Page 17 of Tempting the Goalie
“I get what you’re both saying. We should never dress or wear makeup for someone else. But I like this feeling for myself. Fuck men. I’m being sexy for me,” Yuna cheers.
Priya and I burst into laughter.
“Come on,” Yuna says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. “We look hot and we can own that on our own terms.”
Luc honks his horn, and we head out to his car. I get in the front seat and Yuna and Priya sit in the back.
“W-what are you wearing?” Luc asks, looking stunned.
“I got dressed for the bar. Do you like my red lips?” I pucker them for effect.
His eyes are wide. “It’s nice, Mon coeur. You’re beautiful with and without the makeup,” he compliments. Damn him. Why does my best friend have to be so perfect?
I hear Priya clearing her throat in an exaggerated way. I get the message loud and clear. I need to be happy in my own skin. It doesn’t matter what others think of me if I feel good about myself. Maybe that was the problem when I was with West. It wasn’t him. It was me lacking self-esteem.
“Okay, let’s go to this bar. What do we do there?” I ask.
Luc blows out a breath. “This is going to be interesting,” he mutters and redirects his attention to the back seat. “How are you ladies doing?” he asks Priya and Yuna.
“Good,” Priya answers. “Looking forward to a nice night out.”
“Great,” Yuna adds.
We pull into the parking lot of Black Jack’s. Everyone knows this place. It’s where all the jocks and cool kids on campus hang out.
“Have you been here before?” Luc asks.
“No, but I’ve heard of it,” I inform him. Luc pulls into a spot, and we all get out of the car. We head inside and the place is packed. Music is playing loudly on speakers. I realize there is an entire life outside of burying myself in books. Students actually have fun, they flirt, kiss. My skin prickles with anticipation and I shiver. Luc places his palm on my lower back. He waves at some guys sitting at a booth.
“You aren’t going out with any of my teammates,” Luc whispers next to my ear. He always watched out for me when we were in high school. He was popular and played hockey. I had my head buried in books. I hadn’t kissed a guy until prom night and it wasn’t something to write home about. It was a friendfrom my AP classes. Neither of us had real dates so we went together.
“Huh, why?”
“Last time you came around these guys, you ended up dating West Knight, who I warned you about,” he reminds.
I wince. “You can’t tell me who to date.” We walk up to a table filled with tall handsome guys.
Luc introduces Priya and Yuna first. When he gets to me, he says. “And this is Izzy, my best friend from back home.” His hand is still on my lower back, and it almost feels like he is claiming me or maybe protecting me, as usual.
“Nice to meet you,” Seth, a blond-haired guy with green eyes shakes my hand with a devilish grin. We go through all the introductions until my friends and I have met Brody, Hutch, and Tyler. They are all big flirts. We slide into the booth with Priya getting in first. She sits beside Tyler. Yuna gets in beside her and I get in last. Luc takes the end seat, sandwiching me between him and Yuna.
“What are you ladies drinking tonight?” Seth asks.
“I don’t know. What do you recommend?” Yuna asks.
“Some shots to start.” Seth grins.
“Easy there, tiger,” Luc warns.
Seth laughs. “So, you two are friends from back home?” he asks, looking between Luc and me.
“Yes,” I answer.
“Why haven’t you come around before?” Seth asks.
“Because she is usually busy,” Luc answers for me with a clipped tone.
“Okay, okay,” Seth says, leaning back while giving Luc a look that says chill.
