Just a Number (42 page)

Justin turns his head and nods toward the bar. “Buying a round for you guys. It’s our way of apologizing for being late.” Taking me by both hands, Justin takes a step back and appraises me. “Damn, you’re looking good, Amy.”

My cheeks warm, and I’m thankful for the poor nightclub lighting. “Thanks.”

“I seem to recall never being able to get you into a skirt that short.”

I glance down at my outfit; I had just bought the short leather skirt the day before, and I chose to pair it with a flowy, low-cut tank top. On my feet, a tall pair of black leather boots.

“Something tells me you didn’t wear that for Liz.” Caleb shows up just then, kissing Justin. “And I sure as hell know you’re not trying to impress me.” He pauses, his lips quirking up into a knowing smirk. “Who is he?”

It had been so long since Justin and I spoke that telling him about Owen hadn’t happened. Now that the opportunity to do so is right in front of me, I’m nervous. Why? I don’t know. Everyone else knows—especially the ones who really matter: my parents and Owen’s ex—so why the panic?

Judgment. Turns out, I am still afraid of my friends judging me, regardless of how happy I obviously am.

But I have to do it. I love Owen and he loves me, and I decided that outside opinions wouldn’t matter when we entered into this relationship. I owe our relationship this.

“I’m seeing Owen,” I tell him matter-of-factly.

Justin looks to Caleb, then to Liz and Matt, his eyebrows pulling together. “Owen? Did we go to sch—” Realization sparks in his eyes, and they widen. “Wait…not…” He takes a step back and reads my expression. “Owen? As in,
Mr. Cavanaugh
?”

I bite my lower lip gently and nod.

He smiles even wider and pulls me back to the table where we sit. “How did that even happen?” he inquires excitedly.

Relieved that he took the news so well, I relax and tell him the whole story. He hangs on every word and his expression reflects my own happiness. It’s nice to know I didn’t have to be so scared earlier. It’s a knee-jerk reaction, and I really have to work on it.

Just as I finish telling the story to Justin and Caleb, my phone vibrates on the table in front of me. The picture of Owen and me in bed lights up my screen, making me smile…the message, however, does not.

Hey Sweetheart. I’m still stuck at

the office. Not sure when I’ll be

able to make it.

I exhale a sad sigh as I try to think of a response. Am I mad? Meh. Not really. Disappointed? Yeah, a little. I had been hoping that introducing him into my circle of friends—even if he’d met them all at some point or another when I was in high school with them all—would help cement our status as a couple. Now that Dad is on board with this whole thing, I just want our lives to mesh seamlessly, and this had felt like a natural next step.

Justin taps me on the shoulder. I glance up into his eyes and can instantly tell that he knows what’s going on with me. “I think you should come with me to the bar. We need to order a round of shots for the table.”

I look behind me to where the waitress is standing two tables away. Justin sees her too, but takes my hand and hooks it into the crook of his elbow. “Come on,” he coaxes, and I comply.

Justin weaves us through the crowd and we find a spot at the bar. The bartender is down at the end, working his way toward us slowly. Instead of being annoyed, Justin sees this as an opportunity to talk. “He’s not coming, is he?”

I look down at my phone, still in my hand. “He says he’s stuck at the office and isn’t sure if he’ll make it,” I reply sadly. “It’s not a confirmed no.” Even I don’t believe myself. “I don’t know why I’m so upset. It’s not like I thought he’d feel comfortable around a bunch of twenty-somethings.”

Almost like he understands, Justin nods his head to one side. “Maybe not, but you want him to be a part of your life, and that includes seeing how he is around your friends…” He pauses, and a devilish smirk crosses his face. “In a way that’s not him chaperoning or babysitting us.”

I appreciate Justin’s attempt to cheer me up, and I’m so glad it’s working. My phone buzzes in my hand again, and I look down at it.

Babe? I really did try to get out of

here earlier. I know how important

tonight is to you. Please don’t be

upset with me.

I know how important Owen’s job is to him, so I decide not to hold this against him. We have all the time in the world for him to meet my friends and be a part of my life in this way. Telling myself this helps as I tap out a quick message.

