Page 7 of Callum
Her friend blushed, and it made Fiona grin. She raised her voice so the man could hear her. “Whiskey sour, please.” It was her go-to.
Jenny wet her lips and took a moment to respond. “I’ll have the same.”
The second the bartender moved away, Fiona nudged Jenny’s shoulder. “He’s cute.”
“Yeah, he is.”
“You should talk to him.”
Her friend’s brows rose almost to her hairline. “No, I couldn’t.”
“Why not? He was looking at you like he’s interested.”
She lifted a shoulder, glancing at him, then back. “Because I don’t do that.”
Fiona frowned. “Talk to cute guys?”
“Yeah.”
The bartender returned and mixed the drinks in front of them before handing them over. Fiona went to pay, but the guy shook his head, eyes only for Jenny. “It’s on the house.”
Fiona’s grin widened, but too quickly, Jenny mumbled a barely audible, “Thanks,” and turned.
Fiona followed, lowering her head to Jenny’s ear. “Just my opinion, but I think you should make talking to cute guys a thing. He’shot!”
And she didn’t blame the guy. Her friend was cute. Tonight she’d put some waves into her bob and shadow on her eyelids, making her blue eyes look huge behind her frames. Plus, she wore a short skirt that showed off a hell of a lot of skin, paired with a tight black top that was low cut and made her breasts look amazing.
“Maybe after I have some liquid courage,” Jenny said, stopping at a tall bar table. “And what about you? Are you going to talk to any cute guys tonight?”
She scoffed. “I don’t think so.”
“That wouldn’t be because you’re thinking about a certain tall, dangerous ex-Marine who saved your life, would it?”
Fiona gaped at her friend. She hadn’t even told Jenny about that, though the news had spread like wildfire amongst the older librarians. “Absolutely not. Because I know nothing will ever happen there. I mean, you’ve seen the man. He’s six and a half feet of drop-dead gorgeous. My ex wasn’t half as good looking as him, and you know how that ended? In heartbreak. The next man I date will be short and chubby with a little bit of balding on top of his head.”
Jenny made a face. “Really? He has to be chubbyandbald?”
“Yep. He’ll treat me like a queen.”
“Hmm. Okay. So, Callum doesn’t tempt you because you’re waiting for short, chubby and bald.”
“Yep.”
“And if you saw him here tonight, you wouldn’t be affected?”
“Absolutely not.” She could coexist with the man and not turn into a puddle on the floor in his presence. She sipped her whiskey sour, almost wanting to give herself a pat on the back at her confidence in the matter.
“Great, because he’s sitting over there in a booth, looking directly at you.”
What?She whipped around so fast, the whiskey spilled onto her hand. When her gaze collided with Callum’s heated light brown eyes, she almost spat out her drink. He wore a white shirt that pulled far too tightly across his chest, and his powerful fingers circled his glass, the veins in his hands standing out.
Oh, hell no. This was not how her night was supposed to go. Although, was it surprising he was here? He’d been here that fateful night she’d been taken hostage too. In fact, he’d driven her home that night. Was he always here? Was this his usual hangout?
God, she needed to find a new bar, because everything she’d just said to Jenny was a lie.
One big. Fat. Lie.
One side of his mouth lifted. The smile was almost mocking, like he knew exactly what effect he had on her, and he enjoyed it.
