The Hardest Fall by Ella Maise

Chapter Twelve

Dylan

The bar was filled with college students who were out to celebrate the end of midterms. Some of those students were my teammates hell-bent on starting the bye week with a bang. A few of them rounded the pool tables, waiting for their turn, and a few of them were content with watching a heated game of beer pong between a few girls. Others were in front of the TVs watching a rerun of the previous week’s games. It felt like the whole team was there. A loud cheer would go off somewhere in the bar and before you could understand which corner it came from, the sound was swallowed up by the loud crowd and the music Jimmy blasted from every corner of the place.

Pulling the lever, I filled a pint and handed it to Chuck, one of the waiters.

“Thanks, man,” he yelled over the din before heading back out.

I tried to get in as many hours as humanly possible at Jimmy’s place without messing up my training schedule in the process, because bartending helped me pay for everything the football scholarship didn’t. Some nights I made enough that I could afford sending some of it back home, without my dad knowing about it, of course. The last thing he wanted was for me to worry about money problems.

Washing a shaker and the few glasses that were piling up behind the bar, I watched JP make his way over to me.

“When is your break again?” he asked, jumping onto a bar stool and eyeing Lindy, one of the other bartenders who was on with me that night.

“Missed me?”

Before he could answer, I made my way toward the two girls who had been waiting for me to come around.

“What can I get you, ladies?”

The blonde, who was wearing a low-cut red dress, leaned over the bar with a flirty smile, handing me the twenty that was tucked between two of her fingers. “Tequila shots, two rounds—and to chase those, I’ll take your number.”

I grinned and lined up their shots after checking their IDs. “Maybe next time.”

I ignored how the redhead looked at me intently as she licked the salt on the back of her hand and making an even bigger show out of sucking one of the lime wedges I’d provided. As soon as they were done with their first round, I filled their second and left them to it.

“Let me know if you need anything else.”

JP was still waiting for me when I got back. “You’re the stupidest son of a bitch I know, you know that right?”

“So you keep telling me.”

“What the hell is wrong with her?”

He tipped his head to the side, and I glanced at the girls, catching the blonde one sending me a wink.

“Nothing is wrong with her, but you know I haven’t been a fan of random hookups since freshman year. Why does it surprise you now? Also, doing some random girl is the last thing on my mind right now. Weren’t you there when we almost lost the last game to Colorado?”

“The keyword is almost. We won, didn’t we?” He leaned over the bar and grabbed a handful of peanuts. “And it’s more like you don’t do anyone anymore. When was the last time you got laid?”

“If only you were this interested in—”

My eyes caught something just over JP’s shoulder and I trailed off. The soft glow of the yellow and red lights hanging from the ceiling gave the bar a relaxed, welcoming look, and it made it possible for me to recognize Zoe walking in with a guy, her arm wound around his. It hit me like a fucking blow to the stomach.

JP followed my gaze and saw what had my attention. “Ah, that’s Zoe isn’t it? So, you won’t do a random girl, but you’d do her, wouldn’t you? I swear to God I’ve seen her before, but I can’t remember where.”

“You haven’t,” I muttered absentmindedly as my brows snapped together. “And we’re friends—no one is going to do anyone.”

She wasn’t holding on to his arm anymore, but I watched her grip the guy’s shoulders to get up on her toes and look around over the crowd. When she found what she was looking for, a big smile broke out on her face and she yelled something at the guy right before she started dragging him behind her toward the back of the bar. She must’ve been looking for her friend, because a girl slid out of a booth closer to the end wall where all the TVs were mounted and met them halfway. There were muted squeals and hugs and kisses. Was this the guy she was dating? I followed her with my eyes all the way to the booth and watched her settle in right next to the dick face.

“From what I can see, looks like she is definitely doing someone. Dude—hey! Did you hear what I said? Earth to Dylan?”

My fingers clutched the rag in my hand to the point where I could feel my fingernails biting into my palm through the material. I forced myself to look away and focus on JP as every muscle in my body tensed.

