by Stella Rhys
I was surprisingly calm upon running into Lukas on the stairs.
“Lia,” he breathed out in surprise. I smiled, halfway down the steps as he stood frozen at the foot of them, eyes wide and gazing up at me. There was something delightful about the stunned look on his face. It made him feel for once unguarded – stripped of the usual swagger. And that in turn made me feel powerful.
Either that, or I was drunk.
“Hi,” I said, slowing my step down the stairs. I held onto the rail as I watched his blue-green eyes lock tight on my ankles then travel up my bare legs, stopping at the hem of my skirt. When I held my coat shut to hide my dress, he looked back up at me and shook his head.
“What are you trying to do to me right now?”
“Get past you so I can leave.”
Lukas watched me come down the stairs, walking backward with me to the door. “Let me take you on this date,” he said.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because someone’s expecting me.”
“Cancel on him.”
“He’s already there, Lukas. I’m not going to be rude.”
He dragged a hand along his jaw and groaned. “Fine. Where are you going?”
“Muse Room. Lower East Side.”
He laughed despite a quizzical frown. “Seriously?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Have you ever been there?”
“No, he picked the spot. He’s been arranging the date with my friend – it’s a long story,” I explained hastily off his perplexed look. “Why? What’s wrong with the place?”
Lukas shook his head. “Nothing. It’s great. It’s just not what I expected for you. They have beds instead of couches and the waitresses walk around in full-blown lingerie.”
I was surprised to hear that but I tried to bluff. “Okay. So? You think I’m some virginal thing that’s going to implode in any sexually charged environment? Just to let you know, I have had sex before. In fact, I’ve had a lot of it. Was it all with one guy? Yes. Does it still count? Yes. Was it any good?” I paused for several moments as I thought about my own question.
“Are you drunk?”
I blinked. “No.” I wobbled. “I’m just… in heels.”
“Trust me, I noticed,” he muttered, eyeing me up and down again before groaning. “Jesus Christ. You’re killing me, Lia.”
“What? Why?”
“Because I don’t want you to fuck this guy,” he said. “Plain and simple. Aside from being pissed that it’s not me, I don’t want to be the reason you got yourself hammered so you could force enough attraction to sleep with some guy you just met. I haven’t known you long but I know that’s not you.”
“Just a reminder, you and I have known each other for less than a week, so cool it.”
“You’ve known Tess almost three years and you’ve heard her talking about her brother so let’s not act like I’m just some stranger off the street,” Lukas said, annoyed. Palming the back of his head, he exhaled. “Lia, I’m begging you,” he murmured, a handsome frown pinching his brows. “Stay in tonight,” he said gently. “I’ll keep my suit on, you’ll keep your dress on – it can still be a date but we can just order pizza or Chinese, and no one has to sleep with anyone. Alright? How’s that sound?”
Amazing. Adorable. Fucking everything I want. But I still resisted. Rather, I put off giving my answer because the one at the tip of my tongue was “okay” and I wanted to at least pretend I had a lick of self-control before giving in. But just as I started to answer, the ring of his phone interrupted. When he glanced down with an instant groan, I let myself peek at his call.
No. You have got to be kidding me. I fumed as I read the name “Useless Gold Digger Bitch” off his glowing screen. Oh. My. God. Un-fucking-believable
A part of me wanted to bend over and dramatically retch for Lukas, just to show him how phenomenally disgusting I found him at this very moment. Another part wanted to lay into him for thinking he could actually trick me into thinking he wasn’t the worst, but instead I swallowed my temptation and simply thanked the universe for reminding me that despite his occasional sweetness, Lukas Hendricks was in fact an asshole. Of the highest degree.
“Really nice thing to call a girl.” I shot a look of revulsion. “I’m gonna go ahead and pass on your takeout offer but I hope you have a great night,” I added tersely, shaking my head as I pushed past his broad frame and slid out the front door.
