“You were at the club?” I asked, raising my eyebrows. Had I heard it there? The whole night was nothing but a blur, so I guess it was possible.
I swallowed and sat back down. My stomach gave a pang, and I pressed my hand to it, trying to get rid of the nausea suddenly hitting me.
Not being able to remember a whole night felt… awful.
Was there even more that I’d missed?
Bennie nodded. “Yeah, I basically had to drag your guy there.” He rolled his eyes dramatically. “He’s not the most sociable.”
Eric rolled his eyes, but not in a good-natured way. Nope, the muscles around his eyes tightened, putting a strain on his smile.
“I wouldn’t know. We get along fine,” I said, winking at Eric. I wanted to put him at ease. He shouldn’t feel bad about not being the club type of guy. Especially because I wasn’t one for going dancing either. Nope, I usually preferred smaller pub settings. Clubs could get overwhelming fast, and I hated not being able to talk to my friends. If we managed to find time to meet, I wanted to catch up on what was going on in everyone’s lives.
Eric’s smile lightened the nausea a bit. Maybe I should ask him what exactly had happened that night at the club. Until now, I’d been too chickenshit to do so, but not knowing was proving tobe just as uncomfortable as possibly finding out that I’d done something embarrassing.
“Oh, I can see just how good the two of you are getting along.” Bennie waggled his eyebrows suggestively and gave me another grin, completely ignoring the way Eric’s jaw tensed in obvious annoyance. “Hey, do you guys have space for one more person?”
We’d have to pull a chair over, but… “Su—”
“No,” Eric said. His answer was quiet, but spoken with such a punch it hit harder than if he’d just screamed at the top of his lungs. “We don’t.”
Bennie stuck out his bottom lip in a pout. “But I’m cold. It’s freezing outside and…”
“Get an Uber or a cab,” Eric said with a shrug. “Hell, get your own table, far, far away from us for all I care.”
Weren’t they supposed to be friends?
“It’s fine, we can…”
Eric shook his head. “Nope. If you give him a finger, he won’t just take your hand, but your whole arm.” He leveled his friend with a stare colder than the temperature outside. “I told you I wasn’t available tonight.”
Bennie rolled his eyes, then looked at me. “So dramatic.” He let out a giggle. “But it’s okay. I just wanted to let you know that Aries wants to check in on you, soo… do your thing and then meet up with him.”
Eric narrowed his eyes, a muscle in his cheek twitching. “That could’ve been a text message. A voice message if you’re too lazy to type it all out. You really didn’t need to come here.”
Bennie grinned. “Maybe so, but I was curious about your date.”
My cheeks heated.Date?Did Eric think it was a date?
“Goodbye, Bennie,” Eric said, exasperation obvious in his voice. The way he sounded, almost bashful, I was expecting tosee flecks of color rising to his cheeks, but they stayed fucking pale.
Huh. Maybe he should let someone check his iron levels too. Hey, maybe my stalker would become his stalker if he saw Eric’s paleness.
“Fine. I’m going. I’m going. It was nice to meet you, Finn. I hope I’ll get the chance to actually talk to you without Eric going all caveman soon.”
Bennie gave me one last grin, dodging a slight slap from Eric before heading over to the counter, probably to get his order to go.
“Sorry,” Eric said, pinching the bridge of his nose as he leaned back in his chair. “I swear sometimes it feels like I’m the older, more responsible one, not the other way around.”
I believed him because right now he looked like a frustrated father trying—and failing—to teach his toddler basic manners.
“I don’t mind,” I said, reaching for my cup of tea. The dainty porcelain wasn’t as hot to the touch anymore, so I deemed it safe to take a sip. Closing my eyes, I let out a little sigh. It was good. Andwarm. Honestly, I’d probably drink hot dishwater just to feel warm. But this was actually really delicious.
“But I do. I wanted you to myself, and I told Bennie as much. Unfortunately, respecting one’s boundaries isn’t Bennie’s strong suit.”
I looked over to the counter, where Bennie was still standing, his shoulders shaking with laughter. I watched Eric’s friend for another couple of seconds, buying myself a little time to figure out how I felt about the fact that he’d just admitted he wanted me to himself.
An hour ago, that would’ve freaked me the fuck out. After all, my stupid brain had me halfway convinced that Eric was my stalker.
