I rested my head down on the sofa arm and continued to stare at Z. He was so attractive, so strong and just the perfect image of what a man should be. But sleeping, he looked sweet, almost childlike. I snickered noticing the drool coming out the corner of his mouth. Well, that helped the childlike picture. I drifted off to sleep again with all these thoughts swimming around my head.
“Ow, fuck!” I heard Z hit something, waking me from my dream. I opened my eyes to watch him stumble to the bathroom. Next, I heard him retching…hopefully into the toilet. I jumped up and followed him, grabbing the water off the coffee table. Poor guy. I sat next to him on the floor after he was done and handed him the water as he leaned against the wall.
“Thanks,” he said taking a small sip. He blew his nose into a tissue, threw it in the small garbage can before slumping back against the wall.
“Do you want me to get some bread for you?” I felt so bad for him, but at least he was getting out of his system.
“Yeah, thanks.” He closed his eyes and I left to get it for him. I came back and he was exactly as I had left him.
“Here ya go. Take small bites,” I instructed. He took the bread and did just that, then drank a couple sips of water. We sat there for a while, not saying anything at all. Then he attempted to stand,
and shuffled back to the living room. I followed him, holding the bread and water. He tumbled back down on the couch and in a barely audible whisper, “I’m sorry….” Then he passed out. Not romantic in the least, but he was just so darn cute, even when he’s drunk.
I curled up on the chaise again and just gazed at him. I hoped he wasn’t going to try to kiss me again. I’d hate to think of what he just did and that he didn’t brush his teeth. Gross, I know. But that’s what I thought as I fell back asleep.
I awoke before everyone else in the house. The sun was coming through the back windows and I decided everyone, well, except Clark and I, would be hung over.
Shit. Clark. All of sudden I remembered he walked in on us. Well, there goes the chance of Z forgetting. Or even the chance of my being able to bypass that conversation if any.
I went to the kitchen and started cooking breakfast for everyone. I knew grease was the best route to help everyone’s hangover. Bacon, pancakes, eggs, hash browns and I took out the ingredients for the Bloody Mary’s. One by one, they came down the stairs. Z was still passed out on the couch. I left out all the food so they could make their own plates then proceeded to make everyone a Bloody Mary. We all ate in silence except for the sounds of the occasional moan of appreciation.
Finally, Flynn asked me, “How’d he make out last night?” While nodding over to Z asleep on the couch.
I started to answer, but Clark interrupted me with his enthusiastic answer. “Oh, he made out very well, right Izzy? I walked in on them making out with his hand up her shirt.” My face burned red. Both Flynn and Melanie heads snapped to me with their mouths open and eyes wide. What could I say? He was right. I turned around and pretended to be busy…doing something…anything.
Melanie asked, “Is that true, Izzy?”
Clark snapped, “Of course it’s true! I just said it, didn’t I?”
Can I just crawl into a hole right now? I turned around slow. “It sort of happened.” And then I glanced at Flynn, whose mouth was still open and said, “to answer your question, he got up and threw up most of it and then passed out again.” I was hoping that kind of summed up my night.
Melanie felt the need to go over the chain of events. “So wait a minute…you guys were making out, Clark walks in and then Z pukes and passes out?” Well, it didn’t happen exactly like that. The way she made it sound was he threw up because he was kissing me.
“Well, sort of…I mean…I don’t think he got sick because of me.”
Flynn laughed and said, “No, that’s not what she was implying, but umm…how are you doing?”
It was sweet of him to ask because obviously this was going to turn really awkward. “Umm, I’m okay, but can we just not talk about this when he wakes up? I don’t know if he’ll remember and I don’t want him to feel like he has to remember if that makes any sense.”
Melanie blinked about twenty times trying to think it all through before finally saying, “okay,” slowly, “if that’s how you want to play it.”
I smiled. “Yes, that’s exactly how I want to play it.” And then I glared at Clark hoping he’d shut up about it. “I’m going to get changed and head out for a run. Anyone want to join me?” I knew they wouldn’t, but thought I’d ask. I was right.
