Jared knocks back his beer. “Excuse me, ladies. I’ll be back in a bit,” he tells the girls. He grabs for his cell phone from his back pocket and wanders off to find a place where he can call Meghan.
“I feel like I’ve been shrink-wrapped,” Meghan says, talking to Brie in Mike’s open kitchen. Her black cat outfit is snug in all the wrong places.
“I thought you didn’t have an outfit.”
“I lucked out. Someone didn’t pick up her costume for tonight. It was a choice between a fairy and black cat.”
“Have a drink,” Brie tells her, handing her a vodka and cranberry.
Meghan plays with the straw and aims it in her mouth, sipping it down.
“Why didn’t Jared come here tonight?” Brie asks.
“I didn’t ask him.”
“Why not?”
“I dunno. He just came home from being on the road. I’m sure he’s tired. We’re not together anyway.”
“Yeah, right.” Brie drinks her splashy pink drink. “Finally you have a guy who’s worthwhile and you don’t invite him to hang out with your friends? What woman wouldn’t want Jared?”
Meghan makes a face.
“You’re not flirting enough with him or he’d be here,” Brie says.
“I’ve been practicing. I’m taking it slow,” Meghan admits.
“You like him.”
“A little.”
“A lot,” her friend says. “You only date guys who you don’t care too much about, that way you’re not hurt when there’s a breakup.”
Meghan listens carefully, sipping her drink.
“You don’t want to waste precious time,” Brie says. “Make it happen with him or Jared will be snatched up by someone else. You know he will.”
“I have time.” She can’t be bothered to get all caught up in the hype over Jared. It’s not like he’s making time to see her. If he showed more interest in her then he would be here. Meghan looks around the room. “I hardly recognize anyone.”
“You know almost everyone here.”
“You know what I mean. It’s a different crowd.”
“Mike invited people from his football league. Oh! Sara’s here too.”
“Good.” Meghan places her empty glass on the island.
“Mike? Can you make Megs another?”
“Coming up!” he yells, taking her glass and dumping the ice into the sink.
Meghan watches him pour vodka into a shot glass.
“No Jared tonight?” Mike asks, topping her glass with juice and handing her the drink.
“Not tonight. And we’re not together.” Why does she feel she has to clarify?
“She didn’t ask him to come,” Brie says with a twist of her bottom lip.
“Why not?”
“Because he would be hounded,” Meghan says. “Impressions count.”
“Protecting him already,” Mike says behind the counter. “Sounds serious.”
Meghan smiles as she puts her straw up to her mouth. “It’s not.”
“That’s what she says,” Brie chimes in. “I don’t buy it.”
“We’ve been out a few times.” Meghan says. It’s hard not to smile when thinking of the passive left-winger.
“Are you seeing him again?” Brie asks.
“I don’t know. Maybe.” She shrugs.
“Maybe?” her friend yells. “What are you hiding?”
“Nothing. I’m telling you the truth. There’s nothing between us,” Meghan says.
“Why not? He’s a Warrior! He has the looks. You’re crazy not to go after him.”
“I’m seeing how it goes. Didn’t we just go over this?”
“Do something about him before he finds someone else!”
“Leave her alone, baby,” Mike interrupts.
“Is he with someone else?” her friend presses.
“Not that I know of.” Meghan is sure he isn’t, she would know. Jane would have said, unless he has a girlfriend back in Brampton or Carolina. Meghan’s stomach knots. She shouldn’t care if he does. They’re not together. He probably does have a couple of girls at his leisure. The thought makes Meghan’s insides hurt. She swallows another sip.
There’s a loud commotion in the living room. People chanting and throwing their arms up in the air cheering at a Dracula bobbing for apples.
“You’ll have better luck with your real teeth!” someone shouts.
Dracula takes out his fangs and tries again.
“That game is impossible,” Meghan says with a huff.
“You don’t want to give it a try?” Mike asks.
“No thanks.”
