Into The Fire (21 page)

“That does look cool.” He handed it back.

“I did the design myself. Pretty neat.” I
shoved my phone back into my pocket.

“I have ink.” Lacy stared at me like no one
else was there.

“Yeah?” I asked. “Where?” I didn’t see
anything on her arms.

“It’s in a place where you can’t see…it’s of
two dolphins.”

Lame
. “Cool.” I turned back to Sawyer.
“Did you catch the game?”

The girl beside him suddenly grabbed his face
and started kissing him. Sawyer returned her embrace and completely
forgot about me. Why did he ask me to meet him there if he was
hooking up with someone?

“Hannah is my sister,” Lacy explained. “She
agreed to go out with Sawyer because he said he had a friend…a hot
one. And I’m glad he didn’t exaggerate at all.” Her hand moved to
my arm.

I brushed it off. “Whoa…slow down.”

“What?” Alcohol was on her breath, and
judging by the empty glasses in front of her, she was already
buzzed if not drunk.

“Slow down?” She had a hint of brattiness to
her. “No one tells me to slow down.”

“Well, I just did.”

Sawyer stopped kissing Hannah. “Girls, could
you excuse us for a moment?” He glared at me like he intended to
murder me the second we were alone.

The girls left the table and headed to the
bathroom.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Sawyer
immediately started.

“Me?” I asked. “Why do you keep setting me up
on dates?”

“Because last time I checked, you were
straight. Or are you not anymore?”

I shot him a murderous look. “I’m straighter
than a rod and I can get my own dates.”

“What’s wrong with her?” Sawyer asked. “She’s
cute and easy.”

“I can get my own women,” I argued. “I’ve
never needed help before.”

“I’m aware of that. I just thought I would
share the wealth.”

“Well, I’m good,” I snapped.

“Dude, what’s your problem? You shut down
Irene and now Lacy, who’s even hotter. What’s up with you?”

“Nothing…” Alessandra’s face came into my
mind. She was all I ever thought about, even when we weren’t
together. I didn’t even want to be in that bar. I wanted to be at
her place, watching a movie and fucking on the couch. I didn’t want
to be there with some girl that wanted to sleep with me the second
she looked at me. Why would I be with her when I already had a
great thing going on? “I just don’t want her. Okay?”

Suspicion came into his eyes. “Is it that
girl? Your escort?”

“No.”

“You in love with her or something?”

“No,” I said defensively. “I just…don’t want
Lacy.”

He wasn’t buying it. “Well, I think you’re
pussy-whipped, which means there’s something going on. If that’s
the case, just admit it.”

“It’s not.”

“Then fuck Lacy.”

“I don’t want to.”

He gripped his skull. “You’re giving me
whiplash, man.”

“Just don’t set me up anymore.”

“Fine,” he said with a growl. “I won’t.”

“Thank god.” Just when I finished my
sentence, the girls came back.

Hannah immediately dove her tongue into
Sawyer’s mouth. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Hell yeah.” Sawyer threw cash on the table
and left without saying goodbye to Lacy and I. Hannah didn’t say a
word to her sister. They just walked out and forgot about us the
moment the door shut behind them.

Then the awkwardness descended.

Could I just leave?

Or would that make me a dick?

“So…you ink for a living?” Lacy stared at me
with bright blue eyes.

“Yeah. I’ve been doing it for a while. What
do you do?”

“I’m a dancer.”

“Cool. Where?”

“The symphony.”

“Very cool,” I said. “You must have a lot of
blisters on your feet.”

“All the time,” she said with a laugh. She
waved down the bartender and ordered another drink. It was clear
she shouldn’t have one but she was a stranger so I didn’t tell her
otherwise. “Sawyer is really hot.”

“I guess,” I said with a shrug.

“You are too. Where did you come from? Some
hot guy vortex?”

I tried not to laugh. “I guess we stick
together.”

“My last boyfriend was pretty cute. But he
ended up a cheater so whatever.” She took a long drink.

I could feel the sadness and devastation
leaking from every pore on her body.

“What about you?”

“What about me?” I asked.

“Any cheaters in your life?”

