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With their drinks held high in the air their group stood and began singing loudly. The music abruptly cut off and everyone in the club joined in. Bailey blushed as the hoots and hollers began. Some propositions rang out as well which brought out the naughty side of her friends, who started a bump and grind dance with the men around them. She happily joined them, forgetting momentarily that she had a date arriving eventually.
“So, what do you think Cole is going to do to entertain us tonight?” Dereck asked as the music resumed, and the crowd calmed slightly. “I say he’ll be drunk when he gets here like that lounge singer Taylor brought to the club about six months ago.”
“No, he’ll be too snooty for this place like the lawyer from last year. You know the one, Mr. Stuck-up-a-Gus,” Lee stated with a wicked grin.
“His name was Stephanopoulos, you idiot,” Taylor replied with a laugh and a light bop on the head. “I’m so thrilled you’re all having such fun with my life history.”
“Not your whole life, sweetie. Just the men you seem to draw to you,” Bailey teased. “You know they’ve all been a bit, well to put it nicely, odd.”
“Go ahead and tell it like it is,” she said. “They were all screwed up and very strange. However, I was sort of partial to Wayne. Remember him? He worshipped the ground I walked on.”
Lee spit his drink out due to his shock and laughter. “Yep, he worshipped you, alright. He was a stalker, Taylor. The man’s in jail.”
“I never said he was perfect, just devoted,” she tried saying with a straight face, then burst into hysterical laughter.
“Cole has been around for five weeks. Isn’t that some kind of record?” Alina asked.
“Very funny. I’ve had relationships that lasted longer, just not lately. And look at that! Here comes Cole now!”
Cole swaggered across the room, rudely pushing his way through the crowd without handing out any apologies. His suit jacket was slung over his shoulder. The neck of his dress shirt was unbuttoned, and his cuffs were rolled up to his elbows. Several women turned to watch him walk and got nasty looks from their men. One woman even reached out to touch him and got her hand slapped by her date.
He was shortstopping handsome, yet Taylor was beginning to have doubts about him. There were times his attitude got on her nerves, and she just wanted him to go away. He was very attentive but had a jealous streak as well. For instance, she knew he would have started a fight if he’d seen Lee flirting and playing with her hair. He’d once punched a drunk guy at a bar for falling across her lap. Since it had been their second date and she was smitten by his charm she had thought it was adorable.
“You’re late. I was getting worried,” Taylor said as she stood to greet him.
He lifted an eyebrow and testily replied, “I was busy. Besides, you seem to have had no problem starting the celebration without me. How drunk are you?”
“I’m not drunk. I’ve only had a couple of rum and Coke’s and the second one is only half gone. Do you want me to order one for you?” she asked, holding back the retort she wanted to make.
“You need to eat something and lay off the drinks for a while. You get sloppy when you have too many,” he announced.
Then he picked up her glass and swallowed what was left in it. He waved over a waiter and ordered some nachos and a club soda for Taylor without asking if she was hungry.
“Sorry, I’m late,” he finally told Bailey who was staring at him as if he had a third eye on his forehead.
She glanced around at her friends. They appeared horrorstruck by the way he’d treated her. Their eyes clearly told her they thought he was an asshole.
Cole took over the conversation at the tables they’d pushed together, holding court as if we were supposed to hang on every word he said. Their group got larger as friends of her friends came to join the party. She didn’t know most of them. In fact, she didn’t even look at their faces. She was getting too upset since Cole kept nudging her any time she stopped eating.
Lee saw she was about to blow up, so he asked her to dance.
Cole glared at him and demanded, “She’s tipsy. Don’t try to take advantage of that or you’ll answer to me. Keep some distance between you and bring her back the instant the song is over.”
Taylor marched away from the table before she said or did something offensive, something that she would regret.
“Are you okay?” Lee asked.
“No, I’m not. I want another drink. Let’s get one instead of dancing.”
Lee obliged her by leading her to a barstool. She felt the death stare Cole was giving her as he watched. It practically burned a hole through her back. And when she went back to the table he was quick to say, “I thought I told you you’d had enough to drink. And I’m not happy about you wondering off with anyone except me, especially if they’re going to indulge your disobedient whims.”
“Guess what. I don’t give a damn what you like or don’t like about me. I’m tired of you trying to control everything I do and say. I’m not a child. You don’t get to order me around or call me disobedient. Get out! Go away! We are so done! I’m taking back my life and I don’t want you in it!” Taylor shouted. She had lost all interest in being polite and not causing a scene.
“You’re just embarrassing yourself and me, so I’ll go for now. Like I said, you get sloppy when you’re drunk. Maybe, your friends should get you under control,” Cole stated as he slammed his chair against the table and left.
“Oh, Bailey! I’m so sorry for ruining your party. I didn’t mean for this to happen. I promise you’ll never have to see him again,” Taylor said with tears of shame running down her cheeks.
Bailey gave her a hug and replied, “It’s fine. You didn’t ruin anything. I’m having a great time. Let all that nonsense go and have some fun, too. He’s not worth a second thought.”
Taylor let the love of her friends consume her and shoved aside the mistakes she had made where men were concerned. She allowed herself to find joy in the moment, so the rest of the night was fun.
However, she also made a resolution that her life was going to be different from now on. She was going to take some time out to learn exactly what she wanted for her future. Instead of flitting from one relationship to another and not thinking about whether she was happy or not she was going to make a decision about how she wished to go forward. Either she would choose to have a lot of fun with non-attachment types of relationships and forego marriage, or she would wait for that one special, really great guy who could possibly be everything to her and give all she had to him.
