Page 14 of Eye of the Hurricane
“Oh come on, Kitty Kat, I know you better than that. I know you didn’t ask. But I figured whatever made her lie about it was probably interesting enough for me to come see.” He slides in the booth next to me and gives my shoulder anudge. All I can do is roll my eyes. At this point, I don’t even know which one of them it’s directed at.
“I’m going to head out, you’ll get my girl home safe?” Luna asks, directing her attention at Ares.
“Wait, what? You’re leaving?” I cut in. She brushes me off with a wave of her hand.
“I’ll get her home safe.” He gives a firm nod to Luna. She pushes her way through the crowd and walks through the wooden doors. I’m jealous of her as she leaves.
“So, what are you doing at a singles night, Miss ‘I-don’t-have-time-to-date’?” he asks, turning his head to face me more directly.
“It’s a long story.”
“And I have a long time. It would appear you’re in luck.” He winks and my stomach flutters. Immediately I’m shaming that part of me.
“Lucky me,” I say sarcastically.
“We need drinks if you have a long story,” he says, scooting out of the booth and making his way over to the bar. I stay back and watch. I figure he’ll probably bring me back a beer or something else in a can. It’s not my go-to but at this point, I’ll choke down whatever he brings me.
He doesn’t, though. Instead, he comes back with a martini in hand. If that wasn’t already good enough, it’s an espresso martini. My favorite.
He sets the glass down on the wooden table, sliding in front of me. He slides back into the booth next to me.
“How did you know?” I ask, grabbing the glass and taking a sip.
“You were pretty drunk on espresso martinis when you came to my house. In fact I remember you gushing to me about how delicious they are.”
“Right, should have known. Drunk Kat spills all.”
“So I’ve heard.” His lips tip up in a smile. My cheeks burn red remembering that night. He must notice my embarrassment because he changes the subject. Unbeknownst to him, the new subject isn’t any better.
“So. Singles Night. Why are you here?”
“You want the long version or the short version?”
“My best friends are women. I want the longest version with all of the details, obviously.”
“Okay. Well, my parents are very conservative. Like past the point of Ivy Leagues and into ‘women belong in the kitchen’. As in every time I talk to my mother she tells me I need to drop out of school and find a husband.”
Ares takes advantage of the pause in my story and cuts in.
“So that’s what you’re doing? Looking for a husband?” He looks around the room, unimpressed with the potential suitors here. I can’t blame him. I’m pretty unimpressed myself.
“No. She called the other night and was laying into meabout how there’s no chance I get the job I want because I’m a woman and it’s a man’s field, and essentially rendering me useless because I’m single at my old age of twenty-four. So, I may have told her I have a serious boyfriend to get her off of my back, thinking no harm could come of it. I was, as I’m sure you could guess, incorrect.” I chuckle ruefully remembering the fateful phone call. “She then informed me that my cousin will be getting married here in the fall and she expects me to bring said boyfriend. She also invited herself and the rest of my family to stay with me for the weekend while they’re here.” The moment I finish what I’m saying I grab the martini and down the rest of it. Ares’ eyebrows rise to his hairline.
“Okay, so your mom sounds really fun,” he says, sarcasm laced into every word. “That still doesn’t explain why you’re here or why Luna called me.”
“Well, Luna thinks I should find someone to be my fake boyfriend for the wedding. She thought I should ask you but when I said no, she suggested I try finding someone here.”
“Luna’s right, you should have asked me.”
“I thought it would be weird.”
“Why would it be weird? We’re friends, you’re allowed to ask me for a favor.”
“Because of the other night, I guess,” I admit.
“How many times do I have to tell you that you have nothing to be embarrassed about?”
“I don’t know. That’s just not like me. I feel awkward about it.”
