5. Mila
5
MILA
My hands brushed down the black apron I wore.
I was nervous.
Despite trying to put on a brave face in public, I was still nervous.
I was afraid I might fuck up somehow tonight and get fired, or run into trouble and not know how to get out of it, or?—
Whatever the worst-case scenarios might be, I’d thought of them about a million times already.
Being nervous wasn’t a foreign feeling to me.
I was always nervous back at the club?—
Or perhaps, anxious and wary would be the better words to describe it.
But I was good at acting confident.
I had to be.
Had to put on a “don’t fuck with me” face, otherwise, all the men, and even women, there would see it for what it was—a fucking weakness—and pounce.
I’d become so good at faking confidence, I had forgotten it was nothing more than a show, and that inside, there was still a part of me that was so unsure about my footing in the world.
I didn’t know how I was supposed to fake confidence in this totally new environment now.
At least, the club had been familiar.
It had been my life for the past twenty-four years, but this world?
This seemingly normal world…
This unfamiliar world, with a whole new set of people in it and I?—
I didn’t know how to act.
I nodded but didn’t say anything when Brent, the server in charge of training me, talked about tonight’s special.
The manager at Ron’s Pub hired me on the spot when I came in and asked for an application. That should have been my first sign that there was something off about this restaurant.
But they were desperate.
Another sign I ignored because I was desperate, too.
I looked down at the gray shirt I wore, depicting cartoonish designs of monsters standing in a row. To make matters worse, right where my boobs poked out were the words: Monster Friends .
I hadn’t realized this was one of the shirts I had packed in my escaped bag. But it was the only gray shirt I owned, and that was the uniform here. Casual gray tops and jeans.
I would have to dip into the stolen money and purchase more clothes.
But that was tomorrow’s problem.
Tonight, I had to serve people.
“You got it?” Brent asked my boobs.
I scowled, and if I weren’t so nervous about this job, I would have called him out on it.
Instead, I crossed my arms over my chest and plastered on a fake smile. “Yup.”
“Cool. You get sections thirty-two to thirty-four. Three small tables. Tips might not be the best, but it’s an easy start.” He grinned, still looking at my boobs, as if the fucker had developed X-ray vision.
I let out a small, tired sigh. “Right.”
Brent pointed at my section for the night. At least, he took his eyes off my chest long enough to look at me. “Get me if you have any questions or”—his eyes gleamed, and I had to stop myself from letting the disgust show on my face—“if you need anything else from me.”
“I got it,” I said, a little harsher than I meant to.
“Whatever,” he muttered, walking away. I didn’t miss the word “bitch” coming from under his breath.
I decided then that I would much rather get fired than ask him for anything else tonight.
I took my notepad from my apron, ignoring the way my hands shook.
“It’s going to be fine,” I whispered to myself.
It would have to be. I didn’t just escape Daniel Hayes’ grasp to falter now.
I walked up to my first table, where a couple was sitting. They looked like they might be on a first date, based on the body language and the shy glances exchanged between the two.
The more sentimental part of me felt a small yearning for that.
A first date was supposed to be sweet, if not a little nerve-wracking. Exciting. Mine had been anything but.
High school had been hell, mostly because everyone knew my dad’s reputation.
Some tried to chase me because they wanted the excitement of dating the daughter of the president of one of the most infamous MCs in the U.S.
Those were the kind of boys I stayed very far away from.
Most of the kids just left me alone.
I had agreed to one date, and learned a huge lesson that night.
I never tried to go on a date again. And it wasn’t like I had so much freedom to explore, even if my first hadn’t gone to such shit.
Things were much more isolated once I’d graduated high school, when I stopped interacting with anyone unless they were patch members or prospects of the club, or hang-arounds who hoped to attach themselves to dangerous men.
They weren’t the kind of people I wanted to interact with, much less bring into my life any more than necessary.
But now that I was free…
Perhaps there was a chance to get nervous over a first date.
To find a proper and normal boy to date.
I decided then that the man I ended up with would be a nice man.
Someone strong and sturdy.
Someone I could depend on.
I could feel a small thrill of excitement at the thought.