7
LIA
Okay, so the bar did kind of look like a sordid sex dungeon with its black lace walls and reddish glow. Pretty aggressive for a first date. I knew that was the point but it was still nerve-wracking. But thankfully, within thirty minutes of sitting with Hayden the Dog Hater, I found that he was mild enough to put me at ease.
“Don’t be afraid to tell me if you don’t like your drink, Lia,” he offered, nodding at my untouched glass. “I’d be more than happy to get you a new one.”
“Oh, don’t worry, I like it,” I assured him with a smile. “I’m just taking it slow.”
“Oh,” he nodded politely. “Well, I’m glad you like it. And it’s always good to take it slow,” he smiled back.
Agh.
I mean he was… nice. He hadn’t said a word about me being fifteen minutes late and to my relief he’d picked one of the booths instead of one of the overly sexy, bed-like seats. So he had that going for him and he was handsome. His smile was a dazzling white and he looked great in a tan sweater, brown jeans and camel loafers. Sure, he was weirdly monochromatic and dressed in a way that reminded me of handsome human cardboard, but it worked on him.
Kind of.
And even if it didn’t work on him, it didn’t matter because more than ever now, I needed to get Lukas out of my head.
That sexist pig.
I just couldn’t figure it out with him. Every time I leaned toward the idea that he might be okay, something reminded me that he was everything I should avoid. And just now, the latest reminder was the fact that he saved a woman’s contact in his phone as “Useless Gold Digger Bitch.” How could I possibly have found myself hung up over someone like that?
It was the hotness, I clucked at myself. See, that is the evil of flawless bone structure and absurdly defined muscles. They’re like the sun – they’re dangerous, they will blind you and you should never look directly at them ever again, I decided as Hayden went on about the superhero show he binge-watched on Netflix last week.
I might’ve tuned out. No, I definitely did because suddenly, I was listening to the manager and waitress murmuring behind me. At first, it was because I found it amusing to hear them quietly trash the Wall Street douchebag in the corner, talking over everyone in the room about his big merger or whatever. But now I was listening to them because one of them was making muffled squealing noises and audibly bouncing on her heels behind me.
“Oh my God. Omigod, omigod, what is that.”
“What is what?”
“That. All three of that. Oh my God, I can’t even talk.”
I paused. Hold up. Three presumably good-looking men coming in barely forty minutes after I did? Right away, I had a hunch but I didn’t want to be right so I refused to entertain it. Focusing my eye contact on Hayden, I ignored the weird suspicion in my bones and the sudden heat in my belly. I made sure to put a smile on for him, too, nodding zealously along to everything he said.
Still, I couldn’t ignore the women talking behind me.
“I’m gonna kill the hostess if she tries to seat all that hotness at the bar.”
“Omigod, look, the big one just pointed like he wants to sit here!”
Shit, the evidence was damning but I refused to confirm it. Don’t look around, don’t look around, whatever you do, don’t look around.
I didn’t look around.
But that was no help because in seconds, I was watching a corset-clad hostess walk two tall men in front of our table, seating them at the booth directly across from ours. And
oh, did I recognize one. It wasn’t Lukas, but it was that David Beckham-looking motherfucker who’d sat behind Sara at the café, who’d ratted me out for being a thirsty, sexless Lukas Hendricks fangirl – to Lukas.
He had a wicked grin on for me now and I was convinced I could smack him. I wanted to launch myself across the table as he caught my eye and dared to laugh, leaning over to the friend I assumed was Emmett. My face was aflame as they both looked at me, studying me, muttering to each other as if appraising me like a damned car. After a couple seconds, Emmett raised his eyebrows at me and nodded to Beckham, as if giving me the honor of his approval.
Douchebags – I don’t need your approval! I wanted to snap at them, making a fist around my drink.
“Lia, are you okay?”
I blinked over at a frowning Hayden. “Huh? Oh. Uh-huh,” I replied unconvincingly, swallowing the giant knot in my throat.
“Are you still thinking about your bad day?” he asked sweetly.