Meghan looks down at her phone in her black purse that is camouflaged by her outfit, thinking about Jared.
She looks up and spots Sara dressed in a maid’s costume. “You’re here!” Meghan gives her friend a hug.
“I didn’t want to miss a party.”
“Picture time!” Brie yells, handing her camera to Mike. She poses between Meghan and Sara.
“I’ll take one more,” he tells them, and clicks away.
“Let’s do a shot!” Brie says, jumping away from them. She gets out a tray from the fridge and hands out the colorful glasses.
“Jell-O shots?” Meghan asks. “I don’t know. . . .”
Brie nods. She has a devilish grin. “Strawberry.”
“I’m going to feel this tomorrow,” Meghan mutters as she brings the shot to her mouth.
“On the count of three,” Brie instructs. “Mike! Can you get a picture of us?”
Mike grabs the camera.
“One, two, three!” Brie yells.
Meghan knocks it back, licking her lips.
“Want another?” Brie asks.
“Later,” Meghan says. “I have to let this digest.”
“Let’s dance!” Brie says, grabbing for Sara’s and Meghan’s hands. The living room is cleared of any breakables and the coffee table so that there is room for dancing. The girls move to a couple of songs before Meghan needs a bathroom break.
She disappears down the hall and into the powder room where she attempts to unzip her costume. It’s snug. With one hand under her arm, she tries unzipping, but it doesn’t budge. It’s stuck. Her legs wiggle as she doesn’t know how much longer she can hold it for. She becomes frustrated that she can’t get the zipper to move, so with one grunting pull, as hard as she can, the zipper moves and she hears the fabric come apart at the seam. “Oh, no!” she gasps, looking to see how bad the rip is. She then gently pulls the zipper down a little more. It’s challenging but she manages to slide her arms out and push the outfit to the floor.
Just then, her cell phone rings.
It will have to wait.
As Meghan pulls up the vinyl material, she fiddles with her zipper; it’s only going up midway. She tries it again, but it doesn’t budge. There’s a gaping hole under her arm. She gives up and leaves the bathroom with her arm fixed at her side to hide her costume malfunction.
Remembering her cell phone rang while she was preoccupied, she dips her hand into her purse as she walks into the living room and pulls out her phone. Jared. Just reading his name on the screen is enough to give her heart palpitations.
“Do another shot with me!” Brie yells when she spots Meghan looking down at her phone.
“I don’t know,” Meghan says. “I think I’ve had enough. I’m feeling it already.”
“You haven’t if you think you’ve had enough,” her friend says, giggling.
“Okay, one more.”
The women lift their glasses to their mouths.
“Wait! Wait!” Brie yells, waving her hands in the air. “Mikey!” She waves to her boyfriend. “Take a picture of us.”
They hold up the shot glasses, clink them, and knock it back.
“Wanna another?” her friend asks.
“No, and neither should you. You’ll be hungover tomorrow.”
Brie throws her arm around her friend. “I love yooouuu. You’re my bestest friend.”
Brie puts her cheek up to Meghan’s. “Even when you’re too busy to hang out with me.”
“I’m never too busy. What are you talking about?”
“Ya, you dooo.” Brie lets go of her and stands up with a little hunch.
“Like when?”
“You’re busy. We don’t hang out anymore.” Brie pouts. “We used to get our nails done every month and go to the gym. . . .”
“I like running and you always want to do yoga.”
“I looove yoga.” Brie’s eyes are squinting, as though they’re too heavy to open.
“I know you do.”
“Sara knows how to do the Toe Stand.” She leans against Meghan, giggling. “Show her, Sara,” Brie says, waving her hands.
“I don’t think I can in this outfit,” Sara says.
A guy standing behind them holding a beer is staring at them. “Please do,” he says as though he’s going to witness something X-rated.
“I can’t get my balance. My thighs burn when I do it.”
“Our instructor is sooo impressed,” Brie says. “Megs, you need to come with us. Right, Sara? You’ll like it once you try it. I know you will. It helps with stress and flexibility. It’s sooo good for you.”