I ran up and changed quickly, hoping to get out before Z woke up. He didn’t and I was able to escape the quiet stares as I left the townhouse.
As I ran, I was able to clear my mind thinking through all the events that just took place with Z. I resolved to just see if Z remembers anything and if he does, we can go on from there. Otherwise, I hoped the rest of my roommates would be able to keep their silence instead of forcing Z to remember what occurred last night. I didn’t want him to feel obligated to try to pursue anything with me just because we kissed while he was drunk.
As I was walking, trying to cool down my body, another runner appeared next to me. My heart jumped at first until I studied my new running companion, thanking my stars it wasn’t that same creep from the bar or the other side of the street the other night. This guy seemed like he’d been running just about as hard as I had.
“Hey,” he said. His voice was just as attractive as his appearance—tall, dark hair, with beautiful green eyes. Top all of that off with a dazzling, sexy smile. I immediately approved of my new running friend.
“Hey.” I smiled back at him.
“I saw you running when you first started out. You’re pretty fast. Are you training for anything?”
“No, I just run to clear my head,” I replied. We were walking next each other now. It was a gorgeous day and people were all about, doing their own run, bike riding or walking their dog.
He smiled again as I glanced back over to him. “Did it work?”
I chuckled and smiled. “Yeah, it actually did. Always helps. What about you? Are you training for something?”
I felt like neither of us could stop smiling. “Yeah, actually I’m training for Ironman.”
Wow. That really piqued my interest. “For fun or are you a professional athlete?” I asked. He definitely had the body for being a professional now that I was studying his body more intently.
“I’m a professional, actually. I have a couple of sponsors. I’m sorry, I never introduced myself. I’m Mark.” My heart stuttered and I swallowed back my feelings as I stared at his hand. Why does that name keep coming up? It doesn’t matter, I said to myself and tried to ignore that ludicrous feeling that coursed through me.
I’m sure my facial expression changed because he chuckled and said, “I’m sorry, does my name upset you?”
I smiled, shook my head and my ridiculous reaction to that name. “No, I’m sorry. It’s nothing, really. I’m Izzy.” I held out my hand and we shook while continuing to walk. His hand lingered a bit more, giving me butterflies in my belly.
“I have to admit; I actually saw you running the other day and was hoping I’d bump into you somehow. I’m out here all the time training. I start seeing familiar faces along my runs.” I blushed at the thought that he remembered seeing me, especially since I never paid any attention to anyone on my runs.
We were still walking and getting close to the townhouse, but I was really enjoying our conversation, so I continued past my townhouse.
“So, do you train daily?” I asked.
“Yes, every day but Sunday. I like to try to give myself a rest, but there are times when I want to push a bit farther, so I run on the occasional Sunday. Do you belong to a gym?” He asked, glancing over at me again.
I never want to belong to a gym again or ever have a personal trainer. “No, I don’t. I prefer to just run outdoors.”
He seemed a bit eager and excited as
he told me, “I usually lift weights at Fitness 1010 over on 100th. It’s a great club if you ever want to check it out. I know the owner.”
I nodded but didn’t give him a direct answer. I wanted to change the subject, but instead of a talking point, I seemed to blurt out, “I’m a bartender over at Allure. Not that you probably go out to bars much since you’re training.” Why did I just tell him where I worked? That was so stupid.
“Actually, I do give myself a break every now and then. I’ll have to stop by sometime.” His eyes seemed to sparkle as he smiled at me.
I bit my lip and grinned as my heart beat faster at the thought of seeing him again. “Great. That’d be great.” I was suddenly nervous, as if we were on a date or something.
“So where’d you move from?” he asked.
“Umm, a couple towns over. I moved for a different job.” I stammered not knowing what else to say. I didn’t really want to say from where I lived, nor did I want to explain anything that might have to do with him.
“Oh really? I thought you said you bartend over at Allure?” He asked with his brows pulled together.