“No.” I’d never been close enough to anyone
to feel the burn.

“Oh…lucky you.” She took another drink then
moved her hand to my thigh.

I froze at her touch. Then I pushed it away.
“I really should be going.” I slid out of the chair and threw the
money down for her drink.

“You’re just going to leave?”

“Yeah. I’ll see you around.”

“Oh…” She didn’t get out of the chair.

“Are you going to leave too?” Or was she just
going to sit there?

“Yeah, I’ll leave in a minute.” She rested
her arms on the table.

“Okay…have a good night.” I walked out of the
bar and headed up the street. Why did Sawyer insist on setting me
up with these girls? I didn’t ask for it. If I wanted something,
I’d go out and get it myself. He needed to chill.

I walked two blocks before the guilt struck
me. That girl seemed pretty young, younger than twenty-five, and
she clearly had too much to drink. I didn’t even make sure she got
home okay. She wasn’t my problem but I felt terrible. I was an ass
to a lot of people, but I knew when I needed to drop the act and be
a good person.

After a deep sigh, I turned around and went
back to the bar.

She was in the same place but her glass was
empty. Guys at the bar were eyeing her and wondering just how drunk
she was. Her eyes widened in recognition when she saw me.

I approached the table. “Can I walk you
home?”

“Well, I can’t go home right now.”

“Why?”

“Hannah took Sawyer back to her place.”

“You live with your sister?”
That’s pretty
lame.

“I lived with my boyfriend until I caught him
cheating. I’ve been staying with her until I find a new place.”

“Oh…” Now I felt like a jerk for thinking she
was a loser.

“Well, I think you’ve had too much to drink.
Why don’t you come to my place and sleep it off?”

“I’m okay here.”

I wasn’t going to let her wait around like
vulnerable prey. The fact Hannah let her sister be in this
situation at all was disconcerting. Lacy was bound to make a
mistake in her condition. “Come with me. I live close by.”

“You’re only asking because you feel bad for
me.”

“Yes, that’s exactly why I’m asking.” I
wasn’t going to baby her. “Now let’s go. Don’t make me ask
twice.”

She held my gaze before she rose from the
booth, wobbling slightly as she got to her feet. “Fine.”

Now my conscious was clear. “Thank you.”

***

When we entered my apartment, she immediately
lay on the couch. “Can I have something to sleep in?”

I didn’t want to be stuck with this girl all
night. I wanted to go to Alessandra’s place and snuggle in bed with
her. She was so good in the sack. She made my dick very happy.
“Yeah, sure.” I grabbed a t-shirt and shorts and handed them to her
along with a pillow and blanket. “You’ll be okay out here.”

She was too tired to speak. She just
nodded.

“Well, I’ll be in my room. Good night.”

“Night…”

I walked into my bedroom then shut the door.
Once I was in bed, I thought about Alessandra. My dick got hard
because I was used to being satisfied by her. But now she wasn’t
there and I’d have to sleep alone.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Alessandra

I didn’t talk to Ash for a few days. I knew
he was busy with work and other things so I didn’t pester him, but
I was anxious to finish our conversation. Now that I was certain
there was something between us, whether he realized it or not, I
wanted to tell him how I felt.

I didn’t expect a relationship.

I didn’t expect him to love me.

But I expected something.

Maybe we could start off slow and just talk
about where things might lead. Maybe we could go on a real date.
Maybe we could change from being friendly fuck buddies to
monogamous partners.

I wouldn’t know until I asked.

By Saturday morning, I’d waited long enough.
I didn’t want to call him because he might be asleep but I wanted
to surprise him. I knew where his favorite place was to eat brunch,
so I went by and got his order before I headed to his apartment. I
thought we could lie in bed and eat it together.

He would appreciate it.

I arrived at his door and knocked with the
plastic bag of food in my hand. It took almost a full minute before
I heard the sound of footsteps on his kitchen tile. The door
unlocked then cracked open. “How can I help you?” A small brunette
opened the door wearing Ash’s t-shirt and shorts.

My jaw dropped and my eyes widened.

The bag of food was still in my hand but I
almost dropped it.

