Page 10 of Wrong For Me

“I think maybe your next drink should be water,” I tell her gently, sliding the shot glass she’d been about to reach for a few inches away.

“But I’m twenty-one now!” my cousin shouts, throwing her arms over her head in celebration, causing several of the nearby club-goers to cheer along with her.

We’re at our fourth bar of the evening and the night just keeps getting more and more rowdy. Out of the places we’ve hit so far, this one is probably my least favorite. I’m more of a hole-in-the-wall, laid back kind of bar fan, and this place definitely has a higher end, dance club type of vibe. And from the slight scowl on Will’s face, I’m not the only one who isn’t digging it.

I slide Everly’s shot in his direction. “You clearly need this more than she does.”

He throws the shot back, giving Everly another reason to cheer. I’ve been telling her to pace herself since we got here with little success. Girl is apparently real excited about turning twenty-one.

“Let’s dance!” she shouts, grabbing Alex’s hand. “Come on!”

Alex fluffs up her honey blond waves and stands. “I’m in!”

“What the hell,” River says, standing with them. I’m about to join them, when the crowd around us shifts a little, revealing a familiar face sitting on a barstool. A little swoop goes through my belly, and I reach for my beer bottle.

“I’m going to keep Mr. Grouchy company,” I tell them, nodding over at Will, who has his phone out now. Probably texting Eva.

“Boo!” Everly and Alex shout in unison, but River grabs their hands and pulls them out to the dance floor. With the others gone, and Will’s attention firmly on his phone, I have the perfect opportunity to gape at the guy by the bar.

Leo. Hot bartender Leo. The guy I spent the entire concert watching earlier.

In my defense, I’d had a perfect line of sight to the way his muscles flexed while he moved around behind the bar, mixing drinks and passing out glasses. And Leo the hot bartender has very, very nice muscles. And gorgeous green eyes that flashed under the spinning concert lights.

“Is there a reason why you keep staring at the bar?”

I jump a little and tear my eyes away from Leo to see Will watching me from the other side of the table. So much for him being absorbed in his phone. I’m pretty sure he’s been watching me for a while because he’s giving me that look that tells me he knows something is up.

I focus my attention on him, determined not to look at the bar again. For at least five minutes. Or maybe three. “Thought I saw someone I recognized,” I tell him, reaching down to fidget with the woven bracelet on my wrist before catching myself. Will knows me way too well and he’ll definitely see that for what it is—a sign of my anxiety.

“Rose. What’s going on?”

Damn you for knowing me so well, Will Ransome,I think to myself as I meet his eyes. “You see that guy at the bar?”

His eyes scan the area. “There are approximately fifty guys at the bar.”

I jerk my chin in the right direction. “The tall one. Light brown, messy hair. Black t-shirt. Looks a little like Brendan Fraser in that old Mummy movie your mom loves.”

“Huh,” Will muses. “He does look like Brendan Fraser. You know, my mom was right to make us watch that movie all the time. The Mummy kicked ass. Great flick.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Not really the point, Will.”

“Right. So, what’s the deal with this guy?” he waggles his eyebrows. “You think he’s cute or something? Should I go get Everly so you guys can squeal and giggle about it?”

I flip him off, even though I had done plenty of squealing and giggling with my cousins over Leo back at the concert venue.

“He was the bartender in the VIP section tonight.”

Will’s gaze goes back to Leo and he watches him for a long moment, even though I doubt he saw him back at the venue. My cousin spent most of the evening either backstage with his dad or out front watching the show. I don’t think he’d done more than stick his head into the VIP section.

Eventually he turns back to me and I do my best not to fidget under his appraising gaze. Then his face breaks out in a smirk, the expression making him look so much like his dad I would laugh if I wasn’t so nervous.

“Rosie has a crush.”

“Do not. Shut up.”

“Did you talk to him?”

I sigh. “I actually tried. Which you know is a pretty big deal for me.”