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“Yeah, sure.” I pull my attention toward her. It takes all my self control to not look back and give him the attention his body language begs for right now, but I have enough self respect to require him to use his words to tell me what he wants. I think.
“Umm, is that Dean?” Avery whispers a little too loudly as she drags me to the bathroom in the back of the room.
“Sure is,” I say, rolling my eyes.
“What’s up? Why aren’t you more excited, especially after how much fun you said you had with him last week!” She’s not trying to whisper anymore.
“Shhh.” I cover her mouth, noting the three other girls standing in front of the bathroom mirror. I know there’s nothing all that personal about what she’s saying, but the college bar scene is small, and you never know. Especially when I don’t know. Plus, out of the corner of my eyes, I see the blonde in a lacy red tank top muttering what feels like gossip, leaning into her friends as she unscrews the wand of her lip gloss.
She shrugs, with her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.
“That’s exactly why I’m not excited. I thought last week was perfect. He stayed over and didn't try to sleep with me, but not in an uninterested kind of way. Then the next morning we went to breakfast, he paid, and then he dropped me off back home. The only other time I’ve seen him was when we crossed paths at school and he was talking to a buddy of his about a party he didn’t invite me to. Oh, and then he texted me all throughout said party butstillhasn’t made plans with me. Then all of a sudden, he just happens to be in the same bar but doesn’t come over to me until he sees me playing pool with Miller? I mean, I could tell he got the wrong idea, but it doesn’t seem like it’s any of his business if he isn’t making an effort to spend time with me in the first place.”
Avery rolls her eyes at me this time. “Have you tried asking him to hang out first, Mace?”
My deadpan expression confirms to her I haven’t.
“Look, I appreciate your level of self respect right now, but I was at the bar talking to Taylor while you were playing. I noticed a guy staring at you, but didn’t realize it was him at first. He couldn’t take his eyes off you. When Miller was showing you what to do–since you’re worse than me–his eyes glossed over with jealousy. I could tell even through these dingy red lights. The guy clearly has feelings for you.”
“Yeah, maybe.” I try to believe what I’m saying as I open the door to leave the bathroom. I need another drink.
I walk back toward the bar and attempt to get the bartender’s attention. I’m leaning against the counter, waiting for her to notice me, but as soon as she starts my way, Dean slides in next to me and catches her attention first. “Hey, Jess, two whiskey sours please,” he says with a wink, although I’m not sure at which of us it’s directed.
He turns to me, pulling his toothpick back to his teeth, chewing on the end as he smiles at me. “Hey,” he says in a deep, possibly drunk but definitely sexy voice.
“Heeeey,” I draw out the word with hesitation in my voice.
He leans close enough for me to hear his whisper, his hand squeezing my hip. “You look good tonight, Maci.” God, he smells good, like the fir trees in my parents’ backyard. His hand catches under the silk at the edge of my tank top and his fingers slowly slide under, pulling my shirt up slightly as his thumb brushes across my bare skin. The sensual contact causes an involuntary gasp to escape my lips. He smirks like he’s aware of the effect he has on me. He’s about to say something else but right then a petite blonde with her boobs spilling over the top of her lacy red tank top squeezes into the small space behind Dean, pulling his attention away. “Hey, Dean.” I recognize her from the bathroom.
“What’s up, Julia?” He sounds slightly annoyed, not that she seems to notice.
Jess comes back with his drinks, and before Julia can reply, Dean cuts in. “Well, have a good night.” He slides one of the drinks over to me and turns away from her, leading me away with his hand on the small of my back.
We head to a booth by the pool tables, where Miller and Avery are leaning into each other, focused on Avery’s phone that rests on the table as she scrolls. Apparently, he couldn't talk her into playing a game. My friends glance up as I slide in first, and Dean follows me. “Hey, man,” he nods at Miller, before directing his gaze to Avery. As far as I can tell, he’s not embarrassed about his incorrect assumption from a few minutes ago. He seems comfortable even.
“I’m Avery. The…” I kick her under the table, knowing that if I don’t, she’ll go into an entire “don't hurt my girl” speech. That’s the last thing I need to add to this situation.
“Oh yeah, hi. I think you were at my work on Maci’s birthday?”
“Yup, that’s me!”
“You two do know most people who come to my work are there to hook up, right?” Dean chuckles.
“What you’re saying is you basically run a brothel?” Avery scrunches her face and laughs.
“Your words.” His eyes dance with amusement. “The amount of chlorine we put in the water kills the germs. It’s fine,” he adds with a smirk.
“Well, we definitely weren’t there for sex,” I shrug.
“Yet,” Dean mumbles so softly, I’m not sure I heard him correctly until my eyes lock with Avery’s wide ones, confirming I did.
Right as Miller is about to say something, Dean’s phone rings.
He glances at it, before looking at me. “Hey, I’m sorry, I need to take this.” He stands and walks away. Once again he exits a conversation leaving me with questions. Both the door and the rest of the bar are behind me, so I’m not sure which way he walks, but hopefully he comes back soon. That pull I feel toward him came back as soon as he touched me earlier. Not to mention, I’m willing to admit I’m enjoying the attention from him, especially after not seeing him for a week and definitely after he turned his back on another girl to walk away with me.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Twentyminutesgobyand Dean hasn’t come back. I’m irritated, and I’m ready to leave. Heading outside with Avery and Miller, I decide to only focus on the fact that I’m starving. I scan the four corners of the cross streets that most of the downtown bars are on until I spot my favorite little food cart. It’s called Dump City Dumplings, and they have the best dumplings I’ve ever tasted. I mean, I’ll make a new assessment if I ever make it to Asia, but for now, these are it for me.
