The Red-Hot Stakes

Chapter Six

It was a long day of classes and, coupled with the lack of sleep the night before, I came home drained. But it wasn’t the bone-weary, all-consuming exhaustion of late, and I was actually looking forward to tonight. Derek and Avery had some event with his parents and weren’t planning to be home until late. With the place all to myself, the possibilities were endless.

I started with a long shower—masking, exfoliating and shaving. Then I put on some undies and a cropped lace cami, slipped in my earbuds and pushed play on my playlist. I rummaged through our drawer of takeout menus in the kitchen, pulling out any that sounded good.

A song I loved came on, and I danced to the living room as I waffled over my options, singing along. It felt so good to just have a moment alone. I let my body fall into the rhythm, making a complete fool of myself and not caring.

When the song ended, I heard a noise. My eyes flew open to land on Liam’s sheepish face as he backed out of the apartment. “Freeze!” I commanded.

He did, halfway out the door.

I crooked one finger, motioning him to come inside. Satisfaction coursed through me when he gulped. My hands hit my bare hips, reminding me how little I wore. But I decided I didn’t care—he was interrupting my time. I took out my earbuds and set them down. “Explain yourself.”

His gaze stayed mostly on the floor, taking a quick peek every so often. “You left your textbook. I just stopped by to return it.” He shifted his weight to his other foot, running his hand over his close-cropped hair.

“Listen, I knew Avery and Derek had that thing tonight. I figured you’d probably need your book and wondered if maybe you’d want some company. I didn’t want to bother you if you were out, so…”

“So you just popped by.” I arched my eyebrow, waiting for further explanation.

He shrugged. “I knocked and didn’t hear anything, so I used my spare key, thinking I’d at least leave the book.” He peeked at my scantily clad body. “I didn’t want to scare you or creep you out. I was just going to leave.”

It was so ridiculous, so awkward and so Liam that I couldn’t help but laugh.

Shock crossed his face. “You’re not mad?”

“Only you. This would only happen to you.” I shook my head, then reached for the two menus I’d whittled it down to. A sharp inhale sounded as I bent over. “Enjoying the view?”

His eyes darkened as I sashayed over to him, and he muttered, “How about I take off my shirt and pants, and we see how much stammering you do?”

I grinned, smacking the menus into his chest. “Some other time. I narrowed dinner down to these two places. You decide while I get dressed.”

His confusion brought out that adorable furrow as he processed my words. “I’m staying for dinner?”

“That was the point of your visit, right?”

A slow smile spread over his face as he plopped onto the couch, eagerly scanning the menus.

A few minutes later, I returned in a hoodie and yoga pants. “What’d you decide?”

“Subs.”

We called in our food, me rolling my eyes at the size of the order he placed.

“What? I’m hungry?”

“Yeah, but where do you put it?” I scanned his fit body. “There’s no fat on you.”

He smirked. “I don’t sit on my ass all day, G. Derek’s not the only one using the gym.”

Ooh, what time do they work out and would they mind me watching them? Would it be too distracting if I brought popcorn? I wasn’t above enjoying a decent view, and Liam’s body was delicious. Even if he was annoying.

“No.”

“What?” I asked defensively. I hadn’t even said anything.

“I don’t know, but whatever you were thinking, the answer is no. The look on your face spelled trouble.”

I waved him off. “What do you want to do while we wait for dinner?”

“Do you know how to play cribbage?”

It had been one of my favorites growing up, and it had been ages since I’d played. I nodded eagerly. “Love it!”

He knew right where Derek’s board was and brought out a deck of cards too. The game went fast, both of us getting decent hands. We were in the final stretch, and I got to count first. I turned over my cards, barely keeping in my gasp. Not only did I have a double run, I had fours through sevens, a good combination which gave me a lot of points. I carefully analyzed the possibilities, deciding to keep one four, two fives and one six.

It was my turn to cut the deck. I held my breath, nearly screaming Liam turned over another five. That gave me nine more points, putting me out before he even got to count.

When I laid my cards down, he just whistled. “That’s some hand.” A knock on the door let us know our food was there, and Liam pretended to pout. “Why couldn’t he have come five minutes ago?” He winked to show he was teasing, and my stomach flipped. He got our food, paying while I put away the cribbage board.

“What do I owe you?” I asked, eagerly taking my sub.

“Nothing. It’s on me.”

I bristled, hurrying to swallow the mouthful of food. “I was getting dinner either way. Let me pay you back.”

He frowned, leaning back in his chair. “It’s no biggie, G.”

“If it’s not a big deal, then let me pay for my own sandwich.” I held his stare until he dropped his chair back on all four legs with an equally heavy sigh.

The plastic bag rustled as he dug for the receipt. He tossed it to me.

“How much did you tip the guy?”

Liam’s growl told me I might have pushed him too far. I threw a ten at him, my share plus a couple extra bucks.

