The Scientist

Chapter 17

“E verything okay?” Jace asked as I stomped down the steps of their porch.

“Yes, everything’s fine. Your boss is just being a dick,” I grumbled.

“Yeah, he’s been like that all day,” he said, chuckling. “Although I think I’m starting to see why.”

He was looking past me toward the house, and I turned to see Lex glowering at us from inside the doorway.

“Maybe you could explain it to me then, because he basically just told me I looked like a slut.”

Jace looked stunned. “He did?”

“He didn’t use those words, but yes.”

He shook his head. “That doesn’t sound like him. He usually doesn’t bother to notice anyone, much less how they’re dressed.”

“Great,” I said sarcastically. “I love being the exception to that rule.”

Jace chuckled. “We’ve worked together for a long time. He’s a good guy. I’m sure he didn’t mean it. He’s just not used to feeling this way.”

“What way?” I asked.

He looked back at Lex once more and then grinned at me as if it were obvious. “Jealous.”

Before I could tell him how ridiculous that was, Stuart, Dan, and Peter all came running out the door. “Let’s go before daddy puts us in timeout,” Stuart said, throwing on his jacket.

I waved goodbye to Jace as Stuart pulled me along.

“Shotgun!” Peter called out as the Uber driver pulled up.

I got in the car as carefully as I could without flashing anyone, which proved to be quite the challenge, while Stuart sat between Dan and me in the back seat.

“Where we heading?” Stuart asked.

“Sarah said they’re at the Whiskey Cowboy,” I answered.

Dan turned to me. “Isn’t that the bar with the mechanical bull?”

“Yeah, I think so,” I told him.

“You plan on trying it out, Dan?” Stuart asked.

Dan shook his head. “No. You know my carpal tunnel’s been flaring up.”

“For the love of god, if you’re talking to a woman tonight, please don’t bring up your dainty wrist problems,” Stuart said, exasperated.

“It’s a serious condition, dude,” Dan retorted.

I was too distracted by what Jace had just told me to pay attention to the rest of their conversation. Was it possible that Lex was actually jealous? I knew I was. Thinking about him and Nicky sitting together at that table made me see red, and the irrational thoughts took over. I hated being jealous. It was an emotion that inevitably made people act out of character. Normally, I would have brushed off his comment about the way I was dressed, but the damn jealousy made me act like a petty jerk.

Stuart had his phone sitting on his lap when I saw it light up, but he was too busy arguing with Dan to notice. When I saw who the message was from, I couldn’t help but peek at what it said.

Alexsander Strovinski :Don’t let anything happen to her or I’ll kill you myself.

My heart stuttered. Was this about me? I had no way of knowing for sure who he was talking about, but just the possibility that he was talking about me was enough to assuage my anger.

We arrived at the bar in no time.

I let Sarah know we had made it after giving my ID to the bouncer. I waited inside the door for the guys to come in when I spotted Sarah walking over with a beautiful blonde, dressed in a short white dress with a pink sash that read brIDE .

“You’re here!” Sarah had to shout over the music playing. “You look so hot!”

“So do you!” I said, laughing and giving her the once over. She was dressed in a strapless, sequin number with her long legs on full display.

She pointed to the blonde at her side. “This is my friend, Emily.”

I smiled at her. “The bride, I presume.”

“What gave me away?” she said with a curtsy.

“You look beautiful. Congratulations,” I told her.

“Thank you, but I’d kill for your tits,” she said. “Just thought I’d let you know because I can’t stop staring at them.”

I started to laugh, taking a liking to her immediately. “Are you having fun so far?”

“I was until I discovered I started my fucking period just now. Great time to be wearing all white.” Emily took a large swallow of her drink.

“We talking periods?” Stuart walked up behind me flanked by Dan and Peter. “Medieval’s my favorite.”

“Benowitz,” Sarah said curtly.

“Samaha,” he said in return with a coy smile. “You’re looking lovely as ever.”

She smiled sweetly back at him. “And you’re looking… delusional as ever.”

“Come on. I just got here,” Stuart whined, dropping the flirting act.

“Emily, these are my friends. This is Stuart, Dan, and Peter. We all live in the faculty housing units together,” I said, introducing the guys to the bride. “They’re all neuroscientists doing research at the university.”

“What in the Big Bang Theory?” Emily said, looking between the four of us.

