"I'm glad you did, it's always good to see you. Shots are on the house. Tequila?"
I grin and nod. "That'd be awesome, thank you. This day's been dog shit, so tequila sounds like the only acceptable finisher."
He laughs and gives us a thumbs up. "Double shots it is. I'll be right back, ladies."
Hailey sighs. "I can't say I miss dealing with drunk assholes in here, but I do miss these particular assholes.” She turns back to me to finish the conversation we had started on the way over here. "So, will you just leave all your furniture and boxes at Mom and Dad's house? I can't imagine it would make sense to get a storage container for less than a month."
"Yeah, I guess that's the easiest choice. God knows their basement is big enough for all my shit." I rub my eyes tiredly. "I can't get over how annoying this whole thing is. I'll have to rent a U-Haul twice instead of just making one move from one apartment to the other. Ugh, stupid Dan's family…"
Hailey laughs. When I glare at her for finding my misfortune amusing, she holds her hands up in a gesture of surrender. "Hey, at least that new apartment is stunning," she points out. "I'm jealous. New buildings are definitely the way to go. They're always so cheap."
"Yeah, except their timing is subpar," I grumble.
"Except that," she concedes. "But Jax gave you the okay to stay at his place for that week? The timing of his trip works out pretty perfectly."
I wince and sip my beer. "Tell me about it. I was not looking forward to sleeping on a couch for that long. At least this way I actually have my own space and can hole up when I need to. Which I assume will be almost the entire time, since I'll be sharing a house with Tristan." I groan and drop my head onto my arms. "Why does he have to be Jax's best friend? Why can't Jax live with a nice, intelligent gentleman?"
"It looks like these shots really are coming at a good time," I hear someone murmur above me. I look up to see my sister’s old manager holding three shot glasses. "For whoever needs a little extra," he explains, nudging the extra shot toward us.
"You're a godsend," I groan, reaching for one of the doubles. "Thank you."
"Anytime," he grins. He looks at Hailey. "I wish I could stay and chat but it's obviously a little crazy in here. Catch me before you leave. It was great to see you again." His eyes light with a mischievous twinkle. "And you know anytime you need a job you have a spot waiting right here for you…"
Hailey laughs and shakes her head. "Not gonna happen, but I always appreciate the offer. Thanks again for the drinks."
At the mention of it I throw back a double and wince as it burns my throat. I sigh and settle back in the booth, waiting for the calm that alcohol always brings over me. This day's been so horrific that I figure it can only go up from here.
I would be very wrong in that assumption.
"So, I hear we're going to be roommates."
I freeze when I recognize the voice. Slowly, I turn to glare daggers at Tristan standing in front of our booth.
"Trust me, it's not my first option," I growl. "Or my second. I hate this just as much as you do, so let's just set some ground rules right now and start off on the right foot."
He raises an eyebrow at me. "You're going to set ground rules in my house?"
"Yes," I snap. "Otherwise, I'm not sure we'll both survive."
He rolls his eyes but makes room for himself on my side of the booth. I scowl as he hip checks me to move over.
"Okay, rule number one," I start. "We stay out of each other's rooms. I know you like to barge into Jax's room and borrow his shit so that stops for the time that I'm there."
"But what if I'm out of condoms and need the stash in his dresser?" he whines dramatically.
If looks could kill… Tristan wouldn’t have a pulse.
"Then I guess there will be one less notch in your bedpost," I snap. "Which brings me to rule number two: I donotwant to hear you railing some idiot sophomore that doesn't know any better in the middle of the night. I wake up early like any decent adult, so quiet time starts at 11pm." I glare at him pointedly to make sure I've made myself clear. "And on a similar note, I don't want to walk into the house to see you fucking anyone, either. So, no sex outside of your bedroom."
Tristan finally shakes his head with a chuckle. "You've obviously put a lot of thought into my sexual activities. Are you sure you're not just trying to limit the amount of women in my life because you're secretly jealous?"
Hailey lets out a loud laugh. I glance at her, startled. I completely forgot she was here. I glare at her then return my attention to the smirking asshole next to me.
"You keep telling yourself whatever you need to in order to feel better about the fact that I won't sleep with you," I snort. I consider something, then ask, "Am I the only girl to ever turn you down? Oh my god, I am, aren't I? Wow, that explains why I get under your skin so much." I laugh delightedly.
But the laughter dies in my throat when I feel him press his lips against my ear. "Sweetheart, I’ve never asked you," he whispers condescendingly. "I hate to burst your bubble, but you always just assumed."
I can feel my cheeks burn red. I glare at him and shove his body out of the booth. He laughs triumphantly as he stands up.