“What did you want?” It came out harsher than I’d intended, so I rolled my shoulders to try to relax.

His eyebrow slowly rose up and he leaned back in his seat. Surprisingly, he chose not to push me further.

“I’m waiting for the guys.” He paused, his eyes slightly narrowing. “Do we know who the guy is?”

“Probably her boyfriend. I don’t know.”

“Do we kill him? Or just break his legs as a warning?”

I laughed, but it felt foreign. “Neither. Trust me, he is a better option than what I was afraid of.”

“What do you mean?”

Shrugging, I walked away to serve a few newcomers.

Raising his voice, JP kept at me. “So she’s dating, huh? That means she really isn’t dating you. That’s interesting. Did you know about this or is it a surprise?”

I braced myself on the bar with one hand and knocked JP’s away with the other when I saw he was reaching for the peanut bowl again. “What’s so interesting about it? She’s dating—everybody dates.”

His shrug “Oh, nothing. Did you know about it?”

“Yeah, she said she had a boyfriend and it was complicated.” I gritted my teeth and glared at my friend. “I guess it got uncomplicated. Don’t you have something else to do? I’m trying to work here.”

“I’m not holding you up. I’m a paying customer just like everyone else in here.” He looked over his shoulder, and I couldn’t stop myself from looking her way again. Zoe was up and leaning over the table to pull her friend up. All three of them made their way toward the small square section in front of the TVs that most of the customers saw as a makeshift dance floor. There were maybe seven, ten people already dancing. “Despacito” by Fonsi started up for the thousandth time that night, yet somehow, it’d never sounded as good as it did just then.

“Who are we watching?” I hadn’t even noticed Chris and Benji had joined us and were already looking over their shoulders until Benji spoke up. I was never going to live this down, yet that knowledge did nothing to pull my eyes away from the trio I was watching.

“Is that…your roommate?” Chris asked before JP or I could answer.

“In the flesh,” JP answered for me.

“Nice ass, man,” added Benji, our starting linebacker.

I shot him an irritated look, but his head was still turned away. All three of them were watching it unfold, and there was nothing I could do to stop it without looking like a complete asshole.

Zoe was slowly swaying her hips side to side, and her lips were mouthing the words to the song with Justin Bieber. Her girlfriend didn’t look as enthusiastic about being on the dance floor, so Zoe grabbed her hands and forced her to move with her. She laughed and twirled under her friend’s lifted arm and managed to pull her farther away from the edges of the tables. When the girl finally started to get into it, laughing along with her, a satisfied Zoe nodded and let go of her hands. Next thing I knew, the guy—her possible boyfriend—lined himself behind her and they started swaying together, all the while singing and smiling. Maybe I didn’t like Fonsi and Justin Bieber all that much after all.

Then both girls started to dance around the guy, their fingers walking all over his chest, all three of them singing and laughing. Zoe stopped when she had her back against his chest, the other girl did the same when she was at his back, and then as if they’d timed it, they swayed their hips to the beat in small, barely there movements, mesmerizing everyone watching them—my horny friends weren’t the only ones staring. They started to drop down, sliding their bodies all over him. Zoe lifted her hands and that simple white t-shirt that said Live It Up on the front rode up, displaying a few inches of the creamy skin of her stomach, not just to me, but to everyone who was watching them. My jaw clenched.

When Benji let out a groan, I hit my palm on the bar, hard enough to get the attention of my teammates and some of the other customers.

Their heads turned to me in surprise. “Can I get you guys something or are you just here for the show?” If my question had come out as a snarl, I had no control over it. “If you’re not here to drink, move to one of the tables, or maybe just head out since we’re pretty full tonight.” JP opened his mouth, but I lifted a finger in his direction. “Don’t even think about it.”

He raised his hands in surrender but didn’t quite manage to wipe the grin off his face. “This song is lit as fuck, that’s all I was gonna say.”

