Leila
“Shit.” Gabi’s eyes widen when we enter the bar. “I need to go to the bathroom.”
“Are you serious?”
“I’m sorry?” Her face contorts.
I roll my eyes. “How many times do I have to tell you to pee before we leave? I swear, it’s like you’re my kid.” I sigh, pressing my fingers to my forehead.
She snickers. “Can I call you Mommy?” I let out a laugh, giving her a push. She presses her lips together, trying to stop laughing. “I’ll be quick. Just order me something.” She waves a hand. “Whatever will get me drunker.” She starts to walk into the bathroom but then spins. “Actually, just order me a Cosmo. I need to stay up late tonight.”
“Hot date?” I tease.
She smiles, then shakes her head. “Nah.” Her hip nudges the door open, and she walks in. I pat my jean pocket, making sure the money is still there. I turn, heading to the bar when I see—
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Aiden’s head lifts, one hand clutching a glass, the other around the beer tap. He grins when he sees me, then props the drink in front of a customer. He places his hands on the counter. “How I love to be the reason for your disappointment,” he says, his smirk letting me know he finds my attitude towards him amusing. “Are you stalking me again, Leila?”
I cross my arms, leaning my hip against the edge of the bar. “More like trying to forget you.”
He hums, leaning forward on the counter. “Hard to forget, am I?”
I’m not even going to dignify him with an answer. I bite my bottom lip, knowing he’s right. The guy is hard to forget, especially after that whole interaction at the party. I don’t know what I was thinking, daring him to chase me. I don’t want that. At least, I don’t think I do.
I blow out a breath. I don’t know what I want when it comes to Aiden. And therein lies the problem. “So you’re a bartender?” I ask him, sitting on the stool, visibly wincing. Fuck I hate barstools. They are not big girl friendly. They painfully dig into my thighs, not to mention my ass barely fits on the seat.
“You okay there?” he asks.
I peer up at him. “Peachy.”
He smiles, his tongue tracing his bottom lip. Don’t look at his lips. He moves over to the glasses, grabbing a tall one. “Beer, right?” he asks.
I furrow my brows. “Yeah. How did you know?”
“Lucky guess.” He fills the glass, staring down at the amber liquid filling it.
“You’re full of surprises.”
He lifts his head, eyeing me for a second before his head drops back to the task at hand, a laugh escaping him. A breathy, low laugh that has my stomach spinning. With a shake of his head, he says, “I’ve got to say, even though you seem to despise me for some reason,” he glances up at me, “I always seem to have a good time whenever you’re near.”
A full glass of beer gets placed in front of me. “You’re a masochist, huh?” I ask, taking a sip. “You like when people torture you?”
He laughs. “If torture is anything like you, then hell yes.”
A bubble of laughter escapes me, and I press my hand to my mouth, swallowing down the liquid. “Does that actually work?”
“What?” he asks.
I gesture to the—if I’m being honest—drop-dead gorgeous face of his. “The whole blue-eyed, cool guy flirting thing you do.”
He seems to mull it over, tilting his head. “I would say all the time. But lately, I’ve struck out.”
I eye him wondering if he’s talking about me. Hoping he’s talking about me. It’s a good feeling saying no to someone like Aiden Pierce. Someone that can have anyone, that everyone wants. “It won’t work on me.” Although as I say the words, I’m not entirely sure it’s true.
He shrugs, the big muscles on his shoulders lifting. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”
I take another sip, the burn of the alcohol hitting my throat. “Have you forgotten I don’t like you?”
He shakes his head, a grin on his lips. “That’s not an issue.”
My brows furrow. “Why not?”
He licks his lips, his eyes dropping to my lips. “Because I find it hot as fuck every time you roll those pretty green eyes at me.” My throat clamps up as I stare at up at him. “Plus, your supposed dislike isn’t even valid. You don’t even know me.”
I place the beer on the counter, glancing up at him. “I know enough,” I say with a shrug.
“What exactly do you know?”
I tilt my head. “We’d be here all night.”
“Humor me.”
Alright then. I clasp my hands together in front of me, noting how he leans in a little when I do. “You’re a classic playboy. You have the whole school in the palm of your hand, every girl in your bed, and the hot athlete thing clearly works for you. Not to mention you use your talent to get away with anything and everything. And even though you seem charming with that smile and those eyes, you don’t fool me.”
His lips curve into a grin. “I’ve got to be honest. All I heard was that you think I’m hot, talented, and charming.”
I roll my eyes. “Of course you would.”
He laughs, filling up another glass. “And you think by that little statement you have me all figured out?”
I give him a shrug. “As much as I need to.”
He shakes his head. “You want to bet how long it will take before you give in?” he asks.
My eyes narrow. “Don’t act like you’re in control. We both know this little game is all on me.”
“And we both know you want me just as bad.” His tongue darts out to lick his lips. “You’re just kidding yourself when you tell me the opposite.”
My throat bobs with the harsh swallow, and I grab my drink to give myself something to do to avoid his lingering eyes, the smile on his lips, and the way he’s absolutely right.
He sets the glass on the counter and eyes me carefully, his lips curved in a smirk. “I really want to ask for your number even though you’ll probably turn me down again.”
I scoff. “I’m not giving you my number.”
Aiden’s eyes narrow a little, his eyes darkening as he pulls closer, leaning forward until there’s a measly few inches between us. “Here’s one thing you don’t know about me, Leila,” he says. “I don’t give up. Ever.” I swallow hard, watching how he follows the movements of my throat before his eyes meet mine again. So blue.
I want to breathe, I do, but… it’s currently stuck in my throat. “There’s also something else,” he says, his eyes dropping to the curve of my lips that are now parted and so dry. I lick them instinctively.
