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“Least you're looking hot and sexy as always, Everleigh…” he tried to placate me.
“Not going to work Freddie, you wanker,” I hissed. “Now get me a drink while I do something with this bird’s nest and face of mine,” I joked and waved the girls over.
“One wine coming up,” Freddie said whilst I flipped my finger at him as the girls laughed.
“What did he think he was playing at?” Chrissie said, looking at me as she raised a brow. She grabbed a pile of grips and a brush, before she pushed me down to sit on the white stool in the corner of the room in front of my ornate mirror.
“Not a damn clue.” I sighed as Isobel grabbed the glass from Freddie, and he shrugged his shoulders.
“Gonna be long?” he asked as all three of us turned our necks quickly enough. We could've caused an injury and just stared at him, feeling the anger building within. “Okay, I get it. I’ll just go and sit down over there.”
“Good idea,” Isobel replied as he grabbed his beer and nursed it on his kneecap that was bouncing up and down.
Mark and I had history, thankfully it looked like Freddie was none the wiser by the move he had played. It's not like I had flaunted it and told him about our time together. Yes, it was over a year ago hence why I hadn't minded going to the bar. Mark and I had fun, but I’d made it clear it was a once and done moment. He tried calling a redo, but he finally got the message and moved on, but if he’d orchestrated a date, maybe not. Damn it, another guy who wanted more and I had to push him away. What was it with the fucking clingers? Now he thought he could use conditions to win me back. Not fucking likely. He had another thing coming if he thought that was the case.
* * *
The girls and I deliberately made Freddie wait an hour, allowing him the chance to perfect his own look and damn, had he made an effort in his rolled up sleeved shirt and skinny, tight fit jeans. I just hoped he didn’t attempt any awkward dance moves and rip anything. I put the final touches to my look with half pinned tousled loose brown curls. I intended to celebrate tonight; we were all going to have a fun night out. Delicate makeup with a touch of gold glitter on my eyelids to bring out the golden specks in my hazel eyes, a flick of eyeliner and a pale peach gloss and I was good to go.
I apologized for my harshness to Freddie and bared all my past. He was furious that Mark had put him in that predicament. Freddie knew my rule of one time and that was it, he knew it was self-preservation mode. He figured that out early on in our friendship and never pushed for the reason, nor did he ask who had hurt me. I should have been honest earlier, but I never thought Mark would’ve stooped to such lows. The girls were shocked at the bare faced audacity but tonight was about the four of us and celebrating. “No guys for any of us,” – and I pointed my finger at Freddie winking; that meant him too.
“Deal,” everyone said together as we chuckled and linked arms, heading outside after the notification our uber had arrived. “Time to go.”
The driver managed to avoid the majority of the packed areas of the city with his knowledge of the backstreets able to cut our journey length. I added an additional tip when we arrived at Keyo, when the driver, ever the gentleman, even offers to open the passenger door for us. I wasn’t sure if this was a result of gratitude or just his demeanor, but it was much appreciated. We stepped up to the burly bouncer at the front of the queue.
“We're guests of Mark,” Freddie said, taking the lead as he pushed in front of the three of us. He quirked his head to the side and allowed his eyes to trail up and down the bouncer's body.Damn it, five bloody minutes and Freddie was prowling his man crush.
“Ah, yes…”the bouncer replied, whilst his finger trails down the list in front of him, stopping suddenly on only I assume Mark’s details.
“In you go, third booth on the right, next to the bar,” he said, opening up the thick rope barrier to usher us in. Other party goers gasped and moaned at why we were getting preferential treatment. The bouncer grabbed Freddie's taunt forearm and ran his hand over the points on his crown tattoo. “See you later, yeah?”
“Yeah.” Freddie winked before licking his lips and catching up with the three of us who had just watched the interaction unfold.
“Not even five minutes, Fred…” I nudged him as he held his hands out in mock surrender and looked over his shoulder for a second glance.
“He's hot, Everleigh.”
“I’ll give you that he’s hot, so first rounds on you for breaking the no men code.” The girls high fived me as we all laughed and thanked Freddie. We walked into the venue and gasped, no wonder the lists to enter were months long by the looks of the place. Waiters lined up and down the floor dressed in top-notch suits with an embroidered emblem sewn into the napkins. I was even certain I saw a well-known influencer propped against the bar with a line of cocktails ready to sample and review. It made my local club seem like a dive in comparison. It was out of this world posh. I raised an eyebrow towards Freddie. “Did you know?”
“Not a chance. If I had known it was this fucking posh, I'd have been here every night… especially withthatbeefcake working the door.” Freddie winked before he gave me a spin to get a quick second glance.
“True.”
The four of us made our way over to the booth the bouncer told us about. It had been reserved for us as our eyes bounced across the room. Sleek, modern lines with spotted lights draped around the contrasted light beech beams which held the perfect glass outer building in place. The views of New York surrounded us; they matched the caliber of the place. I spotted the ferry lights traveling across to Staten Island shimmering in the distance as it embarked on its path towards the Statue of Liberty. Seriously breathtaking. Fluorescent lights and a smoke screen hit the dancefloor as the bass of the music raised a notch. I was knocked back to reality by the slap to the thigh from Chrissie.
“Drink?” She looked into my eyes, trying to talk to me as I looked over her shoulder.Ah.
I hadn't even looked at the menu. To be honest, I didn't give a shit. I wasn't going to be drinking much as tomorrow I had a meeting over at The Wilden with the CEO. I had my professionalism to think about and being hungover wouldn't be a great impression.
“Right, game time.” I took a deep breath as I walked to the bar with the girls and Freddie. “Mark.” I nodded. “Thanks for the tickets tonight,” I curtly said, not giving him a chance to reply. “I would love a Manhattan please, and a wiener with cheese and onions. Guys?”
“Yeah, wieners all round.”
“Hold the cheese on mine!” Chrissie shouted. “I need to watch the calories,” she said as she ran her hands down her waist.
“Give over.” Isobel chuckled. “Your body is fine, and you know it.”
“Anything else?” Mark asked, interrupting us as a pinkish tinge formed on his ears and tapping his pen against his notepad.
