Page 22 of Between the Flames

Stupid, stupid Elle. This is why I forced myself to build mental walls against myself, because sometimes the ‘what-if’ hurt so bad I found it hard to breathe. I was a fool, but I also wasn’t that girl anymore. I had grown from being the girl who would allow herself to be pulled into the darkness of her thoughts and stomp on her own self-confidence.

Too much time had passed, and I had grown too much.

I worked so hard to become the person who I am right here, right now. I have flourished in my career, achieved goals I was told I would never achieve. I had dated, and although the relationships always had a short expiration date, I had realized that they just weren’t living up to the expectations that I had built in my head.

That was growth, right?

I knew that my ridiculous expectations were just a means of staying closed off and guarded, and I knew that I needed to pull myself out of the slump and get back out there. It was just always such a hard admission to make.

Maybe meeting up with Noah would be just the kick start that I needed to start really living again.

As I drove home, I called Rosie just to hear her voice, and found myself asking her if she wanted to grab a drink later. She owed me one, and it had been a few months since I had been at Reggie’s. It made sense to stop in a few days ahead of mine and Noah’s meet up. Maybe the familiarity would calm my nerves that I knew would be insane come Friday.

* * *

Around 8 o’clock myphone chimed, letting me know my Uber was out front waiting for me. I hurried to grab my purse and keys, locking up behind me as I followed the dimly lit path to the driveway and climbed into the dark sedan waiting for me. The Uber driver was a small, redheaded woman who looked to be in her mid to late forties. We exchanged pleasantries for the fifteen-minute drive and I thanked her as I climbed out of her car, offering a small wave after the door had shut.

Rosie sat on the top part of a bench outside of the bar, waiting for me with a cigarette dangling from her fingers.

“You’re still smoking? I thought you quit.” I wrinkled my nose, watching as she tossed it to the floor and used the platform of her heel to snuff it out on the ground.

“You win some, you lose some.” She shrugged, looping her arm through mine.

Once inside, we found a couple of barstools and ordered two drinks; a rum and Coke for me and a whisky neat for her.

“Brent broke up with me, again.”

I tried to hide my eye roll, taking a sip of my drink while trying to formulate a response that would make me sound like less of a bitch and more of a good friend. “I’m so sorry, Rosie, but maybe it’s for the best? You guys have been so on and off since the beginning. What if he’s your Scott Disick and by finally leaving him, you’ll get to meet your Travis Barker? Well, assuming they end up being endgame.”

She pursed her lips, contemplating my words as she stared into her drink. I mentally thanked TikTok for giving me that inspirational tidbit, as it seemed to do exactly what I had hoped and was pushing Rosie into a better mood. She smiled at me and polished off her drink, quickly hopping down from her barstool before pulling me off of mine, nearly knocking me over in the process. I glared at her, but her smile was infectious. Letting her pull me out onto the bar’s small dance floor, I bobbed awkwardly beside her before finally letting go, allowing the music to flow through my body. With a drink in one hand and the other up in the air, I moved my hips to the beat, swaying and letting the confidence bubble within me. It wasn’t long before we had the eyes of nearly every guy glued to us as we moved our hips and grinded on each other.

After several songs of nonstop dancing, I gestured to Rosie that we should move back to the bar for a break. Nodding her head once, she grabbed my hand as I led us back to the same barstools we had occupied earlier. I situated myself before turning my body toward the bar, scanning the length of it in search of the bartender. My eye caught on a guy sitting at the opposite end of the bar chatting animatedly with his friend, and I licked my lips as his eyes instantly locked with mine. He was hot as sin and, while clearly still in mid-sentence; he undressed me with his eyes. Suppressing a grin, the bartender appeared in front of me and I turned my attention to him, ordering iced water for both me and Rosie.

She groaned at my order choices. “Water?! Bitch, the night is still young and we have a lot more dancing to do.”

“Don’t worry, we’re not done dancing yet. I’m just done with drinking for the night,” I told her, laughing as she wrinkled her nose.

“That’s a shame. I was just about to ask if I could buy you a drink,” a gruff voice spoke from behind me. I swiveled on my barstool to find the handsome guy from across the bar now standing next to me.

“I work tomorrow morning, but thanks.” Looking up at him from below my lashes, I shrugged nonchalantly.

“How about a dance, then?”

I gained a newfound confidence as I slid from my barstool, kissing Rosie on the cheek before walking ahead of bar guy slowly, hips sashaying as I moved.

“You coming?” I asked from over my shoulder.

With a pep in his step, he followed me to the dance floor.

As if the universe was trying to be a complete cliche, the next song on the bar’s playlist had a slower beat, giving bar guy time to talk while he pulled me into an embrace. “River” by Bishop Briggs, which if you’ve ever heard is the epitome of sex, blasted through the sound system, forcing us to move slowly and sensually.

Seeming to be caught in the low tones of the song, bar guy spoke, his voice husky.“I’m Matt.”

Of course, this guy’s name was Matt.

Matt is the guy you can bring home to mom and dad, the nice, safe, practical choice in life. Guys named Matt inevitably end up being dull.

“Elle,” I told him, choosing to close the gap between us to see if the feeling of his body against mine would invoke a spark of chemistry. His hands slid down my back, stopping just barely above my ass, as he continued to sway me.

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