If she was going out tonight, then I would too.
No man would touch her but me.
I had no idea why I’d agreed to come with Alexis to the Olive. It was so not my scene. As I stood behind her, the lights flashing, the music ear-splitting, the crush of humanity all around us, I just wanted to go home and curl up on my bed with a good book.
Alexis took my hand and led me toward the bar. I wasn’t even twenty- one yet and had the large black X marked on the back of my hand to proclaim that. But Alexis was old enough to buy alcohol, and I knew she’d get me a drink quietly, because she was the type of person who didn’t want to drink alone.
She let go of my hand before we reached the bar and gave me a look that meant, wait there so we don’t get caught. I hadn’t seen Letterman Craig yet, but I thought he was somewhere about here. He’d been very enamored with Alexis at the coffee shop.
Which suggested he wanted in her pants.
I could see Alexis leaning against the bar, a sexy smile in place as she ordered our drinks. I moved away from her and searched the interior of the club. It was precisely what you’d expect from a nightclub, with the unpleasant decor, the gloomy lights, and the aura of sex dominating the air. I felt like I was excessively overdressed, too, like if I were attending church or going to the library. I had on a pair of formfitting leggings, and my top was a cardigan set, a powder-pink shade that had a cashmere feel to it without the price tag.
As I glanced at all the women at the club, I realized I was wearing entirely too many clothes. I didn’t have enough skin showing to fit in, to mix in with the others. I probably stuck out like a sore thumb.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see Letterman Craig standing there. He’d gotten rid of his jacket and now had his hair slicked back and wearing a shirt that was a bit too tight, which I imagined was to show off his muscles. He wasn’t horrible looking, but he had an air of arrogance that around him that was a major turnoff.
No doubt he was a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am kind of man, and Alexis was his newest conquest. But what he didn’t realize was that she was a shark when it came to what she desired. What he didn’t realize was that she was the one utilizing him.
He murmured something, but I couldn’t hear over the flood of music. His mouth twitched; his eyes shiny. He’d already been drinking; that was apparent by the way he looked and the smell of alcohol that emerged from him. I shrugged and shook my head, indicating him without words I couldn’t hear him.
He leaned in close to my ear. “You’ve seen Alexis? I headed to the bathroom but lost her in the crowd,” he said loudly and pulled back.
I gestured over to the bar, and he grinned, giving me a wink before leaving me standing there and went over to her.
He threw his arm around her waist when he was directly behind her, and she looked over her shoulder, flashing that sexy smile I’d seen a hundred times before. She knew she was hot and could get any male, and she utilized that to her advantage.
I wished I had her confidence, her prowess.
A little later, they were coming back over to me and beckoning for me to follow. We proceeded to the back and lucked out when we noticed an empty table. Keeping my back to the audience, I snatched the drink she handed me and took a sip. It was intense, so much so that my eyes watered.
I coughed and sputtered, staring at her and watching as she laughed. “Figured if you were gonna get an underage drink, might as well make it a Long Island Iced Tea.” She grinned again and leaned against her newest boy toy. “Suck it down, Gracie. I don’t want us to get caught.”
I inhaled deeply and brought the straw to my mouth, sipping it rapidly, the burn sinking right in the pit of my stomach. When I was finished, I wheezed out, my eyes watering ferociously, the alcohol immediately going to my head.
She moved the glass closer to her so it appeared like she’d been drinking it.
“How old are you anyway?” Letterman Craig said, his arm wrapped around Alexis, his other hand underneath the table and suspiciously close to her. I could only picture what they were doing, what he was doing to her.
“I’m twenty.”
He nodded, but it was evident he wasn’t paying attention to me.
Alexis muttered something in his ear that had an aroused look across his face. And then he turned and started kissing her.
God.
I pinched my nose, immediately feeling uncomfortable seeing them make out, so I turned aside to face the club.
I was so not an extrovert, and it was obscenely evident as I saw all these people dancing. The music was starting to give me a headache, or maybe it was the surge of booze through my veins. I was already buzzed, the whiskey steadily creeping through my body.
I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead. Beads of perspiration speckled my skin. My heart felt like it was pounding, and my face felt like it was on fire. Drinking always made my face red, and judging by how hot it felt, I’d already reached to that level.
“Alexis, maybe I should go.” I looked over my shoulder at her and noticed she was all but on top of her date. “I’m not feeling the best. That drink went right to my head.”
She broke the kiss and looked over at me. “What?” she shouted, her brows knitted.
“I’m not feeling so well. That drink was strong,” I shouted back.
