Imperfectly Bad by A. E. Woodward Page B

and I felt, rather than heard, Emma groan next to me. “I’m gonna have to bump everyone out of the way with my belly tonight.”
    Props to the girl for even coming out with us. It had to majorly suck knowing that you couldn’t participate in the planned shenanigans. Lifting my hands to rest on her shoulders I steered us through the crowd, scanning the crowd for Shane, Tyler and Elizabeth. We’d fallen way behind and they never really noticed. After a moment or two I spotted Shane waving frantically at us from the other end of the bar.
    Emma literally pushed her way through the crowd. She’d brush against them with her stomach and they’d skirt to the side for her, waiting until she’d passed them before they gave her dirty looks, of course. It took a lot of effort but I managed to contain my urge to punch all of them in the face.
    “Would it be wrong of me to order a Jägerbomb, just to sniff it?” she asked as we joined the gang.
    Tyler laughed.
    “I doubt you’d be able to keep yourself from drinking it,” Shane said, “so I ordered you a water instead.”
    “Buzzkill.”
    “Well, this place is nice,” Elizabeth piped up.
    I had to hand it to her, the last few times I’d been around her had been easier. She was a much nicer person since she’d started working on her issues. Making an attempt to try and fit in and not be such a raging, judgmental bitch. Hell, I didn’t even mind it all that much when she and Emily came over to our apartment lately. She was tolerable.
    What the fuck? Do I actually like Elizabeth Sloan? I curled my lip in disgust at my own thought.
    Because of the crowd it was a little while before we got our drinks but when we did we ordered enough to make sure we avoided another wait. The first round of shots went down quickly.
    And the second.
    Then the third.
    I’d just gotten my buzz on when Elizabeth started to get handsy with Tyler. By the looks of it they would be leaving soon. Turning my body in the direction of Emma and Shane, I figured I could talk to them while the other two got busy, but Shane was whispering in Emma’s ear while he massaged her lower back.
    Fuckin’ shit. Great idea coming out as the fifth wheel, Rob.
    Frustrated, I grabbed my beer off the bar and turned my back to it, complete with an Emma-esque pout. Had she seen it she would have been proud, but she was too busy canoodling with Shane. Jesus Christ. It really was disgusting.
    And then I saw it.
    A full head of flaming orange hair.
    She was perched at a table. Laughing with some toolbag.
    A toolbag that I totally recognized.
    “Fuck!”
    The gang jumped, roused from their love-induced stupor by my inability to keep my mouth shut.
    “What the hell is your problem?” Shane asked, spinning around to follow my gaze. When he saw what I was looking at all he managed to say was, “Jesus…”
    “Christ,” Tyler finished for him.
    Emma was the last to turn around. I expected her to start freaking out but when she did, she started laughing and we all looked at her like she was crazy.
    “Oh. My. God!” she managed to say between giggles.
    I still didn’t see how it was funny.
    Sorry, I should probably catch you up.
    Jenny was sitting there with none other than Bradley.
    A.K.A Mr. Wonderful.
    A.K.A Douchebag.
    A.K.A Asshole that just earned a night as my punching bag.
    The gang was getting a big charge out of seeing them there, together, but I wasn’t finding the humor in it—at all. I thought a lot of things about Jenny. But I never once took her for a raging idiot.
    I wasn’t going to let it happen. I chugged the remainder of my beer and started in their direction. If they’d been paying attention, I was sure one of the gang would have tried to stop me but they were oblivious, still caught up in seeing Bradley. Only Emma even knew who the woman with him was, and she was in no state to clue the rest of them in. I could hear their laughter behind me as I walked away.
    Belatedly I heard them call out to me,