He snatched it up and shoved it in his pocket. “Happy?”

“Very.” Although we both sounded anything but. We were a far cry from the casual game of cribbage only moments before. I decided to throw him a bone. “Thanks for dropping off my book.”

A teasing glint danced in his eyes. “I think I got the better end of that deal. Dinner and a show.” His eyebrows bobbed.

I snorted. “You know that’s not what your emergency key is for, right?”

He held up his hands innocently. “I was just trying to help out a friend. I didn’t know you’d be prancing around in your underwear.”

“I do not prance.”

His mouth twitched. “Yeah, you do.” Laughter burst from him.

I joined him, laughing off my own embarrassment. “You suck, you know that?”

“Just be glad I didn’t have my phone ready. You could have gone viral.”

“Yeah,” I shot back. “But then so would your ass kicking.”

He drew those full lips into a thoughtful smirk. “Yeah, probably.”

* * * *

On Thursday, before my shift, I’d planned to meet Avery, Derek and Liam at a diner around the corner from the bar for an early dinner. I arrived a couple of hours ahead of time, sipping on coffee and outlining some statistics for one of my classes.

Movement caught my eye, and I glanced up to find Liam sliding into the booth across from me. “Hey,” I said, surprised. “You’re here early.” I quickly began packing my things.

He snagged one of my pencils, turning it end over end. “Yeah, um, I wanted to talk to you.”

I waited for more as I zipped up my bag, but it never came. When I finally looked at him, tension gripped his shoulders and his lips pressed tightly together. I frowned. “You okay?”

He opened his mouth but was interrupted by the waitress asking if she could get him anything. He waved her off, saying he’d wait for the rest of our party. I leaned my elbows on the table, lacing my fingers together as I wondered what could possibly have him so worked up.

“I didn’t like you at first, Gina.”

I blinked, taken aback by the candid statement. Annoyance rushed through me, though it didn’t exactly come as a shock.

“You’re not exactly the easiest person to get to know, with that prickly exterior and harsh temper.”

I bristled at the blatant insults. This is what he wants to talk about?

Just as I was about to retort, he added quietly, “It took me a while to see that underneath all that, you’ve got a good heart.”

The words knocked the bluster right out of me as I stared in confusion. “Liam, what…?”

He leaned forward, his earnest gaze pinning me to my seat. “Avery once told me I needed a certain kind of woman, that I’d been dating ice skates when I needed cleats. Well, I think I found a pair of cleats. In you.”

I wrinkled my nose. Is that supposed to be a compliment? I looked around, desperately wishing for Avery and Derek to show up to save me from whatever the hell this was. Maybe I can flag down the waitress.

“So what do you say?”

“What do I say to what?”

He shifted in his seat. “Going out with me sometime.”

I gaped, unable to comprehend the absurd words. Me and Liam, yeah, right. Then it sank in what was really happening, and I began to chuckle. “Nice one, Liam.” I looked around, trying to spot our friends. “Tell Derek he can come out now.” They had to be here somewhere, probably filming my reaction. “You got me good.”

But Liam didn’t move. His cheeks reddened, and his throat bobbed as he swallowed. “I’m not joking, Gina.”

My stomach dropped as I tried to process what he was saying. Of course, Avery and Derek chose that moment to stride in, arm in arm. She greeted us with her normal exuberance, but I could only stare at Liam, still in shock.

He lifted a shoulder. “Forget I said anything.”

Derek and Avery frowned in confusion as he stood up, then Derek asked, “Aren’t you staying?”

“Nah, I’m not hungry.” Liam shoved his hands into his pockets and trudged out of the diner.

As one, Derek and Avery turned to look at me, the unspoken question in their eyes.

I shifted in my seat. “Um, Liam just…asked me out.”

“Oh, shit.” Derek exchanged a glance with Avery then ran after his friend.

Avery plopped across from me, excitement brimming in her eyes. “Tell me everything.”

As I repeated word for word what Liam had said, her smile grew.

She was clapping by the end. “I knew it! I knew he liked you. This is so perfect. You and Liam, me and Derek—”

“Hold it!” I glared. “There is no me and anybody, particularly not me and Liam. Sure, we’ve been getting along better lately, but dating?” His words echoed in my mind, and again I wrinkled my nose. “He compared me to a pair of nasty, stinking sports shoes, for crying out loud. Who does that?”

Avery folded her arms, assessing me long enough that I began to squirm. “Nothing he does will ever be good enough for you, will it?”

Chagrin washed over me, and I stared at the table.

“What happened in the limo after you guys dropped me off to meet Derek’s parents? You never did tell me.”

My mind flashed back to when Avery had been trying to learn more about Derek’s ex-girlfriend, Princess. Liam and I had helped Avery rush to meet Derek at his parents’ house for dinner, then I’d tried to pry the information out of Liam on the way home.