Chris eyed JP with interest but wisely didn’t make any comments before turning his gaze on me. “When is your next break? We need to talk about our training schedule this week.”

Benji pushed at Chris, fucking up his balance on the stool. “Dude, are you serious? It’s the first day of the bye. Take a day off for fuck’s sake.”

I had to force my eyes to stay on Chris and not look for Zoe as the damn song finally ended and an old Shakira tune started up. I was too chickenshit to glance her way. I sighed and ran my hand over my head as I exhaled a big breath. “Tomorrow I’m sleeping in, man. I’ll be in the weight room at nine AM, but not a second before that.”

“So you’re sleeping in one extra hour? That’s not sleeping in, dude. You guys are crazy. I’m taking a day to myself and sleeping in the whole day. I’d like to think I deserve my beauty sleep.”

JP snickered. “As if you have the balls. Coach would kick your ass straight to the end zone the second you showed up late to the meeting.”

Benji told JP to shut up with a grumble and turned to me again. “At least tell me you’re coming to the party they’re having at the frat house.”

“When is it? Tomorrow night?” I asked.

“I can’t believe I’m friends with you three. How do you not know about tonight’s party man?”

“Dylan, three pints—stat!” Chuck yelled out the order then disappeared back into the crowd.

I raised my hands up. “As you can see, I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be here every night this week. I need to pick up more hours.”

Benji got up with a huge sigh. “Okay, I’m done. You’re killing my buzz like no other. I’m leaving.” He looked at Chris and JP. “You guys coming or are you gonna hang out with this loser?”

Chris was the first one to follow his lead and get up. “I’d rather have stale beer at the frat than go home tonight. I’m gonna crash at Mandy’s place.” He rapped his knuckles on the bar top. “I’ll meet you in the morning?”

I finished filling the pints and placed them on a tray, ready to be taken out to the floor. “You’re on again with Mandy? When the hell did that happen?”

“We’re not on on, exactly.”

“What do you call crashing at her place? Don’t tell me you’re gonna sleep on her couch when you’re there.”

He gave me a one-shoulder shrug and his mouth curved into a satisfied smirk. “Just testing the waters to see if it’s time to be on again. See you tomorrow, man.” The relationship he had with his dad, our coach, was strained at best, and whenever he felt like he needed space, he was never in need of a place to crash.

Chris was the quiet one in our group. He was the team captain, a good leader out on the field, but when it came to socializing with people, he preferred to stay back. There was always a throng of girls following him like lost puppies, dying to get the quarterback’s attention, but he was more like me on that front than JP. However, unlike me, he didn’t mind random hookups, but even that only happened during the off-season, not when our future hinged on how we did this season with all the eyes we had on us, not to mention the combine was right around the corner.

“Yeah, see you.” Chris followed after Benji, who was chatting with some of our teammates on his way out, leaving me alone with JP. “What?” I asked.

“Just one question.”

I sighed. “What is it?”

“Do you like this girl?” He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb.

“We’re just friends, JP. Not sure how many times I need to tell you that.”

“Yeah, sure. I get that, and friends are good, but…” He hesitated. “Trust me…not trying to get all sappy on your ass, but you deserve to have some fun, man. If not now, when will you? You know what they say: work hard, play harder. If you want her…” Wisely, he left it at that. “Just think about it, that’s all I’m saying.”

“I guess you tuned out the part where I said she has a boyfriend.” I neglected to mention that I was in fact very interested in Zoe Clarke and was only waiting for the right time to make my move, a time when she was unattached and uncomplicated—though maybe I was already too late after all.

“Like I said, we can always get rid of him or break his legs. Either way—”

“Dylan, I could use some help over here!” Lindy sing-songed as she put her hand on my arm and winked at my grinning friend.

“Don’t worry about it, okay?” I said to JP. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Don’t make me come drag your ass out of whichever bed you’re planning on falling into tonight.”

“I keep telling you, I should be your role model.” He sighed. “Yeah, yeah. Fine. See you around. I’m going to find myself a Mandy for the night.”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“Dude, that ship sailed a long time ago.”