I could leave my former life behind.
I could be more than Daniel Hayes’ daughter.
For the first time in days, my smile was genuine as I greeted the couple.
Luckily, they didn’t ask many questions about the menu, because I didn’t know much about it, and they ordered quickly too.
I wrote it down on my notepad and dropped it off in the kitchen.
First order done.
I could do this.
I took a deep breath and walked up to my next table. Four girls around my age, if not a little older, had come in. I got there just in time to hear one of them complain about the slow service.
I pretended not to hear.
This was what I imagined a girls’ night out would look like.
“Hi. My name is Mila. Can I get you folks something to drink?”
The brunette, the one sitting furthest away from me, offered a kind smile. “Just a Coke is fine.”
I nodded and turned to the other three. Two blondes and one redhead.
It was the redhead who made me falter. She was also the one who had complained about the service, so I wasn’t off to a good start with her.
She was beautiful, no doubt about it, but there was an air about her that could only be classified as mean.
I didn’t know how else to describe it, and I found myself taking half a step back before I realized what I was doing.
I stood my ground.
Sometimes, I wished I looked like her.
Looked more like my mom, who, like the redhead, also looked mean.
Instead, I appeared younger than I actually was. I got what Dad had called “young features.”
He had said that with a sleazy smile on his face, right before he said it was good, since most men loved the innocent, girl-next-door look. Which all just ensured I hated my features even more.
My face made people think I didn’t have a lot of experience—and that they could teach me.
I swallowed back the bile making its way up my throat from the memory and shook my head as the redhead snapped her fingers at me.
“God, are you stupid? Can’t you pay attention?” She sneered.
I blinked. “Right. Sorry, what can I get you?”
“Just some water with a slice of lemon and a Long Island iced tea, if you think you can handle that.”
“Annette,” the brunette said, looking at me with sympathetic eyes.
“What?” Annette asked, glaring over at me. “She’s the one staring off into space and not doing her job right.”
I looked over to where Jon, the manager, was watching, before turning back to them and offering a small smile. “I apologize.”
I quickly took the drink order for the other two girls. “I’ll put your order in right away.”
I walked away before they could say anything else.
Jon stopped me just as I dropped the drink order off at the bar.
“Everything okay, Mila?”
I turned to him. “Of course.”
He didn’t look like he believed me. “Right. Just remember to smile. And don’t worry too much about this. Most of my customers are men and they should be easier to handle. Especially if you remember to smile at them.”
It took everything in me to keep smiling.
I nodded and moved around him to the kitchen to find my order for the couple was ready.
Just six more hours until my shift ended.
Thirty minutes later, the couple was getting ready to pay for their bill, and the group of girls still hadn't made a dent in their main course.
I tapped my pen against the counter, watching my section. The third table still hadn’t been seated yet, and I should have been thankful for the slow night, but it seemed to only be slow in my section.
Once the couple left, I would only have one table to tend to while all the other wait staff was busy.
I hadn’t realized until now how much I hated being idle, as I stared at the empty table and waited for some group to fill it.
The boy from my first table stood up, and he helped his date with her jacket. I waited for them to leave before walking over to the table to grab the check so the table could be bussed.
Just as I was about to walk back to my spot on the counter, the redhead from the other table raised her hand and snapped her fingers to get my attention.
I held in a groan and walked over to them.
“How can I help you?”
She pointed rudely at her half-empty cup of Long Island iced tea. “Refill.”
“Right away,” I responded, about to move away from the table once more when I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up on end.
I’d felt it earlier today when I got back from grocery shopping, but had put it off as paranoia when nothing happened. I couldn’t do that now, especially when I felt the energy in the entire pub shift as a gust of air blew in from the open door.
It shouldn’t have been loud, but the small slam of the front door seemed to be in tandem with my erratic heart, making it stall for two long seconds before picking up again, weighing me down a ton.
I was hot and cold all at once.
I swallowed when the redhead said—loud enough for me to hear—“Fuck. Look at those men. You can tell they know what they’re doing in bed just by looking at them.”
