Last Call

by Michele G Miller

His amused smile caught me off guard before he spoke. “Sweetie, I know it was hard for you when I broke things off. It wasn’t an easy decision for me either, you know. I honestly thought we should both try to enjoy our lives at the moment. You were a senior, and I’d just started college. We’d just been together for so long. I still love you Savannah, and I want to see you happy.”

  He held his hand out to me and to my never-ending horror, I actually took it and stood up; allowing him to embrace me. I couldn’t really say what I was thinking at the time. Perhaps the true pain of his betrayal was finally sinking in, and I wanted closure. I’m not really sure.

  The one thing I did know was that I wasn’t ready for the way his arms snaked around my back, rubbing up and down slowly, seductively. His mouth at my temple, he breathed in as he whispered, “You keep getting more and more beautiful, you know that?”

  I was putty in his hands as he lightly pressed a kiss to my temple and murmured about how much he missed me. My hands were clutched around his waist, clasping him tightly to my body. I buried my face in the crook of his neck and took in the familiar tangy scent of his cologne. I felt his hand creep lower and lower until it cupped my rear, and yet I still stood there transfixed in his arms.

  “Do you miss me?” he begged; his lips pressing soft kisses to my cheek and down my neck; his hand caressing my backside lightly.

  I’m not sure if I actually nodded my head, but his words made me believe that I had. “Show me how much you miss me,” he urged, dragging his lips to mine.

  I allowed my hand to creep up his chest as our lips met. My body was possessed by another as our lips began to move together, and I allowed Daniel to own my mouth as if he’d never stopped kissing me all those months ago.

  Heat began to run through my veins as his fingers teased my lower back at the waist of my skirt. His warm hand delved into the back of my skirt, his fingers once again cupping my rear, now without the clothing barrier. A small moan escaped my lips as he slowly moved his hand to the back of my thigh, lifting my leg to wrap around his. His fingers were digging into my skin, his lips crushing mine as he put a slight amount of pressure on me and we fell to the bed.

  Almost instantly his body went between my legs and I wrapped my thighs around him. Using the hand that was still trapped under my skirt, he began to tug at the lacy panties I was wearing; his fingers twisting under the fabric at my hips.

  Something penetrated my senses enough to make me push at Daniel as his fingers began to explore my inner thigh. Perhaps it was the hard proof of his desire pressing against me, or maybe it was Mary Anne’s shrill voice calling his name from downstairs. Whatever it was I pushed him away, my head swimming in confusion.

  “Daniel?” called Mary Anne again. Now her voice sounded like it was coming from somewhere down the hall.

  Our eyes met and Daniel quickly jumped up to straighten his wrinkled clothing. Reaching out his hand, he helped me to a sitting position and pulled my skirt down for me.

  “I…”

  “Shhh,” he interrupted, placing one last kiss on my lips. “Can you meet me tonight? At our old spot?”

  Surely it was the heat pooling in my thighs that caused me to shake my head yes as I stared into his bright blue eyes.

  A sharp knock came at the door and Mary Anne called out, “Savannah? Daniel?”

  Daniel stepped towards the door, holding his finger to his lips. After a moment he pulled the door open, revealing my obviously irritated cousin. She looked between me on my bed and Daniel standing before her, her cheeks turning an angry shade of red.

  “What’s going on here?” she snapped.

  Daniel switched on the charm like flipping on a light switch. He turned to Mary Anne and took her hand in his, kissing it sweetly.

  “Nothing,” he lied like an oily used car salesman. “I could tell Savannah looked unwell when she left the table, and I wanted to see if she was alright. All of your stories about our trip upset her and I felt bad. We really shouldn’t rub our relationship in her face, Mary Anne.”

  Bile rose in my throat as I listened to his buttery explanation. Mary Anne, as clueless as ever, looked at me in sympathy and placed her arm on Daniel’s.

  “Oh Savannah, I really thought you’d be glad for me by now. I’m truly sorry that you can’t find someone like Daniel to make you happy.” She turned to Daniel, pouting, “You know, I really don’t see why I shouldn’t be able to share my joy with my own family. It’s not my fault she continues to harbor feelings for you. That was puppy love, Danny. She should be over it by now.”

