“Last I checked, bars are considered a public domain.” He peers into the glass of clear liquid in his hands, snorting. “And I needed a drink, apparently just like you.”
Narrowing my eyes, I whisper, “Aren’t you, like, eighteen or something?”
He leans in close, his warm breath tickling my neck. “Twenty in a few months, actually. And newsflash, it doesn’t take much to get your hands on a legit ID. I would even venture to guess you had one not too long ago.”
I lean away, clearing my throat. “I picture someone of your stature having a little higher standards than this place.” When the bartender sets a glass in front of me, I add, “No offense.”
She shrugs. “I only work here. That’ll be ten dollars.”
“For this?” I ask, gesturing to the small tumbler glass.
“Welcome to New York,” Erik tells me, tossing her a crisp $100 bill. “I’ve got this.”
“Thanks, I guess,” I mutter before knocking the drink back in a series of large gulps. Shivering, I slam the glass back on the worn wooden bar and nod at the bartender. “I’ll take another, please.”
Erik chuckles. “Slow down there, Lohan. Whatever got your panties in a bundle isn’t going to be solved with you stumbling your way around the city.”
I don’t miss the heavy sexual undertone he uses for the word “panties.” Recoiling, I curl my lip. “Back off. Just because you bought me a drink does not mean you can fantasize about my panties.” The whiskey burns its way down into my stomach, reminding me it’s nearing lunchtime and I have yet to eat today. At this rate I’ll be drunk in no time.
“That’s rather presumptuous of you. Do I look like the kind of guy who would indulge in sexual fantasies?” He watches me with a rather obnoxious smirk that, for some reason, wedges its way beneath my skin.
My phone buzzes with a string of texts from Jewels asking where I went. Silencing it, I motion for the bartender to refill my glass. “All I know is the way you were trying to get a look at my tits just now, it’s safe to assume you’re not gay.”
“That automatically means I fantasize about you naked?”
“I thought we were talking about my panties.” I set a $20 bill on the bar before turning to him. “Look. I’m not interested in hooking up with you. So you can stop this flirting thing before you exhaust yourself.”
With a delightful grin, he runs his fingertips across my arm, bringing goosebumps the the surface of my skin. “I love an assertive woman. They’re usually capable of some mind blowing skills in the bedroom.”
“You can forget it. I’m not going to start messing around with someone my best friend clearly doesn’t approve of.”
I down the next double shot of whiskey and bring it back down on the bar, welcoming the glowing burn that settles in my bones. Drinking when I can’t deal with my emotional turmoil is never a good idea as it almost always leads to more problems, but I need to quiet the delusional part of me that believes I deserve to be treated this way.
I exhale slowly and nod to the bartender. “Another.”
“She’s had enough,” Erik tells her, holding his hand out. The woman rolls her eyes and leaves us to wait on an old man a few stools down.
“Excuse me? What are you, my fucking dad?” I ask, hearing the subtle slur to my words. “You don’t even know me!”
“I may not know you, but I know you’re a naive girl from the midwest with an ax to grind over something that really pissed you off, and I’m not going to let you get loaded and wander around the city all alone.” He grins into his glass of alcohol. “‘Cause I’d really like to join you if that is, in fact, your plan.” He takes a long drink before setting the glass down to stare at me.
The hot fire blazing between us is impossible to ignore. I want to wrap my fingers in his thick hair, and forget whatever Theo and Jewels think of me. The alcohol filling my blood stream only intensifies my desire to be with him.
My phone bursts out with Sir-Mix-a-Lot’s errant ramblings. It’s incredibly obnoxious in the otherwise relaxed bar, and quite frankly, embarrassing. Jewels thought she was so clever when she changed my ringtone the night before. Grumbling to myself, I silence it.
Erick chuckles, his eyebrows raised. “Avoiding someone?”
