“There was some of that on the way,” he said, smiling. “Though I’m not sure your neighbors would appreciate me referring to them as furry animals.”

I shook my head and turned back to the sink, hanging the towel over the edge of the counter. He must have really been hurting to walk all that way and not even think twice about it. If I had walked that distance, by the time I got where I was going, I would have worked every issue in my life out, and called a cab to meet me there to take me back home.

“Well, I guess it looks like you’re going to be taking the bus home with me then,” I said, slapping him on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s go say goodbye to my mother.”

We gathered our things, and I kissed my mom goodbye, smiling as Ollie leaned down and hugged her tightly, thanking her for such an awesome time. I could see a major difference in Ollie compared to when I found him wandering down the street, his heart torn to shreds. I promised my mom I would see her the following weekend, and we headed out of the house and started walking toward the bus stop. The stop was about four blocks away, so we walked quietly along next to each other, watching the cars pass us on the road. Along the way, he stopped and pointed out a corner bar with a neon sign advertising pool tables. I stared at him, not knowing if he wanted to go or he was just in the mood to point out landmarks along the way. It was never a bar him and I had been to. In fact, it wasn’t a bar I had ever been to, especially since it didn’t really seem like my kind of spot.

“You up for a nightcap and a rousing game of pool?” He elbowed me in the side and flirtatiously wagged his eyebrows up and down.

“You know that only works on girls you haven’t met before, right?”

“Come on,” he said, looking me in the eyes. “You know you can’t resist my boyish charms and huge muscles.”

He stood there on the sidewalk, posing like a bodybuilder and gritting his teeth. I shook my head and laughed, looking around to make sure no one was watching. I looked down at my watch and saw that it was still early, only around eight in the evening. I looked back up at Ollie, thinking hard on whether or not I should say yes. A car passed, honking their horn and whistling at Ollie.

“See? I’m irresistible,” He laughed.

“Fine,” I replied, pulling his arms down and pushing him toward the bar. “But I am terrible at pool.”

“Then I will make sure to not let you place any bets.” He laughed.

The real truth was I didn’t want the night to end. I was enjoying his company far too much. The alcohol gave me the courage to not jump on the bus and hide out, terrified of the feelings that I could feel batting around in my chest. When we got inside, I grabbed the beers while Ollie prepared for what would probably end up a completely disastrous pool game—on both ends of the spectrum. I shook my head as I brought over a pitcher and two glasses, deciding that if I was going to subject myself to pool, I better have enough fun i

n the pitcher to keep me interested in what I was doing.

Ollie started out confident, strutting around with his pool stick and puffing out his chest every time a ball went in the pocket. He measured every move before making it, trying to get the perfect setup for the next shot, or at least, that was what he told me. I, on the other hand, was struggling hardcore, never actually having played a real game of pool before. I pretty much took two shots every turn, the first missing the ball completely, and the second knocking it in the complete opposite direction of where it was supposed to go.

“Okay, stop,” he said as I leaned over and moved the stick back and forth on my fingers. “I need to help you before you hurt yourself. Let me show you how to work the stick.”

“Whoa.” I laughed. “I don’t think this is that kind of bar.”

He walked up behind me and caged me in with his body, putting his hands over mine and showing me how to hold the cue. I couldn’t stop giggling the whole time, though on the inside, the feeling of him that close was extremely intoxicating, and I had some very mixed emotions about that. He took in a deep breath and tried to keep a straight face.

“So, you slide the stick through your fingers like this,” he said, moving the stick up and down, causing me to shudder with contained laughter. “Then you aim at whatever hole you want to drop your ball.”

It was too much. I just couldn’t contain myself, and I could feel Ollie lean his head into my shoulder as we laughed hysterically at all of the innuendos flying around the room at that moment. At first, it was pure juvenile behavior, but as the beer flowed and the night progressed, there seemed to be some real sexual tension between the two of us, even if we were both trying to play it off with playful movements and comments. When the pitcher was done, I looked down at my watch and gasped.

“Damn it,” I said, setting my pool stick down.

“What?”

“We missed the last bus,” I replied with a sigh. “It left the stop like fifteen minutes ago. I forgot that they don’t run as late on Sunday nights.”

“Not a problem,” he said, pulling out his phone and pressing some buttons. “There, all taken care of. I used my Uber app, and they will be here in ten minutes. Done and done.”

“Awesome,” I said, giving him a high five. “I’ll grab this tab, and then we can head outside.”

“Alrighty,” he said, stumbling over to put the pool stick on the rack.

When I was done paying, we went outside and waited a couple of minutes before the blue sedan with an Uber sticker on the front came pulling up. We jumped in the back laughing, wishing we had Ubers when we went to college. I leaned up and told the driver my address and then sat back, smiling as we took off into the night.

Chapter 11

Ollie

I leaned back in the Uber’s seat and took in a deep breath, watching the bright lights pass me as we made our way toward Elana’s place. I hadn’t felt that good in a really long time, and it was like a weight had been lifted off of my chest, though I assumed the copious amounts of alcohol had something to do with that. Still, I was relaxed, open, and laughing more than I had in years. Everything felt like a normal night out, something I wanted desperately but had yet to find, until that night.

I reached my hands over my head and soaked in the good feeling. Even in Phoenix, miles and miles away from Madison and its dark shadow, I felt restrained. I was grieving, even when I didn’t realize I was, going to work, drinking way too much after work, and then going home and curling up in the darkness of my apartment. I wasn’t able to connect with anyone there because my heart wouldn’t allow it. I wasn’t sure if it was fear that kept me from making friends, or just the thought of the fact that Lillie wasn’t there with me, which was where she belonged. I went through phases of sadness, anger, depression, and even hopelessness. It was just as hard there that it was in Madison, but I didn’t see that until I was back.

Tags: Claire Adams Romance
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