by Kari Fisher
“I will take the Angry Gnome, please,” Scott orders. “Peach Schnapps, Blue Curacao, and Redbull. Sounds intense.”
“Coming right up.” The server smiles warmly. “Would you like to order any food?”
“Not just yet, but the night is still young.” Scott grins.
“Okay. I’ll bring your drinks right out.”
Ashley, as her name tag says, hurries into the back to fix the drinks.
“The night is still young? Don’t you remember how early we have to be awake tomorrow for the conferences? It’s going to be a really long day if we don’t actually get some proper sleep,” Renae chastises.
“I know, but live a little, Ren. You only live once. Let’s enjoy the night.”
Ashley carefully places the drinks on the table in front of them and Renae takes a sip of hers. It’s brilliant. She’s certain she can, and will, make this at home when she gets back, most likely for her and Sophie. Sophie loves this kind of thing.
“Have you talked to Sophie tonight?” Renae asks.
“I don’t really want to talk about that tonight.” Scott shrugs.
“I know, but what happened? I don’t mean to pry, but I care about both of you.” And I want to sleep with you.
“She met someone else. She’d been dating him the entire time she was with me too. I fell for it. It was my stupidity. I really shouldn’t trust women—they’re all the same.”
“What? No way, Soph wouldn’t do that,” Renae says, shocked. She pushes her drink away from her, so that she can focus on what Scott is telling her.
“Well, she did. She had it all planned out; saw us both on different nights. I was a fool. I got really hurt, Ren.”
“I don’t even know what to say, Scott. I’m so sorry. I’m going to text her,” Renae announces.
“No, that’s not a good idea. Don’t do that,” Scott insists.
“I have to. She’s my friend and she respects my advice. She shouldn’t treat people like that. I’m really sorry I introduced you two,” Renae continues. She pulls her phone out of her pocket and sends a text message to Sophie’s number. Scott cringes for a second and hears the faint beep of Sophie’s phone in his pocket. He studies Renae’s face but she doesn’t seem to have heard it. Scott feels relieved, thankful for the loud music. He picks up his drink and sips it slowly, still watching Renae’s facial expression. He’s safe. He chugs three quarters of his drink in just a few seconds.
“Wow. Sorry I brought it up,” Renae says wryly.
“It’s okay.”
“Would you like anything else?” Ashley asks. She’s back at the table once again. This girl is efficient. Renae makes note of this and decides to tip her well. That is, if she’s footing the bill. Maybe Scott will get it.
“I think I’m okay.” Renae smiles.
“I’d actually like to order the spinach dip. Would you share it with me, Renae?” Scott asks. He’s not looking at Renae, though; he’s watching Ashley.
“Sure, I’ll have a few bites,” Renae agrees.
“Perfect. It’ll be out in a few minutes.” Ashley smiles warmly once more, paying extra attention to Scott this time. Renae feels a slight hint of jealousy, but realizes this must happen to Scott all the time, because he’s just so beautiful.
Scott must sense that Renae feels a bit awkward about Ashley so he turns his attention to her. “What do you like to do?”
“What?” Renae asks.
“In your free time. What do you do?”
“Uh, well, I paint. I do spray paint art, actually, and airbrushing. I write poetry. Most of it is dumb, but I enjoy it; it’s relaxing.” She pauses, but notices that Scott wants her to continue on. “I love sports. I ran a half marathon this summer. I play tennis and kayak.”
“Interesting,” Scott says enthusiastically, “sounds like you do some really cool stuff.”
“I try to keep busy. What do you do?”
“Not much, actually. I work a lot. You know how our hours are at work, and how we’re always traveling. It doesn’t leave me much time. You’ll find that out soon enough. And then Sophie and I—I spent all of my free time with her. Right before her, though, I was dating another girl. Her name was Cora,” his voice trails off.
“Oh?”