I know without looking that it’s Jewels, angry that I’m ignoring her texts. Once she knows the truth, she’ll be eager to lecture me on how immature I’m acting, and demand I come back. “Fuck this,” I mutter under my breath. I turn to Erik and touch his taut thigh. “You win. Let’s blow out of here.”
Erik calls Adam from the private car to let them know we’re together and that I need some time to cool off. Jewels must ask him what exactly I need to “cool off” about, because he tells her, “It’s none of my business. I’ll let her explain when she returns.”
Knowing how pissed and confused Jewels will be to hear I’m randomly keeping Erik’s company after the warning she tried to pass along, I feel a small wave of satisfaction. For all I care she can think we’re having wild sex back at his place. It sounds like that’s exactly the kind of thing she expects of me anyway.
I do what I can with my hair, trying to smooth it out before we head into a swanky sports bar in the heart of Manhattan. An entire soccer team from Brazil dominates the place, telling stories of seeing the city for the first time in broken English. Somehow I’m drawn into their circle and become an active part of their conversation. They’re highly entertaining, easily taking my mind off Theo and Jewels. For a short time I’m actually able to pretend my life isn’t one big catastrophe.
The players buy me and Erik round after round, even insisting that we take a few shots with them. A couple of them try to hit on me, wrapping their arms around my waist and pulling me closer, but I just laugh it off and playfully push them away. Erik is reserved around the players, saying very little and watching on with his smug smirk. This goes on for hours before the players decide to head back to their hotel.
As we step outside of the bar, I wait for Erik to announce our next move. The drinks have loosened him up considerably, making his comments far less snide. He looks carefree and even somewhat alluring as his hair blows around in the warm breeze.
He leans dangerously close, filling my lungs with his musky scent. “It’s time we soak up all this booze. Let’s go. I’m buying you lunch.”
My phone buzzes on vibrate for the hundredth time since we left. Though I’m well on my way to a state of inebriation and Erik’s enticing smell makes me suddenly want him in a urgent way, I’m blindsided with how immature and irresponsible it was to storm away without giving Jewels any explanation. As infamous as I’ve become for running from my problems, I promised Jewels that I’d help her move, yet here I am, getting blitzed with one of the few people in this world she can’t stand.
“Thanks, but I think I should go back and face the firing squad.”
Erik brushes his index finger along my forearm. “What you should do is get some food in your stomach. We’re both going to be in deep shit if I bring you back like this.”
I briefly gaze at this mysterious man, wondering if there could possibly be someone sweet deep down, or if he really is the total asshole he’s been labeled as. Then I realize I’m judging him based on what other people have told me, which is basically the story of my life. What if he’s just looking for someone to come along and give him a chance?
“Fine,” I finally give in. “But only because I’d hate to be a witness to your murder. Not that I care, I just hate the sight of blood and guts.”
With an amused smile, Erik takes my hand.
TWO
Half of the dozen round tables adorned in red and white checked tablecloths are filled with patrons, all of them appearing to be couples. Soft Italian music plays over hidden speakers, and despite it being bright outside, the heavy curtains pulled over the restaurant’s two windows make the perfect atmosphere for the glow of candles at each table. The smell of pasta gets my stomach rumbling beneath the gallon of
alcohol sloshing around each time I move.
A pretty, petite waitress wearing black and white attire approaches our table once we’ve settled and sets small plastic menus in front of each of us. “Hi, there. I’m Lucinda and I’ll be your server today. Can I start you with something to drink?”
“Two waters,” Erik tells her with a nod.
“And a cup of black coffee,” I add.
Erik nods with approval. “Make that two.”
After she leaves us, I shut my eyes and use the tabletop to steady myself. Everything has taken on a slight sway as the alcohol consumes my bloodstream. I’m a seasoned drinker by all accounts, but it’s embarrassing how I allowed myself to become this hammered with a group of strangers. When I take a moment to really think about it, everything about my actions today have been less than stellar. I groan under my breath.
“Hey,” Erik says. “Are you going to hurl, or what?”