Was this real?

Was this a nightmare?

Her eyes were barely open like she just woke
up. “Who are you?”

“I…” I stared at the food in my hands and
felt like a complete idiot. I thought Ash and I could be something
more but I completely misread everything. I projected my own
feelings onto him when they didn’t exist and now I felt stupid—and
heartbroken. “Where’s Ash?”

“In the shower. You want me to tell him you
stopped by?”

“No,” I blurted. That would lead to an
uncomfortable conversation later. I didn’t want him to know I was
pathetic and showed up on his doorstep with breakfast from his
favorite joint.

God, I was such an idiot.

He told me from the beginning nothing would
ever happen between us. I should have believed him. Why did I think
he could ever change? It wasn’t his fault because he didn’t do
anything wrong. It was completely my wrongdoing. Why did I think I
was different? Maybe he was like that with all girls? Maybe he
stuck around with me because he continued to get what he wanted
without any commitment.

Thank god I didn’t say anything and make
myself look like an idiot.

“Uh, anything else?” the girl asked.

“No.” I shook my head quickly.

She just stared at me.

I left the doorstep and headed down the
hallway. The trash shoot was on the way so I shoved the breakfast
inside and heard it fall all the way down to the bottom. Then I
kept going and felt my heart break cleanly into two pieces.

***

“Is that hunk of a man your man yet?” Shelly
asked at the office.

Just when I stopped thinking about it, she
brought it up. “It’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?” Disappointment was in her eyes,
like I’d just taken away a really good treat.

“It’s a long story but…it’s not going to
happen.”

“I want the long story,” she said firmly.

I told her everything that happened, even the
part where I tossed the perfectly good food in the garbage.

“What a dick,” she snapped.

“He’s not a dick,” I said. “He didn’t do
anything wrong. But that doesn’t mean it’s not painful.” It wasn’t
until I saw him with another girl that I realized just how much I
wanted him for myself. Knowing he was intimate with someone else,
shared the same experience we had countless times, just made me
feel empty. I guess I didn’t mean anything to him after all.

“But he told you he hadn’t slept with
anyone.”

“Maybe saying that made him realize he
should.” I stared at the stationary on my desk because I couldn’t
handle the pity in Shelly’s eyes.

“I’m so sorry, girl…”

“Thanks. I’ll get over it.”

“You know what this means, right?”

“No.”
Was I supposed to?

“You need to move on and start dating. You
need to forget about Ash.”

I knew she was right, but I realized how
pathetic I was when I didn’t want to. Ash and I didn’t have a
chance to be together so I needed to look for someone else. When we
started hooking up, I never expected to develop feelings for him.
Three months later, I was head-over-heels. “Yeah, I guess.”

“I know the perfect person.”

“You do?” That fast?

“My brother.”

“Whoa…hold on.”
Wouldn’t that be
weird?
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“My brother is a really good guy. He had a
bad break up about six months ago and he still hasn’t gone out with
anyone. You two are perfect for each other.”

Because we’re both losers?

“He’s a lawyer, he’s twenty-eight, and he’s
cute. I mean, he’s related to me so he’s obviously good looking.
And I want to find my brother a nice girl that won’t rip his heart
out.”

“I don’t know…”

“It’s happening. Just get over it.”

When Shelly had her mind set, she didn’t
budge.

***

I didn’t know what I was thinking when it
came to Ash. I was so convinced that I’d never fall for him. He
wasn’t my type—at all. He was headstrong, stubborn, and so full of
himself it was ridiculous.

But I loved so many other things.

Why did I let this happen? He made it clear
it was just meaningless sex and I accepted those terms. Why did I
assume things had changed? A guy may act one way but that doesn’t
mean anything. Ash probably didn’t feel anything for me at all. I
was just a friend he liked to hang out with and someone he liked to
fuck too.

How did I get myself into this mess?

Now I was going on a blind date. That’s how
low I’d stooped. Shelly wouldn’t set me up with a freak, but since
the guy was her brother, she could be blind to his flaws. And if he
was some kind of player or jerk, he wouldn’t make that known to his
sister.

This was probably going to be a
disaster.