I know. I’m not mad. Will you keep

trying? We’ll be here a while.

His response is quick, and it’s just what I need to hear.

Absolutely. I’ll keep you posted,

all right? I love you.

I tell Owen I love him too before tucking my phone into the pocket on the inside of my leather boots.

“Better?” Justin asks just as the bartender arrives.

Smiling, I nod. “You bet. He’s going to keep trying. He’s busy, and I understand that, so I’m not going to dwell on it. If he shows, great. If not, that’s okay too. We can always hang out another time.”

“What can I get you guys?” the bartender asks as I lean on the bar counter.

Justin flashes a toothy grin at the attractive male bartender. “Blow jobs,” he says, voice steady. “Five of them.”

Without missing a beat, the bartender lines up five shot glasses and starts pouring the alcohol before he tops them with whipped cream. I help Justin carry the shooters back to our table where the four of us down them before hitting the dance floor.

As the time passes, songs change seamlessly. We drink, we laugh, we get lost in the celebration. I manage to forget about my disappointment that Owen hasn’t shown up, and I have a blast. It’s been so long since the five of us had partied together, and I’d forgotten just how much fun we all have. Several guys come over and offer to buy me drinks. I kindly refuse, explaining that I’m in a relationship. Some are more persistent than others, but I stand my ground.

Liz hooks her arm through mine, leaning against me as if to steady me. Thanks to my own rising blood alcohol levels, I stumble slightly under the unexpected shift in her weight. I’ve probably surpassed my limit, but my common sense is weighed down by all the alcohol I’ve consumed, and I tell myself I’m not even drunk.

“I have to peeeeee,” Liz playfully whines in my ear.

I laugh and shake my head. The action causes me to momentarily see double, but eventually Justin and Caleb come into focus. “We’re heading to the ladies’,” I inform them. “We’ll grab some more drinks on our way back.”

It takes Liz and me a few minutes extra to wade through the sea of bodies. Not only do our limbs move like we’re trudging through molasses, but also, no one seems to give two shits that we’re trying to break free of the crowd. We finally arrive, only to find a line-up leading to the stalls. On the other side of the bathroom is a uniformed line of women our age and older, leaning over the countertop and fixing their hair, makeup, and cleavage. There’s chatter between them all, but my hearing has been compromised by the loud music, so I’m not really sure what any of them are saying.

I lean against the wall as I wait with Liz for a bathroom stall. The bass from the music vibrates through the floor and up the wall until I can feel it in my bones. It’s soothing and somewhat hypnotic. I close my eyes for just a second, but a second is all it takes for me to see Owen and start to miss him all over again.

It’s irrational, but I start to wonder if he even cares enough to make the effort to come out tonight. I check my watch and see it’s almost midnight. Three hours have gone by since the last text. Clearly he isn’t coming.

A stall opens, so I head into it and do my thing. Liz is at a sink when I emerge, and she looks up at me through the mirror. “You okay, Amy?” she asks, her voice sounding a little slurred. She’s so drunk. Way more than me. Maybe she’s had way more to drink than me.

I turn on the water and start to wash my hands, looking at my own reflection. My hair isn’t nearly as perfect as it was when I left Liz’s earlier, and my lipstick is almost completely gone. I look a little less like a sexy rockstar and more like a girl who’s been partying the entire night. My eyes are a little bloodshot, and my vision is slightly blurred.

Okay, so maybe I’m a little more drunk than I initially thought.

“I’m great,” I tell her, smiling at her as she reapplies her lip gloss.

“You’re bummed he’s not here, aren’t you?” I look down at my hands as I wash them. “You could call him,” she suggests.

I shake the excess water from my hands before drying them. “Nah. It’s almost midnight. If he’s not still at the office, he’s probably at home in bed. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.” Forcing a smile to my face, I turn back to her. “Come on, let’s go grab another drink.”

