“Ha ha.” She rolled her eyes beside me. “You’re bothhilarious.”
“We need two vodka crans and four shots of vodka.” I glanced over my shoulder at Weston. “And a beer for our warden. He’s buying.”
“So I’m just a chauffeur and a wallet to you people, huh?” he grumbled behind me, but slid over his Amex anyway.
I smirked. “Wow, you’re finally catching on. Gold star for you!” He flicked me in the forehead.
“A very sexy one,” Savannah said seconds later with hearts in her eyes, wrapping a hand around the back of his neck to bring his mouth to hers before I could smack him. I looked away, grabbed the first two shots Robbie poured, and tossed them back in quick succession. The burn felt good in my chest. Distracting.
Savannah took her shot slower, wincing as the vodka went down. “I’m gonna regret this tomorrow,” she murmured and drank the second.
We snatched our drinks off the bar, and I pulled her to the dance floor.
The next few hours passed in a blur of shots and drinks and laughs. We watched Weston get thrown from Whiplash, the mechanical bull. We line danced. We ate Pixy Sticks I kept tucked in my bra strap. And Emmett was only on the very outskirts of my mind through it all.
A pair of strong hands slid around my waist, and Savannah gave me a wink—the guy was hot. One blink meant okay, two meant slam my heel into his foot and run.
I turned, and my best friend hadn’t lied. He was tall, broad, and a cowboy because there wasn’t much else around here.He had dark brown eyes that matched his hair, gorgeous light brown skin, and a panty-dropping smile.
“Hello there, stranger,” I said, lacing my arms around his shoulders.
“Hi yourself, gorgeous.” He leaned in, fingers flexing on my waist. “I’m Connor.” The soft rasp of his voice made me shiver. “Do you know you’re the most beautiful woman in this bar?”
“Yes,” I answered confidently. Guys either loved or hated that response. It was a good gauge of whether they were a decent man or not.
He pulled away, laughing loudly. “Good.” He raised his hand and spun me, the crowded dance floor blurring before he pulled me back quickly. “I like a girl who knows what she’s worth.”
If he only knew the shitstorm in my head. But tonight was supposed to be about forgetting the shitstorm, not stewing in it. I plastered on a flirty smile and slid my hands up his chest. “I’m worth more than you can afford,” I purred.
His full lips curled with a smirk. “Guess I’d better work overtime then.”
Damn, he was smooth.
It should have worked. It would have worked if it hadn’t been for what happened in my office the other day. Emmett’s stupid hand. That groan. As nice and cute as Connor was, his hands on my body felt wrong. Traitorous. They weren’t heavy and warm and trembling with pent-up need like Emmett’s had been.
But that was the problem. Connor wasn’t Emmett. He couldn’t be, and I didn’t want him to be. And I didn’t have it in me tonight to pretend that didn’t upset me.
“Want to get out of here so I can start putting in that work?” he whispered in my ear. But all I could picture was the way Emmett looked at me earlier.
The song ended, and I pulled away with a smile I hoped was convincing. “Not tonight. Thanks for the dance, though, Connor. It was fun.”
He blinked, confused, but let me go. I turned on my heel and went to find Savannah and Weston, ripping open two blue Pixy Sticks and dumping them in my mouth on the way.
I found them by the bar, Weston’s arm slung around Savannah. She frowned when she saw me, setting her drink down. “Not going home with him?”
All the drinks and turmoil started to catch up with me. I shook my head. “Need to go home,” I slurred. I gripped Weston’s shoulder, swaying a little. Savannah stood quickly, eyes wide with concern. “Drank too much.”
“You’re sure you’re okay?”Savannah asked, walking me up the stairs to my apartment. My stomach twisted with guilt. I nearly kissed her brother two days ago, and here she was taking care of me after I cut her night with her fiancé short. Maybe it really was for the best that Emmett bailed because I wasn’t sure how I’d look her in the eye if anything had happened.
“Yeah, Savvy, I’m fine. Just went a little too hard.”
She unlocked my door with her spare key and set me down on the couch. “You don’t want me to spend the night?” Acid crawled up my throat, but I forced it down.
“No.” I took the water she handed me. “Go be with your cowboy.”
She looked me over, weighing options. “Okay.” She leaned down and kissed my head. “Love you. Text me in the morning, alright?”
I nodded. “Love you.” The words came out brittle, only because I meant them. The door clicked shut behind her, the lock turning with a finality that reverberated through me. Myhead fell back against the couch, and I stared at the spinning ceiling.