“Yes,” I nodded, eagerly taking the excuse. “I was. I just … ugh, that darned realtor!” I laughed, giving an awkward shake of my fist. “They’re just, uh, yeah. The worst. Will you excuse me for a second?”
He sat me down as I tried to get up. “Hold on. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I just…” I looked down at my glass. “It’s too strong. I think I’m going to go to the bar and ask for a new drink.”
“I’ll do it!” Hayden insisted. “Please. What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t?” he smiled, grabbing my glass and sliding out of the booth.
I tried to protest but before I knew it, he was gone and I was suddenly holding my breath because walking into the room was none other than Lukas. He commanded all eyes in that sleek, black suit I’d seen him in at home. The shirt he had on underneath was crisp, black as well and while he’d worn a tie before, he didn’t now. Apparently, I noticed these things.
Gorgeous bastard, I cursed him since all I could do was helplessly sit and watch him approach me, his eyes burning into mine. His sheer size eclipsed the light as he made his way to my table and stood before me – raw masculinity wrapped in an expensive Italian suit.
“You look beautiful.”
He said it before I could so much as open my mouth and just like that I was compromised. “Thank you,” I murmured, watching him watch me. I had to blink several times before I even remembered I was pissed at him. “Lukas – ” I shook my head. “What you are doing here? I know you didn’t come just to have drinks with your friends.”
“I have no interest in hiding that I’m here for you.”
“And why are you here for me? You thought I couldn’t protect myself from an Internet stranger?”
“No, I thought you got an inaccurate impression of me back at the house and I couldn’t sit through my night without fixing it.”
I stared. “So you came all the way here to interrupt my date? Because I caught you calling some poor girl a gold digging bitch?” I laughed in bitter disbelief. “First of all, it hardly surprises me. Second, what could you possibly say to defend yourself?”
“I can say that Emmett was the one responsible for naming that particular contact – ”
“Please, Lukas – ”
“ – and the person in question isn’t a woman. It’s a guy named Cam,” Lukas said, his cheeks flexing when he said the name. I narrowed my eyes.
“Who’s that?”
“Formerly my best friend. And business partner. I forced him out of my company two months ago and he’s been calling repeatedly to argue the terms of his buyout. Feels duped, wants more money, the like. My friends hate him as much as I do and Emmett,” Lukas glanced over his shoulder, “who has his own unique charm with words,” he smirked, “put that nickname in my phone. If you don’t believe me, I’ll leave this here.”
To my surprise, Lukas slid his naked iPhone across the table in front of me, the screen already open to his missed calls. I stared at the last one – “Useless Gold Digging Bitch.” The time stamp matched the time I’d seen the call come in at home and a part of me did want to grab the phone and call right back. And then maybe flip through his camera roll and see what kind of dirt he had in there – sex tapes, dick pics, incriminating screenshots. There had to be a bounty of fascinating material from just the photos alone and biting my lip, I stared at the phone with true temptation. It was the coveted gateway into the mind of men as ridiculously hot and successful as Lukas, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wish I could just read him like a book.
Still, I pushed the thing back at him.
“It’s fine, I believe you,” I muttered. “But you should go now. My date’s going to be back soon and – ”
“You’re not remotely interested in him.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, I’m not?”
He cracked a little smile. “No.”
“And how on Earth do you know that?”
“I know exactly what you look like turned on – let’s not pretend that isn’t a fact,” Lukas returned easily, his stare falling to my mouth. “I know just how pink and swollen those lips can get when you’re all hot and bothered. I know how you start to squirm. And I didn’t see any of that till about ten seconds ago. Correct me if I’m wrong but your date’s been gone much longer than that.”
I was defiant. “He’s nice.”
Lukas smirked. “I’m nice.”
“You couldn’t even say that without laughing,” I snorted.
“Give me a chance then,” he grinned. “I can be nice to you if you let me.”
Damn it. I believed him. I wasn’t sure why but I did, despite knowing well that it was a bad idea to. My fragile attraction for Hayden was based solely off of negative feelings for Lukas, and now those were fading again. And I couldn’t afford that. “Fine,” I finally said. “Then be nice to me now, Lukas, by leaving me alone. Just because you’re here doesn’t mean I stopped being on a date.”
