When The Night Falls (The Night #1)

1 | good terms

‘It should be here,’ I told Olivia as I turned left, into a small alley, to find the secluded bar. Looking up, I saw a white and gold sign that was shaped like a hexagonal prism, though cut in half, which overhung a green door. Disrepute, it said. It was a members’ club, but it welcomed walk-ins. Still, to be on the safe side, I had booked a table a few days in advance.

I halted in front of the entrance, where Olivia and I were greeted by a polite man who opened the door for us. We journeyed down a narrow staircase and came into an underground cavern with a barrel-vaulted ceiling. It was still relatively early on a Friday night, so there weren’t that many people here yet. Our arrival attracted a few glances, but none of them lingered; at least we didn’t stand out.

We left our coats in the cloakroom before the staff showed us to our table and handed us the cocktail menu. As I sank onto the settee, I gazed around. The interior was reminiscent of the sixties, with plush colours and lots of velvet furniture, but the music was contemporary – electronic lounge music.

I straightened my back, trying to look more sophisticated than I was. The average age of the clientele was a little older than we were used to. Most of the people present looked like they were well-established men and women in their thirties and forties, so I doubted that students frequently went here.

Olivia wrinkled her small nose as she sat beside me, her plump, light-pink lips forming an uncertain line.

‘Was this the place Jason recommended?’ she asked.

Jason was one of my best friends and had become my flatmate just a few days ago.

‘Yes.’

She leaned closer. ‘It’s very posh, isn’t it?’

‘You sound surprised.’

‘Well, I’m worried I’ll stand out.’

I studied her from head to toe. In her deep-red dress, Olivia resembled a magnificent rose. If anything would make her stand out, it was her beauty, and that alone.

‘I wouldn’t worry if I were you. You definitely look like you belong.’

A heartfelt smile spread across her face. ‘Really?’

‘Yes. You look stunning.’

She put her hand on her ample bosom, seemingly touched by my compliment. ‘Thanks, Cara, but so do you.’

I shrugged and reached for the pine green menu on the small table in front of us. The velvet cover was adorned with the letters D.R.P. in gold.

‘Should we have a look at the menu, then?’ I asked.

Olivia scanned our surroundings once more and leaned closer again. ‘Well, are you sure lawyers frequent this place?’

‘Judging by the look of it, I’m positive.’

‘It’s just that I’d hate to waste my time here if it isn’t the case.’

‘Nice pun.’

She chuckled.

I said, ‘This was Jason’s recommendation, and since his father established a law firm, I took his word for it. Mentioned something about his brother favouring this place as well, and he’s a solicitor, too, from what I’ve gathered.’

I hadn’t met any of Jason’s family members; he no longer lived with them, so the opportunity hadn’t presented itself yet. I was aware they were extremely wealthy, thanks to Jason’s father being the founder of Day I pretended not to have heard anything.

‘If you’d give me a second’ – he must have realised that I wasn’t going to respond – ‘I’d like to explain why.’

Just then, a bartender spared me from having to reply to the imbecile. Blond with green eyes, he looked quite Nordic. A warm grin decorated his mouth when our eyes locked.

‘What can I get you, Miss?’

Judging by his strong accent, I thought he might be Swedish.

I smiled back. ‘An espresso martini and a gin and tonic, please, thank you.’

Nodding, he extended to me the payment terminal he had just typed into. I was just about to grab it when Mr Arsehole beat me to it. Snatching it away from me, he inserted his own card.

‘No!’ I objected and stared at his large hands. Prominent veins branched across the back of them, and a few climbed a small distance along his fingers, although they stopped long before they reached his neatly trimmed nails. They were undeniably male hands, and they were a beautiful pair at that. The experienced look of them wasn’t something I would forget anytime soon. During a brief moment of weakness, I wondered what it would feel like to have them caress my naked skin.

His eyebrows arched at my harsh tone. Wearing a lopsided smile, he said, ‘Now that I’ve got your attention—’

‘You had my attention earlier, Oedipus, and you wasted it.’ I snatched back the device.

‘Oedipus?’ he echoed with a titter of amazement. ‘How astute.’

I rolled my eyes and was just about to withdraw his card when his loud sigh made me look at him.

