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“No. No, it’s not. Trust me on this. You don’t want to sleep with some random guy tonight.”
“I do.” She gave one sharp nod. “I really do. I’m breaking free tonight21o0
15+nd getting over Jimmy. Jimmy, who’s probably having makeup sex with hiswiferight now.” Her false bravado faded for a moment when she mentioned his name, but she quickly straightened her shoulders and masked it over. “So, I’m gonna have sex with someone else too.”
“Shit,” I whispered under my breath as I saw the determination flickering in her eyes.
“Everything okay?” Alec asked as he came over.
She jutted a thumb at me. “He won’t have sex with me, so I’m gonna ask one of those guys,” Ivy answered with an innocent grin as she pointed across the bar.
Alec looked at them, then back at me with bulging eyes. “Uh, no. You’re not having sex with anyone, Ivy. You’re wasted.”
“I am not!” she protested. “Why does everyone think I’m drunk?”
“Because you are,” we echoed.
“I’m fine. See!” She stood up straight and lifted one foot. When she lost her balance, I caught her in my arms.
Big green eyes blinked up at me as she settled back into my embrace. “Okay, so maybe I’m a little tipsy.”
I grinned down at her, and my heart flipped when she smiled back. “You’re more than a little tipsy. You’re wasted. Now is not the time to be choosing to have your first one-night stand. It would have been one thing if you’d asked earlier when you were sober, but that ship has sailed. You didn’t want to then, so we’re not doing it now.”
When her smile dropped into a frown, it hurt my heart. Even though rejecting her tempting offer was best for her, I hated to be the one that stole that beautiful smile from her face.
“But I want to do this, Ethan. You don’t understand. Everyone cheats on me. I need to know if it’s because I’m bad in bed. There’s no other answer. I need this. I’m doing this. Tonight.”
I set her back up on her feet but kept an arm around her.
“Dude,” Alec said. “This can’t happen. I promised to keep her safe.”
“Can you close up early and get her home?”
He glanced at the bar. “Shit. I guess I could, but with that group of ladies that came in, my boss will kill me for kicking out big spenders.”
“I’m fine!” Ivy interjected. “Don’t close up on my account.”
“She needs to get out of here,” I said, ignoring her. “She’s going to go home with some douche real soon.”
“That’s what I want!” Ivy grinned widely. “So, you just do your bartending, and I’ll go find someone to take me home. Win-win!”
Alec blew out a breath as he looked at her, then me. “Yeah. She needs to go. I over-served her, so this is on me. I’ll kick everyone out and get her out of here if you can just watch her in the meantime. Fuck. I’m gonna get fired.”
“I can take her to my place,” I offered. “She can stay with me. I don’t want you to lose your job.”
Alec arched an accusatory eyebrow. “No way.”
“I won’t,” I defended, seeing the concern flicker behind his eyes. “Seriously, man. I would never. I’ll just take her home, tuck her up on my couch, and then you can pick her up when you’re done with work or in the morning. It’s totally fine.”
“Are you sure?” He glanced back at the group of ladies waving at him. “You promise me you’ll keep it in your pants?”
“You know me, Alec. I’m not that dude. I’ll just get her out of here and somewhere safe.”
“Thanks, Ethan. Seriously. I owe you. I didn’t think she was gonna start trying to sleep with people, or I never would have let her get this drunk.”
“It’s fine.” I looked to Ivy, who just swiveled her head back and forth between us while we talked. “I’ve got her.”
“Wait.” Ivy lifted a hand. “So, I’m going home with you?”