Putting Zoe out of my mind, I laughed and went to Lindy’s side, helping her with the orders.

“You should take your break as soon as it slows down a little,” I said loud enough so she could hear me as we worked side by side. “Talk to your little bugger before he goes to sleep.” Lindy was a single mom who left her three-year-old at home with her dad when she came to work. She called her son on almost every break instead of smoking or shooting the shit with the waiters and waitresses.

“What time is it?” she asked, her hands busy with shaking a cocktail. Most of the customers at Jimmy’s went for cheap beers since the vast majority were college students, but there were a few fancy ones who went for cocktails every now and then.

“It’s past nine.”

She stopped with the shaking, poured the pink drink into a martini glass, and garnished it with a maraschino cherry. “Yeah, he’s probably in bed, waiting for me to call. Thanks, Dylan.”

I nodded and just as I was taking another order, my eyes found their way back to Zoe again, still dancing. At least I couldn’t spot the dick face anymore, but how long was she gonna dance anyway? Wasn’t she tired yet? And wasn’t she supposed to be shy? How did she look perfectly fine dancing in front of all these people when she couldn’t even look me in the eye for more than a few seconds?

All of a sudden, I noticed a hand sneak around her waist. A growl escaped my lips and a few of the guys sitting in front of me gave me strange looks. I offered them a chin lift. “What’s up?”

They just shook their heads and got back to their loud conversation.

I glanced past them again. What the hell did I expect from my friend? Of course he was there; of course he was talking to Zoe. She smiled at something JP said and took a discreet step back, dislodging his arm without much effort. JP leaned down to say something in her ear and when he was done, he patted her head twice, said something to her girlfriend, and walked away from them. Just as he was about to exit the bar, he turned and hit the door open with his back, giving me a thumbs up and a shit-eating grin right before he disappeared.

It was a done deal—he had basically given me permission to kick his ass the next time we were on the field. He must’ve known I wouldn’t like his hands on my friend…around her waist, touching her, feeling her body.

“Dude!” Lindy shouted from the other end of the bar, and I forced myself to look at her. Making big eyes at me, she motioned toward the mug in my hand, which was currently overflowing with beer.

“Shit!” I shook my hand and cleaned the mug with a rag before handing it off.

“What’s wrong with you tonight?” Lindy asked, sidling up to me.

“Nothing.”

Trying not to react to the eyes I could feel on me, I finished the order and started on another one. My curiosity got the better of me again, and I glanced Zoe’s way. All three of them were watching me. The guy I’d had my eyes on ever since they walked in leaned toward Zoe and got her attention. Either they couldn’t hear each other from a few inches away and the dick face had to lean even closer to her ear—which I thought was complete bullshit—or he didn’t like Zoe’s attention on me.

Cursing myself for tensing up when I noticed him pull back and tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, I got back to my work.

Not even a few minutes had passed when the guy I’d just served a beer got off the stool, and suddenly I was staring at Zoe’s smiling face.

“Hey stranger, what are you doing here?” She looked around. “Are you trying to impress someone?”

There was a small smile on her lips when our eyes met. It took her only a few seconds to hide her gaze from me and get busy with propping her elbows up on the bar. Was she surprised to see me there? Maybe annoyed? Happy? Was the light flush on her cheekbones for me, or was it residue from whatever the hell the dick face had been whispering in her ear? Or maybe she was flushed because of all the dancing she had done. She was still a little breathless, after all.

There was no trace of a smile on my lips when I managed to force the words out. “What does it look like?”

She looked confused at my tone and her smile faltered, the corners slowly dipping down as she blinked at me.

“Is everything okay?”

I swallowed my annoyance and rolled my neck before taking a deep breath. All I could smell was alcohol, and underneath it, a whiff of fucking berries.

Keep it cool, man. She didn’t do anything.

