Chapter 6 Flirting #2
Jodie and I follow her pointed finger to a table of tall, athletic men.
She’s pointing out two in particular, both blond and really hot.
“Which one?” Jodie asks.
“The one on the left.” The waitress offers.
I study the two men. Despite the similar coloring, they look pretty different.
The one who just sent me the drink has shorter, lighter hair and is dressed more casually in a dark blue t-shirt and jeans.
The other one has darker hair, slightly longer on his forehead and sides, and is dressed more smartly in a button-down shirt and dark jeans.
“Thanks… I guess.” I smile at the waitress, slightly embarrassed. “I would love to tip you, but I don’t have any cash on me.”
It’s true. We spent most of our leftover money on the room for the weekend.
We’re buying our drinks using Jodie’s emergency credit card.
If we don’t get selected for the cheer team, we’ll have to find a job fast, or we’ll be back to sleeping in my car and we’ll go hungry once Jodie’s card is maxed out.
I banish the stressful thoughts about the immediate future when the waitress reassures me. “Don’t worry, he gave me a very generous tip. Enjoy your drink.”
As the waitress walks away, my eyes land on the second margarita in front of me.
“What’s wrong?” Jodie asks.
I exhale a shuddering breath, fingering the stem of the glass. “I don’t know. You watched the bartender make the cocktail I’ve been drinking, but this one… we don’t know that guy.”
Jodie squeezes my shoulder in a comforting gesture. “Maybe I can track down the waitress and ask her if she’s been the only one handling that drink after it was made.”
Before I can tell her that I shouldn’t probably drink too much anyway, Talia chimes in. “Are you worried about that drink being roofied?”
“Yeah,” Jodie answers on my behalf. “There have been a few incidents lately at our school, and we’re just being careful.”
I’m grateful to my best friend for not elaborating more about the events that drove us away from South Carolina. Jodie wouldn’t say anything about the blood and Tim’s head, but we’ve just met these people and I don’t want to be the girl who got roofied to them.
“The good news is that I’m ninety-nine percent sure that your drink wasn’t drugged.” Talia offers. “And the reason why I’m so sure is that I know the guy who bought you that drink. The bad news is that I know the guy who bought you that drink.” She concludes with a chuckle.
Jodie and I look at each other, slightly confused.
“What about him?” I ask.
“That’s Tucker. He’s my older brother.”
Always protective of me, Jodie asks the question on the tip of my tongue. “Why is that bad news? Is he an asshole?”
“No, nothing like that. I mean, he can be a bit of an idiot sometimes. But he’s a good guy.
It’s just that seeing my brother flirt is a little weird, you know?
Especially when I then have to listen to my sisters talking about the details of their hookups.
” She says, making a tucking sound at the end.
“So what you’re saying is that your brother is a player.” Jodie concludes.
Talia rubs her chin pensively. “Yes and no. If you had asked me six months to a year ago, I would have said yes. But to be fair, I haven’t seen him with anyone in a while.”
“Well, it was very nice of him to buy me a drink, but I’m trying to pace myself. You wanted a margarita, right, Jo-Jo?” I push the cocktail toward my best friend.
“I bought that drink for you. If you give it to someone else, I don’t know if I can take the rejection.”
I was so intent on getting the dirt about the hot stranger who bought me this drink that I didn’t notice him coming to our table.
His voice is deep and has a bit of a gravelly, almost gritty quality at the end of his inflection. It gives everything he says a sexy vibe.
But the thing that makes my breath hitch in my throat is the intensity of the blue of his eyes when our gazes meet.
Tucker’s face is gorgeous in an almost boyish way, but with just the right amount of ruggedness to make him look manly.
High cheekbones, a perfectly proportioned nose, and a defined jaw are classically attractive features, but the sapphire blue of his eyes and his soft, heart-shaped lips are real show stealers.
I find myself captive of his blue gaze, and my pulse quickens when his lips curl in a smile that reaches his eyes.
“I’m not trying to be rude, I promise.” I sound a little breathless even to my own ear. “But I’m not used to drinking that much.”
The amount of relief I feel when Tucker's smile widens is almost ridiculous.
