“No, thank you,” she smiled, moving to hand it back.
Alex picked up another shot glass – and tapped it against hers pointedly, arching a dark eyebrow and smiling.
“Indulge me in just one,” he countered.
“How do I know you aren’t trying to roofie me?” she smiled as he grinned – and took the shot glass back from her, lining the three shot glasses up in a row between the two of them.
“You pick one then,” he said playfully, “Join me in a drink, because I promise all three aren’t drugged, or we have bigger problems – and then the bartender is the culprit. Not me.”
She knew he was trying to flirt with her, play with her, but this wasn’t her thing… and it was a shame it was his. He was exceedingly handsome and she kept drinking in his features, wanting to memorize them.
“I don’t drink, Alex…”
“And I don’t normally try so hard to impress a girl, but if this doesn’t work? I’m not opposed to trying something else,” Alex smiled at her once more, angling a little bit just to meet her gaze as she looked away.
“Name your price, pick your poison, and let me impress you with something –anything– just so you’ll talk with me for a little bit,” he invited. “Because I really don’t want our conversation to be over so soon.”
“Fine,” Everly said, feeling like she had the upper hand at that point. “You impress me - and I’ll pick a shot.”
“Done,” Alex grinned.
“What is the theory behind calculus and how many bones make up the human ankle?” she asked, realizing that there was no way he would ever be able to answer either of those questions unless he was a book nerd and scholar like her.
“Ooooh,” Alex quipped, his eyes dancing. “Two good, hard questions to test me, huh? I love it. Let’s see…” he mused, tapping his chin for a moment, before looking at her. “The theory behind doing calculus is to study instantaneous changes over intervals of time…”
Everly’s smile fell.
“… And I’m pretty sure there are seven bones in the ankle – one of them being a cuboid, I believe?”
“Who are you?” she whispered, confused, and taken aback that he was able to answer both questions perfectly.
“Your date this evening,” Alex replied playfully, winking at her. “Which do you want, Everly?”
She blindly grabbed one of the shot glasses, trying to figure him out, as he tapped another against hers, smiling at her.
“I promise you, I can be smart and good looking at the same time, you know,” he teased gently. “That’s not just reserved for breathtakingly, beautiful blond women with big, brown eyes…”
“Are you a doctor in the military?”
“Nope,” he quipped, and hesitated for a moment warily. “Are you?”
“Not yet… well no, but I may be a doctor very soon.”
“Nice,” he smirked, throwing back his shot of tequila in one smooth move again, not even making a face. “I’m an officer and heading off to my new duty station in a few days. Are you a heart specialist, Everly?”
“Me? Oh no,” she replied quickly, downing the shot like he did – and flinching as it burned a trail down her esophagus to her stomach, as he leaned forward to whisper in her ear.
“You should be…” Alex breathed, his warm breath tickling her ear as she felt his cheek against hers. “Because you are certainly affecting mine.”
Everly felt everything in her seize at once as Alex slowly backed away, his eyes holding hers.
His eyes were hazel, which was not normally an extraordinary color, except his made her want to fall into them. Shades of brown, green, and blue, held her gaze… or maybe it was the look in them?
Perhaps it was the tequila?
No man should look this good,she thought numbly, unable to fight the attraction she felt overwhelming her in that moment, dragging in the scent of him simply to get air in her lungs so she could breathe.
It could have been the way his cheek scraped softly against hers as he backed away slightly, feeling that roughness of his freshly shaven face, combined with his warm skin, and the smell of his cologne…