As the evening carried on, it was turning out to be even better than I expected. I danced with Noelle and her friends, sang every lyric to every song, drank enough of those delicious mules to sustain a solid buzz, and just enjoyed the hell out of the night. It was a great way to make up for the canceled plans. Towards the end of the set, Noelle and her crewtook off, while I happened upon a good-looking dancing partner who grabbed me by the waist and pulled me into him. It was a risky move, and how I took that depended on the day, but tonight, it felt good to be swaying in a man’s arms, even if we hadn’t exchanged names. I dressed for attention tonight, after all. I mean, there was more than one of my chick-lit novels where two people meet and have an insane night of sex without knowing each other, why not me? The kisses he stole didn’t suck, and if that was the preview, who knew what could happen?
“What’s your name, beautiful?”
“Audra, what’s yours?” I registered a micro-expression of surprise on his face before he answered back.
“Harry. The bands done after this song; want to head back to my place?”
“Um…” I hesitated. My theory of hooking up tonight was solid, but the application of going home with a stranger was a little less appealing. Was I really thinking about heading home with this guy? Eh … maybe? It’d been too long. “Isn’t that kind of forward?” I nervously giggled, shocked I was even entertaining this.
Before he answered, he pulled me into him again and kissed me. “Maybe it is. But I’ve really enjoyed dancing with you tonight. Just a drink and then we’ll see where the night goes. What do you say?”
Fuck it, I thought. Why not? “Are you close?” I asked. If he were far out of town, that would be a no.
“Yeah, I’m just over on Chapel Hill.”
Chapel Hill? I thought to myself. That’s really close. How did I not know who this guy was?
Mystery man took my hand and led me outside. In thequiet night air, he stole another kiss, and I was letting myself fall into it … until Bennett interrupted.
“Audra,” a voice pulled me away from the kiss I was trying to get lost in. “Hey, you forgot something in the bar.” I looked at him, and if looks could kill, he’d be dead. “Come on, love, come grab it.” All three of us knew I had nothing in the bar.
“I got her, man,” my new friend said.
“Not tonight, buddy. Get her number.”
“What the hell is your problem, Bennett?” He postured at him. The mystery man knew Bennett?
“Take her out first.” Bennett suggested. But it didn’t really come out as a suggestion as much as a demand.
“Hi”—both guys turned to me as I waved—“I’m right here. Don’t talk about me like I’m not.”
That diffused the tension between the two of them, and my new friend reluctantly agreed. “Hey, he’s right. I’d love to take you out, Audra.” I could see the annoyance on his face. But if he knew Bennett by name, he probably knew that Bennett held belts in two different martial arts, so a physical confrontation wasn’t in his best interest.
“Sounds like a plan,” I smiled at him. He took my phone, programmed his name and number, and came in to kiss me one more time as his Uber pulled up. “Call me,” he said before the door closed. I waved as he drove away, then spun to Bennett immediately. My flirty demeanor changed on a dime. “What’s your problem, Bennett? Since when do you get to cockblock me? YOU of all people. How many people in this bar right now, including the band members, have you slept with?” That wasn’t fair of me to say, and I knew it as soon as it left my mouth.
His face flashed a look of hurt, but he covered it quickly. “Look, King, I am always down for a fantastic hookup. Always.But that guy gets around, which I know I can’t speak ill of, but most importantly, he’s bad in bed.”
“How in the hell would you know that?”
“Word gets around, and part of my job besides having the best bars in town, is to know what’s happening in them,” he shrugged. “That guy spends a lot of time here. Do you even know his name?”
I looked at Bennett with both of my lips tucked into my teeth. He didn’t break his stare, only raised his eyebrows. I know he said it, but I couldn’t remember. “It started with an H,” I said, trying to discreetly check out what he programmed his name as.
Shrugging my shoulders because he had me, a smile slowly spread across his face, making me laugh. “Oh, my favorite Audra, I didn’t think so. If you’re going to let someone defile you, you need to know their name and be aware of any shoddy reputations. Like if he’s a two-pump chump, which our friend, named Harold by the way, is.”
“Harold? No, it’s Harry,” I looked at the name on my phone again to confirm. “Harold sounds like he’s an eighty-five-year-old grandpa. And you have no idea what he’s like in bed. You’re lying.” I laughed at the absurdity.
“But am I, though? Or is Harry his nickname, and he’s named after his granddaddy, Harold, who served in ‘Nam. Protip, he fucks like him, too.” We laughed, but I wasn’t completely sure if he was joking or not. “Let’s go in and call you a ride if you want to head home.” Holding his arm again, he led me inside, heroically saving me from two-pump chump Harold.
5
DONOVAN
Ihad to work late again tonight. I had some deadlines to meet, and it’s not like I had anything going on anyway. That tracked with all the nights I was having these days, nothing going on.
To be honest, I was hesitant to admit that I was starting to get a little lonely, but I was. I’d been operating as an island for years now, and even before I left New York, I’d become closed off to everyone around me. I had Maeve now, but that didn’t really count because that was professional. It’s not like we had ever hung out socially.
Glancing outside, it appeared there was a band playing at The Yard, which was the bar across the street from my office. It was one of the two places Maeve’s restaurateur friends owned, and it was a hell of a space. They had enough room on the inside to have a band or other live events, but the back had a garage door wall that opened into a backyard-looking space, hence the name. At least that’s what Maeve always raved about. It had yard games like cornhole and washers and a big fire pit. From what I could make of it, it seemed neat, but I had neverbeen inside. Looking out the window, I was distracted watching it fill up when I spotted Audra. She was white hot tonight, wearing an effortlessly sexy dress dress and cowboy boots. Holy shit. It was the first time I’d seen her dressed for a night out. She’d have to beat men away looking like that. She arrived alone, too. I wondered who she was meeting. Maeve was at a work event with Tucker, and the other girls weren’t in town. I felt a little creepy that I knew that information so readily. Looks like she’s ready for a fun time, I thought, as I got back to my tasks.
