Fuck that.
George wasn’t put off by my snippy tone. ‘I answered because I’ve not heard from you in two months, sweetheart, and it’s two in the morning.’
Sweetheart.I slapped a hand over my stomach, commanding that whatever animal was in there right now calm the hell down.
Changing the subject before he could hear my heart thrashing in my chest, I muttered, ‘I might need some help.’
‘Where are you?’ his soft demand came and sent shivers down my spine.
I told him the name of the nightclub, and he let out a soft curse. It wasn’t a club renowned for its sophistication. ‘Are you hurt? Did someone?—’
‘No,’ I cut in quickly. ‘No need to be dramatic. I’ve just—’ I really didn’t want to tell him I’d thrown up and was hiding in a bathroom that wouldn’t even get a grade on a hygiene test. ‘Can you just?—’
‘I’ll come get you,’ he said without missing a beat. ‘Stay where you are.’
‘No. I’m in a bathroom and it smells, and you can’t tell me what to do.’
The faint sounds of him getting dressed echoed. ‘A tad petulant, don’t you think?’ The laughter in his voice spiked my lousy mood.
‘I’m drunk. I can be as petulant as I like,’ I said with all the snark of a stroppy teenager.
‘Okay, sweetheart.’ The jangle of keys sounded. ‘I won’t be long.’
The wordsthank youwere on the tip of my tongue, ready to roll off. But I kept them trapped behind my teeth.
‘Stay there, Rosie. I mean it,’ George commanded, hanging up before I could say one more word.
The phone fell to my lap like a lead weight.
Drunk Rosie wasn’t only emotional; she was also extremely contrary.
I didn’t want to feel the emotions he stirred up inside me. I didn’t want him to come rescue me. I didn’t wanthim.
Pocketing my phone, I rinsed my mouth with water from the tap, and stalked back into the dimly lit club, the strobe lighting cutting across the room. I let the loud music, sweaty bodies writhing together, and terrible decisions fill some of the hollowness in my chest, and went in search of the David Beckham lookalike.
3
The timeon my phone flashed two-thirty as I paid the entrance fee to the bouncer and wound my way into the dank nightclub. It was one of the worst clubs in the city, known for its seedy clientele and questionable ownership. When Rosie told me where she was, my heart plummeted. Why the hell she thought it was a good idea to go here was only the start of the million questions I wanted to ask her. Each of them would have to wait until I knew she was safe.
Had she stayed put like I’d told her to?
Of course not.
One thing I could count on was that girl didn’t do anything she was told. Her contrary nature shouldn’t make me smile. It had taken longer than I’d expected to navigate the streets of London this late and then even longer trying to find anywhere to park other than the sketchy as fuck car park down the block.
When I showed the bartender her picture on my phone, he nodded and pointed to the far corner of the loud club.
Blonde hair and legs that went on for days, all wrapped in a tight silver dress that threatened to stop my heart, stood inthe corner. A glass of something hung limply by her side, the other hand wound around the neck of a guy who appeared to be trying to suck all the moisture out of her face. He had her pressed up against the wall, his hands roaming all over her body.
My molars ground together while my lungs pitched in heavy breaths as I pushed through the crowd towards them. If she hadn’t called me, clearly needing help, I’d have left her to it. I’d have gripped the steering wheel the entire way home, imagining what she was up to with that guy and hating every second, but I’d have left. However, the tenderness, edging towards fragility in her voice when she’d called, had me marching over.
Whether because of the noise or their level of intoxication, neither of them noticed me approach them. I plucked the glass of liquor out of her grip and tossed it right over the shaved head of the guy groping her.
He pulled away from her with a shout, shaking his head.
‘What the fuck?’ His hazy eyes tried to focus on me, but whether it was just the booze or something more, he struggled to hold my gaze.
‘Piss off,' I yelled over the music.