  Every last nerve in my body urged me to get up and slap my cousin across her bitchy face, but twenty years of good breeding held me back. I watched as Daniel whispered something into her ear, placating her enough to leave the room without a backward glance. He stood at the door for a moment, his eyes taking me in from the top of my head to the tips of my toes before he spoke quickly.

  “Meet me at eleven at our spot. We have so much to talk about.”

  With that, he pulled the door closed with a sharp click.

  I shook myself out of my memories until I was back in the present. “You two are right,” I spoke, my voice unnaturally loud.

  “Tattooed boy toy?”

  “No,” I grumbled, throwing a pillow at Sara. “You’re a pain. But I do need a date for the wedding. A good one.”

  “Well it shouldn’t be too hard to find you a perfect date. You’re smart, sweet, sexy and stacked,” Sara teased; holding her hands to her chest like I was Dolly Parton.

  “Good lord, Sara. How much did you drink tonight?” barked Candace, rolling on the floor in a fit of laughter.

  “Not enough.”

  “Okay, so I need a date, girls. Problem is, I haven’t dated. Ever.”

  “We know,” chimed in my best friends.

  It’s not like I didn’t want to date, but after nursing my heart through the drama that was Daniel and Mary Anne, and then weathering the aftermath of Spencer Alexander, I couldn’t stand the thought of opening up to another guy. I’d left home for school to get away from all of the people I’d grown up with and to make new friends. However, once I got here I just ended up immersing myself in my classes and school clubs, and never made time to actually go out. Sara called me a homebody. Candace called me picky. I called myself scared.

  “So what about Riley?” asked Candace. Her mind always went to Riley when we needed a guy around.

  Riley was a local DJ who worked at the one and only bar the girls could get me to go to. Nashville’s music scene was full of bars packed to the brim with musicians, freaks and tourists, but we tended to frequent a place close to campus called The Garage.

  The one reason I bothered to go to The Garage at all was because it was more of a place for locals. They had amazing live music and a laid back atmosphere. Riley was a plus. Amazingly enough, he was also a bioscience major who liked to DJ. Go figure. He was smart, sweet and funny, and not at all interested in getting in my pants. Another plus.

  “No way - not Riley,” Sara disagreed, shooting that plan down. “We need to impress the Guthry family, and a surefire way of doing that is with a prep. As much as I hate to say it, we’re going to have to go old school for her.”

  “Like an old man?” Candace grimaced, scrunching her face like she smelled something bad.

  “No, you halfwit. Old school! Frat boy, old money. We need to find someone who can rival Daniel. We need a Jack or Bobby.”

  “Wait a minute,” I spat out.

  “Jack or Bobby?”

  “Yes - as in Kennedy.” Sara was clearly getting fed up with the questions. “A good ‘ole boy. Like a Kennedy, but without the womanizing and drinking habits, of course.” She winked at me.

  “Ohhh.” Ding, ding, ding, she figured it out, ladies and gentlemen. “Perfect. So how do we do this?”

  “Wait a minute,” I yelped louder.

  “No way, Savannah. You’re gonna leave this to us. Give us a few days and we’ll come up with
someone perfect for you.”

  Sweet baby Jesus. I think my friends have become as bad as my mother.

  “You guys…” I implored as they huddled next to each other, plotting. Candace picked up an empty notebook off the table to start making notes. “Seriously, I’m sure I can find someone from my classes. Scott Tipton, maybe.”

  “No,” they barked. “We’ve got this. Besides, you have finals to study for next week. Girlfriend, we’re gonna have you a handsome future senator for a date by the time your classes are officially over.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” I mumbled, but they weren’t listening. They were plotting my love life like a mathematician plotted stats.

  Friday - April 19, 2013

  Eight weeks until “The Wedding”

  Celebrate

  “Ladies and Gentlemen, a toast to junior year being in the books,” the sentiment was shouted loud for all to hear.

  “Amen!”