“I just focus my time on whomever I’m with. I’m really looking to settle down, you know? Start a life. I’m not into being a player anymore, and every time I feel like I’ve found the right person—”
“You can’t just group all women into one category. We really aren’t all that bad. Some of us want those things too,” she assures him.
“I don’t know about that,” Scott sighs. He looks upwards just long enough to make eye contact for a couple seconds and then he stares at his drink.
“It’s true. That’s like me saying all guys are giant turds because of my ex-husband.”
“You were married?” Scott asks, sounding surprised. She’s tainted.
“Yes, I was. Things ended on a poor note, but I’ve moved on. I know not all men are like him and I’m willing to give love another chance someday if I get the opportunity.”
“How long have you been separated?” Scott asks.
“We’re officially divorced, actually. We split up six years ago, and we’ve been divorced for four.”
“Oh,” Scott responds. I’m okay with that, I think.
“What happened with Cora?” Renae asks, curiously.
“We dated for a couple years. I found out she was only interested in me because of money,” Scott whispers across the table.
“I’m sure you’ll find someone worth your time soon enough,” Renae assures him.
“I hope you’re right. To us finding love,” Scott says, raising his glass up toward her.
She clinks her glass on his and smiles. “To co-workers, relaxing over drinks before a long ass conference!”
“Hear, hear.”
Renae’s foot touches Scott’s leg under the table and he glances downwards. Her legs are perfectly sculpted and shaped. They are smooth, almost as though she had shaved them immediately when Scott had knocked on her door and suggested they go out. Is she trying to impress me? Her leg brushes against his again. She makes direct eye contact with him, refusing to look away. Touching his leg could not have been an accident. He doesn’t quite know what to make of this, but he’s enjoying it thoroughly.
He wonders if she’s behaving this way because of her drink. The empty glass is sitting in front of her, but surely that wasn’t enough alcohol to have her feeling tipsy already?
“Would you like another drink?” he asks, interrupting his thoughts, and her advances.
“Sure,” she replies, her eyes still on him.
He holds his hand up and motions for Ashley to come over. She quickly drops what she’s doing at the bar and heads in their direction. “More drinks, please.”
Two new drinks are on the table. They’ve decided to switch things up a bit; Scott ordered Disaronno on the rocks for both of them.
“I’ve never had this before,” Renae admits, pointing to her drink. “I’m actually quite enjoying it.”
“I’m actually quite enjoying spending time with you.”
Renae blushes.
Ashley appears, carrying the spinach dip. She carefully places it down between Scott and Renae, who both smile and thank her. Renae reaches out and grabs a piece of toasted pita bread off of the plate. She scoops up a fair amount of dip and takes a bite.
“Try the dip; it’s so good!” she exclaims.
Scott laughs and picks up a piece of pita bread. This appetizer was obviously a good idea. They were hungry. They both sit in silence, taking turns eating from the plate. Renae peers in the direction of Scott’s gaze and sees that he’s eyeing Ashley as she washes off the tables beside them. This makes Renae a tad uneasy. Scott is gorgeous and could have anyone he wants. He even made Ashley blush in the short time he was placing his order. Why is he so attractive?
There is just something allurin
g about him and the dim lighting of this romantic place helps bring it out; not that it needs any help—it is perfectly apparent all on its own.
“What?” Scott asks, noticing that Renae is staring right at him.
“Oh, nothing,” Renae says, somewhat embarrassed.
“What are you looking at?”
“You.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. There’s something about you.” Renae grins.
“Something good, I hope.”
“I hope so too.”
“For all you know, I could be a serial killer.” Scott laughs.
Renae laughs along with him. “I think you’re a little too wimpy for that. I could probably beat you up.”
“Oh, that sounds like a challenge, Ren. I’d like to see you try. Should we take this outside?” Scott asks, still laughing.