He stared at me a second, as if trying to read my bluff. “Fine,” he said. “Just don’t drink too much,” he added with a smirk, turning on his heel before I could tell him to mind his own business. Grrr. I raged silently as I watched him sit with his friends at their booth, quickly joining Emmett in charming the figurative pants off the waitress. She was giggling nonstop and so hard I was sure I might see her pass out from lack of oxygen. Ugh.
Did I just tell Lukas to leave me alone and then get upset that he left me alone?
God. I wanted to tear at my own hair. What sense did my brain make anymore? Apparently none.
“Lia?”
“Just a former coworker,” I blurted when Hayden sat back down. He gave a quizzical look that told me he hadn’t seen Lukas at all.
“What?” he frowned, seeming flustered and distracted himself. “Um, I was just going to say that this is annoying but I couldn’t get you a new drink,” he muttered, gripping my original glass. “Apparently, we can’t order from the bar if we’re sitting at a table. Bullshit, if you ask me, but now we can just not tip.”
I stared at him, instantly put off. Damn it, Hayden. Why? I was rooting for you. Why did you have to go and ruin it? I groaned inwardly while outwardly forcing a smile.
“Actually, no, I used to be a waitress, so let’s definitely not do that. Besides,” I pried the glass from his hand, “it probably tastes fine now that the ice is melted. In fact – ” Bringing the drink to my lips, I took two-and-a-half large gulps, watching Hayden’s eyes widen over the brim of the glass. “See?” I wiped my mouth with my ring finger when I was done. “Everything’s fine,” I said despite knowing it wasn’t. What little interest I had in Hayden was officially gone and drinking did nothing to help it.
On top of that, I knew Lukas was watching me with disapproval for what I’d just done. I couldn’t help looking over to confirm it.
Oh…
Oh yeah.
My heart pounded when I caught his eyes on me, a stony look on his face as I heard Hayden murmur “damn” and scoot closer. He said som
ething about how I looked “cute with a little liquid courage” in me, but I didn’t hear the rest because I was too busy having an intense, wordless stare-off with Lukas. From his booth, he shook his head lightly, just enough for me to see. From mine, I gave a subtle shrug as if to say, what are you going to do?
“I hope this doesn’t sound creepy but you’re seriously sexy when you’re drunk,” Hayden murmured in my ear.
“What makes you think I’m drunk?” I asked distractedly, my heart hammering as I watched Lukas lean back in his seat, taking a drink as he continued to watch me. His body language was calm, collected but his eyes were an entirely different story. Fuck, no man should look that good angry, I thought as Hayden’s chuckle tickled my skin.
“I don’t know. I guess I thought so ‘cause your lips got all red and swollen.”
Mm-hm. “They just do that sometimes.”
“Yeah? When you’re turned on?” Hayden made me go stiff with a hand on the upper part of my thigh.
Crap. My pulse picked up when Lukas sat up.
“Hayden,” I warned, removing his hand. My breaths were short and serrated now as I snuck glances at Lukas. His entire body faced me now, his darkened eyes trained on my every breath, as if waiting for the slightest sign that I needed out.
“I’m sorry. You’re just kind of irresistible right now,” Hayden said softly, sitting so close our chests touched. I didn’t have to look up to catch the swift movement of Beckham jerking Lukas back into his seat.
“Thank you…” I said unsurely, looking around for a bathroom. I felt eyes on me – Lukas, his friends, possibly the waitress. I hated the attention. It had my body temperature suddenly out of control. “Hayden, sorry, I just…”
“What?” When his hand cupped my knee, Lukas yanked his arm free from Beckham’s grip. My heartbeat quickened.
“I need to go to the restroom,” I blurted.
“I need to kiss you first,” Hayden murmured, grabbing my cheek and covering his mouth sloppily over mine. A sharp gasp burned my lungs as my peripherals spotted Lukas leaping up from his seat.
