Chapter 24
CHAPTER 24
LET’S SEE IF WE CAN CHANGE YOUR MIND ABOUT IT.
Griffin
Thank fuck it’s the end of this night.
All tonight did was solidify all the reasons I can’t stand working evenings, and these late nights only confirm more that I’m too old to be dealing with this shit.
More than half the crowd has left, minus a few stragglers and Nan cleaning up the karaoke stuff.
Lily saunters over to me, tripping over her feet before both hands find the top of the bar to help balance herself. She’s totally drunk, and I don’t have the energy to care right now as long as she gets home safe.
“How are you getting home?” I ask her.
She turns, pointing to Poppy. “She didn’t drink, so she’s driving.”
“Good.”
“Hey,” she says, leaning on the bar with a mischievous grin on her face. “Think you can take Blair home? I mean, you literally have to pass her house.” She pauses, a hiccup escaping her. “This way, no one has to go out of their way.”
I roll my eyes.
“Oh stop.” She giggles. “You can tell me if you like her. ”
“You’re too drunk for this conversation, Lil.”
“Am not,” she slurs with another hiccup. “But it’s about time you gave it up already. Forget your stupid piece of shit ex-girlfriend.” The volume of her voice rises with each word that spills from her mouth. “Blair is smokin’ hot. And the best part is, she’s not your ex!” she shouts.
I’m taken aback by the tone of her voice.
I know she’s drunk, but this isn’t a side of Lily I’m used to.
“Did you just raise your voice at me?”
“I did.” She nods. “And I will again. Blair is a good person. She’s not going anywhere. She bought the only house on your block, and you’re stuck with her. I’m stuck with her.” She smiles widely. “I love her so much and I’m lucky to have a friend like her in my life. So I can’t have you chasing her out of town.”
I stare at her in shock, knowing she’s right.
It’s been on my mind constantly since having her over for dinner. Blair’s not the person I thought she would be. She might have moved from the city, but she isn’t like the rest of them. Not only is she downright beautiful, but she’s smart and funny. She’s witty and I like that she’s always keeping me on my toes.
“Fine,” I tell Lily. “I’ll drop her off, but she’s going to have to hang out for a bit while I finish closing up.”
“Good,” she says through a hiccup. “Get her home safe.”
“I can get myself home,” Blair interprets.
I glare in her direction. “Are you going to walk?”
“Yep,” she states, popping the p, flipping her hair behind her shoulder, and rolling her eyes.
That sass.
After our little interaction earlier at the bar, she had me wound up tighter than usual. And now I’d love nothing more than to shut her up with my cock in her mouth after her little stunt earlier. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. I had to walk away from her before she saw the effect she had on me. There’s no doubt that if her eyes trailed my body, she would have noticed how hard she made me .
She boldly told me the whiskey would taste better on me .
Now it’s a vision I can’t get out of my head.
This isn’t who I am, but Blair seems to bring out the inner beast in me I never knew existed.
Or hasn’t existed in years.
“I’ll be done here in twenty minutes. I’m taking you home whether you want me to or not,” I tell her and turn to walk away.
I can’t get close to her. I know this. Then I find myself in these positions where we’re alone. She’s in my truck, she’s in my bar, she’s in my house. All of it has only built up these feelings I’m fighting. The thought of being alone with her again makes my chest feel tight, like I’m having difficulty breathing when she’s around.
I make my way to the kitchen, bringing the glasses back to get washed in the morning because it’s too late to deal with this right now. Standing there for a moment, I work on controlling my breathing. Being around Blair is not good for me. I’m on the verge of breaking at any second with her. Doing something I’m afraid I’ll regret or something that will inevitably break my heart in the end.
I keep myself busy for the next fifteen minutes, making sure the ovens are off, and the back door is locked before grabbing my flannel from the hook behind the kitchen door and replacing my alcohol- and food-scented T-shirt with it, but keeping my baseball hat on because I know my hair is a disaster under this cap.
I don’t bother buttoning it up, yet as I make my way back out to the bar, everyone has left but Blair.
This time she’s standing behind the bar where only the employees are allowed. She’s holding up a bottle of liquor that could have made her a martini earlier in the night.
But I wanted to test her.
See if she was really ready to fit in here…with me.
“This looks familiar,” she says, lifting it in the air for me to see.
