By a Thread

by R. L. Griffin

  She’d continued to run, Cooper mandated it. Because Stella was so busy and hardly home, Cooper had taken to sitting in her lap and sleeping on her pillow with her at night. Stella missed Cooper too, but she knew he wouldn’t be neglected with Billy and Patrick in the house.

  Patrick and Billy had both gotten girlfriends, and both girls gave Stella the evil eye when introduced. Stella had a visceral dislike for Patrick’s girlfriend, Lisa, immediately. Lisa was very possessive and she was obnoxious. The last time Stella had gone in Patrick’s bedroom she noticed that Lisa had replaced a picture of Stella and Patrick from last summer with one of him and Lisa. She was often snarky for no reason. Stella didn’t understand why Patrick even liked her, let alone was dating her.

  Millie was devastated. When Stella told her about Lisa she immediately went to Finnegan’s and hooked up with some random dude in a bowtie. Stella was still making fun of her for that.

  During their break from school in the spring, Millie and Stella decided they needed to dance it out. They went to one of their favorite dance clubs and danced with each other and with many guys over the course of the night. Stella was wearing a light blue racer-back tank top that hung low on each side exposing her back and her purple bra. She was slick with sweat from hours of dancing. Millie was wearing a strapless dress and heels, which looked very uncomfortable. Stella threw her hands up and pulsed to the music and a new faceless man pumped to the beat behind her. She needed another drink and leaned into Millie yelling, “Drink?”

  Millie nodded and continued to dance. Stella made her way past the throng of people on the dance floor to the bar and ordered drinks. When she turned around she ran directly into a guy. “Shit,” she yelled as she spilled her drinks on herself. “Fuck,” she turned around and put her drinks down on the bar and grabbed a bunch of cocktail napkins.

  “Sorry,” the guy breathed in her ear. She was stilled by his proximity

  “Excuse me, can you back away from my personal space?” Stella said as she continued to attempt to mop up her spilled cranberry and vodka drink off her light blue tank top. “Fuck,” she sighed, resigned she might as well throw this shirt in the trash.

  “Looks like you could use a little help.” The guy took a napkin and started wiping off drink from Stella’s shirt touching her breasts.

  “Fucker...” Stella hissed. “Stop touching me now.” Stella took a step back, her voice getting louder. Millie was just making her way over the bar and took in the scene.

  Millie acted drunk and took her drink, fake tripping into the guy and spilling the rest of the drink on his shirt. “Oh MY SHIT, I’m so sorry.” She looked at Stella and tried not to laugh. “I’m so drunk.” She fell into Stella and then whispered, “This is a good time to go.”

  The guy was cussing and wiping off his shirt, he didn’t even notice them leave.

  “Millie, that was perfect. Perfect timing and perfect aim.” They locked arms together and walked out into the early spring night.

  Millie pulled her phone out of her purse; she had a message. “Patrick wants us to meet him at Finnegan’s.”

  “Why?” Stella whined.

  “Your guess is a good as mine.”

  “My shirt has cranberry all over it.”

  “You wear T-shirts with holes in them to Finnegan’s.” Millie said as she flagged down a cab.

  “Fine.” Stella got into the cab first and slid across the seat.

  Once they got to Finnegan’s it was obvious why they had been summoned. Patrick and a bunch of other patrons were playing beer pong in the back part of the bar. She smiled and was genuinely amused by the sight. Then she looked over to the bar and waved at George. He motioned her over.

  “I’ll be right there,” she told Millie who headed to the beer pong tables, her heels clicking on the hard wood floor of the bar.

  “Beer pong? I like it.” She said as she shimmied her way up to the bar near George.

  “Glad you approve.” He smiled at her. “You look like you got a little something on your shirt there, miss. Would you like a free Finnegan’s shirt to wear?”

  “Really?” Stella asked enthusiastically looking down at her shirt. “That’d be great. This jerk bumped into me at this club Millie and I went to and...,” Stella pointed to her shirt, “it’s obvious what happened next.”

