d been looking forward to all week. A month into our “relationship” and Jake was already letting me down.

We’d barely taken two steps onto the pavement when Jake appeared around the corner. He saw us coming out of his building and started hurrying toward us.

My eyes narrowed on him, hating that he looked so good flushed from the cold, his eyes soulful and searching as he approached me. “Baby—”

“Save it,” I snapped, shaking my head and darting past him.

“I’ll walk her home,” Jake said sternly behind me.

I stopped and whirled around. “You will not. Lowe is walking me home.”

Jake’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Unless you want me and Lowe to have problems, you’ll let me see you home.”

Lowe held up his hands in a surrender gesture. “Sorry, Charley, but I’m exhausted. I’ll let Jake walk you home.”

“Traitor,” I grumbled to Lowe’s back as he hurried inside. My eyes flicked to Jake and I pinned him with my darkest glare to cover up my hurt. With a grunt of annoyance, I spun back around and started down the Cowgate toward my building.

Jake rushed to catch up. “Charley, let me explain—”

“Explain how you disappeared with your ex-girlfriend until two in the morning? Well, this should be good.”

“Don’t be like that,” he replied, a sharpness in his tone that told me he was pissed. “Mel’s having a difficult time letting go. She was trying to talk me into getting back together with her. I couldn’t leave her like that. It wasn’t exactly comfortable.”

Remembering the look on Melissa’s face, my shoulders slumped. “I don’t imagine it was,” I replied wearily, “but until two in the morning? And I texted you. You never replied.” I pushed open the door to my stairwell and started quickly up.

“I couldn’t. She was a mess. I was trying to handle it.”

“You were trying to be a good guy. I get it. But you broke up with her two months ago and if you’d been final like you said you were and explained everything like you said you did, Melissa wouldn’t have appeared tonight begging you to take her back. Which leads me to believe that your breakup must’ve been a little lukewarm, and if it was a little lukewarm, then what the hell are we doing here … taking it slow!” I hissed at him, shoving my key in the door.