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Relief washed over the man’s face. “It’s great to meet you.”
A slight incline of his head was all Liam could manage. He was glad to finally meet his target, but the feeling was overshadowed by a hot spike of jealousy. Finn Walsh was certainly nothing special to look at. Cora could do—had done!—so much better than a man like this. For one thing, he had an extremely forgettable face. His suit and shirt looked as stiff as his posture, and he was wearing a red striped tie that Liam wouldn’t be caught dead in. And if history truly repeated itself, Finn was going to be as dull as a box of rocks.
Liam clenched and unclenched his hands as he followed them into the bar, doing his best to seek reason. No matter how tempting, it would not do to accidentally slip and punch the man in the kidney. That would be very hard to explain later.
It was dark inside, with intimate lighting and plush red velvet booths in the corners. Glowing sconces lined the walls casting soft pools of light on the ceiling, and round tables with leather chairs took up the main floor. A glossy wood counter ran along the far wall where two bartenders were serving drinks to a clientele far different from any tavern regulars Liam used to know. Most of the people here were dressed in sophisticated, well-tailored clothes, and the air was thick with the scents of cologne, aged leather and alcoholic drinks. Everything about this place was alluring and decadent and—Liam gazed at the shelves behind the bar filled with hundreds of liquor bottles—intoxicating. Designed to draw a man in and keep him there. Danté’s Inferno, indeed.
Cora took a seat in one of the booths, and Liam squeezed in beside her, leaving Finn to sit opposite them. Liam slung an arm over the back of the booth behind Cora and stared stonily at Finn.
The man gave him a nervous smile, tugged at his tie, then glanced away. Coward.
“There you are,” Cora said to a woman approaching the table.
A fiery redhead swooped into their booth on a cloud of spicy perfume, her silver bracelets jangling. The intrigued look she gave Liam was as wicked as her low-cut black dress.
“Liam, this is my best friend, Suzette Wilson,” Cora began. “Suze, meet—”
“Liam O’Connor,” the woman exclaimed, glancing at Liam like he held the answers to the universe. “Cora told me all about you on the phone.” Before Liam could respond, she slapped her hand on the table. “It’s high time we got a newbie in town. It gets boring when you grow up in the same place with the same people and everything’s just same old, same old, you know?”
“I—” Liam began.
“Tell us your whole life story,” Suzette blurted, pinning him with a cheeky smile. Her kohl-rimmed eyes roamed over him with blatant appreciation.
“I’m not sure you’d believe me if I did,” he said. “And most of it’s not fit to mention in the polite company of ladies.”
Suzette let out a delighted, throaty laugh that was pure feminine pleasure. “Damn, Cora, when you told me about him on the phone, you left out some very important details.”
Liam cocked a brow. “Like what?”
“Don’t ask,” Cora warned, throwing Suzette a look.
Suzette cupped her hand to the side of her mouth and told Liam in a stage whisper, “Like, she never mentioned you were all tall, dark, and...” She let out a giggle that ended on a hiccup. “Piratey looking.”
Liam gave Suzette an amused smirk. He wondered how many drinks she’d had. The glass in her hand was almost empty.
“Ignore her,” Cora said with a begrudging smile. “Suzette was dropped on her head at birth. We try not to talk about it.”
Suzette gave Cora an air kiss, then turned to the box of rocks beside her. “Oh. Hey, Finn. How are you? You’re so quiet, I didn’t notice you.”
Ha! Liam was beginning to like this friend of Cora’s.
“I mean I saw you,” Suzette said with a laugh, “but I was distracted.”
Before Finn could answer, Rob Hopper suddenly appeared at their table. “I’ll give you a distraction, Suzette.” He gave her a toothy grin and ran a hand through his hair. Liam was almost certain the man flexed his biceps on purpose.
Suzette made a show of sizing Rob up, unimpressed. “Sure thing, Rob. Let me know when he gets here.”
“Aw, come on, Red,” Rob pleaded. “Let me buy you a Long Island iced tea.”
She crinkled her forehead. “Hell, no. You know those things knock me flat on my ass.”
His grin became positively wolfish. “And the problem with that would be...?”
Suzette pressed her lips into a hard line, but it looked like she was trying not to smile. “I have to get up early for work tomorrow, so just forget it.”
“Fair enough,” Rob said. “A glass of wine, then. Please?”
“Fine. But only because you owe me.” She slid out of the booth to join him. “The last time you offered to buy me a drink, I watched you flirt with that flight attendant and then you left with her and stuck me with the bill.”
