He glanced towards the food area, in search of a menu. “Definitely not if I don’t loosen up a bit.”
“And you’re definitely not getting drunk.”
“Who said anything about getting drunk, Emmy.” He shook his head. “There’s a line between a small buzz and smashed. I know my limit.”
I sighed at the thought of even being close to alcohol again. Because I honestly didn’t know my limit. It’d been a year for me. I’d done well with quitting cold turkey. Some nights were hard, but I was fortunate to not have become too dependent. Deep down, a part of me feared going back to drinking. I hadn’t told anyone, but I was considering quitting for good. I didn’t know what it’d look like if I resumed going out at night. Now, standing next to Silas, I felt like I was getting a sneak peek. Being sober was going to be an uphill battle.
I grabbed his shoulder, so he’d focus his gaze on me and not the beer options. “No drinking. And promise me you won’t have a one-night stand with Ari. Or Yara. Or anyone in the org for that matter. I can’t be the girl who introduced them to the guy who broke their heart.”
“That’s a promise I don’t think I’m strong enough to make,” Silas lamented, but when I gave him a stern look, he relented. “Fine. No breaking the hearts of your new friends. Got it.”
“Thank you.”
I let him go when I noticed my own potential heartbreak walk through the front door. One look at Dakota and I knew, even if he ended up breaking me, I wouldn’t regret a moment being with him. He hadn’t seen me yet, so I had a few seconds to gawk at his presence. It was probably just me, but it felt like every time I saw him, his arms got larger. He wore his hair loose and tucked behind his ears, a style I preferred. Dressed in all-black, he still managed to look like a teddy bear because of that smile. God, this man could ask me for anything, and I’d let him have it because of that smile.
“Looks like I’m not the only one who might need some liquid courage,” Silas teased in a whisper.
I glared at him. “Shut up.”
He held up his hands. “I’m just saying. I haven’t seen your jaw-drop in a while.”
“Yeah. Well.” I shrugged, trying to look like I didn’t care.
“I’m happy for you,” Silas promised with a genuine smile. “You deserve a nice guy because… well, your taste up until this point has sucked ass. Sorry.”
I laughed. “No, you’re right. My boyfriends have been trash.”
“Bottom of the barrel,” Silas confirmed.
“Completely filth.”
My gaze strayed back to Dakota. He sensed me looking at him now and glanced in my direction. When our eyes met, he gave me a smile that made the skin around his eyes wrinkle. He’d been grinning before when talking to his friends, but this expression was different. It was happier. I loved having that effect on him. If I could only have it on one person in the world for all eternity, it’d be on him.
“Are you afraid the drinking will mess things up?” Silas asked in a rare moment of seriousness for him. “Because that wasn’t the problem with you and Tyler. Or you and Lawrence for that matter.”
“Let’s not mention their names, okay?” I requested.
Silas nodded his head. “Yeah, you got it. Whatever works best. I don’t think you should give up having fun because of some assholes. There’s nothing wrong with partying in moderation, Em.”
I waved my hand. “I know, I know.”
“So, let’s learn to moderate.”
“Why are you pushing this?” I laughed a little. “Are you auditioning for an after-school special on peer pressure?”
He chuckled. “No. I miss the times we spent having fun. Come on, you’re only in college once. After this, it’s going to be a string of crappy nine to fives. And if we’re lucky, a decent job with decent pay and a decent family. I want to live a little before we get to that point. And I think you do too.”
I raised a brow, but I felt close to caving. When he put it like that, I did want to start taking small chances again. My first year in school went by within a blink of an eye. Before I knew it, I’d be walking across that stage with a degree and the rest of my life staring me in my face. I’d taken a chance with Dakota, and maybe now was the time to do that in other parts of my life.
“One,” I decided. “Just one.”
Silas’s smile widened. “You got it, boss. Just one.”
The girls didn’t seem annoyed that I’d been the reason guys were crashing our get-together. In fact, the majority of them looked excited when they found out football players would be joining our table.
Kai only invited three guys. I made a mental note of them since it meant my brother trusted them on some level.
Dakota’s presence didn’t surprise me. He seemed to do his best to talk to Kai even though I knew their conversations probably weren’t the liveliest. Outside of football, I couldn’t see the two having much in common.