My mouth was dry, and I licked my lips as one of the blondes made a small noise in agreement.
I turned around. My eyes seemed to follow the energy in the room as my gaze made its way to the three beasts talking to the hostess and waiting to be seated.
Everything in me froze at the sight of them.
And I didn’t know why.
I wasn’t sure where to settle my eyes.
They were huge. Mammoth-sized. If their sexual appeal didn’t draw so much energy to them, then their size surely would. All of them were beautiful in very different ways.
The man in the middle drew my eyes first.
I estimated him to be around six-foot-six or six-foot-seven—I couldn’t be sure. My head wouldn’t even reach his shoulder.
I gulped.
A man like that looked like he could eat me alive and still have room left over for dinner.
He could so easily crush me, and I doubted he would even break a sweat. His dark blue eyes aimed directly at me, as if he had been looking for me, out of everyone in this entire pub, all along.
I was struck frozen again.
He seemed uninterested in everything that went on around him. Indifferent.
But I knew better.
I knew a dangerous man when I saw one, and this man had danger written all over him. From his short dark-brown—maybe black—hair that seemed to rest in a messy, careless array on top of his head, down to the intelligent blue eyes that made me feel naked, to his broad shoulders and powerful arms that even the tight, long-sleeved black T-shirt he had on couldn’t disguise. He was everything I should stay away from.
I shouldn’t be interested in him, not when I had worked so hard to get away from men like him.
Yet my body’s reaction to the man was insane.
My cheeks felt hot from the blush that was starting to form.
I was not a blushing kind of girl.
At least, I hadn’t thought I was, but the heat was already traveling down my chest to where my heart lay, thumping against my rib cage as if begging to be let out.
I shifted on my feet awkwardly and turned to the man on his right before quickly looking away.
Fuck.
This one was worse than the one in the middle.
Because I much preferred indifference over blatant hostility, which was the only way to describe this second man.
He was only slightly smaller than the first man, which meant he was still monster-sized. An intimidating presence, and I was intimidated. He would surely tower over me had I been brave enough to stand close to him.
He didn’t exactly look like the first man, but I guessed they were related—their noses were similar.
Distinguished, strong noses that spoke of power and tied their features together in such an appealing way.
His eyes were a dark brown that made me think of the devil, and his brown hair was perhaps a shade or two lighter than the first man. He was much more beautiful than any man I had ever before come across.
Yet the word “beautiful” felt too tame to describe such a man, especially as he seemed to take up too much.
I shifted when his expression darkened even more, but I continued to stare at him.
I looked away quickly, and took in the third man. Everything in me went still.
Golden brown eyes and black midnight hair lay in a chaotic heap on the top of his head, and both sides were shaved to the scalp. He was a lethal combination of charm and danger.
Any doubt in my mind that these three men were related was quickly blasted away after looking at this one. He was a combination of both men beside him, coming into such a unique-looking package, I didn’t know how to look away from him.
Unlike the second man, who looked hostile, this one looked like he kept his danger close to his heart. Enabling him to lure his victims in with a subtle sense of security before doling out a deadly strike.
You would have never seen him coming.
He wasn’t as handsome as the second man, and was probably two or three inches shorter than the first, which wasn’t all that short, but he definitely had them both beat in bulk.
His muscles drew my attention before my gaze traveled down his body and came back up to meet those fascinating eyes of his. Golden brown. That was the color of his eyes. I didn’t think I had ever seen a shade of brown quite like his before. A hot flush ran through the length of me?, but I hoped my reaction wasn’t obvious.
There was just something intriguing about his features that made me want to get as close to him as possible.
I took a half a step back instead.
This man had the second man’s eyes, only on him, they didn’t seem too harsh. But that was probably because he was smiling at me.
Why was he smiling at me?
I blinked.
Why the hell was he still smiling at me like that?
I probably didn’t hide my wariness from him very well because his smile widened, showing off a straight row of teeth, his canine much more prominent than the others—sharp-looking, too.
I shivered, and his eyes glinted, as if he found my reaction amusing.
The hostess flipped her hair over her shoulder and said something with a flirtatious laugh. Not that any of the men were paying attention to her.
