“Why do I have to prove anything to you?” Melanie asked as she folded her arms on top of each other, completely offended and knowing that soon she would leave because there was no way she could deal being in this man’s presence any longer.
“Because women lie all the time as a defense mechanism instead of being upfront. And if you do have a boyfriend, you shouldn’t have a problem with bragging about how good he is, unless he doesn’t exist, or he isn’t as half as me.”
Melanie snorted. “You’re a real estate agent, and from the card you gave me, you’re bottom tier at best. Let me ask you a question, does this work for you with getting women?”
“Sometimes,” George grinned as he leaned back in his seat. He thought he was charming, but the asshole thing only worked on guys who actually looked good and were worth fucking despite them being assholes. George was not nearly handsome enough for this to work, and she would bet that eighty percent of the time, he had a drink thrown in his face with comments like these, but even George wasn’t worth the drink she paid for. He was just a sad man who got off on the idea of thinking he was better than other people to feed his own insecurities. And after Melanie had shot him down, his pride was hurt, especially since he was in front of his friend. Soon, he’ll start telling her that she wasn’t as pretty as he claimed before, and now that's what you called a defense mechanism. Poor baby only knew how to lash out when his feelings were hurt.
“But really, what does your boyfriend do that a real estate agent isn’t impressive to you?”
First, a real estate agent was impressive, but George wasn't one of them. Second, Melanie wanted to tell Noah's occupation, that he was a soon-to-be pro-hockey player, but how could she say that when said hockey player was also a college student she once taught. How could Melanie admit that when she was also several years older than him? Melanie wasn’t ashamed of Noah, not at all. He was a great guy, and even if he wasn’t a hockey player, she would still be proud to be with someone as kind and caring as him. But at the same time, she couldn’t shout their relationship to the mountain tops either.
When Melanie didn’t respond, George’s grin nearly split his face in two. Melanie was over this and was now ready to throw a drink in his face.
“I don’t have to prove anything to an asshole like you who's upset because he won’t be getting any tonight.”
Immediately that grin wiped away and was replaced with a frown. Melanie smiled, ready to keep telling George off until he felt like there was an actual drink on his face. But before she could continue, commotion from the front door took the attention of most of the patrons inside the bar, including Melanie as she glanced behind her to see what the fuss was. A group of rowdy young people had entered the bar, and some of them looked like they already had their fair share of drinks for the night and didn’t need anymore.
“I miss those days,” George said as he gulped down the rest of his beer, watching the group of young adults who had probably come from a nearby college. “When being young and stupid was okay. They think they’re men now when they're just boys.”
Melanie snorted. The only boy in this room was George, and he still hadn’t realized it yet. Melanie nearly turned back around, ready to tell Abigail that she was going to leave when something caught her eye. She recognized a few of those kids, and one of them was Julie. Immediately, Melanie cursed under her breath. For some reason, she could never walk around this damn town without seeing one of her students. Call her old fashioned, but she didn’t think it was appropriate for her students to see her at a bar like this even if they were college students. It seemed very unprofessional; granted, her professional skills hadn't been the best as of late.
“Are those some of your students?” Abigail asked, seeing the uncomfortable look on Melanie's face.
“Wait, I thought you said you were a psychologist,” George said, turning his attention back on her.
“I am one, but I also teach courses at a college near here.”
“So, you’re a professor,” George said with a grin. “I think I like that.”
Melanie couldn’t hide her frown even if she tried. He must have been out of his mind if he thought this was going to continue any further after he pissed her off earlier. She didn’t care what fantasy was playing in his mind right now.
“Maybe we should dance so we can get back on track,” George suggested as he placed his empty beer down, standing before offering her his hand. Yeah. George was out of his mind.
“No, thank you,” Melanie said, shortly.
“See, that’s exactly why I was trying to rile you up earlier because you’re so uptight. Even if you have a boyfriend, he shouldn’t have a problem with you having a dance with me.”
Suddenly, Melanie was pulled from the booth and onto her feet, and immediately, he snaked an arm around her waist.
“Yo, George back off, man,” Andrew said with a sigh as he stood up, untangling himself from Abigail. He looked at Abigail apologetically. “I’m sorry about this. I didn’t think he would be like this.”
“I don’t want to dance with you,” Melanie said as she tugged herself away from him.
"Oh, come up. Loosen up," George said.
"You got to stop, man," Andrew said as he tried to pull his friend back before he touched Melanie again, but before George had the chance to touch her again, someone tugged her away from his reach. Just as Melanie was going to give her thanks, she noticed who her savor was. Melanie's eyes widened astronomically.
“Noah,” Melanie said, shocked to see him there. Before she could wonder how he knew she was at this bar, Melanie realized Noah must have come in with the group of students that stepped in the bar earlier. Wait. Did that mean he had come with Julie?
Noah didn’t bother to acknowledge her as he glared at George. He was pissed, judging from the tight grip he had on her arm.
“Who the hell are you?” George asked with a slight slur, showing that just two beers alone were way too much for him to handle. He ripped his arm away from Andrew as he glared at Noah.
Melanie prayed that Noah didn’t tell the truth as she looked at him with a pleading gaze. His friends were right across the room, and she had just told George and Andrew that some of her students were a part of that group. If Noah said he was her boyfriend, it would only take them but so much time to put two and two together to know she was dating one of her students. She did not want to deal with that type of embarrassment.
“I’m her bodyguard, and the next time I see you touching her like that, we won’t solve this with words,” Noah warned George, towering over the man's short stature. Melanie felt chills go down her spine, seeing the dark glare in Noah's eyes, and she had a feeling Noah meant every word he said. She had never seen him this angry before. The boy who was all dimples and smiles was gone and was replaced with the beast she saw on the ice.
George growled and leaped, but Andrew immediately tugged him back, stopping his friend. “Stop it before you get yourself hurt. He’s way bigger than you.”