“No way, it’s too cold outside. Maybe after a few more drinks, when we walk back to the hotel. I’ll be warmer after some peppermint mocha Kahlua.” Renae points to the drink menu, and then takes another bite of pita bread, this time without any spinach dip. She decided to leave the tiny bit that was left for Scott. Surely, he appreciated that, but she couldn’t tell because he didn’t say anything as he picks up the last piece of bread and places it in his mouth. Even the way he chews is sexy.
“Did you even try the dip?” Renae asks, realizing she didn’t actually see him take a bite of it—she only saw him eat the plain chips.
“Yes, of course.” But he didn’t. He ordered it to impress, and show how open-minded he could be when it came to his taste buds. He is actually quite a simple man and there isn’t much he really likes.
Ashley is back and Renae almost cringes. At this point, she can barely look her in the eye as she flirts shamelessly with Scott. Ashley mentions that it’s almost time to close and Scott decides to order one last drink for himself. When he asks Renae if she’d like anything else, she politely declines. I’d like to get out of here.
His last drink is a scotch without ice. It tastes like familiar leather, and class.
“Let’s get out of here.” He grins, nodding toward the door.
“What about the bill?” Renae asks.
“Follow me.” Without another word, Scott is holding onto Renae’s hand. He pulls her toward him and they quickly make their way to the door. Renae glances back into the bar, where Ashley is still washing tables with her back toward them. They’re outside, now. Up the stairs. It’s cold. Renae is shaking, not only because of the temperature, but also because she can’t believe they just ran out on an almost hundred dollar tab.
She grins. Serves Ashley right for having flirted with Scott all night.
On the sidewalk, there are a couple of inches of snow on the ground. They’re two blocks away, now, from the bar, and they’re moving steadily.
“Hey! Hey!” They hear Ashley call after them. “Fuck!”
Scott just laughs.
“Okay, we really need to get back. It’s almost three in the morning,” Renae pleads. “We have to be up in a few hours.”
“I’m not going back.”
“What?”
“I’m not going back to the hotel. I have other plans,” Scott explains. He hops off the sidewalk and runs across the street. Renae stops dead in her tracks, completely confused. She was sure this night was going somewhere else, and now this.
What did I do wrong?
“What are you doing, Scott?” Renae yells.
“I’ll see you tomorrow!” he yells back from across the street. He walks fast, and then holds his arms out, extended at his sides and twirls. “I feel great!”
“This is fucked,” Renae mumbles, but she retreats into the hotel lobby, feeling defeated. On her way up to her room, she can’t help but hope he was just kidding, and that he was going to appear at the top of the stairway by the door to her room. She waits at her door for a whole minute before she finally lets herself in. He was serious.
She walks sluggishly into her room, wondering why she had given up the chance at a good night’s sleep for a guy who clearly wasn’t even interested in her. Not even in just sleeping with her. She’d been certain she was going to get laid tonight.
She pulls off the dress she now feels foolish in and unclasps her bra. She throws her panties onto the floor beside the king size bed and crawls in. She sinks down into the mattress and hugs her extra pillow tight beside her. She glances at the alarm clock. It reads 3:04 a.m. in neon red lighting. Less than three hours of sleep until she needs to be awake for her meetings.
She sighs and closes her eyes. She’s not even tired; she’s mostly just buzzed and light headed from the stolen drinks.
***
Scott
Scott isn’t tired, either. He sits on the sidewalk, hidden behind a parked car. He watches the doorway to the Monkey Bar, anxiously waiting for Ashley to finish her shift. She should be out within the next ten minutes; he’s sure of it. She only had a few tables to clean. She had been flirting with him all night and it was clear she felt the same way he did about this whole situation. He’s certain that she wants him. He’s glad they’re on the same page. And he brought rope, just in case they’re not.
Chapter Seven
Renae
“Where’s Scott Reed?” the CEO of a partner firm asks Renae as soon as she walks into the room. She wonders for a second how he knew she was from Danis Accounting, but then she remembers she’s wearing an identification badge.
