My eyes went to the redness of his tattooed knuckles and the crown on the back of his right hand.
“It’s a Cadillac, right?” Aiden said with an air of smugness as he crossed his arms and looked at the car.
Romeo lifted his silvery blue gaze to us. Radiating so much disinterest in a single stare, I swear he might’ve been able to see right through us. He plucked the cigarette from his lips as his eyes lazily drifted over Aiden.
“Do I know you?” he drawled. An Italian Brooklyn accent hung from each word like the smoke that slipped from his lips.
For a second, his eyes came to Kira and me. The casual glance heightened my anxiety and triggered my fight, flight, or make-a-fool-of-myself response. I went with the latter as a deep-rooted urge to be polite took over my motor controls. In the form of a stupid little wave.
I snapped my hand back to my side as he arched his right eyebrow at the gesture. My face burned like I had been lying in the sun for too long.
His attention on me didn’t last as Aiden responded. “No, but I’m a huge fan. My name’s Aiden. You’re lethal in the pit.” Without missing a beat, he pulled his phone from his pocket. “Mind if we get a pic together?”
“I don’t do photos.”
Aiden stammered. “Oh. Right. No, that’s cool.”
Romeo faked a smile coated in disdain and boredom, his cigarette hanging from his lips, before he climbed into the car. He went to close the car door right after but hesitated as he looked at the three of us.
"Not the best place to bring your girlfriends, don't you think?" he asked.
Aiden laughed, taking Kira by the hand. "I've only got one girlfriend. She's just the third wheel," he said, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder in my direction.
"Charming," I mumbled, looking down at my phone to organize an Uber. At least that way, when it pulled up, even if Aiden wasn't ready to leave, I would have an escape. And drag Kira with me whether she wanted to go or not.
"She's my good friend," Kira chimed proudly. "She's also very single."
My eyes snapped up from my screen to look at Kira. She smiled back at me and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. Something she thought she was doing subtly, but Romeo saw and was watching me with a confused frown.
"I'm not—I mean, I am single, but I'm not currently looking for anything. Anyone. A boyfriend. Not that I'm assuming you'd want to be my boyfriend. Or that I'd want you to want me to be your girlfriend—”
He cocked a brow.
“Oh, look at that! Our Uber is three minutes away." I quickly looked at my phone, pretending to be intrigued by the notification on the screen, wishing the ground would open and swallow me and my flushed red face whole.
Aiden opened his mouth to make a joke but was cut off by Romeo's car. The engine crackled low through the air, sending a shiver through my body. When he shifted gears, the engine settled to a deep purr. I was just happy the attention was no longer on me.
"It was awesome meeting you, man. Thanks for staying back to chat," Aiden said louder over the engine, pressing his palms together as he nodded at Romeo. “Can’t wait for your next fight—”
Aiden swallowed his words as Romeo shut his door.
We watched the Cadillac cruise out of the parking lot, leaving only one of us a little disappointed. Not many people could put Aiden in his place like that. Or cut him off mid-sentence and get away with it. Watching him try to play it cool as if his ego hadn’t just been knocked down a few levels, was kind of amusing.
The ride home consisted only of Aiden talking about fighting styles. With our driver wearing earphones, Aiden was okay with talking about the fights out loud. As tempting as it was to listen and discover how he got into attending fight clubs, I couldn't bring myself to do it without wanting to roll my eyes every five seconds. I was tired, my legs were sore, and I could feel the beginnings of a migraine creeping into my temples.
I sat in the front seat and kept my eyes on the city passing by outside, going over what I had witnessed tonight as I wondered if it would be worth reporting any of it to Dad. Part of me wanted to and knew I should, but the other part reminded me of the chaos that would follow if my parents knew.
It might not have been gangs or sex trafficking, but illegal fighting was way up on their list of what not to get involved in on a night out.
At least I didn’t take any drugs tonight, was what I kept thinking to myself. Unless I did take drugs and the entire night was one giant hallucination. That would explain the unrealistically perfect abs.
The Uber pulled up in front of our apartment complex. I thanked the driver and stepped onto the sidewalk, only to find Kira wasn't getting out with me.
She poked her head out the back window, giggling as Aiden squeezed her waist. "Do you mind if I go back to Aiden's place?"
I forced a smile to mask the subtle surprise. "Yeah, that's fine. Text me when you arrive."
"Don't worry, Lily. I'll have her back tomorrow safe and sound," Aiden called from the back seat.