“Yeah?” It comes out raspy, thick with the tension between us. I clear my throat.
He smirks, pulling back completely until I can inhale a much-needed breath. “I never lose,” he says.
That snaps me out of whatever the hell just happened and I clear my throat once more. “I guess you’re going to have to get used to losing,” I tell him. “Because you will this time.”
He tuts. “I’m not so sure about that. You seem to be under the pretense that I’m trying to prove something here, that because you said no, it makes me want you more.” That is exactly what I’m thinking. “But that’s not it at all,” he says. “You fucking intrigue me.” His eyes dip to my lips again. “And I really want to kiss you again. All I need is your number and I’ll make it happen.”
His words blur my vision, making me lose focus. This isn’t who I am. I don’t get nervous or tongue-tied and I definitely don’t let the guy control the situation. I square my shoulders, playing along, and lean in, my eyes focused on his lips. A grin undeniably appears on my lips when I hear his breath hitch, his lips parted slightly.
I take my time to look up at him, staring into his eyes. Focus. “And what will you give me in return?” I ask him, my hand dancing on the counter, getting closer to his shirt.
He lets out a heavy breath. “Whatever you want.”
My fingers get closer to the fabric of his white t-shirt, itching to grab it in my fist. “Anything?” I ask him, my fingers slightly grazing the fabric.
Another shaky breath. “Everything.”
I hum, looking up into his eyes. I know how much guys love looking down at girls, it makes them feel powerful, like they’re in control, but not this time. “That’s too bad,” I mutter. I pull back completely, dropping the act. “I don’t want anything from you.”
He lets out an exhale, turning into a laugh. “The way you were undressing me with your eyes says the opposite,” he says.
I let out a scoff. “You’re delusional.”
He opens his mouth but before he can speak a girl slides in beside me. “Aiden,” she purrs, her voice so sweet, just as sweet as she looks. Slim figure, tiny and drop-dead gorgeous, just like the girls I’ve seen Aiden with.
I’m not stupid. I am so far out of his usual type, which makes me wonder why he’s pushing this so hard. Memories of my ex come flooding back, making me bite my bottom lip.
“I didn’t get a chance to talk to you at the party last week,” she says, pouting. My eyebrows rise, glancing at Aiden. I can’t lie, I’m very interested in what he’ll say, how he’ll react. I keep my mouth shut, sipping on my drink, waiting it out.
He smiles at her… of course he does. Aiden is just a golden ball of sunshine and smiles that people eat up like sunlight. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I didn’t get your name.”
A snicker comes out of me, and I end up drinking at the same time and cough uncontrollably. The girl and Aiden both look at me. I hold up my hand, attempting to stop dying over here. “I’m fine.”
Aiden presses his lips together, failing to attempt to hide his laughter.
The blonde shakes her head, turning back to face Aiden. “My name’s Alicia, we met at Carter’s twenty-first, remember?”
He squints and then nods. “Yeah, of course.” I press my lips together. Liar. “Alicia, right. I’m a little busy right now. Can I get you anything to drink?”
She shakes her head. “I ordered like twenty minutes ago. From you.”
“Right,” Aiden says, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m sorry, busy night.”
“Oh,” she says, deflating a little. “That’s ok.”
He smiles at her again. “It was nice to meet you.”
She gives him a grin, leaning forward so her cleavage spills out. My eyes widen. Damn. The girl has an impressive rack. I glance at Aiden for a second. I’ve got to give it to him, he doesn’t even glance down.
“Hey, man,” Andre, his teammate, slides up to the bar, tapping on the counter. “Scotch. Neat.”
“Sorry, I have drinks to pour.” Aiden gives her one of his signature smiles and moves behind the bar, grabbing a glass and filling it with the dark auburn liquid, sliding it over to his friend. By the time Aiden turns around, she’s gone.
“Thanks, man,” Andre says, taking the drink from him and sliding a ten across the bar before he leaves.
“You alright there?” Aiden’s voice makes my eyes lift, meeting his. “Didn’t think beer would be a choking hazard.”
I roll my eyes, a laugh bubbling out of me. It must be the alcohol. “I’m good.” I take another sip. “You seem to have options.” I eye him, seeing if he’ll catch on.
He smiles, nodding. “I have many.” Well shit. At least he knows it. “Too bad the one girl I seem to want is hellbent on denying there’s any attraction between us.”
I don’t know what to say. What can I say? I could try to lie, tease him about it, but at this point, we both know I’m lying.
“Shit. Gabi’s Cosmo.”
He smiles, heading back to grab a glass and starts making the drink. I lift myself off the stool, grabbing my glass and let out a breath, picking a twenty from my jean pocket and sliding it in front of me.
He pushes it back. “It’s on me,” he says, placing the red drink in front of me.
My eyebrows lift. “In exchange for my number, right?”
“Damn.” He drops his head, a chuckle escaping him. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Because you’re not a complete asshole?” I offer with a tilt of my head.
He grins, rubbing his thumb across his bottom lip. “Glad to see you’re coming around.”
“Eh.” I shrug. “You’re not all bad.” I spin on my heels, heading to the table where Gabriella is sitting at, eating pretzels. Her eyes widen when she sees me approaching, and she reaches for the glass. “Finally,” she says. “That took forever.”
“Sorry. Long line.” She accepts the drink from me, her eyes closing when she takes a sip.
I take a seat beside her, placing my beer on the table. I presumptuously look over my shoulder and see Aiden looking at me. He flashes me a grin, and I roll my eyes, turning back around.
“Damn,” Gabi says. “I could kiss whoever made this.” She takes another sip.
Yeah, me too.
