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“No, this is perfect! Especially with the mini pink umbrella,” she says before bringing the drink back up to her lips. I watch her take a sip and realize this girl has no idea how sexy she is. The bar lights are dim, but it feels like every spotlight is on her in this moment.
She gives me a questioning look. “What?”
“Nothing.” I run my hand through my hair and feel my cheeks begin to flush. I can’t even begin to tell her the thoughts that were just running through my mind. “So, how did you get here anyway? I would have picked you up.”
“I had my brother, Jason, bring me.” She points to the far side of the bar where he sits with some friends. I recognize him from school sports and his occasional appearance at the yacht club with his dad. “He likes this place, so it was really no problem for him to take me.”
“I really am glad you came.” I look down, and the second my eyes lock with hers, I can feel my heart trip over itself.
“I’m glad I came too.”
* * *
After a few drinks for each of us and a lot of laughs, Natalie tells me she needs to run to the restroom. She starts to jump off the stool, but I can tell what is about to happen. I grab her by the waist as she loses her balance and miscalculates how far down the step is. I bring her down slowly, facing me, and I can hear her breath falter. When her feet reach the ground, I push her hair out of her face so I can look into her eyes.
“Come here,” is all I need to say before her mouth is on mine. Her lips move fiercely, just the way I like, but I bring her speed down, knowing what a kiss like that can lead to. We pull away slowly, and she smiles.
“I’ll be right back.”
A smile forms on my face without realizing it as I watch her walk away.
Goddamn.
Who would have guessed it would be Natalie Spencer I would be spending two nights in a row with? That it would be thoughts of Natalie keeping me up at night. And boy, were they good thoughts …
“Hey, Nate!” I hear a familiar girl’s voice over my shoulder and turn around to see Vanessa Gordon.
“Vanessa! How are you?” She jumps up to hug me.
“I’m good! I’m just here with my family.” She points to a big group that’s taking up a whole section of the tavern in the back. “We came home for the weekend for a family birthday party.”
“We? Does that mean Brian is here too?” I ask, looking around the bar excitedly. I hadn’t seen him in a few weeks, and it was weird to go that long since we had spent a lot of time together at school in New Hampshire for the past two years.
“Yeah, he should be here any minute!” she responds. “But, hey, can I ask you something?” She waits for me to nod my head. “Did I just see you here with Natalie a few minutes ago?”
“Actually, yeah,” I say. “We kind of ran into each other on campus. I had no idea she was also attending LU, and well …” I shrug my shoulders and laugh a little at the situation’s awkwardness. “Is it weird?”
“No, I think it’s great! I always knew Natalie had a crush on you, so I was glad to see you two together. I was just surprised,” she says with a genuine smile.
“She used to have a crush on me?” I ask, unaware of this news.
“Oh jeez, don’t play stupid with me.” She rolls her eyes. “You must be dumber than I thought if you didn’t know that.” She punches my arm playfully as I feign injury. “I miss her a lot, actually, so I’m glad to know she’s doing well.” Vanessa looks down at the drink in her hand.
“If you don’t mind me asking, why aren’t you and Natalie friends anymore? I mean, you guys used to do everything together. Did something happen?”
“That’s the thing, Nate. Nothing happened. Nothing I can even think of. The last night I saw her, she was over at my house for a party, and then, that was it. I never heard from her or saw her again.” She shrugs her shoulders, and a defeated look passes over her face.
“Do you happen to know which party this was?” I ask, already feeling like I know the answer.
“Umm, I think it was the Halloween party last year.” She thinks for a bit longer. “Yeah, that’s exactly when it was because it was for your birthday.”
“I see.” I start to flash back to that night, which makes my stomach drop.
So, something did happen that night.
“I used to try calling her, but she never answered or called me back. I left her voicemails and texts, but I never got any response. So, I don’t know.” Her eyes begin to water. “If something had happened, if there was something I did to upset her, I would maybe understand, but I just don’t have any idea what happened.”
I put my hand lightly on her shoulder. “Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I was honestly just curious.”
