Page 8 of Despite It All
“Yeah, Jett, just enjoy the party for once. You never come out with us anymore. You're twenty-nine, not dead,” Justin says across from me.
I take one of the peanuts out of the bucket in the middle of our table and chuck it at him.
“Ah, fuck. You don’t have to be so aggressive.” He tosses a peanut back at me.
“Come on, Jett. We’ve got a day off for travel tomorrow, and one shot won’t kill you.” Adam takes the bucket of peanuts to his side of the table, out of reach. “Take a shot, drink one drink. Hell, take a girl back to your hotel.”
“Oh yeah, I’ll get right on that.” Last thing I need is a cleat chaser in my sheets that will refuse to leave in the morning without some sort of promise of a future. Nah, I’m good.
The waitress drops off our drinks and a round of shots. Thankfully, the world's worst singer ends his karaoke debut and leaves the stage.
“Okay, okay, give it up for Alex, guys,” the announcer says, and there’s some applause—why, I don't know. “Alright, we’re gonna take a little break and beback in twenty.”
Thank fuck. I reach for my drink to take a sip and nearly spit it back in my glass. Fuck. “Mm, this is not my drink.”
“What?” Adam asks as he downs his tequila shot.
“I think they made the wrong drink. I’m pretty sure this is a Manhattan.”
“Want me to get the waitress?” Justin asks. “She was hot.”
I push back my chair, figuring I’ll save her the trouble of any unnecessary interactions with my man-whore of a teammate. “Nah, I don’t see her. It’s not a big deal, I’ll just go up to the bar.”
I make my way out of the tight tables and chairs. Honestly, I’m tempted to drop my drink off and sneak out the door.
I weigh my options. Adam would give me hell for ditching but I don’t really care. Alright, leaving it is. I’m nearly to the bar when suddenly, something spears into my side.
Drinks splatter between us and a small squeal comes followed by the sound of a thud. “Ow.”
I look down at the woman on the floor. “Shit, you okay?” I ask as I kneel down beside her.
The brunette leans forward on her hands and starts to laugh. “I’m fine. I think I just ran into a wall.”
Oh great, she’s drunk. “No, that was me, you ran into me.”
The girl turns her head to me and snorts a laugh. “I ran into you?”
“Um, yeah, I’m wearing the alcohol to prove it.”
She reaches one hand forward and touches the wet stain on my navy t-shirt, then throws her head back in laughter. “Oopsies.” She moves to stand up but with the mix of her current state and the spilled drinks on the floor, she starts to slip again.
“Okay,” I say as I catch her, helping her stand back up safely. One arm wraps behind her back, and my other hand wraps around her arm to steady her. My stature practically swallows her.
She looks down at herself. “Ah, damn it, look at my shirt.”
I glance down at the soaked white t-shirt where “cowboy pillows” is written across her chest in small black letters. With fabric now translucent and clinging to her skin—let’s just say I wish I were a cowboy.
“You think the whiskey will stain? I really like this shirt.” She pulls it out, holding wet fabric away from her body and pouts.
She’s fucking pouting. I should be annoyed, but why is my first thought about biting her lip? I need to keep this conversation short. This girl seems entirely too tempting.
“Do you have a jacket or something to change into?”
She pulls her arm out of the grasp I didn’t realize I still had. “I’m good, Dad. This is my ‘let go’ weekend. Nothing is going to ruin my time, and no one is telling me what to do. Although, considering this $40 shirt is now ruined, and I didn’t even get to drink my $12 drink… but I guess you didn’t get your drink either. Sorry ‘bout that.” She scrunches her nose. “If I offer to replace your drink, will you not turn creepy and think it’s a secret code for me being interested in you?”
Well, that’s new. Not to sound like a complete asshole, but usually I have a tendency to attract cleat chasers and stage five clingers. But this girl doesn’t scream either of those to me.
“If I offer to buy your drink, will you call me sexist for not wanting you to pay?”