I open one eye. “My life’s a mess,” I blurt, feeling a wave of tears brewing deep down. As if the day isn’t humiliating enough, it appears I’m going to break down in the middle of a restaurant. I press on my eyes, waiting for the ridiculous feeling to pass.
“I refuse to believe someone who looks like they’d be their daddy’s little princess could have it that bad. I challenge you to prove your life is worse than anyone else’s.”
“I assure you, I’m not my father’s princess. Quite the opposite, actually.” Taking a long, steadying breath, I open my eyes. “I decided to move out here on a whim with virtually no plan. No place to live, no job, no nothing. I don’t even know if I’ll even get to finish school.” I push my hair behind my ears, moaning. “By the end of the week, I’ll be sleeping in Central Park with newspapers for a blanket.”
He chuckles, though the sound of it comes out as being humorless. “You really are trying to escape a rough past.”
“Something like that.”
“What were you so fired up about when I found you trying to drown your sorrows?”
A warm flush covers my face. I’m not going to delve into my sexual history with him or go in to detail of Theo’s proposal. “Long story. Jewels said something that really pissed me off.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?”
I cross my arms and glare back at him. I’m not going to let anyone speak ill of my bestie, even if I am still incredibly ticked at her. “Jewels told me you accused her of going after Adam for his money.”
“What? Like it’s not true?” He lifts an eyebrow, the arrogant smile on his lips growing.
“Jesus, of course not!” I bounce forward on my seat with a flash of white-hot anger and set my hands on the table. “Your brother nearly broke her heart when he told her he wasn’t going to have the transplant, and her heart was pretty messed up to begin with! And Adam bought that place as a surprise for her birthday! She didn’t even know about his inheritance!”
I look around the restaurant, ready to crawl under the table when I realize I’ve drawn the attention of everyone. I take a minute to compose myself before leaning close to Erik. “You should spend time with them before you judge her like that,” I say in a low voice. “They’re both so crazy in love that it’s literally nauseating.”
“Okay,” he says with a chuckle. “I get the idea. No need to be so sensitive.”
The waitress sets our steaming cups of coffee in front of us. “Ready to order?”
“We’ll take two plates of your four cheese ravioli,” Erik tells her, gathering the plastic menus. When I frown, he laughs. “You don’t like ravioli?”
“I am capable of reading a menu.”
Erik hands the menus to the waitress, dismissing her with, “Thank you.”
She flashes us both a polite but stiff smile before scattering away, most likely wondering if we’re on a date from hell.
Setting his chin on his fist, Erik regards me with sparkling eyes. “So maybe your friend isn’t the gold digger I assumed. I guess I’ll have to take your word for it.”
“Yeah, you most definitely will.”
“So you’re homeless and broke in the big city.” His cocky smirk makes a comeback. “Fortunately, you can’t throw a designer heel in New York without finding some kind of job, even if it’s only temporary and pays shit.”
“I never said I was broke.” I have a good-sized savings for the apartment Jewels and I were going to rent in La Crosse this fall. “Being homeless is my biggest worry at the moment. I know housing out here can’t be cheap, and I don’t even know where to begin looking.”
For a minute he just stares at me, his face drawn into a serious, thoughtful expression. “You could stay in my spare bedroom.”
“What?” I half-yell. “Forget it! That’s a terrible idea.”
“Why? Just because my misguided brother says I’m a jerk? I’m not offering for you to move in with me indefinitely, just until you find a job and a more permanent arrangement. Besides, I need someone to clean the place. My staff recently quit on me, and it’s always a challenge to find someone I feel that I can trust. We could take it out in trade.”
I inwardly balk at the idea of cleaning someone’s apartment. Most guys I know are complete pigs, especially if they’re living alone. And I haven’t exactly done a whole lot of cleaning in my lifetime. What makes him think I’d even agree to do such a thing? Do I even want to know why his “staff” quit?
