“Yeah, it gets old going to clubs and not being able to enjoy ourselves,” Liam pipes up.
“Oh, you poor sweethearts. It must be really hard having all your adoring fans swooning at your feet,” I say sarcastically. To my surprise, they all burst out laughing.
“You are truly a breath of fresh air, and we are so honored you agreed to hang out with us,” Drew replies as the waitress slides open the door and pops her head in.
“Hey, Drew, ready to order?” she asks.
By her flirting demeanor, I realize she likes men, especially these three. I try not to feel inadequate because she is everything I’m not. But to my surprise, all three sets of eyes are focused on me and not her. Drew gives her our order without turning around, and she slides the door back, disappointment obvious on her face.
“So what do you think?” Drew asks.
“I think it’s perfect. Poe would have loved to hang out here. The detail’s amazing.”
“Well, they should be with the money I’ve put into this place.”
“Would you like to dance?” Colin’s dreamy accent makes me shiver. No, not with cold, but with the thought of dancing with him.
I’m tongue-tied, so I just nod. He exits the booth and helps me up when I slide out after him. I suddenly find myself on the dance floor, but how I got here is a blur. The second he takes my hand and doesn’t let go, my brain goes to mush. How can he be having this effect on me? I don’t feel this way with Drew and Liam, and they’re just as mega hot, but Colin makes me feel … well, he makes my blood sizzle.
As soon as we start to dance, the music changes to a slow, seductive beat and he moves in, putting his arms around my shoulders. I’m so happy I’m wearing my five-inch heels so I’m taller, and I gladly slide my arms around his waist. As my head meets his chest, I hear the strong beat of his heart. His sweet smelling cologne clings to my nose. He smells one-hundred percent delicious. Oh my heaven, I can feel his sculptured muscles beneath his silky shirt as we sway, and I hold back a groan as his hips move seductively against my overheated body.
Please, legs, don’t fail me now, I silently plead as they suddenly feel like Jell-O and I wobble a little on my heels.
As if he hears my thoughts, Colin tightens his hold on me and we begin moving as one. At least, I think we’re moving. I’ve never, ever felt this way before. I want to drag him into the nearest booth and, well, you know … feel every inch of his body with my fingers.
“It’s my turn.”
Drew’s voice is like a bucketful of cold water thrown over me. Colin’s warmth is removed and Drew takes one of my hands and places his other around my waist. His cologne isn’t overwhelming. In fact, it smells pretty good, but it’s nothing like Colin’s.
He moves us around the floor as effortlessly as anyone I have ever seen, but I feel nothing. No blood sizzle, no Jell-O legs and no desire to rip his clothes off and have my way with him. The song ends and he lets go and places a hand on my back as we exit the dance floor. I notice several females eyeing him up and down and smiling. I look up at him and he seems oblivious to their invitations.
The first thing I notice when we reach the table is that Colin is absent. Maybe he’s gone to the loo—a wonderful word the English use for toilet. I scoot in beside Liam and he grins at me.
“Colin had to split. Received an urgent phone call. Said he’d let us know later,” Liam says, minus the grin.
“That’s all? No details?” Drew looks puzzled.
“Nope. I told him to wait and we would go with, but he said he didn’t want to spoil our evening.”
My night has officially gone from overwhelming to a low simmer. For the next hour or so, I find myself dancing with Liam and Drew while ignoring the glares from most of the female population, and even some males join in on the hate parade. But my mind is pre-occupied with the emergency that made Colin leave so quickly without even a goodbye.
9
It’s Monday, and I still don’t know what made Colin leave the other night in such a hurry. Drew assured me it wasn’t anything serious, but Colin has been absent since the club. The coffee shop helps keep my mind occupied, as Mondays are our busiest days.
By the end of my shift, I’m exhausted and dread going to class. I quickly change my work clothes and jump on the subway, not wanting to be late to my class lecture. The next few weeks will be filled with studying, studying, and more studying, since end-of-semester finals are rapidly approaching.
Speaking of finals, I’ve only briefly mentioned Jeff. His full name is Jeffrey Thomas Bain Bradford the Fourth, and he’s about the sweetest guy you could ever meet. Julie and I met him our first week of college and we hit it off. His family is mega rich, but Jeff is no snob. He’s really tall—okay, so anyone taller than me is really tall—and he would make any woman drool over his long dark eyelashes and jet-black locks. But the true killer is his smile.
Yep, his smile makes you want to jump his bones … which the female population would find impossible because he bats for the other team, as my grandma loves to misquote all the time. It’s such a shame. My family loves Jeff and the grandmothers immediately thought he was my love interest. Not my mom, of course. Henry took care of that. When I brought home The Jackass, though, they all instantly disliked him. I wonder now why I dated him for three years. Why couldn’t I see what they saw? I guess “love” really is blind.
Anyway, back to Jeff. Since the semester began, he’s been busy interning at a law firm. He wants to be a lawyer. Not the sleaze-bag kind, but a lawyer that’s not solely in it for the money. We see each other in class, but little else lately.
That will change starting tonight. He’s going to be staying with me. We’re going to be joined at the hip while preparing for finals. I haven’t told my roomies, but I don’t think they’ll mind. I’m paying rent after all and it’s not like we’ll be in the way. My bedroom/sitting area is as big as most apartments in the city, so we shouldn’t disturb them. If only Jeff wasn’t gay, maybe he could take my mind off Colin. Last night, I had this dream, and nope, not going to tell you. But just FYI, it was pure awesomeness.
“Hey, Good Looking. Are you interested in a one-night stand?” a familiar voice startles me as I wait outside the science building for Jeff.
“It depends on what you’re offering and how much you’re willing to pay for this amazingness,” I respond, motioning to my body.
“I was hoping you’d give a poor college student a break,” Jeff says woefully, his beautiful eyes sucking me in.
“I’m just as broke, but maybe we can work out a deal.”
He puts his arm around me and gives me a warm side hug.
“So, Red, where are we off to?”
I smile at his nickname for me. Usually I hate when people call me that, but when Jeff says it, it’s somehow different.
“We’re going to my new place. Remember, I told you I moved. Where’s your stuff?” I ask, seeing only his backpack.
“In the car. You know I hate driving, so I thought you could be my chauffeur. Besides, I have no idea where I’m going, and you know I hate that even more.”
“Oh. So, is this a paid chauffer gig?”
“Yeah, of course. I’m going to give you a huge tip.” His grin is so infectious that I reciprocate.
“Like, um, a huge expensive dinner perhaps?”
“How about an extra-large pizza?”
“As long as I get what I want on my half,” I reply.
“Wouldn’t have it any other way.” Jeff hugs me again and we take off to his car.
