He snuggled closer to Lucy, taking in the warm vanilla scent of her.
"Oh geez," he heard someone mutter.
"Get up, rookie. Time to walk it off."
Andy's hand grabbed his arm and pulled him up. He stumbled a bit before opening his eyes and getting his bearings. One big breath of the cool night air and he felt clear-headed again — or as clear-headed as he could feel at his twenty-second birthday party.
"How far are we walking?"
"To your apartment."
He smiled a huge goofy smile. "I live nearby!"
"We know."
He looked down to see Lucy smiling at him. It was a sweet smile and he instantly felt safe like it was all going to be fine. She had a nice smile and she was going to take care of him because she was Lucy.
He said his goodbyes to everyone. Luckily, there weren't too many people left. He didn't realize how late it was or that a bunch of guys had already gone home, probably to have sex with their hot girlfriends. It was such a good idea that he was going to do the same thing.
They wandered over to the elevator and Sydney stabbed at the down button three times before actually hitting it.
"For the love, Syd. Not you too," Andy lamented.
She turned and gave the group her own goofy smile. Yeah, Sydney had a good time at his party. Woohoo! He liked Sydney. Not like he liked Lucy, but he liked Sydney.
They walked the three blocks back to the apartment, a bit loud and obnoxious for the neighborhood at…whatever time it was. Lucy was laughing at his jokes and Andy would occasionally grab his arm to make sure he kept walking straight or something. Whatever. He was doing fine. He was doing great. The group finally made it back to the apartment, giving a friendly wave to the security guard before heading up to their floor. He was a bit loud on the elevator until the doors opened and Sydney loudly shushed them.
"Be quiet," she hissed. "We don't want to wake the neighbors."
Ryan giggled a drunk giggle and put his arm around Lucy's shoulder to pull her closer as they walked down the hall. He liked having her so close. He liked her body and the way her soft skin felt under his rough hockey hands. He liked the way she smelled and the way her hair tickled his arm. He liked that she was smart and could hold her own with his teammates and wasn't clingy tonight like other girls. She was her own strong, independent person who didn't need to rely on anyone but herself.
Ryan frowned slightly at that thought. If she didn't need anyone, then she didn't need him, right? Nope, that can't be right. Just the booze talking. She needed him. It was fine.
They said their goodbyes to Andy and Sydney. Ryan laughed when Andy had to help Sydney get the key in the door. Yeah, Sydney had a good time at his party. But it wasn't so funny when Lucy had to do the same thing for him.
"You have to put the key in the keyhole," he told her.
Lucy rolled her eyes and smiled at him. "I'm aware."
She got the door open and walked in first, turning on some lights as the door gently closed behind them. He finally felt calm and quiet and free to stare at Lucy all he wanted. He watched as she dropped his keys on the counter before she turned and caught him looking at her. She started to stare back at him and he couldn't find the words to answer her.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing."
She gave him a lopsided smile and reached out for his hand.
"Let's get you undressed and get you some water."
He grabbed her hand and held on tight, feeling like he might fall over. But then he took a breath, steadied himself and started following her to his bedroom. But then he stopped. She was sober and he was drunk and he knewexactlywhat was going.
"I see what you're doing," he said.
She turned, her dark hair waving around her. "What?" she said with a smile.
"This is like The Cast of Amaretto."
"The what?"