Liz and I head to the bar to grab a beer. While there, we get roped into a round of shots with some college guys. Not ones to refuse a free drink, Liz and I comply before going back to our table. Justin and Caleb are sitting side by side, holding hands and canoodling, and Liz takes a seat next to Matt, who leans in toward her. He’s had as much to drink as the rest of us, and I can see in his eyes that he’s hoping to go home with Liz. I doubt she’ll refuse him; the two of them have been off again-on again since high school. I love her, but they both need to just get over themselves and figure their shit out.

Watching everyone get couple-y around me makes me slip into a drunken depression, so I sip my beer and look around the club. This doesn’t help. I miss Owen. Maybe I could slip out of here now and surprise him at his pl—

“Dance with me,” Justin says, grabbing my hand and pulling me from my stool. My mood has shifted substantially; just moments earlier, I was happy and having a good time, and now I’m sad again. The alcohol only amplifies these feelings.

I shake my head, not really in the mood. “Actually, I think I might head out.”

“I don’t think so!” Liz shouts, having overheard me. She pulls away from a dejected-looking Matt and runs around the table, taking my other hand. She and Justin both pull me toward the dance floor as Lady Gaga’s
Do What U Want
starts playing. At first, they dance around me, soon joined by Matt and Caleb. Liz pulls me toward her and places her hands on my hips, guiding me to move with her as she inches closer and closer. Her lips curl up into a sly smile, and I can’t help but mirror her expression. Her mission was to cheer me up, and it worked.

Soon we’re moving to the beat of the music, and my mood improves again. Liz and I are pressed up against each other, laughing and singing along to the song when a pair of hands ensnares my hips, and I feel a body behind me. I turn my head to see Justin, and I indulge him with a dance.

I keep my back to him for a bit as his hands remain on my hips, and we dance to the upbeat music. Justin turns me around unexpectedly, and I laugh when he grabs my waist to stop and steady me. I rest my arms on his shoulders as we dance closely, giving each other goofy looks while we do so to keep things interesting. I’m glad he got me out here. It pulls me out of my funk. Sure, having Owen here would be great, but we should be able to be apart without feeling like something was missing. We’ve lived our lives this long without each other, so what’s one more night? Normal couples take time apart all the time with no ill effects.

Over Justin’s shoulder, I spot Matt and Liz dancing—or more accurately, grinding. They are pressed so close together that if they were naked, they’d probably be having sex right there in the middle of the dance floor. His hands cup her ass as he thrusts his hips toward her, and they kiss each other so frantically, I worry about their lack of oxygen.

There is no doubt in my mind about where those two will end up tonight.

I glance in the other direction at Caleb as he heads back to our table. He smiles as he sips his drink, and I suddenly feel bad that he is being forced to give up his boyfriend so I can be cheered up.

“Why don’t you go ask Caleb to dance?” I suggest, tilting my head up so I can speak loudly enough in Justin’s ear that he hears me.

Justin turns me around again until my back is pressed against his chest, and his hands move down to the outsides of my hips. He crosses an arm over my body, taking my left hand in his right, and spins me outward before pulling me close again. I’m so off balance, I crash into him and laugh. “Because I’m dancing with you,” he replies.

“I’m fine, really,” I assure him. “I don’t want him to get jealous.”

“Jealous?” Justin laughs. “Of a
girl
?” He pauses. “No offense, of course.”

“That’s not what I meant, doofus. I just…don’t want him to feel left out.”

There’s a brief pause, and I look over my shoulder at Caleb. He’s looking our direction so intensely that I know he’s locked eyes with Justin as he dances with me. “Oh, he’ll feel included, don’t you worr—”

Before Justin can finish his crude promise, his body jerks away from mine so suddenly, it throws me off balance. Gasps and screams alert me to something happening, and I turn toward Justin, worried that he’s fallen or passed out or…

Is being beaten to hell by some tall guy.

“Hey!” I scream, running forward in an attempt to break it up. Justin is on the ground as the man looms over him. His nose is bleeding, and he’s starting to push himself to his feet. I hear Caleb right behind me, and I grab the offender by the arm and yank roughly. He turns around, and I gasp when I’m met with angry blue eyes.

“Owen?”

31. Jealous