“I don’t blame you. I’m actually not drinking tonight, so I get it. But I still want to buy you a drink. Would you like a soda or juice? I think they even have mocktails in here.”
Before I can accept or decline his offer, Tucker continues.
“Come with me to the bar and you can see the bartender open or pour whatever you choose. I heard what you were saying about roofies before.” He adds to explain the last part of his invitation. “I promise I’m not a creep. Right, Tal?”
Talia rolls her eyes. “He really isn’t. Like I said, he can be a pain in the ass, but he has a good heart. Mostly.”
Tucker laughs at his sister’s good natured gibe. “Jeez, thanks, sis. Siblings, am I right?” He chuckles, adding a wink for my benefit.
I can’t resist the urge to return his smile. “I wouldn’t know. I’m an only child. But I guess sometimes best friends are like siblings. I know Jo-Jo and I can push each other’s buttons if we want.”
Jodie flips me off, but tries to hide her smile behind the rim of my untouched margarita glass.
“So, may I buy you a drink then?”
Tucker offers me his arm, and I’m tempted to go with him. My eyes flit between his tall form and Jodie.
My best friend widens her eyes, signaling for me to go. “Don’t worry about me, babe. Talia and Sam will keep me out of trouble, right girls?”
“Go, go. We’ll take care of Jo-Jo.”
Reassured by our new friends’ promise, I accept Tucker’s offer and link my arm with his.
The immediate wave of sensation that washes over me the moment our skin touches is something I’ve never experienced before.
His forearms have defined, corded muscles that jump with every movement; his skin there is soft, covered by a very light dusting of hair so blond it’s almost invisible.
He places his hand over mine, as if to make sure we stay linked.
And I don’t think I’ve ever seen bigger, more perfect hands.
“So, what will it be?” He smiles once the bartender comes to take our order.
I tap my bottom lip with my index finger, unsure of what I’m really in the mood for. “I don’t know. What are you having?”
“Soda water with lime and plenty of ice.” Is the answer.
“I’ll have the same then, please.”
Tucker orders our drinks. “Can I have one soda water with lime for me and one for…”
“Taryn.” I offer.
“And one for Taryn. Ice for you too?”
I nod in response.
As the bartender lines up two cups to fill with ice, Tucker stops her.
“Do you mind giving us our drinks to go, please, Lorna? We could walk around the pier. It’s County Fair weekend, and they have the best funnel cake you’ll ever have, and a lot of stands with games and a couple of carnival rides.”
“Sounds fun.” I smile.
A little voice in the back of my head tells me that maybe I shouldn’t go with him so easily. Tucker is a stranger after all, and I just got here. Star Cove is still totally unknown to me.
But Tucker doesn’t give me any creepy vibes. Besides, his sister, Jodie, and the entire group of girls we came here with have seen me walk away with him. So if he tried to do anything bad to me, he wouldn’t get away with it for very long.
A screech coming from outside pulls me out of my internal mini meltdown.
Several full length double glass doors open from the interior side of the bar to the tables outside on the boardwalk, giving us a pretty good view of what’s causing commotion.
The drama seems to be unfolding at the table where Tucker’s friends are sitting.
I spot a tall, willowy woman standing tensely in front of one of the guys sitting at the end of the long table. There’s a different woman on his lap who leaves her spot when the confrontation begins.
I might be new to Star Cove, but the one screaming is definitely Genevieve.
“Asshole!” she shrieks loudly enough to be heard all the way inside the bar.
My mouth pops open when she throws the contents of her glass at the guy.
A few of the girls in our group and some of the guys sitting at the table intervene to defuse the situation.
The bartender Tucker just called Lorna, rolls her eyes and gathers a bunch of sheets of thick kitchen paper towels. “Sandy,” she says to the waitress who served the first drink Tucker bought me to break the ice. “Help clean up, please.”
Before the waitress can move, Genevieve strides past us as she storms out of the bar, followed by the two girls who were with her earlier today.
“Good riddance.” The bartender murmurs under her breath. “Thank goodness not all customers are as rude as that one.” She adds when Tucker shakes his head.
