Make It Count by Megan Erickson Read Free Book Online Page A

monthly drill, he was on the prowl. He hooked ’em with his dimples, reeled ’em in with his charm and then let ’em go. And they all loved him for it. Alec couldn’t figure out how he did it without girls going Fatal Attraction on his ass.
    Kat’s friend, Tara, sat beside him, the strobe lights catching on the white blonde of her short hair. Shanna was on the other side, quiet as always, sneaking glances at Cam from under her bangs, full lips pressed tight together.
    Bodies writhed and wriggled on the dance floor at Caps, and the house music pounded a throbbing pain into Alec’s temples, the bright lights blinding him. He would have rather been at Craig’s Place across town, a laid-back bar with classic rock on the jukebox and scratched pool tables.
    “You want another drink?” Max asked Kat, rising from the table. Alec noted Kat had barely touched the rum and coke in front of her. She shook her head, and Max tugged a lock of her hair before heading to the bar.
    Kat smoothed her hair down and raised her eyes to him, quickly looking away when their gazes locked.
    “Kitty-Kat, Shan, let’s dance,” Tara shouted over the booming house music. Kat looked at her friend, her eyes skittering right over Alec, and he really wanted to know why she avoided looking at him.
    Her face was blank, like she was trying to process her friend’s words, or make a decision, and then her crimson-tinted lips split into that sexy smile. “Sure.” He now recognized her mask, the confident, sexy girl she portrayed in public.
    “Didn’t you go out on a date with this DJ? Maybe you can make a request,” Tara said as the three of them walked away, already starting to sway their hips to the beat. Kat’s ass looked phenomenal in her tight jeans and red high heels. Damn it. That cherry of guilt was turning into a huge, gross, rotten tomato. And he couldn’t talk to his best friend about it, because he was the reason Alec currently had said rotten tomato in his gut.
    “Stone.”
    Alec turned to Cam.
    His black wavy hair shone in the light and his dark eyes were assessing. “What’s Shanna’s deal?”
    “I don’t know what you mean by deal .”
    Cam took a gulp of his beer and waved his hand while swallowing. “You know, like, does she have a boyfriend or whatever.”
    “I don’t know, why the fuck are you asking me? Ask Max.”
    Cam paused and then placed his bottle gently on the table. “What’s up your ass?”
    “Nothing.”
    “You sound like a girl right now.”
    “You sound like a chauvinist right now.”
    Cam’s mouth dropped open. “Dude.”
    Alec inhaled, the air tangy with stale beer and sweaty college students. He let out his breath and rubbed his face. “I’m sorry. I’m in a bad mood.”
    “Yeah, Captain Obvious. Thanks for the heads up. And what else is new?”
    Alec snorted a laugh and kicked out Max’s chair for him as he returned to the table. “Where are the girls?”
    “Dancing.” Cam answered. “And Zuk’s being a prick.”
    “What’s new?” Max said. Was Alec really that awful all the time that both his friends had the same response to his bad mood? Max grinned at him and this time Alec aimed his kick at his friend’s knee. Max took the hit without a wince, then shifted his chair for a better view of the dance floor. “If Kat’s dancing, I’m watching. Man, that’s why I asked her out in the first place.”
    Alec let his eyes drift to the dance floor, and there was Kat, doing some sort of grinding dance move with Tara, their bodies plastered together— Jesus Christ —Kat’s long, shiny hair whipping around her neck, slender arms over her head.
    Max elbowed him. “She can dance, right?” like Kat was some piece of meat.
    The beat pounded into Alec’s head and the beer fuzzed his brain. Kat’s moves had him in a trance, but he was ever aware of her boyfriend’s presence beside him, like a big bucket of cold water down his pants.
    Alec jumped five inches off of his seat when Max