  “Sure, come with me. There are shirts in the office.” Stella followed him to the end of the bar and then around to the office, across from the bathrooms. He opened the door and then started rummaging around the boxes. “Here’s one.” He was about to throw it to her when he noticed her tattoo on her left shoulder blade. “Holy fuck, that’s a tattoo.”

  She turned around and watched his expression. “Yep, it is.”

  “Tell me about it.” George’s eyes were full of curiosity.

  Stella took a deep breath and then took a step closer to him. She pulled off her shirt and stood there. George took in her body in very slowly.

  “You’re beautiful,” he whispered.

  “Shirt,” she held out her hand.

  “Oh... yeah,” George stammered as if he had forgotten why they were in there. He held it up to her.

  “Thanks,” she pulled the white shirt on with the Finnegan’s logo on over her purple bra.

  “Go to dinner with me,” George said.

  “I don’t date.” Stella said matter-of-factly, and then turned to walk out the door.

  “You don’t date?” he called to her back. Stella turned back to face him.

  “Nope. In my effort to make the world a better place I have precluded myself from dating.” Stella walked over to where George was standing. “Let me be clear, George, I like you, but I don’t date. If you want to date someone you can get that somewhere else.” Stella leaned into him and whispered in his ear, “If you’d be interested in something else. That, I do.” That statement wasn’t entirely true since she hadn’t had sex with anyone since Jamie, but she was about as sexually frustrated as one human could get.

  The alarm on his face was priceless; then his lips turned up at the edges.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Finnegan’s kept the beer pong tables up for several weeks and made teams sign up for a tournament. She, Millie, Patrick, and Billy had entered the beer pong tournament. Billy and Stella were a team and beating everyone, but so were Millie and Patrick.

  Stella and Millie had started their scheduled study groups getting ready for finals. One of her classes without Millie was National Security Law and her study group had just finished meeting. Millie was waiting for her in the student lounge, reading a novel.

  “How do you have the energy to read anything other than to study right now?” Stella asked as she slumped down next to Millie on the couch.

  “I’m a well-rounded person, El, you know that. Plus, this book is so good. It’s by one of my favorite authors.” Millie shut the book and looked at Stella with a serious expression. “I believe it’s my duty as your best friend to get you laid.”

  “Excuse me,” Stella started laughing. “Believe me, if I wanted to get laid I could. Shit, Billy would probably have sex with me.”

  “Confident much?” Millie said standing up.

  “Not confident… honest. If a girl wants to get laid, she can. Period. That’s the truth.” Stella followed Millie through the cafeteria and to the elevators. They waited with a bunch of other law students to get on the elevator.

  “Then why haven’t you?” Millie stage-whispered.

  “Not talking about that here.” Stella stared at the numbers as they stopped at the main floor and most of the occupants got out. She and Millie stayed in to go to the garage where her car was parked. They had carpooled.

  “I mean. I think it’d make you a better person. You know, put you in a better mood.”

  “I’m sure it would.” Stella was thinking she was getting a little sexually frustrated, she had some wild dreams about George recently.

  “Maybe we will meet someone this summer for you to u
se for his body.”

  “Maybe…” Stella was pretty sure she was not ready for any sort of complications so using a guy for his body sounded perfect.

  “You know who is super-hot?” Millie walked out of the elevator toward Stella’s car.

  “I’m sure I have no idea.”

  “George.” Stella kept looking ahead, hoping she wasn’t giving anything away.

  “We’re friends.”

  “That’s a good thing.”

  Getting in the car Stella finally looked at Millie. “You know that’s not true, why are you lying?”

  Millie laughed, “Because George is fucking hot and he’s single.”

  “How do you know he’s single?” Stella steered her car out of the garage onto Massachusetts Avenue and toward Millie’s house. “Anyway, that doesn’t mean anything, Millie.”

  “But it does, he looks at you like he wants to eat you.” She giggled.

  “He does not...” she protested, but she had caught him looking at her lately like she was a steak.

  “Yes, he does. Now, this is a good thing because you can get laid.”