‘If you withdraw my card,’ he said, ‘dear Philip will have to restart the whole process. Do you really mean to make his job any more difficult than it needs to be? Just because you can’t swallow your pride?’

I could hardly fathom the audacity of this man. I had never met someone quite so irritating in all my twenty-three years of life.

When I looked at the bartender, whose name I supposed was Philip, I saw a flash of humour cross his face.

‘You should have a sign on the door that warns of arsehole clientele,’ I told him.

He pressed his lips together and winked at me. Then, while looking at the pest beside me, he asked, ‘What have you done, Will?’

William chuckled. ‘Well, I acted like an arsehole, naturally.’

Philip frowned. ‘That’s unusual.’

‘Yes, she caught me at a bad moment.’

‘Then you ought to apologise to the lady.’ He jerked his head in my direction.

‘I’m trying, but she’s not letting me.’

‘Try harder.’

William faced me again. ‘Andy, my mate, has got a girlfriend. Or ... he used to. They split up just today, but I expect it’s only temporary. So you’ve got the wrong end of the stick, love,’ he said. ‘I’m the nice guy. Now, unless you’d like to get in the middle of that, I reckon I did you a favour.’

I pursed my lips, despising the fact that I found his reason valid. Then again, it could be a lie. I didn’t know the man. And if it was the truth, he could still have treated us more respectfully.

‘Why should I trust what you’re saying?’ Scepticism coloured my tone.

William gestured to the payment terminal just as it started beeping. We had run out of time .

‘Let’s settle this first,’ he said as Philip grabbed the device to start over. ‘May I buy your drinks for you?’

His gaze was penetrative, and the sight made a lump gather in my throat. I hadn’t noticed it before, but the man was rather intense. Everything about him was.

I swallowed, nodding.

‘Thank you.’ He gave me a look of wonder. Puzzled, I frowned back.

‘So ... ’ he said while tapping his card against the machine, paying contactless. I blinked. Why hadn’t he done that in the first place? ‘What’s your name, then?’

‘Oh, so you actually are interested,’ I quipped as I watched Philip perform his magic. ‘How funny. I haven’t been bullied by a boy who fancies me since primary school.’

Stealing a glance at William, I saw his mouth bend into a grin. An incredulous laugh slipped out of it. In front of us, Philip pretended not to exist, although he failed at concealing his amusement. From his pursed lips, it was obvious that he was struggling not to laugh. Seeming to realise the same, he walked away to finish my drinks further away from us, probably to give us some privacy.

‘Yes, well, I’m glad I could treat you to some nostalgia,’ William said.

‘More like trauma.’

Glancing over again, I noticed that William had turned slightly away from me to hide his reaction. From my limited view of his face, I saw that his grin persisted, but he was now biting on his lower lip while looking at the floor as though he could barely contain himself.

‘Listen’ – he turned to face me properly – ‘if it’s not obvious already, I seriously regret my behaviour. I hadn’t thought you’d be so...’ His eyes narrowed faintly. ‘Intriguing.’

I snorted. Did he really consider that to be a legitimate excuse for his behaviour? What if I hadn’t been intriguing? What then? Would he have considered his conduct justified?

He was obviously a conceited idiot. Why was I wasting even a breath on him?

Condescension was etched on my face when I finally turned toward him. Even though I was wearing heels, he towered over me. Since I felt small and vulnerable this close to him, I wondered how tall he actually was. Taking my own height into account, and adding it to the fact that I was wearing heels, I reckoned he was at least six-foot-four, maybe five. He was strong, too, which I could tell from the way his shirt and waistcoat strained against his broad upper body.

‘Who would have guessed?’ A wry smile flickered across my mouth. ‘How to seduce an arsehole: accuse him of sleeping with his mother. Turned you on, did it? The idea of her?’

Frightened, I turned rigid when he suddenly leaned toward me. Hardly an inch separated our noses. He was so close that I could smell the alcohol on his breath as it fanned against my face. In my momentary fear, my eyes locked with his, and I was immediately hypnotised by their dominating gleam.

Perhaps this wasn’t a man to be trifled with. He didn’t come across as the sort of man who allowed others to walk over him. On the contrary, he looked to be in the habit of performing that deed himself; I felt walked over. To be honest, under the burning heat of his gaze, I felt vanquished.

‘ You did,’ he said firmly.