Page 4 of King of the Unsightly

A frown expanded across my face as he flashed a smile—one I used to love, but now it only pissed me off. His flirty antics were just plain annoying.

Jared leaned against the bar and looked me over. He didn’t bother sitting down on the barstool. Which told me: he didn’t plan on sticking around, or he didn’t want to wrinkle his tailor-made suit that molded to his muscular physique perfectly.

God, I hated him.

“Clearly.” I glanced past Jared and at his two friends loitering behind. “Hello, Chad One. Chad Two. It’s been too long. I missed you guys.” I gave them an insincere salute, but it looked more like a flick of the wrist.

Chad One scoffed as he turned and mutteredpsychoto Chad Two.

I didn’t remember their names, and frankly, they didn’t deserve my effort. They were rude to me while Jared and I dated, so why bother playing nice now? Wait ... did they call me psycho?

That’s two for two tonight. Hot damn, I was on fire.

“We need to talk.” Jared shooed the Chads away and proceeded to act like we didn’t break up a couple days ago. “Addy, I miss you. Why haven’t you returned any of my calls?”

“You know why.” I continued to not give Jared my full attention and swirled my glass. The ice swished around, and for a split second it muted everything around me.

“So?”

My eyes widened and I scanned Jared’s face, his dark eyebrows furrowed. “So, what?”

“Can I buy you a drink?”

If I said yes, would he think he’s forgiven? What a dumb question. Of course, he would.

“Fine.”

Jared’s face lit up and he waved the bartender down and ordered my favorite drink.

The bartender plopped the whiskey sours in front of us, gave Jared a wink, and went back to helping new customers.

Unbelievable. I chugged the last of my drink and grabbed the next. I tapped my fingers aggressively on the bar top again—holding my tongue.

Don’t be petty, Addy. Don’t be petty.

“Seduced the bartender already, I see.” Damn it.

Jared’s deep chuckle reverberated in my ears as he brushed his curls back and leaned into me. His gaze didn’t falter. “I seem to remember you liked it when I seduced you.”

Jared pulled the barstool out and sat down.

My face scrunched in disgust. Did I really date a man this full of himself?

A hollow laugh escaped my throat. “So did the other woman you brought into your bed,” I muttered, gripping my glass tighter and stirring the ice.

This was a sign I needed to raise my standards.

Jared ruffled his hair and ignored my dig as he brazenly took a sip of his drink. He remained poised but stayed silent. He glanced at my drink and then back at me. He held a deadpan expression, but it eased back into his normal, flirtatious smirk.

Jared had some nerve to act so nonchalant. My hand itched to dump my whole drink over him. If I stained his suit would that ruin his night like he shattered my confidence?

No, no. I evolved. I didn’t need to seek revenge. I was above that.Kinda.

I banished all my intrusive thoughts and stretched out my free hand, stopping my aggressive taps. “Yeah, past tense. I did. Not anymore.”

I chugged my second drink in a matter of seconds, contemplating if I wanted Jared to keep me company or if I should take my chances with Raagini or the crows. They allsounded atrocious, but I leaned more toward my other two options than him. I needed to choose the lesser of the three evils, or whatever.

The shelves of liquor shifted out of place and my whole body went numb as my thoughts muddled together.

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