Page 9 of Waiting for Tuesday

I hopped off my chair and looped my bag over my chest. “I owe you big time.” I gave her a kiss on the cheek and gestured to the front of the bar. “Now, where’s the bathroom?”

She grinned wickedly “Down the hall.”

* * *

There wasa line a mile long when I got to the hall, and at least a half dozen fan club members stood in it. I took my spot at the very end and pulled my phone out of my pocket.Dead. My stomach did a nervous flutter as I stuffed it back inside. I knew there must be twenty orders waiting for me in email, and I was stuck here for at least another hour. Sometimes I hated having friends. I shook my head and pulled in a deep breath.You’ll catch up tomorrow; everything will be fine.

The line moved again, and I couldn’t help but listen in on the conversation in front of me. It was one of the brunettes I’d seen at the bar earlier, and she wasn’t trying to be quiet.

“…he said his name was Donovan. Do you think he owns the place?”

Another shrugged. “Who knows? All I care about is him giving me aridehome tonight. If you know what I mean.”

They both giggled, and I turned my back to the conversation. I’d come to the bathroom to clear my head, and their conversation wasn’t helping matters. But the man known as Donovan seemed to be haunting me. My eyes locked on his back as he poured drinks behind the bar. He wasn’t even my type. I liked nerdy guys, ones who liked poetry and books. Not the type who had a different woman in his bed every night, which judging from the size of his fan group, he likely had. I wanted stability, commitment, someone to settle down with, but damn was he hard not to look at.

He seemed to be growing more and more attractive the longer I stared. But it wasn’t just his looks. It was the way he moved. As if he didn’t have a care in the world. As if he was just happy to be alive. He reminded me of my mother in a way. The type who never settled down, who enjoyed life a little too much, the type of living I was trying to break away from. Yet, I found myself unable to turn away.

As if he sensed me watching him, he turned around and our eyes locked again. This was the second time, and my cheeks instantly flushed with embarrassment. Warmth crept up my stomach, over my neck, and I knew, knew with everything that was holy, that I was bright red again. But sometimes there was no denying your downfalls, and this was one of them. I grinned slightly, lifted my shoulders, and held up my hands in ayou caught memotion. “What can you do?” I whispered to myself.

He seemed amused by my admission, and threw his head back with laughter. It was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen. His nose wrinkled up, making him look even more boyish than before, and he bit his bottom lip. The way he looked at me made me breathless. I whipped back in the other direction, thankful the line had moved enough for me to squeeze into the bathroom. I pulled in a gulp of air and slouched against the wall.

What the hell was wrong with me? Maybe Becky was right, and I’d been working too hard. But as much as I tried to convince myself that was the cause, I knew the truth. I was attracted to him in a way I hadn’t felt in ages. Since I was the teenaged girl who fell in love with the boys who never noticed me. It scared me a little. The last thing I needed was a replay of my childhood. Or to wake up with another naked man in my bed.

After doing my business, I washed my hands and splashed cold water on my face. I’d only been gone fifteen minutes, but I was certain Becky would come looking for me. I needed to go back out there, to hang out with the best friend I’d been neglecting for weeks, but the thought of running into Donovan again made me blush all over. My reaction was silly really; he was only a man, and I’d only been caught staring, but his smile had infected my brain.Waymore thanwineever could.

When I finally stepped out of the bathroom, the hall was filled with a hoard of people. I tried to squeeze through the crowd, thankful for the camouflage so Donovan wouldn’t see me, but everyone was headed the other way, which made it impossible to move. I opened the door to the bathroom again, deciding to wait out it out for a couple more minutes, but someone grabbed my arm and began pulling me in the opposite direction.

“Hey baby, come with us, we have a keg back at the house.”

His breath smelled heavily of alcohol, and his eyes were glassy and bloodshot. More alcohol definitely wasn’t what this guy needed.

I smiled anyway, remembering my youth all too well, and shook my head. “Thanks, but no thanks.” I pulled away, intending to head back to my table, but another man blocked my exit.

“You think you’re too good for us, doll?” He stepped closer, eyeing me up and down in a way that made my heart thud.

“I didn’t say that.”

He bit his lip, his chest millimeters from mine. “You didn’t have to.” He grabbed the strand of feathers in my hair, wrapping it twice around his finger, and pulled. “Are you some kind of Indian?”

His foul breath washed over my face and I pushed away.

“How ’bout youpowmy wow tonight.”

I stepped backward, looking over my shoulder for an exit, but a deep voice pulled my attention back to the bar.

“Are these guys bothering you?”

Donovan was making his way toward us, his jaw clenched, and his eyes holding none of the lighthearted humor I’d seen at the bar earlier. He looked like a different person...

I nodded.

The man standing in front of me retreated at the sight of him, smashing my sandaled foot with his heavy boot in the process. I doubled over, looked down to the floor to catch my breath, and pressed myself against the wall.

When I glanced up again, the guys were all gone, and the only person left was Donovan. Squatting at my feet, staring up at me with eyes that were dark as coal.

He touched my ankle, causing sparks of awareness to shoot through my body.

“You okay?” he asked, his voice deep and kind.

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