I exhaled before I opened my mouth to speak again. “I’m sorry. Long day. What do you mean trying to impress someone?”

“You’re behind the bar.”

I looked down at myself and around me. “Yeah, I work here. That’s how bartending works. You stay behind the bar and serve drinks.”

“No you don’t,” she fired back.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much it.”

“No, I mean, bartending?” She looked taken back. “You’re really working right now?”

“Yup. What did you think I was doing?”

Her teeth lightly grazed her bottom lip. I watched her mouth move as she said something, but I was too busy admiring her lips and missed it completely.

“What?”

She leaned forward an inch or two and yelled a little louder. “I said, I thought you were trying to impress someone! You know how attractive bad boys are to girls, and you’re a football player on top of that. Basically, double the trouble.” She widened her eyes. “And bartenders tend to be—not that I’m specifically saying you’re hot or anything, but I thought you were just back there—”

Looking over her shoulder, I met the dick face’s eyes. Both he and the other girl were watching Zoe and me. It was his own idiocy that he’d let her come to me, so why should I be the one to stay away? She was my roommate, my friend, after all. Fuck him.

I leaned on the bar, bringing us closer, and rested my arms right next to hers. Only inches separated us. If she moved, my skin would drag against hers. She stopped rambling and took in the repositioning of my arms. Then, knowingly or unknowingly, she shifted in her seat, moving her delectable little butt from right to left.

“Zoe,” I said, my voice lower since we were now closer. “You’re rambling again. It’s too cute, and it’s completely okay if you think of your friend as hot. I think you’re hot, too.”

My arm brushed hers when Lindy walked behind me and I was forced to move forward another inch. She completely ignored the fact that I’d just called her hot—or maybe she simply thought I was joking—and leaned forward as if she couldn’t help herself. The movement was barely perceptible, and I would have bet she hadn’t noticed it herself.

“I didn’t say you were hot.”

“I’m pretty sure you just did.”

“No,” she said slowly. “I just meant they tend to hire good-looking guys so that—” She let out a breath and changed the subject. “I didn’t know you worked on top of everything else you did. Your schedule is crazy. I’m just surprised, that’s all.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I specifically remember telling you I wasn’t rich.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t think you…I just didn’t think, apparently. You know me and my tendency to stereotype football players. Most people usually think they get everything handed to them, and apparently I’m one of those people, but…I like that you’re working.” She huffed. “You’re a really…” She scrunched up her nose then shook her head. “Never mind.”

I leaned closer and my forearm grazed hers again. We stayed skin to skin. She couldn’t keep her eyes away. I would’ve loved for her to finish her sentence, but there was something else I wanted to know more.

I turned my head a fraction, bringing my lips closer to her cheek area—the cheek her boyfriend’s fingers had brushed only minutes before. “So that’s your boyfriend, huh? I don’t think he likes that you’re over here talking to me.” The bastard was still watching, and it was starting to get on my nerves.

Her head snapped up and her eyebrows drew together. “What? Where?”

I pulled back. “Your boyfriend,” I repeated, motioning to the guy with my chin. At that moment, his arm was casually draped over the booth and he was chatting with the girl sitting across him instead of staring at us. “The one you’ve been dancing with since you walked in.” I turned my eyes on Zoe. “And I thought you were shy, Zoe—seemed like it since you can’t even manage to look into my eyes for more than a few seconds—but that girl dancing up there didn’t look all that shy.”

Slowly she turned back to me. My muscles were tensing up again. Why was I getting so worked up over her dancing with her fucking boyfriend? It wasn’t like I didn’t know she had someone, and I should’ve been happy that it was just a student. I straightened away from Zoe, deciding to actually do the job I was getting paid to do and help Lindy with the customers.

After I served a few, I checked to see if Zoe had left, but she was still sitting there waiting for me, her eyes tracking my movements.

I found myself back in front of her. I was being a dick without meaning to. “Can I get you and…your friends anything?” I asked a little loudly so I wouldn’t have to lean in again.

