I hold his stare for a few beats, flashing him a soft smile as I attempt to forget my earlier embarrassment. “You were amazing up there, and the crowd loved you.”
“Thanks. That means a lot.” A tinge of concern lingers at the back of his eyes as he returns my smile.
He accepts congratulations from the others as he swipes a bottle of water and a beer from the table. Noah switches stools, leaving the one beside me free for his friend. Garrick sits and pulls deeply from the water.
Watching his throat bob as he drinks shouldn’t be sexy, but it is.
Nerves fire at me from all angles, so I drink my beer faster than is wise.
Garrick drains his water, picks up the beer, and spins on his stool so our legs are touching. It’s like dipping my limbs into flames as scorching heat sears me through my clothes. Lowering his head, he leans in closer, peering deep into my eyes. “Can we talk?”
“I’m sorry for making it awkward earlier,” I blurt. “I was just being silly. Ignore me.”
He eyeballs for me a few seconds. “You were jealous.”
I open my mouth to dispute his allegation, but I can’t. “I was,” I whisper, rubbing at my temples. “I didn’t like it.”
He peers deep into my eyes, like he’s trying to drill a hole in my skull and extract my innermost thoughts. “Will you be mad if I tell you I do?”
“Depends on why.”
“It means you care, and I like that.”
Or I’m certifiable. I think it, but I don’t say it.
He opens his mouth to add more but clearly thinks better of it, drinking a mouthful of beer instead.
“I have no claim on you, Garrick. I have no reason to be jealous. You are free to date or hook up with whoever you like.”
Setting his bottle down, he licks his lips, and it takes serious self-control not to follow the motion with my eyes, but I succeed, and I’ll consider that a win.
“I’m not interested in Carrie. She’s an ex,” he explains. “I dated her for three months at the start of freshman year. We parted ways amicably, and she’s been dating a basketball player for the past year. He’s here with her tonight, but she stopped by to say hi. We were just catching up. It wasn’t anything more, and I’m sorry if it upset you.”
Relief washes over me. “You don’t need to explain yourself to me, but I’m thankful you did. Sorry for being an idiot.”
“No need to apologize. I just want to ensure we’re okay.”
“All is good.” This time, my smile is sincere, and I silently berate myself for being such a dumbass.
His thumb brushes against the corner of my mouth, shooting tingles across my skin. “You had a drop of beer there.” Lifting his thumb to his mouth, he sucks on it while piercing me with a heated look. His eyes are a smoldering warm brown tonight, and they are glued to mine like he physically can’t pull away. I can’t either, and I wonder who I’m kidding with our friendship pact.
He continues sucking his thumb, and it’s seriously turning me on.
Holy fuck. I squeeze my thighs so tight I might have given myself muscle strain.
“What was Cohen saying to you?” he asks a minute later, breaking whatever spell we were under. His hand wraps around his beer again, and I loosen my thighs and breathe a little easier.
“Are you sure you want to know?” I don’t want to start an argument within his friend group, but he should be aware exactly how much of a dick Cohen is.
“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want to know. I could tell he was making you uncomfortable. If he was rude to you, I’m gonna kick his ass all over the bar.”
“I’ll tell you, but I think we should park this conversation until tomorrow when we’re all sober.” I’m not going to lie to Garrick. He deserves to know his friend was propositioning me and how nasty he turned when I didn’t entertain it. However, I don’t think it’s wise to have this conversation when we’ve all been drinking. I don’t want it to turn into World War Three in a place that is notorious for mass-scale fights. The last thing I want is Garrick getting hurt. I’d have less concerns about Cohen. Perhaps a few punches to the head are just what that asshole needs.
Garrick scrutinizes my face. “I know he’s a friend, but I won’t tolerate him disrespecting you for a single second. If it’s something I need to know, I want to know it now.”
Before I can reply, I’m almost pushed off my stool as a girl with long, wavy blonde hair shoves past me, flinging her arms around Garrick and smacking a hard kiss against his lips.
ChapterEleven
