SWNOVELS Chapter 43
"Whoa, that was not cool of you," Zephyr teased Jocelyn. "Melvin was clearly ticked off just now. Spill the beans, how did you manage to get under his skin? It usually takes a lot to ruffle his feathers." Jocelyn couldn't believe it, "Huh? His mood swings are legendary, okay?"
"Pfft, and you just waltzed in and turned him into Mr. Congeniality?" Zephyr leaned back dramatically.
"If you say that to his face, he'll definitely give you a taste of his mood," Jocelyn joked.
Zephyr laughed, all mysterious-like, "It's all you, girl. You've got him wrapped around your little finger. I'm telling you, he hasn't been this showy with any chick before. You're the first."
Jocelyn wasn't buying it. She'd seen him cozying up to a bombshell before.
"Wasn't Willow the first?" Jocelyn peered through the door and saw Willow settling in next to Melvin.
Zephyr let out an awkward chuckle, "Willow... that's ancient history. You're the hot topic now. We're all friends here, don't sweat it."
Jocelyn watched as Willow leaned in close to Melvin, almost shoulder to shoulder, then strategically pulled back, then in again, which was a dance of proximity that seemed innocent enough.
But to anyone watching, it was clear their connection was anything but ordinary.
Jocelyn slipped in next to Melvin, effectively flanking him with women on both sides.
Yannick, sitting in the corner, watched the scene unfold silently.
"Hey hey, Willow, come sit by me," Zephyr beckoned as he walked in, "Don't mess with their little love nest."
Willow glared at Zephyr, "Why force a pair-up when we're all single?"
"Single? Melvin's taken by someone, you need to watch your step," Zephyr said as he pulled Willow away and plopped down between her and Melvin, putting a wedge between them.
Jocelyn was secretly grateful for his interference; she'd wanted to do the same, but had been holding back to keep up her cool-as-a-cucumber image.
Willow pinched Zephyr's arm hard, shooting him a glare, "Are you looking for a girlfriend after being single too long? Should I set you up?"
"Sure thing," Zephyr was all in, "You're single too; how about we just team up?"
Yannick lifted an eyelid, glanced at the carefree Zephyr, took a swig of his drink, and kept to himself, fading into the background.
"You're not my type," Willow rolled her eyes.
"Your type's already on someone else's plate," Zephyr hinted.
"So what if it is? Even if it's been eaten, it's got to come back up."
"Aren't you grossed out by that?"
Zephyr's words earned him dagger looks from Melvin and Jocelyn. Sometimes it seemed like the guy was missing a brain filter. The things he said were enough to make you want to throttle him. Willow pinched him again, "You're the gross one."
"How would you know if you haven't tried me?" Zephyr teased, "Wanna test the waters at my place later?"
"Get lost!" Willow fumed.
Zephyr just grinned, "Look at you getting all worked up. Don't worry, you're not my type."
"Thanks a bunch," Willow moved away from him.
Suddenly, Zephyr turned to the guy in the corner, "Yannick, how about we make do with each other?"
Yannick choked on his drink, coughing up a storm.
Jocelyn was shocked by Zephyr's joke. Since when did teasing ignore gender boundaries?
Melvin shot Zephyr a look, "Why can't you just shut up for once?"
"If I keep quiet, this place would be dead," Zephyr stood up and grabbed the mic, all smiles, "Gotta liven things up. Here, I'll sing a song for everyone, called 'The Single's Anthem."" Zephyr picked his song and belted it out with passion.
True enough, with Zephyr around the mood was never dull, and they ended up playing cards.
Jocelyn didn't join, but Willow did. They played a game that required little more than basic math, no real skill involved.
"Jocelyn, up for another card game?" Zephyr finished shuffling and asked Jocelyn.
Jocelyn waved him off, "I don't know how."
"Tsk, no worries, as long as you can pay up," Zephyr grinned devilishly while shuffling the cards, "I've lost a fair bit to Melvin earlier; gotta recoup some from you now."
Jocelyn glanced at Melvin, who said, "Play if you want."
"Then go easy on me," Jocelyn swapped seats with Melvin.
Yannick was out, so it was Zephyr, Willow, and Jocelyn.
Maybe it was because of Melvin, Jocelyn and Willow went against each other in this card game.
Zephyr, caught in the middle, was having the time of his life watching the drama unfold.
After several rounds, Jocelyn was down over a hundred dollars, with Willow winning.
"Proves my point, some things just can't be clung to, you lose them anyway," Willow said, dripping with smugness.
Jocelyn was quick on the draw, "Oh absolutely, I can't compete with Willow at cards. You know what they say, lucky in love, unlucky in gambling. If I were winning at both, that'd be too much, wouldn't it?" Willow's smug smile froze at Jocelyn's comeback.
Zephyr looked from one to the other, thoroughly enjoying the women's war of words.
Now, there was no holding back; it was a direct confrontation. And as for Melvin, the subject of their debate, he acted as if he didn't understand a word, staying completely silent.
"Melvin's the real ladies' man here, with all the babes fighting over him and getting jealous. Bet he's grinning from ear to ear on the inside." Zephyr was fanning the flames, itching to crank up the heat in the
room.
Melvin gave Zephyr, the guy who loves to watch the world burn, a sidelong glance. "Hey Yannick, someone tipped me off about this cool bar a while back. It's filled with top-notch options. You up for a little fun? Who knows, you might bump into your dream girl."
Zephyr got all wound up in a second, "Don't just start throwing around suggestions."
"Yannick's been flying solo for ages. He's probably dying to fall in love," Melvin said with a challenging look at Zephyr.
"Huh, since when did he want a love life? What do you say, Yannick? You in?" Zephyr asked Yannick.
Yannick, suddenly the center of attention, looked at Zephyr, who was a bit on edge, and took a sip of his drink, "I'm game." Zephyr's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
Melvin lifted his glass to Zephyr, sporting a sly grin that was nothing short of devilish.
Jocelyn seemed to get the gist of what they were saying but also not quite. But she didn't ask.
She couldn't shake the feeling that there was some kind of story between Zephyr and Yannick.
Jocelyn's phone buzzed, and she checked Facebook. It was a message from Harrison.
He was asking if she was free and if she wanted to come over and hang out.
As she was about to respond, Melvin leaned in close and whispered, "Go ahead; try replying."
Jocelyn looked up, straight into Melvin's threatening gaze.
She pursed her lips and murmured, "It'd be rude not to reply, wouldn't it?"
Melvin just stared her down, wordless.
Under the weight of his stare, Jocelyn caved and put her phone away.
Willow noticed their little exchange and, after downing another drink, blurted out to Jocelyn, "Hey Jocelyn, just how many men have you been with before Melvin?" Willow blurted out something that made everyone turn their heads to look at her.