“Yeah, my friend owns the bar and he asked me if I’d help him out since he was short staffed.” Quick thinking, Izzy, I mentally patted myself on my back. He seemed satisfied with my answer. “So Ironman, huh?” I asked, wanting to change the subject yet again.
“Yeah, it’s my fourth one. I really love doing them. And traveling to different cities is pretty fun and exciting too.”
Interesting. I bet the Ironman website will have a picture of him somewhere on there. I can check on Melanie’s computer to make sure he’s legit. The feeling that he might have someone spy on me continued to lurk in the back of my mind and perhaps this little amount of investigation might ease my discomfort.
“I’m sure it does. I can’t imagine the perseverance that must require.” I wanted to know more about his personal life. I glanced quickly at his left hand. No ring. “So, I bet that takes you away from your girlfriend?”
He smiled knowing what I was really asking. “Nope, doesn’t take me away from one since I don’t have one.” He had such a cute smile which also reached his eyes. I bit my lip and smiled. This flirtation we were having was fun and exciting.
“How about you? I bet tending bar late at night would be tough on a relationship?”
I giggled and brushed back the strand of hair that had come out of my ponytail on my run. “Nope, no relationship here either.”
Continuing to chat about different things, I noticed we were now more than a couple of blocks away from my townhouse. “Well, I really should get going before I start my shift. I’ll see you around on the trails?” I asked, hopeful.
He smiled so sweet. “Yeah, that’ll be great. It was nice talking to you, Izzy. I look forward to it again.”
“Me too.” I bit my lip again, smiling. Reluctantly, I turned toward the townhouse. I glanced back and he turned his head to see if I was looking too. I waved, smiling again and I knew I had a silly grin on my face.
I rounded the corner and looked again just to see if he was following me. I hated feeling that way, but I still wasn’t sure if he was having me followed. But if he is, I was just an idiot for telling Mark where I worked. I felt like I was okay. I hoped I was. Mark was enjoyable to talk to. I turned another corner and was home. I couldn’t stop smiling. I really hoped I would run into him again very soon.
I went inside to find everyone on the couch watching TV. Z was on the chaise still passed out. I laughed, shaking my head and ran upstairs to take my shower.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Z
“UH.” Fuck, my head was pounding. Again. I really needed to stop doing this. I slowly opened my eyes and three pairs were staring back at me. Each of them had some goofy smirk. What the fuck? Where am I? Ugh. I must have passed out on the chaise? “How much did I drink?” I was really asking anyone who would answer me.
Flynn piped up, “a shit load and then some–of Jack.” Well, thank you; that explains it all. Asshole. It would take too much effort to say that so I just nodded my head…slightly because it hurt like hell to move anything. “What time is it?” And why did my mouth taste like shit?
“It’s almost five. You’ve been asleep for a very long time, my friend,” Flynn added.
Oh shit. I’d have to get to the club soon. I tried to move, but my head was still throbbing. I managed to stand up and get some water from the kitchen. Everyone was so quiet, I figured they were just hung over too. I grabbed some Advil from the cabinet and took a couple.
“Did everyone drink just as much? Why are you guys all sitting around quietly?”
Flynn chuckled. “Nope, we were just waiting for you to wake up and see how you’re feeling.”
Clark chimed in, “Yeah, we wanted to see how you made out last night!” They all busted out laughing. What was that supposed to mean? I remember throwing up. Aw, shit. I vaguely remember Izzy on the couch. Is Izzy pissed because she had to babysit me last night?
“Is Izzy mad?” I asked, trying to keep my head from pounding when I spoke.
They all turned around to watch me. “Why would Izzy be pissed, Z?” Mel asked with a weird smirk.
“I don’t know. ‘Cause she had to babysit me last night? I think I remember her sitting with me while I puked my guts out at some point during the night.”
“That’s what you remember?” Flynn asked with his brows pulled together as if he were confused.
“Well, yeah. Why? Something else happen?” I was trying to remember anything, but I couldn’t.
Just then Izzy called from the top of the stairs, “Hey Mel, can I use your laptop?”
Mel yelled back, which hurt the fuck out of my brain, “Yeah, it’s on my bed.”
