Fuck it, there’s nothing that she needs to know yet. I’m not going out with the intention of cheating on her. I’m going out with an old friend, that’s it. An old friend that I’m attracted to and still completely in love with, even though I hadn’t seen her in five years.
I pulled myself off the couch to put some clothes on. Leaving my mess, I made my way toward the bedroom. I pulled on a pair of jeans that hung loosely around my hips, just enough to show the top band of my boxer briefs, and began looking for a shirt. I felt like a fucking girl, I wanted to look good but not like I tried too hard.
After going through every shirt I owned, I pulled on a fitted black t-shirt and went into the bathroom to finish getting ready.
I styled my hair, which I didn’t do often, and put on some cologne. After looking in the mirror, I shook my head at how fucking stupid I was being. It felt like our first date all over again. I pushed the thoughts away and grabbed my wallet, phone, and keys off the dresser before making my way to the truck.
I pulledinto the bar parking lot an hour later. I had to sit in my truck and give myself a little pep talk before I could even go inside.
Finally, after telling myself that I wouldn’t do anything with Lennox that I would regret, I walked inside the crowded bar.
The music was loud, people were swaying back and forth on the dance floor, and almost every table was full. I slowly made my way to the bar.
“Mason? I haven’t seen you in here on a Friday night in years.” Wendy crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the bar.
I shrugged. “Meeting an old friend.”
Wendy gave me that, ‘yeah right’ smile. “What will ya have?”
“A beer and two shots of Jack.” I needed it to loosen up and calm down.
She poured the shots and sat them in front of me while she went to grab the beer. I slammed one shot and then the other before she even came back with my beer.
“Damn, you’re serious tonight.” Wendy sat down my beer and picked up the money.
I gave her a smile before taking the beer and finding a table.
There was one table left at the back of the bar. Nobody ever sat at it because you couldn’t see what was going on in the rest of the bar. I knew we would be left alone there. I sat down with my nerves going through the roof.
I drank two more beers and talked to some people around me before I saw Lennox walk in. She was drop dead sexy in her short jean skirt and red tank top. Her hair flowed down her back, just the way I liked it. She stopped dead in her tracks and our eyes locked. It was like time stood still and I was nineteen again.
Lennox smiled, eyes lighting up as she slowly walked toward me. I swear it was like slow motion.
Before she could make it to the table, a group of people stopped her and I noticed that she was signing bar napkins and anything else they handed her way.
That was new for me. She had always been the talk of the town, from being the hot new girl, to my girlfriend, to the girl that made it big. But the whole autograph thing, that was something I knew I would have to get used to.
She was just the same old Lennox to me. The girl that I fell head over heels in love with from the moment I first laid eyes on her.
The girl that tricked me into giving her her first shot, the girl I watched sleep in my arms, and the girl that broke my heart in two and took half of it with her five years before.
Lennox smiled at the people that were asking questions and signed whatever they asked her to. She finally excused herself and made her way to me.
Finally.
I stood from the table and wrapped my arms around her for only a second.
“I’m glad you broke away. I was worried that they were going to capture you and never let you go,” I joked before sitting back down and taking a drink of my beer.
“Me too.” Her eyes were wide, but she offered up her breathtaking smile. There’s my smile.
I let my eyes linger over her. They were greedy, starving for her for far too long.
Her face was covered in makeup, dark eyeshadow and eyeliner, but it made her green eyes shine even brighter. There was something off about them, though.
Is she sick? Maybe it’s just that I hadn’t seen her in years. Some things were bound to change.
“I don’t ever get to go anywhere without security, so this is new for me.” She looked around the bar, finding Wendy and waving her down to order straight Jack.