Her frown got deeper and she scooted forward in her seat. Her lips parted, but nothing came out. Then she nodded. “Yeah, I’ll have a pint of whatever you have on tap and a Corona, please.”

I returned her nod with a curt one and served my roommate. Plunking the pint in front of her, I reached down for a bottle of Corona. Her left hand closed around the handle of the pint and she reached for the bottle with the other.

“Can you carry them yourself or should I have—”

What she said was not what I was expecting to hear at all. “That’s not my boyfriend, Dylan. He is my friend, Jared, and just so you know, shy doesn’t mean I can’t function or dance with my friends or just be around people. I only get shy and awkward around certain people, and you happen to be one of them, that’s all.”

I have no idea if she chose to tell me all that in pretty much one breath with a lowered voice so I might not hear half of it or if she thought she’d be gone before I could piece it together, but thank fuck I got it the first time.

Since her hands were full, she didn’t manage to escape as quickly as she hoped. Before she could hop off the stool, I put my hand on her wrist and stopped her forward movement.

Stuck sitting sideways, she stilled and looked at me.

My hand was still around her wrist, and this time I didn’t hesitate to lean in closer and pull her to me at the same time. I paused when my lips were almost touching the shell of her ear. “Say that again?” I asked in a low, deep voice.

Oh, I had heard her perfectly fine the first time, but I still felt the need to hear her say it again.

She tilted her head enough so I could hear her. I stayed exactly where I was, breathing in her scent. “I’m shy around—” she started haltingly.

“Not that part. The one before that.”

“Oh, that’s Jared. He’s not my boyfriend, just Jared, my friend,” Zoe repeated. I closed my eyes in relief. When I opened them again, I noticed Zoe’s white-knuckle grip on the bottle of Corona. Because of the position we were in, she had no choice but to speak right into my ear where I could feel her warm breath on my skin. “He is my friend, and he also happens to be gay, not that it should matter.”

That tight feeling that had suddenly appeared in my stomach like I’d been gut-punched when I saw her touching the dick face loosened at her words. I shouldn’t have been happy to hear that; it should’ve made no difference, but it still did. I wasn’t prepared to see her get close to another guy. Knowing about it was evidently different than seeing it with my own eyes. Any other time, maybe it would’ve been all right, but that night, I didn’t like it.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. Her berry scent was going to kill me from that close. That first night, when her towel did me a favor and unwound itself, she had smelled like berries, too, and since I was her roommate, I had the privilege—or perhaps the burden—of knowing that it was her body wash and not her shampoo. The smell always lingered after she took a shower, reaching to my room and distracting me to no end.

I’d known from the very beginning that she couldn’t just be my friend, even if I’d let her think she could, and seeing her with another guy had just cemented that.

Zoe cleared her throat and pulled back from our little private bubble. Only then did I notice the touch of color on her cheeks. When she spoke, her voice was thick. She was affected by me, by having me close. I knew she was—the sparkle in her eyes, the color on her cheeks, the way she tried to hold her breath gave her away. If not, if I was wrong, I was screwed.

“You look beautiful,” I said honestly. “You always look beautiful, but tonight you look happier. I like your smile tonight. I always like it when you smile, Flash,” I said sincerely.

At my words, her eyes jumped to mine, surprised, unsure. Her lips twitched then finally tipped up in a shy but beautiful smile. “I like your smile, too…really like it.”

Drawing farther back, I let go of her arm and looked at her face. Of course, she looked anywhere but my eyes.

“Say hi to your friends for me then. Maybe introduce us before you guys leave? It should slow down here soon enough.”

She swallowed and nibbled on her bottom lip. “Are you okay, Dylan? I haven’t seen you around lately. We’re good, right?”

I had no idea how to behave around her anymore, but we were good. “It’s always like this during football season, all the practice hours, training, classes, plus midterms. I was swamped, but things should calm down for a week at least. I’m here at night since it’s bye week, but you’ll see me around.”

