That Thing You Do (Crystal Lake 2)

She pouted and batted those fake lashes like a champion. “I think you should buy me a drink instead.”

Now, another time and place and Nate would have been more than happy to oblige. Hell, he’d have bought her a couple of drinks, and before a third could have been ordered, he would have taken her back to her place and they would have gotten busy doing the things that adults do who meet in bars.

But he had no interest in any of that whatsoever. Not with Chess anyway.

In fact, he was annoyed that she’d plunked her butt in front of him and effectively cut off his escape. He could be dick and tell her to beat it, but Nathan wasn’t that guy. If he was that kind of son of a bitch, he’d take her up on the offer that shone from her eyes and wet lips, give her what she wanted, and then hop into Molly’s bed no with no regrets.

Maybe he’d been that guy years ago. The kind who only cared about scoring some tail and nothing more. The kind who thought “relationship” was another word for “pussy whipped.” At least he was always honest. He’d always been upfront with the women he dated so they knew the score. Knew that he wasn’t the man who’d be asking for his own sock drawer. It was the mindset of the young, and as he stared down at Chess, he realized he wasn’t remotely connected to the guy he’d been.

He didn’t bother to think about the reason for it, because if he had, he might have realized he was in trouble. As it was, his only thought was to get away from Chess, call Molly, and finish off this evening with the only woman who had his interest.

“I’m good,” he replied, trying to soften the blow because, just for one second, he saw hurt flash in her eyes. “It’s guy’s night, Chess. Zach’s last throw down before he gets married on Saturday.”

She licked her lips and moved closer. “But it’s not exclusively guy’s night, now is it?”

He nodded, relieved he had an excuse that worked. “It is, sorry.”

“Then why is Stu’s wife all over him like a wet shirt?”

What?

Nate yanked his head around, and sure enough, Stu’s wife was pressed against her husband as if they were the only two people in the entire bar. She had her arms wrapped around his considerable chest and was whispering and giggling into his ear—dirty thoughts, judging by the look on Stu’s face.

Then he spied Jessica sitting on Zach’s lap, the two of them canoodling like a couple of teenagers. And there was Mike’s girlfriend leaning into him as if she was afraid to fall, which, coming off a wine tour seemed highly likely. The woman was a buck ten soaking wet.

When the hell had the girls arrived? And where was…

Molly stood just behind her brother, her eyes on Nate. He smiled, because, well, seeing her made him damn happy, but she didn’t bite. Didn’t return the smile. In fact, she gave him a look that could freeze the balls off Santa and turned around, disappearing into the crowd.

What the hell?

“How about that drink?” Chess all but purred as her hand closed over his forearm. “Your table seems kind of full now anyway.”

He looked down at Chess and shook his head. “I gotta go.”

Her face hardened, and she awkwardly let him go. “I don’t understand. Two weeks ago, you were all hot and heavy, and now you act like I don’t exist.” She was hurt, and while it made Nathan feel like shit, he’d been nothing but honest with her. “What does Molly Malone have that I don’t? Because it sure as hell isn’t this.” She ran her hands down her body and glared at him.

“Look, Chess, you knew the score from the beginning. We were never more than a casual thing. I’m sure there are a lot of men here who’d be more than happy to buy you drinks all night long. I’m not one of them.”

“She’ll never satisfy you,” Chess said, her features contorted into something ugly. “She’s too…”

“Real?” Nate snapped. He’d had enough. “You should pay attention, Chess. She could teach you a lesson or two, and maybe then you’d have a chance at finding some kind of happiness.”

He turned on his heel and headed back the way he’d come. By the time he reached the table, Molly was nowhere to be seen. He was just about to search for her when Jess jumped in front of him, a whole lot happy and more than a little tipsy.

“There you are,” she said. “I’ve been looking for you.”

“Do you know where Molly went to?”

Jessica rolled onto her heels and then pitched forward. Nate grabbed her by the shoulders to break her fall, and she giggled against his chest. “She’s somewhere.” The giggling stopped, and Jess looked up at him, real serious all of a sudden.

“She has feelings for you. Strong feelings. You know that, right?”

Nate said nothing as he very carefully let Jessica go. Gone was the giggling, tipsy woman. Instead, Jess looked stone-cold sober. “Be careful there, Nate.”

“Jess. Hey. You’ve got things wrong. I…she’s…”

He couldn’t vocalize what was inside him. How did you put into words what he felt for Molly? She was more than just a woman he was sleeping with. She was his best friend. Always had been. She knew things about him no one else did, things he’d never shared with anyone. Like when his hockey career imploded and he lost everything he’d worked for, she’d been there for him. She’d known he was depressed and had insisted on counseling. Then she’d come with him to all his appointments until he got his head on straight.