Her brain craved a distraction.
He was white and had tawny hair, almost blond. He was handsome, at least from what she could tell of his profile under the muted lights. Although she hadn’t seen him head on, no man with that kind of defined jawline could be homely. He wore jeans and a t-shirt, but there was something regal about his appearance. Then again, maybe it was because he looked so distant and removed. If she hadn’t known he was sitting on a kitschy bar stool made out of fake bamboo, she would have thought he was a lonely king, perched high on his throne in his mountain kingdom, forgotten by his subjects.
Girl, you need a drink. Yesterday.
The bartender approached. “Hey, pretty lady. What can I get you?”
“Just a glass of white wine, please.”
As the bartender walked away to pour her drink, the blond man next to her spoke. “I wouldn’t, if I were you.”
At first, Dana wasn’t sure he’d spoken to her because he continued to stare into his glass. “I’m sorry. Did you say something?”
“I said, I wouldn’t order the white wine here if I were you. They don’t exactly serve vintages.” He turned on his creaky stool and faced her.
Heat swarmed Dana’s cheeks. Hewashandsome.
Frat boy handsome.
Disney prince handsome.
No. He wasn’t clean cut enough for either of those. There was something rugged in the cut of his chin, a hint of danger in his cat eyes.
Disney princes would cower in front of this man.
She cleared her throat. “Are you a wine expert?”
“Not officially, but because of my work, I’ve picked up a few things.”
“What do you do for a living?”
“A bit of this. A bit of that.”
“That doesn’t sound mysterious at all.”
“I’m not trying to be mysterious. I just don’t want to think about work right now.”
“I understand.” The bartender returned and set down a glass. She paid him right away. There was no sense in starting a tab. She could only tolerate one drink anyway. “And luckily, I’m not concerned about the vintage tonight.”
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
As blondie appraised her, she took her first sip. It tasted like piss, or so she assumed. Frowning, she set her glass down. “I think that might be the worst wine I’ve ever tasted.” Despite the unpleasant aftertaste, Dana sipped some more. “Yup. It’s official. They should put that on the label as a warning.”
“Now you know.” He spun around and wrapped his hand around his glass.
“Okay, Mr. Sommelier. What are you drinking?”
“Just a Coke. It’s kind of hard to screw it up.”
“I’ll make note of that for next time.”
“You do that.”
They both stared at the mirrored bar for a couple of minutes, lost in their separate worlds and woes. Eventually, his eyes met hers in the mirror, one lost soul seeking communion with another. A glimmer of interest made his light eyes shine, but it was quickly doused when he blinked.
Feeling alone, she decided to make conversation. “I’m Dana, by the way.” She held out her hand.
He shook her hand. “Alex.”