“You’re not going to change my mind,” Meghan says. “It’s not my thing.”
“Sara, show Megs!”
Sara hands Brie her drink and squats, getting her balance before bending one leg over the other.
“See? See? Amazing, isn’t it?” Brie says.
Meghan remembers she was checking her phone. Jared. She wants to hear his message if he left one.
Hi, Meghan. It’s Jared. Wondering what you’re up to. Call me.
His voice is relaxed. Is he bored? There’s music playing in the background. Sounds like he’s not doing anything. Maybe she should have invited him to the party. But then she wasn’t sure how he’d be with everyone if he hated big crowds. She saved him the agony by not inviting him.
Meghan steps outside on the deck where the cool air seeps through her costume. She keeps her arm down to prevent a draft under it.
“Hi, Jared, it’s Megs, Meghan.”
“Hi,” he says. “At a party?”
“Yeah. At a friend’s house.”
“How is it?”
“Good.”
“What are you dressed up as?”
She laughs.
“What’s funny?”
“Oh, nothing. It’s just, I’m a cat without whiskers. Most of the black lines have come off my face and I’ve managed to rip my costume.”
“Sounds like a wild party.”
“You can stop by if you want. And don’t worry if you don’t have a costume. You don’t need one. You can go as Jared Landry!” She laughs to herself realizing how ridiculous she sounds, but feeling good thanks to the alcohol in her system.
“Are you going to be there all night?” he asks.
“I’m cabbing it home in a bit.”
“How far are you from home?”
“I dunno. Not far.”
“In the city?”
“Yup.”
“I can come and get you.”
“You don’t have to come pick me up. You might get stuck here and I know how much you like big crowds.”
“That doesn’t bother me,” he says.
“Sure it does.”
“No. I’m fine with it.”
“I thought it wasn’t something you liked.”
“I don’t hate them.”
“Huh. Then why are you always late or don’t show up?”
He takes a moment to answer. It’s not a difficult question, she thinks. There must be a reason.
“It’s my style,” he finally says.
“Your style?” She makes a face. “Why do you need a style? You’re a hockey player. It’s your job to make appearances. People want to meet you, touch you, and whatever else; they get a kick over meeting you. This city is nuts about their hockey team. Why can’t you make the effort to show up? Huh? I don’t get it.”
“We can talk about it another time,” he says. “I’m coming to pick you up.”
Did he not hear that she was telling him to get over himself? What’s with him? He’s more stuck up on himself than she first thought.
She blows out a breath and can see it in the air. “Okay! Where are you taking me this time?” she asks, not believing him.
“Where do you want to go?”
“Anywhere you want,” she says, feeling the cool air finding its way under her arm into the gaping hole. “I’ll text you the address.”
She hangs up and walks back into the house.
“Where’s your drink?” Brie asks. “Mike! Megs needs a drink.”
“No, I’m fine,” Meghan says. She doesn’t want Jared to see her all tipsy, even though she feels light-headed already.
Brie grabs her arm. “Let’s dance.”
They join a group on the dance floor. People are bumping into each other and Meghan feels someone behind her. A guy is rubbing his leg against hers and is pressed against her, following her moves. She doesn’t know him and isn’t impressed by his approach, so she dances away from him and he follows her. Brie is dancing with her drink held in the air, eyes half closed, grooving to the music. The guy is still behind her. Every step she takes he is right beside her.
“Hey, cowboy, I need some space,” Meghan tells him, moving away. She doesn’t recognize him, must be a friend of Mike’s.
“Come on, kitty cat,” he says. “I wanna play.”
“I’m dancing,” she snarls, and moves toward Brie for protection. Surely she would tell this guy to leave her alone.
“Are you here alone?”
“I’m Brie’s friend,” Meghan says, overstepping his question.
“Is your boyfriend here?”
She wants to be polite and say she doesn’t have a boyfriend, but that would only make this guy bug her more. “He’s on his way,” she lies.
