Ask Me (Mess with Me 2)

“Who?” Jason pauses with a beer halfway to his mouth.

She’s walking toward us now. I whip around. The bar has filled up since I’ve been here and there are no more empty stools.

“You have to leave. Go, now!” I shove him off the stool right before she gets close. I barely hear Jason’s muttered curse over the sound of my heart pounding.

She looks at the empty stool next to me and then around at the crowded bar.

That’s right, beautiful. There are no other options.

After a brief pause, she glances over at me. “Is anyone sitting here?”

“No. Please, have a seat.”

She climbs up and then places her small bag in her lap. When she looks over at me, I quickly look away.

“Hey, do I know you?”

I laugh softly. “Maybe if you bump into me and spill beer all over my shirt you’d remember.”

Recognition lights her eyes and she smiles. “I knew you looked familiar. This is such an odd coincidence. But maybe this is a good sign for me. I think you’re my lucky charm.”

“Have I brought you luck, then?” I take the opportunity to stare at her and drink in my fill.

She’s the kind of pretty that many people overlook. Brown hair and eyes but she has small, delicate features that give her an almost elvish appearance. Her lashes frame her eyes and give her a sexy, slumberous look despite how young she is. Like a good girl just waiting to go bad.

She shrugs but her cheeks flush pink at my close scrutiny. “When I met you yesterday–”

“You mean when you accosted me yesterday,” I interrupt.

Her lips purse as she glares at me. It’s so cute that it makes me want to annoy her just for the hell of it. That murderous expression on her innocent face is adorable. Like one of those tiny kittens that’s convinced it’s actually a fierce lion.

“Bumped into you. I accidentally bumped into you, and one could argue that you were at fault for just standing in the middle of the sidewalk like that.”

I pretend to think about it. “I’m willing to accept a tiny part of the blame but I still lost a shirt in the process.”

She winces. “Sorry about that. I’ll pay for your dry cleaning.”

“No need. It was part of a three-pack. Three shirts for the price of one. Fantastic.”

“Okay then.” She laughs. “Not sure I’ve ever met a guy so happy about a thrifty deal. But that’s a good thing. Nothing wrong with saving money.” She glances at my empty glass. “Can I buy you a drink?”

Shocked, I just stare at her for a second. “You want to buy me a drink?”

“Yes! I’m here celebrating and it’s bad luck to toast with an empty glass. Or so I’ve heard.”

There’s no way she can know how rare it is for other people to buy me anything. Especially women. I’m used to picking up the check for my entire group of friends whenever we go out and the women I’ve dated expect flowers, jewelry and expensive gifts.

My lips curl up at this unexpected turn of events.

“I would love for you to buy me a drink. But it’s probably best if I don’t take a drink from a stranger. Andre.” I hold out my hand.

She accepts it with a firm handshake. “I’m Casey. Nice to meet you. Again.”

5

* * *

Two beers later, I’m still not sure what’s happening. After buying him a drink, we talked about the city (we’ve both recently moved here) and my plans to finish my degree. I’ve never met a guy this attentive and easy to talk to and it’s brought out a side of me that I’ve never felt before.