Irresistible Bachelors: Books 1-5 by Landish, Lauren (bts books to read TXT) 📕

Jake’s shoulders slump when she’s gone and he looks despondently at the floor. Tears burn my eyes, and I go over and place my hand on his shoulder. “Jake?”

“She’s never told me something like that before,” he says quietly, and I can hear the pain in his voice. “I’ve never tried to be a replacement for Dad, but . . .”

“Jake, I’m so sorry,” I say. “I know you care.”

“It’s not your fault,” he says. “I haven’t been paying attention to what she’s been doing. I’ve just been so busy with . . .”

His uncompleted sentence hangs in the air, and I fill in the gaps. He’s been busy with his new job, the club, and me. “Let me go talk to her.”

“It’s pointless right now. Might as well let her cool down.”

I shake my head softly. “I can at least try. I’m a woman, and I’m a stranger. Maybe that’s exactly who she’ll listen to.”

He looks in my eyes for a moment before he nods. “Her room is down the hall, second door on the left.”

I walk down the hall and stop in front of her bedroom door. Even if Jake hadn’t told me, I would have known it was Sophie’s. She’s got a pink My Little Pony on the door.

My palms are sweating and I’m nervous. I’m sticking my foot in deep, and this could be a minefield. I take a deep breath and knock on the door.

“Leave me alone! I don’t wanna talk to you!” a harsh voice calls from inside.

“It’s not Jake. It’s his girlfriend, Roxy,” I say quietly before I pause. It feels weird to say that, but wonderful too. His girlfriend. I like the sound of it. “Will you please let me in?”

Silence greets me, and my nervousness increases. I stand there for what feels like forever, shifting from side to side as my feet start to ache like they always do after a concert. I’m just about to give up when I hear a small, “Come in.”

I open the door and go inside. Sophie is perched on the bed, her eyes red. Moonlight streams through the window, and there’s only a soft bedside lamp on as I sit down and the bed creaks. Sophie stares at me for a moment, and I reach out, stroking her hair. “You’re so pretty,” I tell her softly. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you and your brother are both beautiful people. You share a lot in common.”

She looks over at me and sniffs. “Thank you.”

Her voice is so small, like she’s disappearing. She reminds me of me when I was younger. “Your brother really loves you.”

She’s quiet, but she nods her head slowly.

“He’s not trying to be an asshole by taking your phone. He just wants to protect and look out for you.”

“But Jax isn’t a bad guy. I mean, he really likes me.”

I shelve that comment. I think Jake’s right. If he’s got her using a fake ID, what’s next? “That might be true, but he’s a few years older than you,” I say instead.

“So? Age ain’t nothing but a number,” Sophie says defensively. “I’ve heard it plenty of times.”

Did I sound this idiotic when I was sixteen? I was probably worse. “That’s true, but sometimes, numbers do count. I know a little over two years doesn’t seem like a lot, but you’re at that age where you do a lot of growing up fast. Besides, you guys were in a place you shouldn’t be. If Jax were really concerned about you, he wouldn’t have brought you there.”

“We just wanted to have fun,” Sophie says, and I can see her struggle with tears again. “Is that so bad?”

“Nope,” I agree, forcing a smile. “Honestly, I did a lot of stupid shit back when I was a teenager. I’m surprised my big sister didn’t kill me a few times. I’ll tell you something that I was reminded of tonight. The Bobby Gardner Rule.”

“The what rule?” Sophie asks, and I laugh quietly.

“Bobby Gardner. He was this big stud jock when I was a freshman in high school. He was a senior when I was a freshman, and my sister kept telling me not to get with him. She said he was bad news. Our age gap is just right so she knew him when she was in school too. Of course, I didn’t listen to her. So when Bobby asked me out, I accepted.”

“What happened?” Sophie asks, and I chuckle.

“He picked me up in a stinky as hell beat-up Camaro, we go to the winter formal, and during the second slow dance, he tries to cop a feel. I busted him in the nose with an elbow, and he cried in front of the whole school.”

“I don’t get it. What’s the Bobby Gardner Rule?” Sophie asks.

“Elbow in the nose trumps hand on ass,” I say, and Sophie laughs. It’s a good sign. “There you go. Feeling a bit better?”

Sophie nods. “A little. Um . . . girlfriend?”

I nod. “It’s my first time saying that, but yes. Listen, Jake feels like shit, too. He thinks he’s been ignoring you because he’s been spending so much time with the club and with me.”

“I guess Jake deserves it,” Sophie admits, but I don’t know if she’s just saying that.

“Don’t worry, you guys will work it out. Men are stubborn pains in the ass most of the time,” I say, trying to loosen her up. If I were Jake, I’d be worked up too.

Sophie smiles. “Can’t argue with that. I don’t have anyone but Jake, though.”

“I’ll come around more if you’d like,” I say. “I’d like to get to know you. Jake talks about you a lot, actually. He’s proud of you.”

“Okay . . . if you can teach me how to shake your ass like that?” she says, referring to what I was doing on stage.

I laugh. “I’m pretty sure your brother would kill me if I did that. Listen, you get