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But then the brave chick blocked my view as she cupped his ass in her hands, giving it a firm squeeze as she leaned in and licked his exposed shoulder blade.
My feet moved before my brain fully caught up, and suddenly, I was standing behind Miss Handsy. Grabbing her by the back of her hair, I jerked her around to face me just as Barrick and Braxton turned.
“Hey!” the drunk chick screeched. “What the hell?”
“How pissed would you be if some random guy came up behind you and did that?” I seethed. “You would be screaming assault. Double standards much, slut?” I pushed her away, disgusted by her. “Keep your hands and your nasty mouth to yourself.”
She turned blood red in the face, but tears filled her eyes, and she mumbled a slurred, “Sorry,” before letting her friends pull her toward the exit.
I glared after them, waiting until they were out the door before daring to look at the two guys standing behind me.
Braxton clapped his hands in approval, making me blush.
Grinning, Barrick grabbed my hand and tugged me up to the bar between him and his cousin. “What are you drinking, firecracker?”
I glanced at his bottle of beer, then Braxton’s glass of soda. The bartender walked up to us, his face weathered but his green eyes full of amusement. “Whatever she wants, it’s on the house,” he informed my friends. “Best show I’ve had in here in a hell of a long time. Whatcha want, sweetheart?”
I’d been ready to order a soda, but there was something familiar about this man that had me pausing and taking a closer look at him. “Do I know you?” I asked, confused because I was sure I’d never met him before in my life. “I feel like we’ve met before.”
He shrugged. “No, darlin’. Don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure. Name’s Eddie Jameson. What’s yours?”
“Mia.”
“What will it be, Miss Mia?” He leaned forward, a grin splitting his face, and the feeling that I knew him only grew. It was unsettling, and I backed up a step.
Feeling my sudden tension, both Barrick and Braxton moved in closer to me. But I quickly shook it off, telling myself I was being crazy, and gave Eddie a smile. “Ginger ale, please.”
The bartender set my glass in front of me and, with a wink, moved on down the bar to get someone else a drink.
“You want something harder?” Barrick asked as I took a thirsty swallow. “It’s fine if you do. I got you covered.”
I shook my head, placing the half-empty glass back on the bar top. “No, I’m good. I haven’t eaten dinner yet, so it will go straight to my head anyway.”
“You haven’t eaten?” His handsome face clouded over. “Why the hell not?”
“Because I haven’t had time,” I told him, not liking his tone. “My last class ran late, and I didn’t have time to grab something on my way to work.” I didn’t add that I’d been too excited to get to the bar to hang out with him to even think about eating after work. He didn’t need to know that—or have that kind of power over me.
“You need to eat, woman. No skipping meals.” He grabbed his bottle of beer, drained the rest of it, and then tossed down a few bills. “Brax, let’s go.”
Taking my hand, Barrick pulled me toward the exit. “I just got here,” I complained.
“And now you’re leaving.” Outside on the street, he turned left, and we walked down the street toward the parking lot. “We’re eating dinner.”
“You’re so frustrating,” I muttered as he unlocked a white Jeep Cherokee and opened the front passenger door.
“Get in, Mia. Or I’ll put you in,” he threa
tened.
“Maybe I don’t want to eat.” Stubbornly, I pulled my hand free from his and crossed my arms over my chest, glaring at him. But then my stomach growled long and loud, making him raise his brow at me.
Braxton laughed as he got in the back seat. “I want tacos.”
My stomach only growled again at the thought of one of my favorite foods. Sighing, I got in. “Tacos sound good, I guess.”
“Tacos it is, then,” Barrick said with a grin that was so infectious, I had one on my own face by the time he got behind the wheel and turned on the Jeep. “Take out, or eat it there?”
“Take out,” Braxton and I said at the same time, causing us both to laugh and Barrick to glare at his cousin in the rearview mirror.
