“When I’m the guy,” I wink at her. “I decide, and I say you’re going to be great.”
“You’re full of shit, but thank you,” she smiles.
“Do you want to grab a drink?” I blurt out.
“What, go out?”
“No, I mean, I have drinks here, I just thought we could hang out.”
“Hang out?”
“Is there a parrot in here?” I grin. “Come on, have a drink with me,” I tug her sleeve and step back. It’s not hard enough to drag her, if she doesn’t want to, she doesn’t have to, but shit, my smile gets wider when she agrees.
I get her a bottle of wine and glass, and grab a six-pack so I don’t have to keep getting up and we go into the living room. Using my phone, I start up a playlist of alternative rock music.
“No Vampire Diaries,” she smiles, sitting down and folding her legs underneath her butt.
“Nah, I’ve had enough of Damon and Stefan for a little while. Besides, we can’t talk if we’re watching TV, right?”
She brushes some hair behind her ear. I love it when she wears it all loose like that, spilling over her shoulder, kind of like it was when she was dancing and her nipples were peeking through all that golden hair.
“So where are you from?” I ask, sucking down some beer.
“Originally? A little town in California.”
“That’s specific,” I laugh. “North, South?”
“In the bay area. Woodside.”
“Expensive round there.”
“Kinda,” she takes a healthy gulp of her wine.
“Any siblings?”
“Nope.”
“That’s a shame, although sometimes when I was a kid I did wish I was an only child.”
“Three brothers will do that,” she laughs. “So with an accent like that I’m guessing you’re not a native to Baltimore.”
“Nothing gets past you.” She laughs again. “I’m from Nashville.”
“Seriously,” she twists around and draws her knees up, her bare feet are close to my thigh. “Is that where the name comes from?”
“Right again.”
“Is that how you get your names, like where you’re from?”
“Sometimes. Mostly it’s about personality, or attitude, or something that just fits.”
“If that is the case Beast seems like his name is all wrong.”
“Why do you say that?”
“He’s more of a bear than a beast, he’s nice and genuine and doesn’t raise his voice. He’s the least beastly person I’ve ever met.”
“Maybe it’s just when he’s in the sack,” I grin. “We saw how… vigorous he can be.”
