God help me.
“Sit on the bar next to me, Mouse,” Chain says. “I like looking at you.”
Marietta turns to me. “I should ask Merrick first? It’s his bar.”
Chain turns to me. “Can the mouse sit her pretty ass on your bar?”
“Sure.” I spin away to pull the pilsner Chain always orders.
When I return to set it in front of him, Marietta is sitting on the bar, the strings of her thong disappearing into her skirt right in front of me.
I’m so not looking at that. I turn to Two-Shit. “Beer or vodka tonight?”
Two-Shit grins. “I like a barkeep who knows my order. Beer.” He glances toward Marietta like he might sit next to her but thinks better of it. He heads to the other side of Fancy instead.
I pull his beer and scan the tables. Vicki is chatting up one of the tables of men. The other customers seem preoccupied.
There is no escape.
Marietta leans back, propped on her hands.
“Whatcha want to drink, little mouse?” Chain asks her.
“Hmm.” She swings her feet in pink stilettos.
Her long, lean belly is a serious distraction. I have to drag my gaze away.
“What do you think, Prospect?” she asks.
I focus on wiping down the edge of the ice trough. “I think you have class tomorrow, and you shouldn’t be hungover.”
Chain snorts. “Buzzkill. Get her a buttery nipple.”
“A what?” Marietta squeals.
Chain and Fancy laugh.
The fire in my chest gets stoked. “It’s a shot. Butterscotch schnapps and Irish crème.”
“Oh, okay,” Marietta says. “That sounds good. Should I have one? Or will it wreck my studies?”
Chain and Fancy snort, smacking each other’s arms like it’s the funniest thing a chick has ever said.
Fuck me. I am not fighting the Wild Hair tonight. “Sure.”
Unfortunately, there’s no room in a shot like that to make it weak. At least neither liquor is heavy duty. I pour one and pass it to her.
Her fingers brush against mine. “Thank you.”
My skin ignites with her touch. This combination of skimpy clothes and her clear naivety is killing me. I can’t figure her out. She’s in grad school, smarter than the whole Wild Hair put together, and here she is, letting people push her around.
Hell. I don’t know anything.
“Down it, baby,” Chain says. “It tastes best if you take it all in one go.” He elbows Fancy like he’s been clever with his double meaning.
Marietta lifts the shot. “Bottoms up, then!” She slams the drink, then sucks in a shocked breath. “That was sweet!”
“You like it?” Chain asks.
