I can’t deny I was surprised when Tilly told me she was getting married. I guess I thought after our childhood, we would both have sworn off dating and relationships. I certainly have. Then again, we haven’t really talked about it. We have an unspoken rule to never bring up our shitty childhood and the scars it left behind. Focusing on the future has helped both of us stay sane.
“Ready to go?” Malia asks, pulling me from my thoughts. I force a smile to my lips and nod.
I follow my two friends out the door and down the stairs to Malia’s car.
“Where are we going again?” I ask. I don’t usually frequent the bars in town. None of us do, actually.
“Um, it looks like Ruff’s Wings & Sports Bar has good reviews,” Gwen says as she scrolls on her phone.
“Oh yeah, that’s just downtown,” Malia says as she starts the car and backs out of the parking spot.
“Can you believe we’re about to be juniors?” Gwen asks as we cruise down Main Street.
I listen to my friends talk and think about how busy next year is going to be.
Malia pulls into the parking lot of Ruff’s, and I groan internally when I see how packed the place is.
“To girls’ night,” Gwen says, turning and offering me a fist bump. I laugh at how serious she sounds as I bang my fist against hers.
Malia is already climbing out of the car and we hurry to join her. I cling to Gwen as we teeter in our high heels across the gravel parking lot to the front door. Malia is a pro in her heels. I think she could run a marathon in them and be totally fine. Me, on the other hand? Not so much. Baby giraffe over here, just learning to walk for the first time.
We push inside and I wince at the loud cheering coming from the back corner.
“There’s a booth over there!” Malia shouts over her shoulder. I follow close behind as we push our way through the crowd.
A shiver runs down my spine, sparking my nerves as the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. My breath catches in my throat, and the room pulses around me before coming back into focus.What the heck was that?
I stop walking, my feet frozen in place as I look around the crowded bar. I don’t know what I’m searching for until my eyes meet his. Ice blue irises cut through me, little specks of silver sparkling beneath the lights. He looks dazed, almost in awe as he stares at me, a slow grin taking over his features.
My lower belly grows tight, an unfamiliar throbbing taking up residence between my thighs. I’ve never had anyone pay this much attention to me, and I won’t lie… it makes me want to fluff my hair and preen like a prize-winning pony. Ridiculous, I know.
The stranger’s dark hair is tousled and hanging over his forehead, and I have the strongest urge to push those locks away from his eyes. I wonder how soft his hair would be, if he would lean into my touch and let me steal my first kiss. My firsteverything.
I start to flush as the fantasy plays out, but then it all comes crashing down.
He winks at me and gives me a knowing smile like I’m already his.
But I’m not.
I despise cocky, arrogant bastards, so sure everyone is going to fall all over themselves to please them. My father was that way. A true narcissist with enough charm to dupe anyone into doing his bidding. It’s a major turn off for me, no matter how unfairly hot the person in question might be.
I turn away in disgust and stop before I slide into the booth with my friends.
“I’ll grab the first round!” I call over the noise. My friends flash me a thumbs up.
I weave my way through the crowd and up to the bar. Luckily, I don’t have to wait long before a bartender takes my order.
I’m reaching for my money when a hand slides past me, handing the bartender some cash.
“On me, darlin’,” a sexy voice rasps in my ear. I try to ignore the goosebumps rising on my arms and the dull ache twisting up my insides.
I know before I turn around that it’s my mystery man.Crap. What now?
TWO
Griz
She’s infinitely more intoxicatingup close than she was when I first saw her across the room. The angel with auburn hair peers at me over her shoulder, her cornflower blue eyes shining beneath the dim lights. Long, dark lashes cast faint shadows over her rosy cheeks, making her somehow both adorable and sinful.