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My disgusted reaction must have shown on my face though, because his mouth tipped up in a smile.
“Y’know,” he said, scooting in even further as if to tell me a secret, “I get the distinct impression you don’t like me very much.”
I practically choked on my beer at that, wiping a hand across my lips and leaning away in an attempt to put some space between us. “What on earth gave you that impression?” I asked.
My sarcasm appeared to be lost on him though, because he pursed his lips, squinting at me thoughtfully, if somewhat blearily.
“Well, you’re not very nice to me,” he said. “I’ve always been nice to you, haven’t I?”
I sighed. “Yes, Drew, you’ve always been delightful. Don’t take it personally; I don’t particularly like anyone.”
He pressed forward again, and I found myself unable to scoot my stool any further without running into the wall.
“Well, thas’ not true,” he slurred. “You get on fine with Nora. And Frank. And you talk to that big fuckin’ Neanderthal in chemistry.”
“You mean Devan? He’s my lab partner,” I pointed out, taking another pull of my beer and pretending I didn’t feel trapped by the wall at my back. “I kinda have to talk to him.”
I glanced over Drew’s shoulder, but Julie and Nora had disappeared, leaving us alone at the bar.
He shook his head. “Nah, I’ve seen you laugh. You joke around with that…loser,” he practically spit the word, “and you ignore the rest of us.”
“The rest of you,” I repeated, rolling my eyes. “You mean you?” Honestly, why did he even care what I thought of him? I’d hardly made any secret of my dislike. I shook my head, edging away again. “You’re drunk, Drew. You’re not even going to remember any of this.” I scanned the crowd for my roommates, wondering if they’d be willing to leave even though we hadn’t been there very long.
“This was a bad idea,” I muttered to myself. “I knew I shouldn’t have come.”
His hand shot out, grabbing my wrist again. “I’m not that drunk, mystery girl. I’ll remember how you’d rather leave then sit here and have a pleasant conversation with me.”
“Oh,” I scoffed, trying to cover the discomfort I felt at having his hand locked around my wrist. “Is that what this is? A pleasant conversation? Sorry, I must have been confused.”
His grip tightened, until I could practically feel the bones in my wrist grinding together. Unwilling to show fear to a power-hungry bully, I worked to keep my face neutral even as my chest grew tight.
“You’re a bitch, you know that?” He sneered, his handsome face turning ugly as his features twisted. Fuck. Where the hell was Nora? “You think you’re better than—”
“Is there a problem here?”
11
The voice was low and dangerous, and relief flooded my system as I jerked my gaze over to the hulking tower of a man standing behind us. Micah met my gaze and I blinked, my eyes widening. If his voice hadn’t been familiar, I might not have recognized him at all. I hadn’t even realized that he, like me, was careful to only wear long-sleeved shirts to class until I saw him in that moment. His slim-fitting gray t-shirt revealed thickly muscled arms that were so heavily tattooed I could barely see any skin showing between the swirls of ink. It was ironic, considering that was what Drew had thought I was hiding beneath my clothing.
Those impressive arms were crossed in front of his well-defined chest, and the air around him was thick with menace as he hovered over the bar where Drew still had my wrist in his grasp.
Rather than drop my arm or appear even remotely intimidated however, Drew spat out a contemptuous laugh. “Oh, look, mystery girl, here’s one of them now, come to save the day. Look at him there; you think he’s your knight in shining armor? I’ll tell you a secret…” He leaned in so close I could smell the alcohol on his breath, and lowered his voice to a mock whisper. “…Mister Tall-Dark-and-Menacing here won’t lift a finger to help you. He’ll just stand there and look scary, and he thinks it’ll work on me.”
Drew lifted his taunting gaze to Micah, the sneering challenge clear on his face. Micah’s scowl grew darker, the thunderclouds around him thicker, and I was impressed by Drew’s bravado. If Micah had been glaring at me with that level of menace, I doubt I would have been so cavalier.
“Why don’t you let go of her wrist?” Micah said, his voice soft but deadly. He was a far cry from the soft-spoken guy who sketched pictures with me on our hidden boulder by the lake. The scar that I barely even noticed anymore stood out in sharp relief through his scowl.
But Drew just blinked up at him blearily, his face twisted in an overly thoughtful expression. “No, I don’t think I will. I rather like the feel of her skin.”
I tensed. Gross.
Micah stepped forward, his hulking form towering over us, and Drew was so close his foul breath stirred the strands of my hair. Suddenly I’d had enough.
Enough threats, enough drunken stupidity, enough looming testosterone.
Clasping my hands together, I brought both of them down as hard as I could on the edge of the bar. The fingers Drew still had clasped around my wrist slammed into the wood and his grip released as he howled in pain. Not pausing to see what happened next, I ducked under Micah’s arm and hurried across the crowded room, making a beeline for the doors. I didn’t see Nora or Frank on my way, but I didn’t stop to look around. I had to get out of that stuffy room.
I pushed through the heavy wooden doors and felt the cool relief of the night air rush over my skin. Leaning against the side of the building, I took deep gulping breaths of the blessedly clean air, trying to figure out what the hell had just happened.