“Yeah, Mack dodged a bullet by getting out of that relationship.” The other hot blond guy who was sitting next to Tucker earlier comments as he approaches the bar.
Tucker lets out an uncomfortable chuckle. “What happened?”
“This girl came over to ask Mack for a selfie and then she started flirting. Mack offered her a drink and invited her to sit on his knees since there were no empty seats at our table.” The guy explains.
“Gen had a problem with that. She came over and called the girl a slut, demanding that Mack go for a walk with her. When Mack refused to fall in line, she threw her drink in his face.”
Tucker shakes his head. “Typical Gen. But I’m glad that Mack stood his ground.”
The bartender sets our drinks on the table.
“Taryn, have you met my teammate and best friend, Colsen? Colsen, this is Taryn.”
Something really strange happens when Colsen offers me his hand to shake.
My body reacts the same way it did earlier when I linked arms with Tucker. I feel heat spreading to every nerve ending in my body, including my face, and I know I must be blushing.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Taryn.”
Colsen keeps my hand in his for a long moment, way longer than it would be appropriate when you meet someone for the first time.
But I don’t care. I like the feeling of his strong, big hand swallowing mine. These guys are so tall and big. And with their blond hair, Tucker and Colsen wouldn’t look out of place on a Viking ship. Especially if they grew their hair and beards.
But I prefer their clean cut, all American looks.
While Tucker’s eyes are a dark, intense blue, I notice that Colsen’s irises are green, but they have an amber ring around the pupil that makes his gaze feel warmer.
We stare at each other for a long moment, the air between us becoming charged with electricity.
“So,” Tucker clears his throat, breaking the spell his friend, and I were under. “Taryn and I were gonna get some funnel cake and check out some of the rides on the pier. What are you up to, Col?”
Colsen rubs the back of his neck when he answers. “I was actually coming to tell you that I was thinking of heading back. Nash has already left, and I realized that I’m tired after moving all my stuff today.”
“What?” Tucker sounds concerned. “Wasn’t I supposed to be your designated driver tonight? How are you getting home?”
“I called a ride. It’s five minutes away, see?”
He shows the rideshare app on his phone, with the driver’s progress indicating the car is almost here.
“Are you sure you don’t want to cancel it and hang out with me and Taryn? You love the pier’s funnel cake.” Tucker argues.
Colsen’s face lights up when he smiles, his hand going to the flat plane of his stomach. “Yeah, I love it but I’m sure Coach would give me one of his scariest glares if he saw me eat some. Maybe next time. Taryn, it was nice to meet you. Will I get to see you again?”
“I hope so. My best friend and I are trying out for the new cheer team. If we don’t get in, it all depends on how fast we can get jobs in town.”
Colsen’s eyes light with interest. “So you’re a cheerleader?”
“I’m a dancer.” I shrug. “Apparently that’s what they’re looking for. It isn’t going to be tumbles and stunts. They want a team of professional dancers to perform choreographed shows during hockey games and travel with the team.”
Something passes in both Tucker's and Colsen’s eyes. I think it’s admiration.
“I hope you get selected.” Colsen says. “We’d get to see each other a lot if the cheerleaders traveled with our team.”
Tucker agrees. “Yeah, that would be fun. And if not, don’t worry. Talia and I grew up here in Star Cove, and we know everyone in town. We can find out about every job available and put in a good word for you and Jodie.”
“That’s very generous of you, Tucker.” I smile.
The last week has been the scariest, most stressful time of my life, but things seem to be looking up since we got here.
Maybe destiny decided to give me a helping hand and the fresh start I needed after what happened in Hemlock Beach.
During our drive across the country, I’ve been racking my brain to try to figure out exactly what went down in Tim’s room.
But there’s a big chunk of my memory missing from when Tim and I started kissing to the morning after, when I woke up covered in blood.
As far as I know, Tim and I were alone in his room, and the drugs in my system made me do something unthinkable.
Jodie and I have been keeping an eye on the news, and there have been no updates on the case.
It looks like I might be getting away with murder. I only have to hope that karma doesn’t decide otherwise.