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Chapter Two: Rafe
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I smile at the woman across from me at the bar, mentally figuring how good my chances are to take her home tonight and that she’s not so drunk that I shouldn’t.
The gorgeous, willowy blond is mildly intoxicated but not so much that I think she can’t make a decision. I’ve got a few more hours of work to put into it though and by then she might be three sheets to the wind. I might be an asshole and a manwhore but I have standards and ethics. And they include no drunk women.
So with a mental shrug, I step away and stop flirting. I’m not willing to risk it.
I’m wiping down the bar in between orders when I see the woman off in a booth alone. I draw in a deep breath, stunned. Lord, she’s gorgeous. A sweet face with big, light blue eyes and pale skin. Full, pouty pink lips shimmering when she draws her tongue across the slick surface. A pretty flush on her cheeks when she meets my eyes.
She quickly looks down and I see her hands twisting in her lap. Even sitting down I can tell she’s curvy in all the right places. And that long, fire-engine red hair just makes me want to knot it around my fist and find out just how silky-soft it is.
But her eyes keep darting to the door so I am guessing she’s meeting someone tonight. I turn away. Too damn bad because any guy that would make a woman that looks like that wait, has to be a total idiot. Someone with less scruples than me might just end up taking her home and stealing her out from under him.
Not me though. I’ve had more than one woman do that to me so I don’t bother getting too serious about women in my bar. They’re just looking for a good time.
Not this one, though. She’s got entanglements written all over her.
I turn my back on her and wait on another woman eyeing me up like a piece of meat. When men say that women don’t want to just have a good time? They apparently haven’t hung out in bars. I get more than my fair share of pussy.
Occasionally, I think about whether I want to settle down. And I’ve come pretty close to thinking seriously about it. But not with a woman in a bar. Fidelity isn’t a side-effect of hanging out on a barstool.
My eyes are drawn to the glowing redhead again when I hand off another drink. My shoulders slump a little. Because there’s a good-looking guy standing in front of her. She’s smiling slightly at him, shyly holding out her hand and biting that shimmery lip just like I want to.
He sits down and they start talking. I watch Marissa stroll over and take their order. And when she comes up to the bar and gives me an order for a white wine and a draft beer, I can’t help but ask.
I nod my head towards the couple. She’s listening intently to something he’s saying. He’s got his chest puffed out and he looks like he’s bragging. Cause women love that.
“What’s up with those two? Overhear anything?”
She smirks at me. “Really, dude. She’s not your usual type.”
“Just tell me if you heard anything,” I grumble.
“I did. It’s apparently a blind date. He seems to work on cars and she’s a nurse.”
That explains that tense look on her face. She’s got a stressful job. I’m betting Miss Priss over there would’t know how to have a good time even if she fell on it.
I sigh. “Hmmm. They don’t really seem like a good fit.”
Her grin widens. “And you think you would be?”
“Hell no,” I snort. “She looks pretty uptight. Like she’s a tight ass.”
“That’s a pretty asshole comment.”
I slide her the drinks and she sits them on her tray. “You might get a shot, actually. I don’t think she likes him.” And with that parting shot, she taps the bar and steps off to deliver the drinks.
I watch her leave them and the guy picks his up right away, draining it in two long swallows. She on the other hand sips at her glass.
I watch him stand up and say something to her, before walking back to the back of the bar where the restrooms are at. He’s staring at his phone, typing something with a frown on his face.
She sits still and quiet, like she’s on a little island in the midst of a rowdy party.
I turn back to get some more drinks and try to forget the curvy little redhead. She’s got a date. Hopefully, she doesn’t hang around in the bar too long. I can’t seem to focus on anything else tonight.
Half an hour later, I get another quick break when my extra bartender gets in to help me. And I get a little thrill in my chest when I see she’s still here. But she’s almost at the end of her drink and her date is nowhere in sight. I swear to god, I can see tears in her eyes and my chest tightens.
