Page 4 of Approved

She raised her eyebrows. “Friend? He’s cute. I wouldn’t mind spending time with a friend who looked like him.” He nudged her shoulder. Then West turned to me. “Is your heart set on a martini, or would you like a specialty drink?”

I’ve seen some specialty drinks from here on YouTube, and they all looked amazing. “Surprise me.”

“What about Earl?”

My heart fluttered at the thought that he had included him. “He is a big fan of coffee, so you can just get him an espresso with lots of whipped cream since he only ate a few flowers today. And maybe a chicken wing or something?”

“Perfect. I’ll be right back.” He started toward the bar.

“I can make it West, “ the bartender said.

“Nope. I want to make it for him.” Then he turned to me and winked. “Don’t go anywhere.”

He walked away, chatted with a few other staff on his way, and shook hands with patrons. He was in his element here, you could tell. I looked around the room at all the details, which included a huge saltwater fish tank. West returned with a tall glass that had layers of color.

“I think you will like this. It's blackberry, raspberry, and some rum. Can I give this to Earl?” He held a coffee cup with a mountain of whipped cream on it while he waited.

“Yeah. You might want to put a napkin down.” Earl had spotted the drink, and his eyes were locked on it. Somehow, he knew it was for him. I watched West put a cloth napkin on the table, then put the coffee treat and some boneless wings down.

“Will that work for you, Sir?” He smiled at my dragon.

Earl looked at me, behaving exceptionally well for him. “Go ahead.” Earl put his entire face inside the cup, and I could hear him slurping some of the coffee before he took a mouthful of whipped cream. He looked up at me, his face covered in the sticky topping.

“Do you have another napkin?” West laughed as Earl enjoyed his treat. I reached across West to wipe off the dragon’s face, and I could feel his heat on my back. It took a lot of willpower not to lean against him.

“Can I give him some chicken. I made sure it’s mild and no bones.”

“Of course.” He picked up one of the chunks on the plate and offered it to Earl. If a dragon could look pleased, this was one of those moments. Earl took the chicken and chomped happily. I liked how West interacted with my companion; he seemed excited and in awe.

“Now your turn.” He turned to me and gestured to the glass.

I took a sip, and the flavors burst over my tongue. He smiled at me. “What do you think?” Before I could answer, a guy I recognized from the NFL walked up to West.

“Parker, what the hell are you up to?” West stopped, and instead of embracing his friend, he turned and looked at me. They started to talk while Earl buried his face in the whipped cream again, and I enjoyed the drink he had made.

“Hey, we were in the middle of something, do you mind?” He said to the guy.

“Oh, sure. Give me a call sometime, we will hit the greens.”

“Sure sounds good.” He had stopped paying attention to the guy. He pulled up a stool and sat close to me at the small round table. “I know you.”

I looked at him. “We’ve been together for six hours, but I hardly think you know me.”

“We went to high school together.” I froze. I had been bullied a lot, but I didn’t recall West being one of the people who gave me trouble. Memories flooded back to me. There were a bunch of football players giving me a hard time, calling me names, using slurs. West wasn’t one of the people saying things, but he watched in the background. There had been other times, too. Hewas an athlete; he might not have bullied me, but he didn’t stop it either. I gagged.

“I have to go.” Without saying anything else, I walked out the front door and started down the block while getting an Uber to take me home. Earl wrapped his tail around my neck for balance and flapped his wings, clearly thrown off by the sudden change in emotion. Flushed with disappointment in the man I had spent the day with, I had hoped maybe he would be a new friend. I didn’t have many friends because I didn’t trust people; here was another example. He might not have abused me directly in high school, but he was there and let it happen. While I waited for my car, I felt a stinging sensation behind my eyes as I recalled those difficult times.

On my way home, I leaned my head against the cold window. He was so nice and funny. I had really hoped to spend more time with him. The driver took me straight home, tired from the long day. I was glad I had completed the deliveries—thanks to West—but it was still a stupid holiday. The deliveries today would help to cover bills, and now I had another reason to hate the date.

“Jamie, he was so nice,” I whined to my best friend. She was also the only other employee at Flower Power and had been just as busy as I was today, but as my best friend, she got to hear how disappointed I was when I learned who West was. After I fed Larry, my cat, I had called her, and now, I lay on my bed, Earl and Larry curled on my pillow together, sleeping. “He never participated when his teammates pushed me around, at least.”

“Yeah, but he was complicit in what happened. Is he even gay?” She would take whatever side I was on because she was amazing.

“I’m not sure, but it felt like he had flirted with me today.” I was tired from the long day, so my being pathetic was in full swing.

“There are like a thousand articles about this guy and his bar. I am sure we can find out which team he plays for.” I heard her typing away.

“He is really hot, too. Jamie, I don’t want to dislike him.” I’ve never hoped so hard that a man wasn’t gay, at least it would dull my lust. “His bar was amazing. We could always go there if I were friends with him.”

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