Page 13 of Nathan
“No. Why would I be nervous around you?”
I watched her. “Just checking.”
Serena pushed her shoulder against mine. “I think you need to drink some more. Here. This drink looks very masculine.”
I lifted the small round glass. “Whiskey.”
After taking a sip, I handed her the glass with a warning, “Careful; it’s got a lovely burn.”
“I can handle a glass of whiskey.”
“Can you?” I challenged Serena with an amused smile. “Let me see you empty the glass then.”
“All right, but then you have to empty that black beer.”
“A Guinness isn’t to be gulped down. It should be tasted and enjoyed.”
“Do we have a deal or not?” Serena held the whiskey a bit higher.
“Are you trying to get me drunk?” I asked with laughter in my voice.
“If I do, will you be less scared of me?”
“Scared of you?”
Serena lifted her brow. “You said that you didn’t want to come to my suite because of what I might do to you.”
Leaning in, I whispered in her ear. “Maybe my fear isn’t so much what you’ll do to me, but what I might do to you.”
An electric current ran between us and made my spine tingle with desire. She was close and watching me without speaking, like she wasn’t sure what to make of my flirtatious words.
Lifting the glass of Guinness, I clinked it against the glass of whiskey she was holding. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” She watched me drink the beer, and then she leaned her head back and swallowed the whiskey in one big gulp.
The grimace on her face made me laugh. “I thought you said that you could handle whiskey.”
“I can handle anything.”
“You sure about that?”
“Bring it on!” With a fortifying breath, Serena sat up straight. “Unlike you, I’m not afraid of anything.”
I could feel the alcohol warm my belly and felt much more relaxed than when I first arrived. “Only a fool would say that.”
“Are you calling me a fool?”
“Mhmm. There’s plenty of things in this world to be afraid of.”
“I’m an expert at overcoming my fear with positive thinking. My mindset coach taught me how.”
I shook my head. “That’s because you’ve never had anything real to be scared of, but positive thinking won’t help you if you meet a true psychopath.”
“There are plenty of mean people in this industry, Nathan. Don’t think for a second that I have a privileged life.”
My eyebrows lifted, but I didn’t get a chance to challenge her statement before she added, “I said that wrong. I do have a privileged life, but not everything is peachy, you know.”
“Why? Is Storm not satisfying you in bed?” Fuck, as soon as I said it, I wanted to take it back, but to my surprise, Serena just snickered.