No, they were all looking at me. I didn’t know why that was, but I could feel danger when it was directed at me.
The middle one—who seemed to be some sort of leader for this trio—said something to the hostess and pointed at me.
I was a deer staring into the bloody jaws of a lion—or, in this case, three ravenous lions—and I didn’t know how to react.
I didn’t know which lion was least likely to eat me alive.
The hostess moved her attention to me and glared.
I frowned back before turning and walking back to the bar to get Annette a refill of her drink.
I didn’t even know the hostess’ name yet.
What could she possibly think I had done to earn that look from her?
I grabbed the straw wrapper lying on the bar top nearby and started to tear into it while I waited.
Jordan, the bartender, came back with the drink and a smile.
I offered a small smile back.
He was the only one who had been nice to me since I got here, and he hadn’t once leered at my boobs.
I returned to my section and paused when I found the three men there.
They were all looking at me—one with expressionless, indifferent eyes, one with light amusement, and the third with a glare, his lips thinned into a vicious scowl.
What. The. Hell.
I set the drink next to Annette, who, at this point, was no longer paying me any attention. Her focus was intently on the three dangerous men, and I almost rolled my eyes when I caught sight of the sparkling engagement ring on her finger.
I walked away without stopping at the table of the men and strolled up to the counter I had been hiding behind for most of my shift.
A platinum-blonde waitress whose name I didn’t know was standing there.
I shot her a small smile. “Hey, do you mind doing me a favor?”
“What?” she asked warily.
I pointed to the table. “Can you take them?”
Her eyes instantly perked up. “You mean those three brothers who just came in? You know, Riley hadn’t stopped talking about them since she showed them to the table.”
“Right. Yes. Do you want them?”
She pulled back a little and looked at me. “Why don’t you want them?”
“I make it a point not to interact with men like that,” I said quietly.
They reminded me too much of the men at the club, no matter how “pretty” they might be.
She looked me up and down, and I could see the curiosity in her light-blue eyes, as if trying to guess what sort of trauma I might have been through in my life to make me react this way.
I wouldn’t tell her anything.
I wasn’t planning on making any friends here. I was leaving as soon as I came up with a plan for my life.
Settling down in New Orleans wasn’t it.
She flipped her hair over her shoulder and shot me a coy smile. “Sure,” she said, heading toward the table.
I watched their interaction behind the safety of the counter, and watched as the man who smiled at me darkened his expression.
He said something to the waitress before the biggest of the men chimed in.
The waitress went from perky to deflated in three seconds flat, and she headed back my way with a glare and red cheeks.
“They only want you as their waitress,” she said nastily. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but next time, just take care of your tables, okay?”
She didn’t give me a chance to reply. She was already barging into the kitchen.
I stared after her for a second or two before turning back to the men.
Their attention was already on me, and despite a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I forced myself to walk up to them with a smile.
“Hi. My name is Mila, and I will be your waitress for this evening. What can I get you gentlemen?”
“A bit of your time would be great,” one of them said. It was the man who’d smiled at me.
The man who didn’t look like he wanted to kill me shook his head. “Don’t mind Silas. He’s just eager.”
Eager for what?
I didn’t dare ask.
I took a step back. “Sorry. I’m working. But I can give you more time to look at the menu, if you need.”
I was about to turn and walk away when a large hand wrapped around my forearm.
A silly thing, really, to see the size of this hand wrapped around my arm as if it was a stick a child would play with on the playground.
It was the first man who had grabbed me. The one who exuded power with his mere presence, the one who looked like he was in charge of the other two very powerful men.
“Let go of me,” I said quietly.
I didn’t move. I didn’t dare to move.
My heart pounded erratically in my chest from fear. I was afraid one small movement from me would prompt him to snap my arm in half.
Surely, it wouldn’t take much effort on his part.
His eyes twinkled in amusement, then after one long second, he finally let go.
I took a step back.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you, little monster.”
I wrinkled my nose at the stupid nickname.
How clever.
Because I was wearing a monster shirt, he thought it would be funny to call me that.
