Page 13 of All That Lies Between Us

Neither of us looks at the other as the silence stretches between us. My jaw tightens at his hesitation. I know what he’s about to say, and I don’t want to hear it.

“I get it, Chase.” His voice is quiet but strong. “It’s killing me too.” A deep breath shoots out of him as he straightens back to his full height. “I know you need time, but you can’t forget to live just because she can’t.”

He clears his throat and slaps my back, a grin taking over his face. I know it’s fake, but I don’t have the energy to call him out on it.

“Besides, I invited them here. If they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t have come,” he says before walking toward their booth.

Of course he fucking invited them here.

I finish off my one beer for the night—I’m driving—and order a Coke. My eyes are back on the TV, but my mind is in that corner booth with my idiot friend and his two new companions.

I watch, annoyed, as multiple shots of amber liquid are sent their way. I’m sure I have Drake to thank for that shit.

My shoulders are tense, my hands sore from their constant tightening on my glass. My ears are perked up, attempting to hear through the small crowd of the bar and grill. When a sweet and raspy laugh rings out, the hairs on the back of my neck stand at attention.

I’ve never heard her laugh before, but I know it’s hers by the way my whole body reacts to it. My leg bounces wildly on the barstool, electricity shooting through my fingertips. The air feels thick with anticipation, making it harder and harder to sit still.

A part of me wants to get up, head to their table, and flirt just as shamelessly as I know Drake is. That part, the reckless and uncaring part of me, wants the night to end with her trapped beneath me, moaning my name and falling apart in my arms.

The responsible part of me wants to walk out of here and pretend like I never even laid eyes on her. For whatever reason, that thought twists my stomach.

Fuck it. I need to get out of here.

I roughly throw a few bills down on the bar and rise from my stool. Just as I turn to head toward the door, my eyes lock on to hers from across the room. I don’t mean to look her way, but I don’t seem to have any control of my body’s reaction to her.

When she raises from the booth and starts sauntering my way, the air rushes out of the room. As stupid as it fucking sounds, time stands still. I’m not even sure if I’m breathing; all I can hear is the rush of blood in my ears. My heart feels like it’s going to beat right out of my chest in order to get closer to her.

After what feels like a lifetime, she stops in front of me, toe to toe, almost nose to nose. I can smell the tequila on her breath and want desperately to taste it too. She sends me a sexy smile that does nothing to calm my frantic heart.

“Hi.”

One simple word, two simple letters, but for some reason, it catches my entire body on fire.

God, I want this woman.

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