Page 35 of Love Over Time

At the door, I took my time to set my watch to twenty minutes. Guys, especially drunk ones, pegged girls quickly. I was alone, but my impatience with my watch suggested I was waiting for someone and they had to stay away. Slowly, I made my way to the opposite end of the room, careful not to catch anyone’s eye. Scott was the only guy I wanted to talk to tonight. When I reached the bar, I leaned forward, letting my breasts brush the counter. The bartender gave me a wide smile that showed all his teeth.

Out in the parking lot, Dom and Henry appeared to be deep in conversation, though Henry kept his piercing gaze on me. This was why I always worked alone.

“Can I get you something, beautiful?” the bartender asked.

“A white wine, please.”Yeah, let’s shine a light on the girl at the bar.

The bartender raised an eyebrow and poured a cheap wine in a water-spotted wineglass. God, I hoped I didn’t have to drink it. I checked my watch again.

“Waiting for someone?” a guy asked. He smelled of decent cologne and had long, semiclean hair. He didn’t stick out like a sore thumb in this dive, but he didn’t quite fit in either. Scott.

I met his gaze. “I was. Seems I’ve been stood up.” I pouted a little. Hurt, but not too hurt now that he was here. His chest puffed up.

“This shit’s been sitting in the fridge for a week. Get the lady a whiskey. Hey. The good stuff,” Scott said to the bartender. They knew each other.

I could drink most guys under the table, but I had to be careful on whatthe good stuffwas.

The bartender pulled a bottle off the shelf, set two actually clean glasses in front of us, and poured.

I took a small sip. “Oh wow, that’s strong.” I giggled, patting his rather average arm, not small but not muscular either. Henry could beat this guy to a pulp if he wanted to.Stop thinking about him.I lowered my gaze and smiled.

“Never seen you here before.” He got closer, and his stale beer breath blew in my face.

“It’s my first time. I met some friends on Mill Avenue. They said this place was fun.” I shrugged and wrinkled my nose. “Looks dead, though.”

He laughed, a real laugh, as he relaxed against the counter and glanced over his shoulder toward Dom and Henry. “Looks like my friend got cold feet too. Wanna get out of here? No reason why this should be a bust for both of us.”

I licked my lips, followed by a slow blink. “I don’t know. I should wait for my friend a little longer.” My watch buzzed.Time’s up.If I didn’t get him out of here, Dom would make a move. The bartender fidgeted with a rag while his gaze shifted from the door to Dom on the other side of the window. Something wasn’t right.

“If you’re looking for fun, I can show you fun.” He turned his back to his bartender friend.

I tilted the glass of whiskey and downed the rest of it. I shook my head, grinning and blowing out air loudly. “Okay. Let’s do it. But we’re taking my car. I don’t want to leave it here.”

“Whatever you want, beautiful.”

“Thank you, handsome.” I smiled at the ground and rubbed my nose. Henry didn’t make it up. That was my tell. Scott snaked his arm around my waist. I leaned in closer to him, tripping over my feet on purpose. “Oh.” I placed my hand over his chest. He squared his shoulders, his heart beating fast. No doubt he thought we were getting it on in the parking lot.Gag.

When we walked out of the bar, he was so full of anticipation he didn’t notice Henry’s glare and fisted hands. I glanced at Dom and pursed my lips. He moved to the side and blocked Henry from our view.

“Give me the keys, sweetheart.” The asshole was ready to have sex with me and hadn’t even bothered to ask my name.

“This is brand new.I’mdriving.” I slid past him, and he gripped my arm, taking a whiff of me like he wanted to eat me.

“Fuck. You’re hot. Get in the car.”

I flashed him a smile, jiggling the keys before I climbed in on the driver’s side. Dom would follow, but I had to get him away from here where we’d have the advantage. Pecos Road was our best shot. I turned on the ignition, put the car in reverse, and pulled out of the parking lot. The minute we were outside the bright lights of the parking lot, his hands were on my leg.

I slammed on the breaks. “Where to, handsome?”

He looked around. Shit. He was familiar with the area. He sat back to adjust his pants. “Take a right up ahead.”

I giggled, hitting the accelerator hard, checking all my mirrors. “I’ve never done this before.”

Gravel crunched under the Tesla tires when I turned onto the empty street. God, I hoped Dom was right behind us. This guy was about to combust.

“Here’s good.”

“Where’s the bar?” I ducked to see where we were. Shit. It was so dark out here. An adrenaline rush killed the small buzz I had from the whiskey. We were all alone. He’d made sure of that. His friends weren’t coming, and just in case mine weren’t either, I had to act quick.

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