I didn’t miss the flash of disappointment in her eyes as I brushed off her flirting. “Shirley Temple?”
“Sure thing.” I went about making the drink, mindlessly tossing the cocktail shaker around in my hand. As I poured the drink, I remembered how Hannah looked with hers in hand, eyes bright as she asked me if I’d teach her to make one.
I got an idea. It was likely irresponsible, so I moved before I could stop myself. Angel watched the bar while I ducked into the back hallway.
Please be awake.
With my phone to my ear, the line rang. Once. Twice. Four times.
My heart was racing again, and I brought a hand to my chest to fight the tightness from returning.
I was about to give up when she answered. “Hello?”
“Did I wake you?” I asked.
“No,” she said with a soft laugh. “I panicked.”
A scared little laugh bubbled out of me. “You wouldn’t be the only one. What time is your flight tomorrow?”
“Late, why?”
“Can we meet? I’d like to see you again before you leave.”
There was a pause before she said, “I’d like that too. I don’t want to leave things unfinished.”
“Me neither. Is ten okay? Do you need me to pick you up?”
“That’d be great. I’ll see you then, Ryder.”
Chapter 6
After another restless night,I met Hannah at her hotel and drove her to the bar. I’d expected her boyfriend, Kian, to join us, but Hannah assured me that he wanted to give us our space to work through things on our own. The car ride was silent, neither of us knowing what to say until I pulled up to the bar.
“What are we doing?” she asked as we got out of the car.
I picked through my keys, finding the one for the front door. I unlocked it, then flipped on all the lights before letting her enter in front of me. The place was deserted, just as Raleigh and Angel had promised. I closed the door and locked it back as Hannah hovered in the middle of the room.
“You still want to learn to mix?” I asked. She nodded, fighting a smile that came through in her eyes. “Obviously, I won’t be giving you any alcohol, but that doesn’t change what I’ll be teaching you. The bar is my safe space. When I’m stressed or frustrated, I can take it out on the drinks. And no offense, but this is a pretty stressful situation.”
“None taken.” I led her through the room and behind the counter. She set her bag on the floor, then picked up one of thestainless-steel cocktail shakers. She eyed the bottles in front of her. “What do I put in it?”
I smiled. I had been just as eager when I’d first started out. Though I’d spent too many nights wearing cocktails rather than mixing them to throw her into the deep end like my mentor had with me. “Nothing yet. Get used to the weight of it in your hand first, like this.” I grabbed an empty shaker and tossed it a few times, letting it flip in the air.
Hannah weighed her own shaker, concentrating as she threw it a little too hard. She cringed as it clattered to the floor, metal pealing in the silent room. I laughed, bending down to retrieve it.
“I was clumsy at first too. They’re heavier than you think. That’s why we’re not working with liquids yet. Try again.”
I rested against the bar while I watched her. Her brow furrowed and her tongue poked out of the side of her mouth as she juggled that shaker over and over again until she got it right. Skill quickly caught up with determination, and I couldn’t hide my smile when she finally tossed it high enough for it to flip three times before she caught it. She slammed it down on the counter, throwing her hands in the air.
Yep, she’s mine.
God, what was I supposed to do? I was happy here in Vegas. I’d never given a second thought to how I lived. I didn’t know where to go from here, and I only had hours to figure out what Hannah wanted out of this visit. For all I knew, she wanted to go back home and forget we ever met.
Was that what I wanted?
“Ryder?”
I snapped out of it, looking back at her, where she was expertly throwing the shaker into the air, catching it every time. “Sorry, what?”