  Shot glasses clanked together as I stood with a small group of friends at The Garage in celebration of exams being over. Riley downed his shooter from across the bar, saluting us as ‘Get the Party Started’ by Pink began to blare through the speakers. Candace whooped, grabbed my hand and yanked me onto the relatively empty dance floor. Sara was fast on our heels, pulling a few of our friends in her wake.

  “It’s our last year, and we are so going to make this one the best.” Candace laughed as she began to bounce around the floor.

  The bar scene had never been my thing, and I awkwardly tried to blend in with my more hyper friends. Typically, The Garage was a great low key place that catered to Indie musicians from all walks of life. Located above the bar was a small restaurant that was always bursting at the seams because of their amazing food, which made The Garage a perfect place for drinks while you waited for your dinner table.

  Open mic nights were pretty big with many of the music students at school. I’d come to watch several friends play, but typically I was out of there by the time the club set started coming in around ten-thirty Thursday through Sunday night.

  Not tonight, though. Sara, Candace and I went to dinner and then promised Riley and a few other friends we would come by to celebrate the end of another year with them. I tried to beg off, but Sara and Candace insisted adamantly. I was pretty sure the tall and handsome Jax had something to do with that.

  Sara purred all of Jax’s accomplishments to me when we first walked into the bar, while he just stood there looking uncomfortable at her praises. He was cute - more than cute, actually - with his curling thick waves flopping around all over his head as he danced with Sara.

  “He’s cute,” Candace called over the dance mix Riley was playing. It was like she could read my mind.

  “Yeah,” I acknowledged, knocking her with my shoulder. “Amazing he should happen to show up, huh?” I teased over the loud music. She winked at me and motioned towards the bar, raising her hand to signal she was going to buy another drink.

  More than ready to leave the floor I started to follow, but she held her hand up to stop me. Like a perfectly choreographed number, I watched as Candace tapped Sara on the shoulder to pull her away. Sara, in turn, waved Jax in my direction and nodded her head vigorously.

  Awkward smiling ensued as Jax moved my way. As if on cue, Riley threw on ‘Get Lucky’ by Daft Punk and soon the floor all around us was full of giddy co-eds celebrating.

  “Hey,” he shouted over the crowd; his hips moving in that typical guy-dancing way. He didn’t look bad on the floor, but he was obviously not a dancer.

  “Hi.” I smiled and turned towards him as bodies began pressing up against my back. We couldn’t really talk above the loud music, so we shimmied to the music and shared smiles throughout the song. Craning my neck I searched for my friends and was irritated, but not surprised, to find them standing by the bar watching us.

  Dang matchmakers.

  “Can I…?” Jax’s mouth opened and closed, but I couldn’t hear him as a gaggle of girls beside us erupted in laughter.

  “What?” I called back; leaning in closer. I shook my head as he tried to speak again. It was way too loud.

  Finally he leaned in and shouted near my ear, “Can I buy you a drink?”

  “Sure,” I mouthed back at him and started towards the bar. What the heck, right?

  Covering the entire expanse of the building, the massive bar was hopping with customers. The barstools were all taken, so we stood behind a few patrons waiting for our turn to get served. I looked up to see Candace and Sara conveniently make their way back across the room to some couches placed in the corner, where several friends from school sat around and chatted.

  As we stood there waiting, I eyed Jax covertly; trying to get a take on him. He wore brown leather casual shoes with dark jeans and a blue polo shirt. Nothing flashy.

  While waiting for our turn to order, a group of ladies sidled their way through the crowd; a thick cloud of perfume gagging me as they pushed by. I eyed them as they passed and recognized the predatory-like capacity they possessed. Since the bar was known as a popular hangout for college students, a group of women who looked to be in their mid-forties with four inch heels and a pound of makeup screamed COUGARS.

  “You want to grab an empty table while I go get the drinks?” Jax motioned to the bar height tables scattered around the bar area.

  I pulled my thoughts away from the ladies on the prowl. “Oh sorry, yeah,” I replied, telling him to order me a Coke. His brows pulled together in question at my drink request, but he smiled.