I wasn’t the one who looked like a mythical villain come to life from a child’s fantasy book.
A twinkle entered his eyes, and I had the distinct feeling he was laughing at me. Not so emotionless.
I might like his indifference more than this new side, because even when he was trying to play “nice,” there was something ironic about it. As if he knew something I didn’t, and something told me I didn’t want to know what that was.
I didn’t say anything.
I didn’t know what to say, not when I could feel the heavy stares from three sets of eyes on me, marking me in some way.
“Why don’t we start with three glasses of water?” the man said.
I nodded and quickly backed away.
Just before I could get out of earshot, I heard one of them say to the other, “Timid little thing, isn’t she?”
I didn’t turn around to check who said it. I had a feeling it was the grumpy one of the trio. While the other two were intimidating and scary in their own right, there was just something downright spine-chilling about that man.
I quickly filled three glasses with water and put them on a tray. My hands shook as I attempted to pick it up, and I felt a small tinge of annoyance working its way through my body.
They shouldn’t be able to affect me like this, but they did. As much as I hated it, I couldn’t help it.
Worse, I didn’t know if the effect they had on me was fear or?—
Lust.
There was something seriously wrong with me. And I hated this.
My gaze moved to the back door, just off to the side of where the two-way kitchen door was.
I could leave right now.
I’d left my purse in my car.
I didn’t bring anything into the restaurant except the black apron they had given me at the interview.
I could leave and never look back.
Perhaps New Orleans was a bad choice.
I could leave tonight and be on my way?—
Anywhere.
I could go anywhere. It didn’t matter. It didn’t have to be New Orleans.
But the thought of packing up everything once more and leaving simply because of three men I didn’t know…
I shook my head.
I didn’t want to be chased out of the city just because three men affected me in ways they shouldn’t.
I doubted I would run into them again.
Besides, it wasn’t like I would see them after tonight.
I shivered at the thought, and I wondered if that was an omen of some sort.
Realizing I had taken way longer than I should have to get water, I quickly shook off my tremors and grabbed the tray, sending out a small prayer that I didn’t drop it and embarrass myself.
I walked over to my section.
The four girls from before had finished their meals but didn’t show any signs of leaving.
I knew why.
Annette was working up the courage to approach the three men.
I didn’t know which man she had her eyes on, but I shouldn’t care.
I ignored her and headed straight to the men. I caught the tail end of their conversation.
“…we should probably head home soon, Maverick. We’ve already wasted enough time as it is.”
It was the second man who spoke. The one who looked like he hated me on sight, and he was speaking to the leader—Maverick.
Something about the name tugged on my memory, but I didn’t know why that was.
I slowed when Silas spoke. “Soon. We’ll leave as soon as we get what we need.”
The second man scowled at Silas, and for a moment, I was afraid a fight might break out, but Maverick placed a large hand on the other man’s shoulder.
“Killian—”
He stopped talking when they all noticed me standing there.
I was no more than three feet from the table, and I hadn’t realized I’d stopped until three sets of intimidating eyes turned my way.
I swallowed and slowly walked up to them.
Though my hands shook earlier, it was nothing compared to how bad they were as I set the glasses down.
“You okay?” Silas asked.
I could only nod, pulling out my pad and offering a fake smile.
I didn’t know why I was feeling so off about these three men. My gut told me to run away as fast and as far from them as possible.
But there was something else. Something I didn’t know how to explain.
I wanted to get away from them, yet I also wanted to burrow deep beneath their skin.
Perhaps the club had messed me up more than I thought. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have found these dangerous men to be so fucking fascinating.
“Are you gentlemen ready to order?”
Maverick’s lips twisted in an amused smile at my words. Almost as if he found it funny that I called them “gentlemen.”
While there was nothing gentlemanly about the men, Maverick dressed like he could belong behind the table of a high-power boardroom meeting, or perhaps the cover of GQ magazine. Surely those deep blue eyes of his would sell millions of copies.
He flashed them up at me, and I gulped without thinking about it.
His smile widened, showing teeth. Much as how the Big Bad Wolf was described before he devoured the Three Little Pigs.