“I don’t know,” she replies, looking around the room. She really doesn’t even want to hear Scott’s name right now. She’s still upset at last night’s events. She couldn’t care less if he showed up for this conference or not. But where is he?
She’s utterly exhausted. Her head hurts. She woke up early just so she could take a shower that would hopefully open her pores to release the smell of alcohol so she didn’t show up to this meeting smelling like a drunk. She looks downwards and discreetly smells her shirt. She’s fairly certain she doesn’t smell bad. Thankfully, she used a lot of her favorite perfume this morning, and now she smells of a hint of rose, peppercorn, cranberry, vanilla, and cacao flower.
The meeting is about to start, and Scott is still nowhere to be found. He was supposed to help set up a PowerPoint presentation, and the director was visibly irritated. He casually walks over to where Renae is sitting and leans over.
“Go find him,” he whispers sternly.
Renae rolls her eyes, and then instantly regrets it when she realizes someone in the room may have seen her do that. She quickly scans the room, but is relieved to see that no one’s eyes are on her. The director is still standing beside her as she pushes herself up from her chair. She looks him in the eyes and nods. He returns to his seat and she ventures out into the hallway. The first place she checks is his room.
She knocks on the door and he doesn’t answer.
“Scott?” she calls out. She knocks again. Still nothing. She puts her ear up to the door to listen for any movement. Did he not even come back to his room at all last night?
Renae begins to walk away from the door when she hears a moan. She turns and puts her ear against the door again.
“Scott?” she calls out. “They’re waiting for you downstairs.”
“Cora?” he mumbles.
“Uh, no, Scott. This isn’t Cora. It’s Renae. The meeting downstairs—they’re all waiting. Are you still drunk? Open the door.”
With her ear still pressed to the door, she waits. She hears nothing, but then suddenly the door cracks open. Scott looks like he’s a complete mess. His hair is disheveled. He’s only wearing plaid boxers. His face is close to Renae’s, and she can smell alcohol on his breath. He looks like he hasn’t slept at all, although with the three hour sleep Renae got, she looked no better waking up this morning.
She pushes her way into Scott’s room and closes the door behind her. “Get in the shower, Scott. I’ll pick you out some clothes.”
He nods and disappears into the
bathroom. His shower must be scalding, because steam is pouring out from under the bathroom door.
Renae flips Scott’s suitcase open. Sitting on top of the rest of his clothes, there is a pair of black lace underwear that clearly belongs to a woman. Renae wonders if they’re Sophie’s. She carefully pushes them to the side and pulls out dress pants and a shirt for today’s meetings.
Scott emerges from the bathroom, wearing only a small white hotel towel around his waist. He’s still soaking wet.
“What happened last night?” Renae asks.
“I just didn’t feel like going to bed. Sorry, Renae,” he replies.
“But I thought—never mind.” Renae sighs and hands him his clothing. “Get dressed. We are so late.”
He doesn’t even return to the bathroom to put his clothes on. Instead, he turns to face the wall, drops his towel, and slips on a pair of boxers. He then turns to Renae and puts his pants on while looking her in the eyes. She doesn’t want to look at him right now but she finds herself unable to look away. He stands in front of her with his abs glistening.
He takes a step toward her and she convinces herself to turn away. He moves even closer. She bumps into the wall, and he’s pressed against her before she can move aside.
“We have to go,” she squeaks. Their eyes interlock. She wants to look away, but can’t; the look he’s giving her is almost mesmerizing. He isn’t listening to her. Suddenly, she feels the heat of his breath on her neck, with his lips softly sweeping across it. She tries to ignore the sensations she’s feeling, but no sooner than she can try to distract herself his teeth graze over that one soft spot she was hoping he wouldn’t find. His hand is at her neck. He squeezes, hard. She gasps and puts both arms up to push him back, but then his mouth is on her collar bone, then her ear. He bites her, and then licks gently. She can still smell the alcohol from last night mixed with the minty toothpaste from just now.