  “I can go to any bar tonight and get laid.” Stella said defiantly.

  “Prove it.”

  “Fine, good thing we are going to a bar tonight.” Stella turned onto Millie’s street. “I do want to remind you that you are not going to bully me into getting laid. The goal is whether someone would be willing to fuck me.”

  “You are so gruff... fine. Someone willing.”

  Stella walked upstairs in a tight halter-top dress that stopped at mid-thigh. It was red and she was wearing nude strappy sandals with a high heel. Billy looked amused when she walked into the den.

  “How are you going to play beer pong in that?”

  “Very well.” She responded and sat down and cross her legs demurely.

  “Can’t you change? You will distract me with all...” he waved his hand over her chest and then down to her ass, “that.”

  “Well go ahead and look, because the goal will be to distract all of our opponents, which may I remind you are mostly men.”

  Billy laughed, “You’re a fucking evil genius. I love it.”

  Patrick and Millie came out of Patrick’s room and stopped abruptly when they saw Stella.

  “Last minute strategy session for the game?” she asked.

  “What’re you wearing,” Patrick asked, not amused.

  “Well, this is called a dress and these are shoes,” she said sarcastically, pointing to each item.

  Millie looked at her own tank top, jeans, and flip-flops. “Well played, ma’am. Well played.”

  When they walked into Finnegan’s it was like time stopped and she saw at least ten guys sitting at or around the bar stop what they were doing and look at her. She smirked at Millie, “This is going to be like taking candy from a baby.”

  Patrick laughed. “What does that expression even mean? Don’t babies like candy?”

  Millie leaned into her ear and said, “It would be if you weren’t still wearing your engagement ring.”

  Stella’s eyes went wide. “Guys will have sex with me anyway,” she said, but she knew Millie was right. “Fuck.” Then she walked up to Patrick, “Hey Patrick, I don’t want my ring getting nasty with all the beer. Could you hold onto it for tonight?” she asked looking at Millie.

  “Well, I didn’t see that one coming.” Millie pouted and then went to the bar to get the schedule of their game.

  Billy patted the chair at the bar next to his, “Let’s go over strategy.”

  “I think I have it covered.” She smiled as she waved at George, his eyes going wide when he saw her.

  “Um, did you forget we were playing Patrick and Millie. They’ve both seen you naked on numerous occasions. I don’t think that strategy will work for that game.”

  “Billy, calm down. We’ll win if we keep playing like we have been.”

  “Hey Billy, Stella.” George had moved to right in front of them at the bar. “Can I get ya’ll something?”

  “Hey George,” Stella greeted and leaned into the bar giving him a clear shot of her cleavage. “Can you make a Cosmo?”

  “Sure.” His face turned red and then he looked at Billy.

  “Harp,” Billy said.

  “Be right back,” George said taking off.

  Taking her drink she made her way back toward the beer pong tables and waited on their game. She was really bad at this flirting thing, she thought. Taking in the crowd, she didn’t see any guys she was even interested in talking to let alone having sex with, but she also didn’t want to lose her bet with Millie.

  As she was waiting, she played with the strap on her of her shoes and watched the match. She laughed as the four guys took shots of beer one after another. She felt eyes on her before she saw who they belonged to. When Stella looked up, George was staring at her like he was undressing her with his eyes. She smiled and he smiled bigger. She wanted to lick his dimples. Stella took him in as he walked over to her where she sat. His broad shoulders were stressing the tight T-shirt he was wearing. It was light blue and made his eyes look more grey than usual.

  “What’s with the dress?” George sat next to her casually putting his arm behind her.

  “Nothing, what’s up with your tight shirt?” She said touching his chest casually.

  He looked down and started laughing, “Nothing.”

  They sat together for a few minutes watching the match in comfortable silence and then he leaned into whisper in her ear, his breath warm, but causing goose bumps to spread quickly through her body. His lips on her ear did things to her she thought were long gone. “Where’s your ring?”

  Stella closed her eyes and said, “Gone.”