Was I the little pig in this scenario?
I didn’t want to be a defenseless little piglet.
“What do you recommend, angel?”
The question came from Silas. I could feel my face twisting a little from the nickname, and I couldn’t decide how I felt about it.
I had been called lots of things in my life, especially by my father’s men, but when they called me things like sweetheart or baby, there was almost always a mocking undertone.
I supposed I was trying to figure out if that was the case with Silas.
He looked me directly in the eyes with an expectant expression. He must have been a really good actor because I couldn’t hear even a hint of mockery.
As if angel was fitting for me when I looked the way I did right now.
I shifted on my feet.
“I wouldn’t know,” I said quietly. “Tonight is my first night working here.”
Something changed in his eyes, but I couldn’t begin to guess what it was, even if I tried.
I resisted the urge to run out of there.
As much as they fascinated me, they terrified me even more.
Maverick spoke then. “Steak for me, little monster.”
I didn’t bother commenting on the nickname. What were the odds that I would see him again after tonight?
A chill went up my spine at the thought, but I ignored that and asked, “How would you like it cooked?”
“Rare,” he answered smoothly.
I nodded and turned to Silas. “I think I’ll have the full rack of ribs,” he said. “And put extra barbeque sauce on the side for me, won’t you?”
Another charming smile was shot my way. If I wasn’t so cynical, I might have fallen hard for that smile of his.
Instead, I just nodded, feeling as though my voice was robbed in their presence.
I braced myself as I turned to the third man— Killian .
His name matched him well.
And sure enough, he didn’t disappoint when I was met with dissatisfied dark eyes, as if I didn’t just offend him, but his entire lineage as well.
I resisted the urge to back away from him. Instead, I pushed my chin out, as if to challenge the monster—like I would have had a chance in hell going up against this man.
“I’ll have what he’s having,” he said, pointing his finger at Maverick.
I nodded. I didn’t bother asking him how he would like his steak cooked. The less time I spent in the man’s presence, the better.
I turned and walked out of there, sure I hadn’t imagined the low, dark chuckle coming from the table as I did so.
I wasn’t a fucking toy for them to get amusement from.
I shook my head.
God, my shift had barely started, and the night already felt like it would be a long one.
I quickly sent the order into the kitchen and hid out in the back, trying to get my bearings straight.
It wouldn’t do me any good to show them how badly they affected me.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
“Everything okay, Mila?”
I jumped and turned to see Brent standing there, a strange look in his eyes. I blinked, and the strange look disappeared, leaving behind an apathetic expression.
“Yup,” I said, turning away from him and hoping he would get the hint and just give me five minutes of peace.
No such luck.
“You know, if you need anything, just come look for me.”
Right.
Asking Brent for help would be the last resort. I didn’t like the way he looked at me. At least being in the club had taught me to distinguish between the bad men and the worse ones.
Brent wasn’t the worst of the worst, but he sure as hell wasn’t good either.
He hid it well. Behind the messy brown hair and unassuming clothes, he looked almost… harmless.
“I’m fine,” I said without looking over at him.
I heard him mutter a small “whatever” before he shuffled out of there, and I was left with no time to myself. I straightened and brushed my damp hands down my apron before making my way to the kitchen.
Right on time to see the men’s food was up.
I grabbed the plates and transferred them to a tray before I walked them to the table. They didn’t look up at me as I approached, yet I got the feeling they were aware of me.
Silas looked up at me first, and as usual, there was a charming smile in place on his face already.
Why did he look at me like?—
Like it was already a foregone conclusion that I would be his, temporary as it might be?
I looked away from his intense, dark gaze as I set his plate down in front of him. He moved his hand to adjust the cup of water in front of him, his muscular arm brushing up against my nipples.
I gasped, startled by the sensation as bolts of electricity moved up and down my body. I couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or not.
He caught my eyes, that smile of his widening.
A bad thing.
It was definitely a bad thing.
I stepped back when a strange look crossed his face, even as the smile stayed on his face.
There was something almost… hungry about the look. I swallowed hard and moved around him to give Maverick his plate.
