Read Online Drawn by Lilliana Anderson - Free Book Online

a bottle of beer above her head.
    “Wouldn’t miss it,” I return, grinning like crazy. I’ve been to the uni bar before, but I’ve never been able to go out with everyone afterward. I’ve always had to keep to my curfew. Now suddenly, I don’t have one, and I can’t stop smiling.
    “I love that dress,” Kensi says. “I wish I was tall enough to wear something like that. Long dresses make me look like a baby,” she laughs.
    “There has to be a benefit to being a giant woman,” I laugh in return.
    “We haven’t been to one of these pool competitions before. Are they any good?” Jessica asks, directing her question toward Aaron.
    “Um, yeah. They’re not too bad. I normally buddy up with a few friends. That’s them over there,” he says, nodding toward a group of people we know from our classes.
    “Can you play pool Etta?” asks Kensi, as she lifts her bottle of beer to her lips.
    “A little, I know the rules. But I’m rarely here long enough to play,” I reply, hoping they don’t really expect me to play in the tournament.
    Our other friends wave us over to their table. “Let me introduce you to our friends,” Aaron offers, guiding us all over to our usual group of Jenny, Kylie, Daniel, Carl and Adam, who are already seated and drinking at an inside table.
    Kylie jumps up and hugs me. “Happy birthday! We thought we’d sit inside today since your legal now,” she bounces.
    “It was your birthday?” Kensi asks.
    “Yeah Tuesday,” I smile, turning to introduce them before everyone gets caught up discussing my age again. “Everyone, this is Kensi and Jessica. They’re going to be my housemates as of this weekend,” I tell them all proudly.
    “Oh my god! You found something already? That’s fantastic,” squeals Jenny.
    “And I hear you’re coming out with us tonight,” Carl adds.
    “I sure am,” I grin.
    “Does that mean she can sub in for me with this pool thing?” Adam asks. He seems to be all arms and legs and from what I hear, is solely responsible for the constant losses this group is amassing in the pool competition.
    “Don’t try and rope her in,” Jenny puts in. “Adam you’ll be fine. The men play the pool and the women sit around and drink and giggle. It’s the rules, and it has been for years.”
    “What’s going on?” I ask Aaron.
    “Adam doesn’t want to play,” Carl explains.
    “But we need a forth,” Aaron responds.
    “Etta can do it,” Adam insists. 
    “Alright, well if you want me to – I’ll play. I can sink the balls, I just can’t do any fancy tricks,” I offer, realising that I’d actually prefer to play pool more than I’d prefer to watch for a change.
    “Sounds perfect. Of course you’ll partner with me,” Aaron smiles.
    “Of course,” I grin back.
    Aaron and Karl rise from their seats and make their way over to the sign up area. It’s at that moment I get a prickling sensation dancing over my skin. When I look around for the reason, I notice Damien, sitting at the bar, beer in hand, watching me.
    The moment I catch his eye, he tilts his glass toward me and smiles, giving me a wink. The corner of my mouth twitches as I try to fight my smile, although the blush comes anyway and I’m sure he notices because he laughs a little as he takes a sip of his drink.
    “We’re all set,” Aaron says as he makes his way back over. “Can I get you a drink?” he offers, pointing toward the bar.
    “Yeah, actually. That’d be nice,” I smile, glancing toward the bar where I just saw Damien. He’s still there, but he’s joined by two other guys now as well as that Bec girl who was at his room on Monday. She catches me watching and smiles, like she’s some sort of a feline, playing with her prey as she slides her arm over the back of Damien’s shoulders before whispering something in his ear.
    "What'll it be?" Aaron asks, stealing my attention away.
    "Surprise me," I smile, unable to force my attention away from Damien and Bec long enough