“Thanks,” Izzy called back down.
Clark started in while laughing, “That’s all you remember? Puking?” What was that supposed to mean?
“Why? What else did I do?” There’s obviously something else that happened. They just started laughing again and began to stand.
“Nothing. Nothing else happened besides you being totally drunk last night,” Mel said while smirking. “I’m gonna go get ready.”
Flynn looked at her quizzically and asked, “ready for what?”
Clark snickered. “Her date, dude. Guy at the bar last night was hitting on her while you and Z were becoming friends with Jack.”
Mel looked uncomfortable, but still kind of happy. “He called me today and wanted to take me out to dinner. He seems like a nice guy,” she said as her eyes found something interesting on the floor.
Flynn didn’t look happy at all. Shit, his nose was flaring like a bull. I was waiting for him to charge. He surprised me, and I think Mel too, although his voice was tight. “Good. Have a great time.”
Mel glanced at him and whispered, “Thanks.”
Clark just shook his head as he stood up. “I’m going to get ready for work.”
Mel charged for the stairs, screeching out, “I called the bathroom first!” Clark ran too, trying to beat her to the staircase. They were like brother and sister fighting over the bathroom racing up the stairs. I think Mel won because I heard her giggling after a door slammed.
Clark banged on the door yelling, “Hey, I gotta get to work! You’re just getting ready to tease some dick!”
My heart throbbed the moment Izzy came down the stairwell. Dressed for work with her hair down and all wavy and shit. She looked like she was wearing more makeup than she usually wore and she was laughing about the Mel and Flynn fiasco. She was smokin’. Just…perfect. God, she has a beautiful smile. Her lips…I couldn’t stop staring. I didn’t know why. I think I remember doing the same thing last night and then, just like that, the memory slipped away.
Flynn moaned from the couch, “Fuck. What the fuck?” He was putting his hands over his face as if he were exhausted.
“What’s wrong?” Izzy asked as she applied lip gloss to her gorgeous plump lips. I think I was
gaping too long because she caught my stare, smiled and winked. “How ya feeling, Z?”
I gulped. “Fine, thanks.”
“Mel’s got a date tonight.” I turned back to watch Izzy get excited, her eyes lit up and she did that bounce thing that made her tits jiggle. I felt my cock twitch just watching her jump.
“Oh! Did that guy actually call her? Wow, he’s quick! He was very sweet…” and she trailed off probably realizing who she was speaking to. She stopped smiling immediately. “Uh, sorry,” she added, as if that would help out.
He let out a breath and asked, “Does he seem like a good guy or was he just a drunk idiot?”
She glanced at me as if she was wondering how to respond. “Umm, he seemed like a nice guy. He didn’t seem like he was just out for a lay if that’s what you mean? I’m sorry…I shouldn’t have said anything.” I could tell she felt terrible. “Look, I’m going to head over to the club and start getting things ready.” Then she looked at me. “I’ll see you over there? Or are you gonna to flake out tonight?” She chuckled at her last question. Smart ass.
“Nah, I’ll be over there later. You go on ahead.” She smiled and grabbed her stuff. “I’ll see you guys,” she called as she walked out the door.
“What’s she so happy about?” I asked Flynn, who was still holding his head in his hands.
“You don’t remember anything at all about last night?” He grumbled as he stood up. I watched him walk to the kitchen, grab a beer.
“Not much. Am I supposed to? Why do you guys keep asking that? What did I do?” I was serious and getting pissed that no one was answering me.
“Nothing. Don’t worry about it, man. You got your bike or truck over at the bar?” He took another long drink from his beer.
“Truck, I had to pick up some stuff yesterday morning,” I replied, watching him down the rest of the beer. Shit. Guess he’s hurting pretty bad.
“Come on, I’ll walk over with you and hang out at your house while you get ready. I can’t be here when the douche picks her up. I might beat the shit out of him,” Flynn growled. I laughed at the picture in my head. Poor guy comes to pick up a hot date and gets punched in the jaw.
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