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I bit my lip because I was sure there was a compliment in there. Somewhere.
“Well excuse me, but I didn’t get this dressed up for nothing,” I said.
“I know you didn’t,” Drew muttered, returning his eyes to my cleavage as I crossed my arms. I uncrossed them.
“And I definitely didn’t get dressed up solely for your viewing pleasure, Mr. Maddox.”
He groaned with irritation, finally sounding awake.
“Yes, thank you. I know that.”
“So?”
He kept his stare fixed on me for two hard seconds. Then he nodded behind him.
“Just get in the car.”
Whatever sexpot impression I’d made on Drew outside the club before was swiftly annihilated once we arrived at our next location. But I didn’t mind and I apologized for nothing.
We wound up going to The Roof on 5th, which was, unsurprisingly, a rooftop bar on Fifth Ave. I’d heard of it before and I was already excited to go, but when we actually rode the elevator all the way to the top, and the doors opened, I almost burst into tears.
“Omigod,” I gasped because it was so unreal. Presented before me was the closest, most breathtaking view of the very top of the Empire State Building. It was like being an arm’s reach from the moon. It was right next to this roof, and it glowed so magnificently close that I swore I could walk across the balcony, hold out my hand and actually touch it.
“What’s going on? You alright?” Drew turned around.
“Yes. No. I don’t know. I’m having a moment.”
He stared for a second.
“Jesus,” he said when he realized he wasn’t going to get me to move.
But come on – this was surreal. I’d grown up looking at pictures of the New York skyline, obviously, and I still had a beloved, framed Polaroid I took of this building when I first came to see it in person.
I was fourteen years old. I’d just had the worst fight of my life with Kaylie, and Mom told me to sleep somewhere else for the night. When I arrived a sniveling mess at Mike’s house, he announced that he was going to turn my worst day ever into the best, and took me on my first trip to Manhattan.
Our first stop had been the Empire State.
“Alright, enough.” Drew got my attention when he took my hand in his. “If you’re my girlfriend you need to act like I’ve taken you on a date before, because right now it looks like I kept you locked up for the past six months and just let you out for the first time tonight.”
I laughed instead of retorting because I knew it was a hundred percent true.
“Geez. Sorry, okay? I just never thought I’d see the Empire State Building this up close and personal.”
“Tourists and middle school field trips do it every day, so dream bigger.”
“Eff you, dickhead.”
“Also, cursing me off loses its edge when you say ‘eff’ instead of fuck.”
“Fine. In that case fuck. You,” I enunciated. Drew eyed me.
“Yeah. I wish.”
The remark made my lashes flutter, but it was said in such passing that I really didn’t have time to react before a hand shot out on our away to the table, viciously smacking Drew’s side to get his attention. I startled for all of a second before I looked at who the arm belonged to and recognized that thick, dark hair and big, mischievous smile.
“Emmett!” I shrieked, bursting out of Drew’s grasp to throw my arms around Emmett’s neck. “Oh my God, dude, tell me Aly’s here with you,” I whispered desperately, though I could see he was sitting with a bunch of men in suits. Definitely clients. Who were all staring at me.
“She’s not, I’m sorry,” Emmett whispered back with a laugh. “How you holding up with the asshole though?”
