When I know he’s long gone, I make my escape.
My head dips, and I walk through the bar, wishing the ground would open up and consume me. As I approach the exit, my heel grazes the floor at the same time I hear a crack. Then I’m stumbling forward.
I reach out for the main set of doors to stabilise myself before I fall.
“Shit,” I hiss.
My head tilts, and I raise my foot. The heel of my cutest stilettos has snapped clean off. I slump forward, pushing past the doors so I can rest against the street wall. A scream isbrewing in my throat, but I keep myself together—at least until I get home.
I bury my head into my hands, listening as people stroll past, laughing and chatting with their friends. They’re ready to start their Friday night in style, and I’m ready to hide under a rock for the foreseeable.
“Are you okay?”
I don’t even bother to look up. My gaze remains on the pavement.
“Yes, I’m absolutely fantastic. Thanks for asking.”
Poison feels like it’s been injected into my veins. Right now, I have one emotion bubbling through me.Wrath.Fuck this night, fuck these shoes, fuck Adam, fuck dating apps. Fuck everything.
“You sure? I think your shoe is broken.”
I snap my attention to the owner of the deep voice. He’s staring back at me with dark blue eyes, a brunette buzz cut, and a silver nose ring.
“Thank you for pointing out the obvious.” I narrow my eyes at him.
I’m trying my hardest not to be intimidated by this guy’s good looks while he experiences my misfortune. This is the icing on top of the cake.
There are two guys behind him, one is smoking a cigarette and laughing at something the other guy said. I’m guessing they’re his friends, and I’m grateful they’re not in on this conversation to humiliate me further.
“Bad night?”
I scoff. “Bad night? That’s an understatement.”
The guy tilts his head and shoves his hands into the pockets of his cargo pants. “Join the club.”
I narrow my eyes at him and his friends, who are messing around behind him. “Looks like you guys are having a blast.”
He glances over his shoulder and shrugs. “They just got us kicked out of the bar for being too drunk.”
“Oh, how I wish I was being kicked out of a bar for being too drunk.”
“Go on then.” His lips twitch into a smirk. “Tell me how bad your night has been.”
I push up from the wall and remind myself not to put any pressure on my heel, or I’ll go flying. “Well, let me see…” I trail off. “Firstly, I matched with some asshole who only wanted to speak about himself, talk over me, proceeded to tell the entire bar that no guy is going to want me. Oh, and then I broke my heel, and next, it’ll probably be my ankle.”
He chews on his lip as I catch my breath, realising I’m offloading to a complete stranger. I close my eyes and release a staggered exhale. What am I doing?
“And on that count,” I say before reaching down to take off my heels. “I’m going home.”
“Wait, wait.” He reaches out to grab my arm gently. “You can’t walk home barefoot. It’s Friday night, and the pavement is going to be littered with glass.”
I raise my brow at him, then I look down at his grip, and he quickly lets go of me. “Well, I can’t walk home with a broken heel. I’ll definitely end up in A&E then.”
“And what if you cut your feet?”
I fold my arms across my chest, the straps of my heels hitting my shoulders. “Are you a doctor or something?”
“No, but I know when someone is being stupid.”