He was quiet when I set it down in front of him, though I felt his eyes on me the entire time. I resisted the urge to scream that I really wasn’t all that interesting. I quickly moved to the final man. The man I had been trying to avoid. I couldn’t see his eyes when I set the plate down in front of him.
Though I was good at putting up a front, under his gaze, I felt all that slip away. I took a step back once I was done.
“Would you like anything else?” I asked quietly.
Silas looked like he wanted to say something, but Maverick beat him to it. “That’s all. Thank you.”
I turned and forced myself to walk away at a normal pace and not run out of there like I really wanted to do.
I walked back to the table where Annette was sitting with her friends.
They were all finished with their meals.
“Can I get you anything?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Annette answered without glancing at me. “A round of margaritas for us.”
I nodded, though no one was paying me any attention. They barely noticed when I took away some of their empty plates.
Every single one of them was focused on the men. I should want the men to pay attention to the women at this table and leave me alone, yet the thought of it felt like lead in my stomach, and I didn’t know why that was. I didn’t want their attention.
I didn’t know them.
I walked over to the bar and placed their drink order, trying hard not to look at the brothers’ table.
I didn’t look, but I knew their eyes were on me, especially the smiley one… Silas .
By the time the drinks were made and I was on my way to bring them over to the women, careful not to spill anything, Annette, the brazen girl that she was, was approaching the brothers’ table.
I watched her make a slow perusal of each man, as if she couldn’t decide which one she wanted more. A sort of heaviness settled uncomfortably in my chest as she first took in Killian, found the permanent scowl on his face, and moved quickly over to Maverick, pausing slightly before finally settling her gaze on Silas.
I set the drinks down for the girls, but no one from the table was paying me a bit of attention. They all watched, as if with bated breath, as their friend reached over and tapped Silas on the shoulder.
Three pairs of intimidating eyes swung her way, and I had to give it to her for holding her ground.
Aside from the slight, barely noticeable faltering of her smile, she didn’t appear to be intimidated by the men at all.
I set the final glass down. I should probably go to the back, but watching Annette about to flirt with one of the brothers was like watching a car heading toward a collision.
You knew what was about to happen, but you found yourself unable to tear your eyes away.
Annette twirled her hair with her finger delicately as she kept her eyes on Silas.
“Hi.”
The brothers shared a look with each other briefly before they turned back to her, not saying anything.
I cringed inwardly as she shifted on her feet and let out a small, nervous laugh.
“Um, my friends and I couldn’t help but notice you guys the second you walked in. We were wondering if you would like to join us… all of you.”
Silas was the one who broke the silence first, considering she had her eyes trained on him. “And what would we be doing if we joined you?”
There was a slight smirk on his lips that I couldn’t be sure was arrogance or mockery.
Perhaps a little bit of both.
“Anything you want,” she said huskily.
I blinked in surprise at the sudden change in her voice.
“No,” Silas answered. His voice wasn’t mean or cold. It wasn’t nice or sympathetic either. It wasn’t really anything.
“What?” she asked in surprise, as if she couldn’t believe he would say no to her.
“No,” he repeated. Then his eyes moved past her and aimed directly at me.
I froze.
I had been so invested in how everything was going to play out that I wasn’t ready when he suddenly took me in, as if he was the devil coming for my soul.
“I have plans.”
Not if those plans included me, he didn’t. As if he could read the defiance on my face and knew it was directed at him, he smiled.
I narrowed my gaze at him.
“Well, maybe not tonight?—”
“I have plans tonight, and every other night from now on.”
What the fuck was that supposed to mean, and was there a way I could get him to stop smiling at me so… creepily ?
I didn’t say anything when Annette looked back at me. Her glare seemed to burn a hole in my skin.
“I think perhaps it's time you give us our check,” said the brunette, the only one at the table who had been nice to me.
I nodded.
“And just charge it all to one bill,” she added before I could ask.
I quickly walked away, not bothering to look back at the girls at the table, and certainly not at the men at the table next to theirs.
My hands shook as I printed the check. It felt like my life had just irrevocably changed, and I was powerless to stop it.