Chapter 3
The First Friday
Ipulled in a steadying breath, trying to think through my building panic.
“Neil mentioned, um, swapping? But I can’t imagine…
” I trailed off after looking toward Victor, my thoughts melting away when he captured my eyes.
His hand lifted, cupping my jaw, his fingers brushing along my neck.
I shuddered, suddenly wishing I could escape to the restroom to catch my breath and settle my mind.
“I like her,” Victor murmured, his fingers stroking again. “She seems innocent, despite her age.”
Lexi snorted from my other side. “Don’t bring up a woman’s age.” She reached over, nudging his hand away and letting me breathe. Her arm wrapped around my shoulders while her chest brushed against my arm. “I told you I thought she’d be your type.”
I shook my head, still unable to find words. They were wrong. I wasn’t anyone’s type. I was a ball of dread wrapped up in flesh. I was tempted to go hide behind Sean until these two very sexy people forgot I existed.
“Can I get you anything?” Jack asked, pulling my gaze to him.
I stared at him, finally able to focus on breathing as both Lexi and Victor placed their orders. Lexi’s arm around me felt like a trap, one I wanted to escape. I wasn’t ready for this, despite what Neil wanted.
Before Jack turned to make their drinks, he pointed at my half-full juice. “You still good?”
My tongue felt thick, too thick to talk. The question seemed like it was about more than just my drink. I reached for the glass, taking a stronger swallow and almost choking. “Can I have another?” I asked.
“Sure thing.” Jack studied me before he turned away.
Lexi squeezed my shoulder. “Do you want to ask me any questions?”
There were so many. I wasn’t sure where to start.
I must have hesitated too long because Lexi was already talking. “I’ll go first.” She leaned close to my ear, closer than Victor had. “Tell me what your man likes.”
I looked toward Neil. His flush hadn’t faded, and his green eyes were filled with that sparkle that I usually enjoyed but right then it just made my stomach sink more. He scooted closer to the bar so he could see us better. “It’s okay, Hailey. I want to hear what you say.”
I swallow, parting my lips. “Oh, well, his favorite shows—”
Lexi’s peal of laughter cut me off. “Sweetie, I meant in bed. How do I make him squirm?”
My body drenched in heat, like I was flushing all over.
“Fuck,” Victor breathed out beside me. His hand reached for mine still clutching my glass, his fingers dancing along the back of my hand. The touch made it even harder to think.
My mind was blank when Wendy dropped off the couple’s drinks, giving me a short reprieve. “Jack is still making yours,” she told me with a wink, and she took Victor’s card to start their tab.
I nodded dumbly, watching Victor continue to touch my hand.
“Victor is easy,” Lexi said. “He just likes to be in control.” She unwound her arm from my shoulders to reach for her drink. “I’ve got a feeling you won’t have a problem with that.”
I frown at my drink, lifting it to my lips, relieved when Victor’s hand dropped away.
If anything, I’d been the one leading when it came to sex with Neil. He’d always hesitate and give up easily, so I’d learned to distract him when what he was doing wasn’t working. Pretty soon, he hadn’t tried doing anything, and I was making sure things were over quickly.
“Don’t tell me you can’t think of a single thing that makes your man pant,” Lexi said.
“His neck,” I blurted out, flushing when they both stared at me. “He loves bites and licks along his neck. Oh, and his lip being bitten when we’re kissing.”
Lexi hummed in her throat. “So he likes it when teeth are sunk into him. Anything else?”
Jack returned, putting down my new drink. I nodded at him and thanked him, too embarrassed to continue while he was near. After a quick glance at my face, he took my empty glass and moved away.
“He likes to be teased,” I said more softly. “The feel of my hair dragging over his stomach when I—”
I broke off, realizing what I was telling them. Most interactions led with me going down on him. If I could, I’d keep going until I’d finished him off that way.
Victor leaned closer to me again. “Do you like letting his cock fill your mouth?”
I stiffened, shocked he would say something like that to me already. My throat became tight again.