I shrug a shoulder, but keep my face straight, emotionless.
“Well,” she says, placing the bottle back where she found it. “Are you going to make me a drink before we go?” She grins.
“I cleaned up all the glasses already, and I’m not making a martini right now.”
“I noticed.” She smirks before scanning the shelves of liquor lining the back wall. She reaches up to grab a bottle of whiskey off the top shelf. As she does, her dress gets pulled down ever so slightly, exposing more of her breasts, but not all of them. The dim lights only draw out the sparkle of her skin, if that’s even possible. My cock strains in my jeans, thinking about what she plans to do with that, knowing damn well she hates the taste of it.
Half of me is hoping she lives up to her words.
The other half is hoping she lets it go so I don’t go down this road with her.
“I’d love to acquire a taste for this.” She holds up the bottle.
I drop the dishrag I’m holding and take slow, tentative steps toward her until I’m only inches away from her. My body buzzes without a single sip of alcohol in my system. I feel drunk just from being so close to her and staring into those eyes.
“You want a taste of whiskey on me, sweetheart?”
Her eyes light up, and the smirk on her face grows.
“Like I said…I’d love to build up my taste for it. Maybe I can learn to like it.”
I feel weak staring at her. My reserves are crumbling with every word out of her mouth, and I don’t know how much more I can take. I told myself I wouldn’t give in to the temptation of her. The pull I have with her.
How far is she willing to go?
I lean down, lips grazing the shell of her ear, and just this touch sends a shock through my system. My lips burn from the light contact .
“Then take off my shirt,” I whisper. “Let’s see if we can change your mind about it.”
Without hesitation, she drops the whiskey bottle on the counter before reaching for the lapels of my already unbuttoned flannel, keeping her eyes locked on mine. In a painfully slow motion, she pushes it over my shoulders.
The same way she’s unraveling me minute by minute.
As she fully exposes my chest, I feel my cock strain ever harder against the zipper of my jeans as my flannel falls to the ground.
I’d give anything at this point to feel her fist wrap around it for even a second.
The moment her hands make contact with my chest, fire erupts across my skin, and I just about lose it, but maintain my composure.
“Jesus,” she mutters under her breath. “Is there a gym in town I don’t know about?”
“It’s called the outdoors.”
She smirks. “Noted.” Then she reaches for the bottle of whiskey and hands it to me. I take it from her hands and watch as she lowers herself to her knees in front of me.
Fuckkkkk.
She smiles up at me, knowingly. I uncap the bottle of whiskey and angle it at the top of my chest, making sure I watch every single move she makes because I don’t want to miss a moment of this.
I angle my upper body back slightly, and then slowly pour down the middle, letting it trickle down. Her hands reach for the belt of my jeans, and the contact of her hands on my skin makes me jump, but not enough for her to notice. She lifts herself up, her tongue connecting just above my navel, and she licks up every drop of whiskey I just poured.
The feel of her tongue on my skin brings out the feral side of me.
Licking the corner of her lips she gives me a light shrug, not bothering to stand from where she’s crouched down in front of me. “Better. I think. Maybe I should try it again, though.”
Curiosity for how far she’s willing to take this is now laced with desire. I can’t believe she even did this in the first place, let alone wants to do it again. Never did I think something that wasn’t sex could turn me on this much. Then again, I’m beginning to believe everything she does turns me on.
That statement alone tells me she has to be equally turned on by this as I am. I want to feel her tongue on my body again and then repeat it on her to see how whiskey tastes off her bare skin.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re liking it,” I grit out.
“Maybe I am.” She winks.
I line up the bottle the same way I did before, and let it trickle down my chest. This time, she uses more force against my belt, tugging my jeans down as her tongue makes contact below my navel this time.
Fuck. That feels so good.
She lifts herself, using more force against my skin as she licks all the way up to my chest. Her eyes never leave mine and it’s so fucking hot to see this side of Blair.
Just when I think she’s going to pull away from me, she releases her mouth from my body and stands tall in front of me. Looking up at me with whiskey-hazed eyes.
She wants me to kiss her.
Hell, I want to kiss her.
But not here. Not right now.
I take her chin between my fingers, letting my lips linger dangerously close to hers. I can feel her breath pick up against mine.
“It’s my turn for a taste, sweetheart.”