tapped her foot nervously, hoping her
friend’s words were true. Hoping tonight would be the night she
finally told Callum how she felt.
****
The sounds from the club beat out a steady
rhythm. The music was blissfully loud, blotting out everything
except the blaring notes that made Bree bop her head from left to
right. It kept her from hearing that niggling voice in the back of
her head that told her this wasn't her scene.
Sure, she was dressed the part—she wore this
slinky crimson blouse that hugged her in all the right places and
paired a sequin mini skirt with razor thin stilettos. She'd even
pulled her hair into a bun and wore her crystal encrusted cat eye
glasses, so she had this very naughty librarian thing going. But
killer outfit or not, it didn't change the fact that she felt
totally out of place.
If Bree was on one side of the spectrum,
Suzie was at the other end, totally in her element. She wore a
little black dress that left, well, pretty much nothing to the
imagination. She was gyrating in the middle of the dance floor with
some guy that had his hands glued to her ever shaking rear. When
Suzie threw her arms around the man's neck and started kissing him
like she wanted to swallow him whole, Bree turned away, not wanting
to see anymore. She loved Suzie like a sister--you know, the one
that's gorgeous but always makes bad decisions and ends up butt ass
naked in all the wrong guys beds—but she was a handful. Even though
the rest of the teacher's had decided against lighting up the town
and she would have been more comfortable tucked in bed with her
Kindle, when Bree saw that Suzie was already two sheets to the
wind, she knew she wouldn't get a lick of rest if she let Suzie go
out alone.
So there she was, stirring her cocktail,
trying and failing in her attempts not to think about Callum. He'd
seemed so gung ho about going out after the presentation earlier.
Why had he changed his mind?
Her inner crazy told her that some cocktail
waitress had probably caught his eye and now they were having wild,
unprotected sex.
She downed the rest of her drink, regretting
from coming out sinking in like a stone in the sea. "I wanna have
unprotected sex."
She damn near choked when she saw a familiar
face saddle up beside her. It was Callum. "Hey!" His olive eyes
glittered. "You look great, Bree."
Her mouth worked, but nothing came out. He looked great. He'd swapped his usual casual wear for a
blue button down shirt and dark jeans. His hair even seemed a
little more coifed than usual.
Speak girl, speak! "T-thanks. You
look, um, great. Fantastic."
He brushed off his shoulder jokingly. "I
try." He signaled the bartender. "Rum and coke." He gave her an
easy smile. "Whatcha drinking?"
"Screwdriver."
"And a screwdriver." He leaned in, trying to
be heard over the music. "Everyone else bailed, huh?"
Bree nodded. "Everyone except for Suzie."
He let out a chuckle. "Why am I not
surprised?" He passed her drink. "Let's toast."
She furrowed her brow. "What are we toasting
to?"
"An unforgettable night."
As she clinked her cup against his, she
gulped before she drank. Three words and her body was already
kicking into overdrive, her heart racing as her mind went to where
she wanted the evening to end up.
As she peered at him as she swallowed a sip
of her drink, she swore she saw something in the way he stared back
at her. The lights were dim, but his eyes seemed to sparkle with
mischief, colored with a longing that Bree felt in her bones. He
slid a little closer. "Bree, I-"
"Oh my GOSH!" Suzie's squeal was so metallic
that Bree was surprised it didn't shatter glass. She sandwiched
herself between Bree and Callum. "You came...you CAME!"
Callum let out a throaty laugh as Suzie
signaled the bartender for another round. "You sure about that Suz?
I'm pretty sure people two states over are getting a contact buzz
off of you."
Bree's nostrils flared as her friend slid
dangerously close to her crush, pressing her body against
Lisa Black
Margaret Duffy
Erin Bowman
Kate Christensen
Steve Kluger
Jake Bible
Jan Irving
G.L. Snodgrass
Chris Taylor
Jax