Although Adam and Jewels have a spare room, asking to stay with them would feel like a complete invasion. They’re moving in together for the first time. They’re still fresh into their relationship and have a lot of sex. Like all the time. I’m not convinced that I could take all the flirty looks and perversion on a daily basis.
“Well?” Erik asks, frowning.
“I’m thinking.” I press at my temples.
Am I that desperate to take him up on such an offer? I would have more than enough money to stay in a hotel for a week or two, although the thought seems incredibly lonely, and it seems like a waste of cash. Erik has lived out here for a year and would be able to teach me the ins and outs of city life. But am I really ready to live with someone who has such a horrid reputation? Then again, I remind myself of the unfair way Jewels sees me.
I have to give him a chance.
I blow out a long breath. “I’d have to talk it over with Jewels and Adam before making any kind of a decision.”
A sudden light fills Erik’s eyes. “I knew you couldn’t resist me.”
“Dude, I’m not saying yes.” I cross my arms over my chest, frowning. “I could be a crazy bitch for all you know.”
He raises his eyebrows as he takes a sip of his coffee. “And for all you know, that’s exactly my type.”
“Listen,” I say, leaning in once again, my expression hard. “If I’m insane enough to take you up on your offer, it would only be with the understanding that nothing will ever happen between the two of us.” I wag my finger between us. “You and me, it ain’t gonna happen. Does the offer still stand?”
For the first time since we met a few hours ago, a full smile graces his lips, popping a small dimple into his cheek. “Whatever you say.”
All at once I understand how frustrated Jewels must’ve felt when Adam first insisted that they be nothing more than friends. The Murphy boys seem to have a way with women. So why the hell do I have to open my big mouth and insist on a platonic relationship?
The moving van is gone when we return to Jewels and Adam’s brownstone. Guilt rushes through me with the force of a speeding train. I grip the door handle, trying to control my breathing. One thing’s for sure: I’m getting pretty skilled at fucking things up.
“If I came with you, they could aim all their hateful energy at me,” Erik offers.
“Thanks, but that sounds like a really shitty idea.” I turn to study him, realizing how pitiful I must seem to this rich kid who rides around the big city in a private car, wearing designer clothes. “Jewels was planning to have me stay for a few days while I was in town.
If I decide to take you up on your offer after that, I’ll call.”
For a moment I consider leaning in to kiss his cheek to thank him for his company, but don’t want to give him the wrong idea. Better yet, I don’t want to give myself the luxury of touching him in an intimate way. There’s no promise I could stop with an innocent kiss. I offer him a sincere smile instead. “Thanks, for lunch and...everything.”
“I hope to see more of you,” he tells me. From the strange pitch to his voice and the lost look behind his gaze, I suddenly get a glimpse behind the hard shell Adam and Jewels don’t seem to have broken through.
Erik Murphy is lonely.
I point my finger at him, squinting. “As friends.”
He lets out a low laugh. “You’re filled with never-ending assumptions.”
I leave the car and enter the code on the keypad to the brownstone, strolling in to find Jewels perched on the edge of the new living room couch, her expression sour as she fidgets with her cell phone. Adam sits behind her with a stoic look, rubbing circles into her back. My heart sinks with the sight of my friends looking so despondent because of something asinine I did. I swear under my breath.
Jewels jumps to her feet when she sees me, her eyes wide, mouth tight. “What the hell were you thinking? You’ve been with Erik this whole time? How did you even find him? Do you know how worried I’ve been?”
“I’m sorry,” I say, on the verge of tears. It seems one way or another, today will be the day I break down and sob like a baby. “It’s a long story. But I know it was shitty of me to take off without saying anything.”
“Damn right it was!” she says, bounding forward to wrap me in her arms. “I was so worried! At one point I thought maybe Erik actually kidnapped you! Why do you always have to disappear on me like that?”
Kelly's Quest (NYC LOVE Book 2) Page 3
