Only your end, Raven.
“Well, he obviously has his eye on you.”
My head shakes back and forth. “No, he doesn’t,” I say and feel the color rush to my face again. “He’s with her.” I motion toward the bathroom where the two girls have disappeared. The man was long gone.
“Who?” she asks, looking around, face scrunched in confusion. “Are you blushing? You never blush.”
“I’m not blushing. It’s just warm in here,” I say, fanning my face with my hand.
She chuckles. “Whatever you say, girl. Not that I’d blame you. That man was oozing sex.”
My eyes close of their own volition. The image of the guy seared into my mind like a dream I’m not ready to let go of. I internally groan at how ridiculous I’m acting.
He’s a handsome man, but I’m in New York City. A place that’s crawling with attractive, successful guys at every corner. My reaction to him is nothing more than my body's way of rebelling against my self-imposed drought.
I’ve kept myself free of distractions, determined to focus on finishing up my degree and landing the job of my dreams in a competitive landscape full of impressive applicants. I’ve worked my ass off to graduate from Columbia Business School with my MBA, and I did it.
Men complicate things. Sex complicates it even more. So, for the past few years, I’ve avoided both.
“This is taking so damn long,” someone barks from behind.
My eyes snap open to see that the line is still over ten people deep.
This is ridiculous. I let out of huff. “I can wait. You?”
“Yeah. Maybe the line will be shorter in a bit.”
“Probably not. But we’ll probably be drunker and not care as much.” I laugh.
“I don’t know how Ash likes this place. The people are so damn rude.” A groan escapes Lily’s lips.
“It’s not so bad. We’re having fun,” I say, and she shrugs in response. “This is Asher’s world, Lil. If you want a future with him, this will be your world, too.”
Her cheeks stain a pretty pink, and her eyelashes flutter. “I guess.”
I smile at my friend, hoping like hell I’m not leading her down a dead-end path with Ash.
We step away from the line, turning to walk in the opposite direction, narrowly knocking into the girl behind us. “Sorry,” I offer, and she doesn’t so much as grunt.
We’re walking back through the crowd when I see the man standing at a tall table surrounded by more insanely gorgeous women. The first girl is nowhere to be seen.
Ugh. Typical. He probably took her for a ride in the VIP room and has moved on to the next pretty girl who looks his way.
He grins at my obvious scrutiny, and in complete embarrassment, I spin around so my back faces him.
“God. Take me home now.” I cringe.
“What?” Lily’s voice is concerned but confused.
“The guy from earlier caught me staring at him,” I groan.
Lily’s eyebrows waggle. “You should go talk to him.”
“What? No.” I shake my head wildly. “I don’t even know him. That sounds like a terrible idea.”
Lily grins, crossing her arms over her chest as though she’s about to lecture a child. “You’re scared,” she teases, and my eyes narrow on her.
“Well, with my luck, he will probably end up being a mass murderer. He’s probably stalking victims right now as we speak. In fact, he’s probably a vampire.” I bare my teeth in emphasis.