“Okay.” She smiled and nodded. Just before she attempted to get down, she looked over shoulder at her friends for a few seconds then faced me again. “Later, we can watch a movie maybe? Netflix and chill like the cool kids are doing?”

My brows almost reached my hairline. “Netflix and chill?”

When she realized what she’d said, she looked horrified. “No! I mean, I know what that means, and I didn’t mean it that way. I meant literally. We could pick a movie and chill out, not pick a movie and have sex while said movie is playing, not chill in that way, not Netflix and—” She let out a little growl. “Forget about Netflix. Fuck Netflix. The last time we tried, your friends came over and we couldn’t, so maybe when you come home tonight we can watch a movie?”

I gave her a small smile, thinking maybe it was wrong of me to enjoy yanking her chain so much. “I’m sorry, Zoe. My shift ends pretty late tonight. Maybe we can do that another time?”

Her smile disappeared from her face. “Yeah, sure. Of course. You’re probably meeting up with your friends after this anyway.”

I touched her arm again before she could slip away, because apparently I couldn’t help myself. “Only because it’s Pint Night here, and I’m afraid I’m not going anywhere until last call, which is at two AM.”

“Oh. Yeah, that’s late. Like you said, maybe another time. See you back at the apartment then?”

“I’ll see you at home.” I liked it better when we called it home, like she had a few seconds before. “I’d love to meet your friends,” I repeated before she could leave.

Her smile came back. “Sure. Actually, I think you already know Kayla—you guys kinda dated—and Jared is a fan, so he’d like that too. We’ll come over”—she looked around—“when it’s not so crowded. I already took too much of your time, I’m sorry.”

What the fuck?

“Wait a second—what did you say? You think I dated your friend?”

“I don’t think—I mean, she said you guys…”

I glanced back at the booth with a frown. The one she called Jared was openly staring at us, but this time the girl across from him smiled and waved at me a little sheepishly. I narrowed my eyes, looked at her a little closer, and…yeah, maybe she looked familiar, but I was pretty sure I hadn’t dated her.

“I’m pretty sure I didn’t date your friend, Zoe.” I took another quick look. “What did you say her name was again?”

“Kayla.”

“Yeah, you’re wrong.”

“She said you guys met freshman year—well, she was a freshman, so you were a sophomore.”

I squinted and looked harder, trying to remember why she looked familiar. “Was she by any chance a redhead?”

“Yeah. Her boyfriend doesn’t like the red, so she dyes it brown now.”

A smile spread across my face. “Okay, I remember her.” I lifted my hand and waved back at her friend. Focusing back on Zoe, I said, “Though, just to make it clear, we never actually dated, just went out with friends a couple times, that’s it. I wouldn’t call it dating.”

“That’s what Kayla said, too. Anyway, it’d be okay if you had dated.”

I nodded slowly. “It would be okay, but we didn’t.”

She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked down at the beer bottle in her hand. I watched her thumb slowly wipe the condensation away.

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

I leaned down so I could meet her eyes. “Stop by before you guys leave, okay? We’ll talk. Keep me company. Let me see my friend for a while longer.”

“Okay.”

I felt relieved.

With a half wave, she hopped off and carried the drinks back to her friends. On her way over there, she turned around once, drinks still held high, eyes sparkling, and gave me the biggest smile—causing my own lips to twitch in amusement—then turned back and kept walking. Kayla took the Corona, and the friend who was definitely not the boyfriend took the beer from her hand before she could sit down and poured it into their mugs.

A loud cheer erupted from the group at the beer pong table, and I remembered that I had a job to do.

The orders had slowed down, so I shouted at Lindy. “I have this. Go take your break.”

She groaned and pulled at my shoulder to give me a peck on the cheek as she passed me on her way to the door that led to the kitchen.

I spent a few minutes talking to the guys sitting at the front about how the season was shaping up until Lindy came back.

When I looked over to my right where Zoe’s booth was, she was the first to realize they’d been caught staring at me and quickly looked away.