Lexi waved him back. “You’ll have your turn. Let us ladies talk first.” Her red lips curved as she appraised me. “What else?”
I glanced at Neil, whose eyes were locked on me. He licked his lips, shifting on his seat as if he couldn’t sit still. As if I were turning him on.
“There’s a spot behind his, uh…” I lifted my hand in a cupping gesture, and Neil’s mouth opened in shock, his pupils dilating wider, darkening the green.
“Hailey,” he breathed out.
“What about your girl?” Victor asked. His hand grabbed mine, almost possessively, bringing it back down to the bar. “How would I best get sweet Hailey off?”
Neil blinked, straightening. His lips twisted. “If you figure it out, let me know.” He downed the rest of his whiskey, looking away.
A chill took over my body, chasing all the heat away, all but in my eyes. I blinked, staring down at the bartop where Victor had squeezed my hand even tighter.
“I think I have what I need,” Lexi said, popping up from her barstool.
She grabbed Neil’s arm, dragging him from his seat.
“This one needs to be taught a lesson, and I’m just the one to do it.
” Her smile showed a flash of white teeth, and she pressed up against him.
“If you like teasing, let’s see how you handle edging.
” She pulled him toward the door, and he took a stumbling step after her.
“Neil!” I hissed after him, the tightness in my chest breaking. He didn’t even look back before they slipped past Sean and out the door.
Sean’s eyebrows drew together as he watched them. When his head turned back toward me, I couldn’t meet his eyes. Had he heard any of that? No, the door wasn’t that close.
“What a bitch,” Victor muttered, his voice hard and flat. “I swear, if she didn’t suck cock better than anyone I’ve met, I would have gotten rid of her ages ago.”
I swiveled toward him, my eyes wide as I stared at his face. His blue eyes had grown hard, a tic appearing in his cheek above the line of his sculpted beard. His expression spread the growing chill inside of me.
He seemed to shrug off his annoyance, smiling at me again.
The sudden warmth he threw at me felt empty, wrong.
“She’s nothing like you.” He leaned toward me, his breath landing on my neck, making me want to jerk away from him.
“I can’t wait to get you somewhere private. Ready to get out of here, too?”
Was that my only option? Did I have to leave with this man I barely knew and who seemed to hate his girlfriend? At least, I was assuming she was his girlfriend and not his wife. He wasn’t wearing a ring.
My mind swirled as I looked into my bright drink. I swallowed, trying to figure out what to say.
He followed where my gaze had gone. “Want a little liquid courage first?” Victor chuckled. “I don’t mind that. It’ll make it easier for you to relax for what I want to do to you.”
The last words made my hand tremble as I reached for my drink. The fruitiness burned my throat when I swallowed this time. Maybe I should have been excited by what Victor said. This man would obviously be glad to touch me, in ways I probably couldn’t even imagine.
His arm settled around my shoulders, and I hunched forward under the weight. I took another sip, barely tasting it, then regretted it. The drink would be gone too quickly, and then what excuse would I use to stay?
Victor eyed the closest painting. “What a dump. This place needs some work.”
My hand tightened on the glass as I fought back my need to defend Jack’s bar.
“Was what your man said true?” Victor asked. “Has he never made you come?”
The question shocked me. Silence stretched between us. I blinked, realizing I was staring at the bar’s logo on a black shirt in front of me. Jack was standing there, his face still as he stared back at me. He cleared his throat, rubbing a hand against his neck.
“Uh, can I get you anything else?” he asked.
Victor’s arm tightened around me. “I think we’re ready to—”
“Another drink!” I blurted out.
Jack nodded, eyeing Victor as he moved away.
Victor’s arm slid away. “Be careful, Hailey. A little alcohol helps you loosen up, but too much and you can get too tired to play.”
“I’ll be fine,” I said, not willing to admit to him I hadn’t had a drop of alcohol that night.
Victor stiffened next to me. “Look at me,” he snapped.
My eyes met his as if pulled by a string.
“I understand you’re nervous, but I’ll only let you delay for so long.”
His expression looked like it had when he’d called his girlfriend a bitch. My heart thundered louder in my ears.