He’d shut me down, told me he was Derek’s friend first and foremost. It had more than bothered me because I knew just how vulnerable Avery was at the time, but he didn’t seem to care.

I muttered, “I wanted him to tell me about Princess, and he wouldn’t.”

“I get that. Plus, he was late to the coffee shop, which I know pissed you off.” She sighed. “Gina, I know you don’t like to be told you’re wrong.” Her soft tone reminded me just how much she cared. “But you’re going to hear me right now. Every word.”

I tried to shut down my automatic bristling because I owed it to Avery to listen. She’d done so much for me.

“Liam is an amazing guy. He’s one of my best friends. Period. When I found out Derek had helped condemn the apartment and left, Liam found me a place to stay. Liam told Derek what happened, without telling Derek where I was. Liam coordinated getting my stuff.” She paused, and her next question was quiet, a hint of hurt seeping through. “Do you know who didn’t call me? Not once, to see if I was okay?”

I flinched.

“My best friend. I didn’t hear from you until days later, when you gave me the hard love I needed to get my head out of my ass. You didn’t check on me once, because you knew I was wrong.” Her voice was thick. “Gina, I needed you to be my friend when I was wrong too. I needed a shoulder to cry on because I was hurting. I went through all that alone.” She swallowed, sounding like she was fighting tears. “All because you knew you were right.”

“Avery…” I reached for her, but she shifted away. Guilt racked me, making my stomach clench. I’d known I hurt her, but I thought she understood, thought we were okay.

She shook her head, taking several deep breaths before looking at me again, this time with understanding in her gaze. “It was frustrating for Liam to withhold information about Princess from me, but he was protecting Derek. We were still new. And it was almost a year ago.” Avery gave me a small smile. “You need to let that go and open your eyes to the kind of guy Liam really is, because he is absolutely perfect for you. If you do that, maybe you could see that Liam was trying to tell you something today. In his own way.”

I frowned. My head hurt, trying to make sense of everything.

She stood up, placing her palms on the table. “At least think about giving him a chance. Please, for all our sakes.” Then she walked away, leaving me alone to process her words.

Wrapping my hands around my coffee, I tried to do as Avery asked and replayed my time with Liam while keeping an open mind. But the pieces wouldn’t quite go together. I was still missing something, and it frustrated me to no end that I couldn’t grasp what. I sat there until it was time to leave for my shift, then threw down enough money for my coffee plus a hefty tip.

Thoughts of Liam continued to plague me for the rest of the night.

* * * *

A week passed. A week of me dwelling on Avery’s advice and Liam’s words, but I didn’t see him again. Not once. Not at the apartment, not at the bar. Every time I caught myself scanning for him, I got annoyed.

When had he become such a part of my life?

I had a pounding headache, and karaoke was in full swing. The endless caterwauling of wannabes belting off-key renditions of tired pop songs didn’t help. Liam’s voice would soothe it, if only for a minute. I gritted my teeth at the ridiculous thought, then instantly regretted the motion.

Especially when Liam waltzed into the bar. My headache immediately multiplied, though I wasn’t sure if it was from seeing him or my own actions. He slid on to a barstool with a casual smile, and a flutter went through me, relief pulsing in its wake. I was more than ready to face him, to get out of this no man’s land of torturous what-ifs.

“Hey, Red, I’ll take a Guinness.” Then he winked.

I stood there for a long second, waiting for more. But that was it. He’s just going to ignore what happened? Pretend like it was nothing? I clenched my jaw as I whirled around to get his beer, trying to keep from seething. The dark liquid sloshed over when I plopped the glass in front of him, exchanging it for his card.

“So, throw any chips lately? Just to test for freshness?”

If he had been a steak, my glare would have cooked him to a nice well-done. I stalked away, heading for my table with a round of drinks and a huge plate of nachos. When I came back, Sarah was leaning forward eagerly as Liam retold the story about me beating up the guy in the parking lot. Great.

I went to wash glasses, knowing the noise would drown him out. But we weren’t busy enough to keep me occupied for long. Soon his familiar voice called out an even more familiar question.

“What should I sing tonight?”

My words had a bite to them. “Go find someone else to bother.” I started restocking glasses.

“I don’t know that one,” he teased.

Shooting him a glare, I grabbed a whole lemon, a cutting board and a knife then started slicing. I finished without mishap and put away the container. But when I went to wash the knife, my hand slipped, the blade cutting my palm. I yelped.

Liam rushed over and grabbed a napkin, pressing it to the bit of red bubbling out of my skin. “You don’t have to keep hurting yourself to get my attention. I’m sitting right here.”

And just like that, I snapped. “Sarah, I’m going on break!” I stormed through the kitchen, out of the back door and into the cool fall air. I leaned against the rough bricks, dragging in ragged breaths as frustrated tears spilled onto my cheeks.