  “Why?” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

  “George,” she barely breathed into his ear before Billy came and grabbed her pulling her to the table so they could begin their match. Stella’s body was buzzing in a way she hadn’t felt in years. She turned up her drink and downed the entire Cosmo, looking back at George giving him a weak smile.

  Millie threw her ball first and it landed in the cup right in front of Billy. He drank first. Patrick hit another, Stella drank. They hit every cup until there was only one left. Billy was cussing, furious. Millie missed the last shot. It was Billy’s turn now. Stella and Billy hit every cup, Billy hitting the side of the last cup causing them both to gasp. After what seemed to be an eternity the ball fell in the last cup. They won. Billy picked up Stella and ran around the bar with her. She was trying to keep her dress from riding up, they looked ridiculous. Patrick was pissed, he didn’t like to lose.

  Patrick walked over to them and threw his arms around them both. “Next time,” he said. Mille just drank the last shot of beer and hobbled over to where they were sitting.

  “So, I’m drunk. How’s everyone else?”

  “I need more to drink,” Stella complained. When she looked up George was standing there with a round of beer for everyone.

  “For the victors you drink for free the rest of the night,” he smiled at Stella. “You two, these are on the house but you will have to pay for the rest.”

  “Thanks George,” Millie purred.

  “Go ahead and bring another round, George, this is going to be a long night of me drinking to forget.”

  Patrick, Millie, and Billy looked at her and she looked at her finger. George heard her, but he had already turned around.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  “Hey George, you remember when you asked me out on a date?” Stella yelled over the music in the bar.

  “No, not really,” George answered, but his face blushed remembering.

  “I was wondering if you were ready for anything else yet,” Stella was drunker than usual. She’d been drinking since lunch with Millie and they were both worse for the wear.

  “Whatcha talkin’ about, El?” Millie giggled and closed her eyes.

  “Millie, I told George, awhile ago, that I don’t dat
e, but I would be interested in doing other things with him and he’s failed to get back to me on that.”

  “George, that’s just rude.” Millie leaned back a little in her bar stool and shouted, “My friend needs some assistance in the sex department. Who wants to sign up?”

  They both burst out in loud obnoxious laughter. George’s face turned bright red and he moved to the opposite side of the bar. That is, until he saw a guy approach them, followed by another. They were actually flirting with these guys. George walked out from behind the bar and grabbed Stella by her elbow.

  “Uh oh, Millie...” Stella laughed. “I think I’m in trouble.” George was dragging her behind him.

  “Maybe he’ll spank you,” Millie yelled and burst out laughing.

  George pushed her into the office and shut the door. He walked in and circled the desk, “You can’t seriously go home with one of those pricks?”

  “Why not?” Stella looked around at the office. “It’s not like I’m with anyone, George.” She walked over to where he was standing.

  “You’re not like that, El.” George stared into her eyes.

  “Oh George, you don’t know what I’m like.” She dragged a hand across his chest. “I’d be more than willing to show you.”

  “El, you think I don’t know you. I know you very well. I know you are pushing me, you want me to want you, but you don’t want to give in.” George pushed her hair off her face and kissed her hungrily.

  She gasped separating her mouth from his, “George... I didn’t know you had it in you.” She smiled and rubbed her hand over the crotch of his jeans. “You up for the challenge?” she chided.

  He attacked her, pushing her back against the wall and pulling her legs around his waist. He kissed her neck, her mouth, and pushed her shirt down and kissed her cleavage. Stella’s breath was rapid and her heart was beating fast. “Are you?” George set her down and walked out of the office.

  “Holy shit,” Stella rolled over in her bed, her head feeling like there were spikes on her brain. Every time she moved her head infinitesimally pain erupted in her head. Her mouth was like it had been stuffed with some sort of really nasty-smelling cloth. She worked her mouth up and down and tried to steady herself while pushed herself up off the bed. She closed her eyes and an image flashed in her mind. Her and George kissing in the bar’s office. Wow! She had no idea George would trigger such feelings in her, she wasn’t sure she even had those feelings after Jamie or maybe it had just been so long she didn’t remember what those feelings were like.