“I’m going to close out our tabs once that bartender returns. It’s time to go.” His beard tickled my cheek as he drew closer. “It’s time to let me do all sorts of nasty things to you.”
His words sounded more like a threat than a promise. I stared over his shoulder, seeing Sean in the doorway, his arms folded, a scowl on his face as he looked back at me.
“N-no,” I whispered.
Victor pulled away, letting me breathe again, even though his eyes had narrowed in a chilling way. “What do you mean, ‘no’? Neil told me this would be a sure thing.”
Some of the ice inside me melted with the flare of anger at his words. I swallowed, leaning away from him. “I decide who I sleep with, and I’m saying no.” The words wobbled at the end, but I lifted my chin anyway.
“You bitch,” Victor spat, leaning toward me and making my heart hammer.
An arm moved between us from the other side of the bar, slapping a receipt down. “Your tab is closed. Go ahead and leave,” Jack said.
The painful thudding inside my chest didn’t slow at all, even when Victor leaned back. He snatched the pen, marking a big, bold zero where the tip line was and signing his name. I couldn’t seem to breathe when he stood, hovering over me.
“No wonder your man wanted to fuck someone else. Your legs are sewn shut.” Victor turned around and stalked out.
When I finally took a breath, it seemed to heave and shudder. A hand landed over mine on the bar, squeezing gently.
“Hey, you’re okay.”
I lifted my gaze to see Jack staring back at me, his brows pulled together in concern.
“You’re okay,” he repeated.
“Dodged a bullet with that one,” Sean rumbled as he settled onto the barstool beside me. His large hand rubbed my back, softer than I would have expected it to feel. It didn’t give me the urge to jerk away from him. “I was worried you were going to leave with that guy.”
I swallowed, still shaking. “Me too,” I mumbled.
“I was surprised those were the ones you were meeting.” Sean pulled his arm away when I stiffened. “No judgment, honey. I just didn’t think you were the type.”
“So you heard what we were…” My cheeks grew pale as I gripped the bar.
“Kind of hard not to,” Jack admitted. “The first guy who showed up, you and him are together?”
I nodded, trying not to think about Neil at a hotel with the gorgeous Lexi. “For twelve years now.”
“But he wants to sleep with other people?” Sean asked.
I winced at hearing it said out loud.
“And that’s something you want, too?”
I glanced over at Sean, not sure what to say. “It might be a good idea. I mean, we’ve only—” I swallowed when I realized I had been about to tell them all about my sex life. “I didn’t expect it to be so hard,” I admitted instead.
Sean patted my back again. “This kind of thing can work, but you both have to be into it, and you both have to put each other first. You should talk with him tonight.” He rose from the barstool.
“But that guy was no good. I’m proud of you for following your gut.
” He pointed a finger at me. “Keep doing that.”
Jack reached for Victor’s empty glass. My eye caught on the bold zero with the slash through it on the signed receipt.
“I’m sorry about all this. I’ll make sure I tip you extra to make up for him.”
“Can’t,” Jack said. “I charged him for your tab, too.”
My eyes jerked up to his.
He shrugged, his lips twitching. “Seemed only fair. Hang around for a bit to give yourself time to settle.” He glanced toward the side of the bar, where people were milling around the stage. “Besides, you haven’t enjoyed any music yet. You like music, right?”
I nodded, more tension releasing from my neck as I gave myself permission to stay for a while. I would sip my sweet drink, listen to some music, and shove my anxiety down long enough to catch my breath.
A guitarist was doing some kind of test on the stage when Jack slid a basket of fries under my nose.
“On the house,” Jack said, smiling when I began to sputter. “I figured some salt to cut through all that sugar I’ve been serving you.” He nodded at my third empty glass, adding a glass of water in front of me.
I considered protesting, but there was a settling inside of me that wouldn’t let me. I lifted a fry to nibble.
This first Friday hadn’t been easy, but not everything was bad. I was glad to have met Jack and Sean, who seemed kind. And I had a new favorite indie band to add to my streaming playlist.