Page 16 of With a Broken Wing
He growled at my response, his eyes growing dark like they did when I’d stepped out of the bathroom last night. For a moment he stood there and stared at me, his gaze menacing, and I wanted to shrink into the couch. “Good. I am leaving. If you need us, you have my number in your phone. Erin can also be reached. I’ve sent you an email with arrangements that need to be booked.”
* * *
Demetri and the rest of the team left for a day of meetings, leaving me behind in the suite. For the first few hours, I was on my laptop checking emails, making flight arrangements, and confirming car reservations. It didn’t take very long, though, and there wasn’t much else for me to do. I considered going to the hotel bar to wait for the team to return.
I changed out of my yoga pants and sweatshirt and into a pair of black skinny jeans and a white button-down shirt in an effort to look more professional. Inside the room, it didn’t matter that I couldn’t be bothered to change out of pajamas, but Demetri would be infuriated if I went out that way. Plus, I liked the way I looked in these jeans and wanted to impress a certain boss I had no business wanting. He was my best friend’s brother-in-law, and like sixteen years older than me. He wasn’t going to go for the twenty-eight-year-old hot mess.
When my phone buzzed on the counter next to me, my heart rate increased. I picked it up, expecting a text from Demetri even though he’d never texted me before, and I was surprised by my disappointment at the name on my screen.
JULES:Hey girl! How is the job?
ME:Hey hey! It’s good! The private plane is wild.
JULES:Almost unreal, right?
ME:Says the woman who basically owns part of that plane.
JULES:I do not! It belongs to Carter’s company.
JULES:How is working for Demetri? Intense?
The mention of his name sent a wet heat to my core, and I sucked in a deep breath. I couldn’t tell my best friend, his new sister-in-law, that he’d heard me take care of myself in the shower last night or told me he could’ve done it better.
ME:Intense is pretty accurate.
JULES:I mean, you remember how it was when I worked for William…
ME:I’m not fucking Demetri, though ;)
JULES:Touché.
I laughed, tucking my phone into my purse and throwing it over my shoulder. Working for Demetri had been a rollercoaster experience. Between the way he’d yelled at me, his suggestive comments last night, and the way he forced me to eat and drink water this morning, intense almost didn’t even cut it.
The bar was empty when I walked in, with the exception of the bartender. He leaned against the counter on his phone, and when I slid onto the barstool, he looked at me with a relieved smile. “How’s it going?” he asked, tucking his phone into his pocket.
“Oh, living the dream!” I said with a shrug and a wide smile.
When he laughed, it was a relaxed, easy laugh. One that would normally turn my legs to jelly. The man in general would normally make me weak in the knees with his dark hair tied in a bun on top of his head and muscles that threatened the seams on his tight-fitting T-shirt. I ran my tongue along my lip to wet it.
“What can I get you to drink, pretty lady?” When he winked, nerves fluttered in my stomach. If they were butterflies, then they were a swarm in panic before an oncoming storm. That drink couldn’t come quickly enough.
“Oh, I’d normally order a tequila, but it’s a work trip, so I’ll go with a red wine. The drier, the better.”
“Dry red wine and a tequila shot coming right up.” He winked again, turning around to set a wineglass and two shot glasses on the counter.
While he faced the other direction, I quickly opened the bottle in my purse and set one of the bitter pills on my tongue. The light on my phone that told me I had a message was flashing, and I assumed it was Jules. A feeling of guilt rushed over me.
In college, I’d take muscle relaxers or benzos. It was pretty rare, and I never told anyone about it—especially not Jules and Katie. The pills helped stop the nightmares and made really bad days feel less bad. Then after graduation, I stopped seeing my therapist and the nightmares got worse. It felt like admitting defeat to tell anyone. It was a part of my life I had hidden from everyone but Auston. So I took more pills, whatever I could get my hands on. Eventually I’d started mixing them with alcohol, and that seemed to do the trick the best.
Before I grabbed my phone, the bartender sat the glasses down in front of me, bringing me out of my rambling thoughts. “I thought I’d take a shot with you, if that’s alright? My treat.”
I smiled at him, grabbing the shot glass. “I never turn down a free tequila shot from a handsome man. Cheers.” I winked and tapped my glass against his before bringing it to my lips and swallowing.
“Cheers.” He chuckled and took his shot, wincing as he swallowed. You could always tell the ones who didn’t like tequila. “My name is Jameson, by the way.”Fitting.
“I’m Andy.”
He placed both of his hands on the counter, flexing his arms under his shirt sleeves. “Andy, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
