Page 18 of Dirty Martini
“Maybe he just got lost,” Elton says, nibbling on his bottom lip as he leans against the bar. “It’s a big club.”
I nod because I guess that could be believable if Elton’s ass wasn’t parked at the bar. “Maybe.”
“I should go after him. I?—”
“Just remember not to push too much,” I remind him as I sling a towel over my shoulder. I say this to be nice. I don’t want Elton to get his hopes up over a guy who’s going to let him down, just like he let me down.
Elton’s eyes flash with amusement. “Oh, so you do care now?”
I snort, even though a part of me curses myself for saying anything. No. I absolutely do not fucking care about Everest, but Elton’s my best friend and I care abouthim. I roll my eyes to appease him, not wanting to get into it during work, mostly because I hate it when we fight. “Sure.”
“So, I have a favor to ask.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Another one? You’re really racking these up.”
Rolling his eyes, he slaps my arm from across the bar. He thumbs over his shoulder at a pretty blonde fluttering her lashes at him, cheekily biting her straw as she lingers at a nearby table. “I met this girl while I was looking for Everest and she’s perfect. She’s a vet tech and wants three kids.”
“Jesus,” I chuckle, shaking my head at him. “Did you also get her social security while you were at it?”
He rolls his eyes and nudges me. “Look, she and I are going to find a quiet place to talk.”
“Sure.Talk.”
“Can you keep an eye on Everest? I’m sure he found some friends or something, but I want to make sure he gets home safe.”
I groan internally. The likelihood that Everest actually did run into some friends is slim to none. Elton is smart, so he must know that this is pure avoidance on Everest’s part, but his optimism isn’t letting him admit it to himself. “Yeah, man. I’ll get his ass into a car before my shift is over.”
“Appreciate it,” he says. He looks over his shoulder once more, waving at the blonde before turning back to me. “Okay, well, the future Mrs. Hill and I have our deepest, darkest secrets to discuss.”
I shake my head with a laugh as he joins the woman and they both head toward the front doors. Thoughts of watching over Everest disappear the busier it gets, and I’m swept up in a rushof making drinks. I don’t know how much time has passed when I feel like I can come up for air, and it just so happens to be the same time I spot Everest.
And what the actual fuck is Knox Sanders doing here?
God, I hate that guy with every fiber of my being. Apart from being a cocky as shit, rude asshole, he’s also the guy who tried to sell drugs to Everest when he was fourteen. In a way, he played a part in the hand I’ve been dealt but, surprisingly enough, pure hatred isn’t what hits me.
A sudden rush of pure protectiveness knocks me sideways instead. It flairs when I see the way Everest tips his head back and laughs at something Knox says. It morphs into something hot and urgent when Knox wraps his arm around the back of Everest’s neck and kisses his cheek. That slimy fucker has always had the feels for Everest, and I swear, if he touches him one more time?—
I stop at that.What the actual fuck?
Besides knowing Everest isn’t into guys, why should I even care if Knox is feeling him? It has absolutely nothing to do with me. I turn my back on them quickly, cursing myself for the lingering uneasiness this is all bringing. It’s a strange feeling that accompanies me through the hour that follows as I try to drown myself in my work to avoid the urge to… I don’t know?Dosomething about Knox and Everest?
When it gets to a point where I can’t take it anymore, and my mind is too jumbled to think straight, I slap my hands against the bar top.
“Smoking!” I yell at Britt, who nods curtly before relaying the information to Skylar. Sneaking out from behind the bar, I head to the back of the club where the door to the alley is. I pat my pockets to make sure I have the keys to get back in this way. When I get outside, I pull out a cigarette, perching it between my lips and lighting up quickly.
I’m so annoyed. I don’t want to give a shit about Everest—really, I don’t—but it’s getting so tangled up in my mind, and it’s only been a week with that kid back in my life. Things would have been much better if he could have just fucked off by himself and left me in peace.
A part of me knows I don’t have any real grounds to hate him, though. He was just fourteen when all that shit went down, and what did I expect him to do when I was arrested? Tell the cops they were his? Throw himself between us? But still, I can’t get over it. It’s a festering irritation in my stomach that bubbles whenever I see him, but what takes me off-guard is another emotion coursing through me. It’s…No. It’s ridiculous. It can’t be. I’m not concerned about Everest, even though my brain suddenly brings to the forefront a memory of his sweet face and blushing pink cheeks and?—
Stop.
I nearly crush the cigarette in my hand, tempted to scream out my frustrations, when a sharp cough and a deep groan catch my attention. People like to come back here all the time to fuck or do drugs, not knowing that once they leave through the back door, they won’t get back in without a key. I debate checking on it for a second before I head behind the dumpster to the source of the noise and blink repeatedly at the sight that awaits me.
It’s Everest, on his knees, bent over and vomiting all over the back alley. Sweat covers the back of the dark shirt he wore tonight, and his entire body shaking as he gags. I don’t know what overcomes me, as pure instinct makes me fall to my knees beside him, narrowly avoiding the throw up. I push back his sweat-matted hair from his forehead and rub his damp back. “Jesus, Ev. You okay?”
He looks up, a bit of puke on the corner of his lips, as he smiles drunkenly. Blinking slowly, lazily, he presses the tip of his finger against my nose. “You called me Ev.”
“That’s your name, isn’t it?” I bite out, mentally cursing myself for that little slip. “You’re wasted.”