  Finding one empty bar table at the far end of the mahogany bar, I took a seat. Jax stood patiently amongst the other patrons waiting for his turn to order. There were two male bartenders at the moment; both wearing all black and looking extremely busy. The girl employees were walking around the bar in their tight jeans and cropped tops, offering up shooters and taking cash for bottles of beer.

  A loud cackle-like laugh pulled me from my people watching. I glanced up to find one of the cougars draped over the bar flirting unashamedly with a bartender. Said cougar was wearing a skin tight red dress, and her boobs looked to be in immediate danger of toppling out of it. She was a pretty woman, with chin length black hair that looked to have been meticulously shellacked into place. Expensive gold earrings dangled from her lobes, and a gaudy gold necklace was trapped between her very full, very exposed breasts.

  “Hey Savannah, what can I get for you tonight?”

  A voice I recognized stopped me from gawking at the scene down the bar. Noelle, a girl from a study group I’d been in, placed a cocktail napkin in front of me and waited expectantly for my order.

  “Oh.” I jumped, startled at the sudden interruption. “Hi Noelle. Um…my friend is waiting at the bar.”

  “Honey, it’s gonna be a while by the looks of things.” She laughed. “What do you want, and I’ll go grab it?”

  Thankfully, Jax looked over and saw us talking. I waved my hand, signaling him to come over as he wound his way to us. Suddenly my nerves started to get the best of me as I focused on his tall frame. This was starting to feel like a date. Crap.

  “Wow. He’s a hottie, girl,” Noelle cooed as she watched Jax. “You two on a date?”

  Damn, my cheeks were burning. “Simma down, girl. We just met.”

  “Hi there, I’m Noelle. What can I get you?” she purred when he finally arrived at the table.

  Her voice and attitude were confident. Of course they were. She had on the requisite skin tight, black, low slung jeans and second skin tank top that were required for all of the female staff here. She was a sexy girl and she knew it.

  “Rum n’ Coke for me please, and a plain Coke for her.” His eyes dipped to the creamy flesh flashing above her v-neck tank for a quick glance. I couldn’t fault the guy for taking a peek at what was freely being offered in front of his face.

  “Actually that sounds good - add rum to mine too,” I interjected, wanting to calm my nerves a little.

  “S
ure thing.”

  With another quick glance at Jax, she scooted off to get our drinks. More laughing at the bar caught my attention, and I looked up and watched in fascination at the garish spectacle the women were making of themselves. I couldn’t help but notice the way the cougars were monopolizing the darker haired bartender with their flirting.

  “So Sara tells me you’re an art major.”

  Throwing the panting women out of my head, I tried to focus in on Jax. “Art History, yes.”

  “Art History? What do you plan to do with that?” he asked as our drinks were delivered to us. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to sound rude.”

  “Thanks.” I smiled at Noelle as Jax gave her cash. Taking a quick sip, I waited until she walked away before answering his question.

  “The goal was to work in a museum.”

  “Was?”

  “Well, is,” I fumbled, not wanting to get into the complicated state that was my future career choice. “What about you? What’s your plan? You’re a senior now, right?”

  “Actually, I’ve been a senior. One semester to go and then I’m done,” he answered, raising his glass in a mock toast.

  I laughed and clinked my glass with his. “I’ll drink to that.”

  “But to answer your question, I’ll be finishing up my degree in Economics after this fall. I’m actually heading off tomorrow for an internship for the summer. My dad has an old frat buddy who runs a financial think tank in New York, and he offered me a chance to sharpen my skills.”

  Tomorrow? Well, shoot. I allowed myself a second of disappointment at not being able to get to know him better before he left. “Wow, that’ll be a great experience I’m sure.”

  “So are you ready to get back out there in the celebration? Looks like Sara’s trying to land a plane to get your attention.”

  I laughed once I visually located my boisterous roommate shaking her groove thang up against some guy. She was waving her hands as if she was air traffic control. I wiggled my fingers in a small gesture to let her know I saw her, and then glanced longingly at my drink. I didn’t want to leave it yet.