My mouth didn’t seem to have any control to what was coming out of it, so I said stuff that I never would’ve said under normal circumstances.
“Oh, don’t play all St. Lennox with me, sister. I heard you and tall, dark, and badass. I know he gives it just as good as I get it,” he snickered loudly.
I winced.
Had we been loud?
Not that I would know since it’d been well over a week since I’d had it from him.
Had he moved on?
“What’re you doing?” Paxton asked in alarm when I got out my phone.
“Noneya,” I hiccupped.
“Oh, no. You can’t call him when you can barely get your words out!” Paxton made a half assed grab for the phone, but it was futile. I had a good grip on the sucker, and Paxton was apparently drunker than he looked because he was now trying in vain to pick himself off the floor where he’d fallen between the wall and the barstool.
I scrolled through my names, picked the devil, and hit go.
It rang six times before it went to voicemail, and I heard that sexy, smooth voice said, “Leave a message.”
I left a message.
“Hello. My name is Lennox Jane. You call me Nox. I’m twenty six. I have brown hair with auburn highlights, and I wear makeup because it makes me happy. You are Bennett Alvarez, the man that had good sex with me. But I just wanted you to know, that that is over. No more Nox nookie for you. Say bye bye to the pussy, because you’ll never see it again. And you suck. And I’m keeping that t-shirt I stole from you. And I have your shoes at my place, but I let Cola chew on them because you’re mean. Bye.”
With that well thought out speech, I dropped off the barstool, and barely caught myself on the ledge of the bar before I fell to the ground beside Paxton.
“Are you sleeping?” I asked worriedly as I looked down at him.
“No, I think you need to call a fireman and tell him I can’t get up,” Paxton moaned.
His voice came out muffled by his arm where he had his face buried, and I started to laugh.
Poking him with the toe of my clogs, I asked, “Why can’t you move?”
“The stool won’t move.”
I rolled my eyes, and my gaze caught that of a group of men in the back of the room watching the spectacle in front of them with amused eyes.
I reached forward and hooked my fingers underneath the lip of the chair, and drug it away from him until he could roll completely to his back.
“You’re drawing attention to us,” I whispered worriedly.
I hadn’t realized it before, but there were men in the back of the room that I surely didn’t want calling their buddy, the man who shall not be named.
The man who was going to hate himself in the morning when he got that message telling him how stupid he was.
“Get up, quick!” I urged Paxton with my boot. “They’re coming!”
Paxton rolled over quickly, knowing when my voice got shrill like that that it meant I was about to lose it.
He got up onto his hands and knees, then, as if in slow motion, made it to his feet.
He wasn’t quick at all, and that was proven moments later when the tattooed god in all his glory, strode up to us with a smile tilting up the corner of his lips.
“Hey, Lennox. How’s it shaking?” Michael asked with amusement.
I narrowed my eyes at him and his silent laughter. He may not be showing it outwardly, but I knew damn well and good he was doing it in his head.
I hated it when people laughed at me.
“Michael,” I said stiffly. “What do you want?”
His lips twitched at my forwardness, but he didn’t comment.
Instead he looked at Paxton who’d managed to regain his stool.
“Who’re you?” Michael asked.
“I’m Paxton Jedidiah Johansen,” Paxton said, holding out his hand to the other man. “It’s nice to meet you. And I love that shirt. It really compliments your forearms. And those biceps are stupendous.”
I rolled my eyes.
Could Paxton be any gayer?
I mean, the least he could do was act like he wasn’t gay. Maybe make these guys think that I’d moved on from Bennett. But ohhh, not Paxton. He couldn’t even pretend!
Michael’s satisfied smile turned to me, completely ignoring Paxton and his come on.
“Are you two going home?” He asked, looking pointedly at my purse that was hooked on my arm.
I nodded. “We were.”
No explanations from me, Mister!
“Are you two going to drive?” He asked after I didn’t continue.
I raised a condescending eyebrow at him. “I’m twenty six, Michael. I know how to take care of myself. Which was why we’d planned to walk since our house isn’t but five minutes from here.”
He pursed his lips, and I assumed it was so he wouldn’t laugh, but what did I know?
The man could be pissed.
I didn’t know Michael well.
Then a thought struck me.
And my mouth got away from me.
“You know,” I said hurriedly. “Joslin’s a bitch. Nikki’s wayyyyy,” I exaggerated the ‘way’ with an exaggerated sweep of my hand. “Nicer. And prettier. And less of a bitch. By like, nearly a hundred times or more. And Joslin cheats on her boyfriends with every man in the hospital. I’m pretty sure that Nikki is a virgin. And if she isn’t, then really, really inexperienced.”
Michael’s face completely shut down.
No more Mr. Nice Guy.
Uh-oh.
Time to retreat.
“Well, I’ll see you later,” I said, taking Paxton’s hand on the way past him.
Michael’s energy seemed to sear my skin as I moved past him, dragging Paxton the entire way.
My legs felt super light as I walked to the door, very aware that I still had the attention of the other four men in the back of the room, as well as the one still at my back.
“Oh, my God, Paxton. Hurry up or they’ll make us stay!” I urged hurriedly.
Paxton stopped smiling and waving at people as we passed, and started forward as he said, “I don’t know why you’re hurrying. Wouldn’t it be better to act like you’ve moved on? What will running away accomplish?”