He unclips his lasso and holds it up. “What do you say we get tangled in my rope?”
Meghan makes a face. “I’m not interested. I have a boyfriend!”
He gets closer to her. “But if he’s not here . . .” He leans into her and whispers into her ear, giving her chills down her spine. “I want to hear you purr.” His breath is in her ear, so she sidesteps to get away, but Cowboy follows her into the kitchen where she hears commotion.
She feels someone behind her. She turns around to meet the cowboy’s brown eyes and says, “I told you I’m not interested.”
“You don’t mean that,” he says with a hand on his hip. “This cowboy can take you places you’ve never been before.”
“You’ll have to find someone else.” Meghan turns away when she feels a pull at her arm and is tugged backward. She jolts as she tries to stand still. “Please, let go of me.” She holds his stare. “I told you I’m not interested,” she says in her firmest voice. It takes a moment until his hand finally releases and drops to his side.
“Everything all right?” a guy asks from behind her. Meghan is staring Cowboy down, but he is looking past her in a daze.
“Yeah, everything is fine,” she says, her eyes still fixed on Cowboy.
“Meghan.” She feels a hand gently touch her arm. “Are you okay?” the guy asks, hovering over her. She slowly turns around to see who is talking.
It’s Jared.
With his over six foot height, relief washes over her and her body relaxes. She feels protected and overcome with joy to see him.
“Jared Landry,” Cowboy says with a shaky voice.
Jared puts an arm around Meghan’s waist and leads her out of the room. “Wanna get out of here?”
“Yeah.” She’s walking in a daze too. Maybe it’s the vodka. Maybe it’s being hit on by a total loser that has her wanting to leave. “How long have you been here for?”
“I just got here,” Jared says, when he gets bombarded by people talking to him and asking for autographs. Lights are flashing
off cameras.
“Are you going?” Mike asks. “Let me get you a drink.”
“I’m fine, thanks,” Jared says.
“You don’t want to stay? I’ve got a full bar,” Mike says.
“Sounds like trouble,” Jared says, making eyes at Meghan. “We don’t have to go.”
Meghan nods. “I’m done.” She gives Mike a hug. “Thanks. Make sure Brie drinks lots of water.”
“I will.” Mike holds the front door open. There’s a crowd seeing them out. “Maybe the four of us could hang out sometime.”
“Sure!” Meghan says as Jared grabs her hand to help her out, leading her to his car.
He opens the passenger door for her. “Were you done because I was there?”
“No, it was time to go. I would have cabbed it home had you not shown up. Cowboy was getting on my nerves and I’m not in the partying mood.”
“Did you not think I was coming?” He turns on the ignition. The power of the engine is felt the moment they drive away.
“I knew you would,” she says, glancing over at him. He’s so hot. His dirty-blond hair touseled and all she is thinking is running her hand through his scalp and underneath those curls of his. He is wearing a jacket and jeans, casual, and so attractive. She knows that underneath those clothes is a machine of muscle. She would love to see him naked. Ripped and toned. Meghan looks out her window. He’s probably used to women gazing at him. He’s gorgeous. No doubt, he is as hot as any guy she’s ever met.
What is she thinking? He will drive her home and tomorrow will be another day, only with a headache and drinking water, passed out on her couch.
“Do you want to come to my house?” he asks, looking over at her with one hand draped over the steering wheel, the other by his side.
“Yeah, okay.” She doesn’t want to sound excited. A bachelor’s house is probably a dedicated man cave equipped with a pool table, big-screen TV, and La-Z-Boy chairs with drink holders.
“Was that guy really bothering you?” Jared asks.
“He wouldn’t take no for an answer.”
Jared closes his lips tightly as though he wants to say something but holds back.
“I don’t know what gave him the idea that I was interested in him. Never met him before. Don’t know who he is. He started dancing with me.”
“There’s always one at a party, isn’t there? A loser like that?”
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