“The usual?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
She turns to pour, and I check my phone.
I don’t have a plan for tonight beyond a beer and a quiet enough head to sleep. Lately, that’s the most I hope for.
Last year, this would’ve been different. Fox would’ve dragged everyone here, Logan would be next to me, acting like he wasn’t waiting on a text from Hannah, and Volk would brood but still show up. Helm would be halfway across the room, looking for someone to take home.
Since when is he interested in dating? How can so much change so quickly?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for them. I just feel a bit… behind.
Cassie sets a frosted glass of Half Acre IPA in front of me, and I abandon my phone to take a sip.
I’m not in the mood to pick up, but my eyes wander, thumb tapping the bar. The battered bookshelf in the back is half board games, half lost-and-found, displayed like a museum. Tonight, the most interesting thing is a single red glittery heel straight out of The Wizard of Oz.
My glass is halfway to my mouth when I catch a blur of auburn. My gaze jerks back.
I set my drink on the bar. She’s a few stools down and caddy-corner, leaning toward the bartender with her elbows on the counter. He says something that makes her smile, the same easy one that’s been stuck in my head all day.
She doesn’t notice me. I’m glad. It gives me a chance to just… take her in.
It’sher.
What are the fucking odds? I blink. Nope, I’m not imagining it.
My stomach drops in that swooping, tight way it did earlier. Cassie returns, and I pull my eyes away long enough to hand her my card.
When I glance over again, the bartender is tossing a word over his shoulder as he walks off. Whatever he said sends her head tipping back in laughter. I wish I could hear it, but the room swallows the sound.
She pulls that little notepad out of her bag and flips it open, tapping her pen against the bar top before chewing on the end of it. Her brow furrows, and she lets out a huff that blows a stray strand of hair from her face. Then, she brings an amber bottle to her lips, eyes roaming the space until they catch on mine.
My pulse kicks up when her cheeks lift, flushed with color.
She mouths something I can’t make out, then shoves everything into her purse, pushes her chair back, and heads straight toward me.
People look as she passes. Not just men—everyone. She has the kind of presence that’s hard to ignore, the kind that makes a room feel brighter because she’s in it.
I’ve been around plenty of beautiful women.Thisis different.
She slips into the empty seat on my left, angling my way until her knees brush against my thigh. Heat slides through me at the contact.
“Citgo” is what comes out of my mouth.
“I’ve been called worse,” she tosses back without missing a beat.
“I’ve been thinking about you.” The words escape before I can stop them, and judging by the pleased tilt of her lips, she knows it.
“I have that effect on people.” She takes a sip of her drink.
“Can I get you another?”
Don’t fuck up your second chance, I tell myself. It’s not often the universe hands you a do-over on the same day. And I haven’t wanted a second chance with anyone in… Well, never.
She lifts one shoulder. “Why not?”
I nod to Cassie when she swings by. “Another?”