“Nice to meet you, Emily.” Stuart put his game face back on. “The groom is a lucky man.”

“Damn right he is,” she said, raising her glass.

“Should we get a drink?” I looked around at everyone. “First round’s on me.”

“Yes!” Sarah exclaimed. “Let’s do a round of shots.”

“I’ll go get them. Be right back.”

I made my way over to the bar through the crowd of people. I leaned over to get the bartender’s attention and got a big surprise when he finally turned around. Merrick started making his way over to me with a roguish grin on his face.

“Hey,” I said, surprise coloring my tone. After our memorable dinner, I had seen him a few more times at the guys’ house when I’d been over, but it had been a while.“What are you doing here? I thought you worked for a shipping company.”

“I still do. I work here on the weekends sometimes to make extra cash.” His eyes moved over the length of me. “You here alone?”

“No, I’m here with some friends.” I motioned to where they were standing.

“Where’s Lex?” he asked.

“Poker tournament.”

“Huh,” was all he said.

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing. I just thought he’d be here with you.”

“Why would you think that?”

“Just thought you guys were kind of a package deal.”

That hit a nerve. “Well, we’re not,” I said sharply, unable to hide my annoyance.

“So, you’re telling me that he’d rather be hanging out with a bunch of guys playing poker than be out with you?”

“Oh, there are girls there too,” I said before I could stop myself. Nicky’s head leaning against his shoulder was still burned into my retinas at the moment.

His eyes flared with excitement when he noticed my jealousy.

He leaned over the bar toward me. “Men can be idiots.”

“I noticed.” I eyed him meaningfully.

He chuckled. “Look, I’ve been wanting to apologize for how I acted when we first met. I know I came on strong.”

“I’d say a wrestler’s entrance is more subtle,” I said, to which he laughed again.

“I really am sorry.” He sounded sincere. “But in my defense, you really are that beautiful.”

I looked at him doubtfully.

“I think I was just trying to find my place with them,” he said, surprising me.

“What do you mean?” I asked curiously.

“I mean there are times when we hang out that I don’t understand half the things they’re saying. It’s like they’re speaking a different language. I just got excited thinking I would finally have someone on my side that night. Someone who wouldn’t look at me like I was an idiot for not knowing what a presynaptic, astrological krypton cell is.”

I smiled despite myself. “I get it.”

Sometimes they would get deep into conversation about things happening at work or in the science world, and I’d find myself totally lost. It was hard to keep up. But it wasn’t a blow to my ego the same way that it seemed to be to him.

“Anyway, when Stuey stops glaring at me, I’ll apologize to him too.”

I glanced back to see Stuart was indeed glaring at the two of us, but mostly at Merrick. It suddenly occurred to me that Merrick had been intimidated by Stuart. Not physically, but mentally. Sweet, tiny Stuart made Merrick feel about two feet tall.

“I wouldn’t call him Stuey in that apology if I were you,” I suggested.

“Noted,” he said, chuckling. “So, what’ll it be?”

“Six shots of Patrón, please.”

“You got it,” he said with a wink.

Sarah came over to help grab the shots he had poured for us.

“Well, have a good night,” I said before walking back to the rest of the group.

“Who was that?” she asked as we made our way through the crowd.

“One of Lex’s childhood friends. We’ve hung out a few times.”

“He’s gorgeous.” She was glancing conspiratorially over her shoulder at him. “And he’s staring at you like you’re solely responsible for global warming.” She laughed, nudging me with her elbow. “Or are you too caught up with the scientist to notice?”

I ignored her mention of Lex. I didn’t feel like talking about him after our little spat tonight.

“Obviously he’s hot, but he’s kind of a jerk.” Although now that he laid out his insecurities about the way being around the guys made him feel, I was starting to see the situation differently.

She sighed. “Shame.”

We handed the shots out to everyone when I noticed Stuart still glaring at Merrick. “What’s he doing here?”

“He’s working,” I told him.

“There are plenty of bars in San Francisco.”

“Maybe he was hoping he would run into you,” I said. “Seeing as you two are such good friends.”

“I don’t think it’s me he was hoping to run into,” he spat.

“Let’s kick this bachelorette party off!” Sarah raised her shot glass. “To Emily and Liam!”

“Emily and Liam!” we all said, toasting our glasses together. My eyes watered as the tequila burned its way down my throat. I welcomed it.

We met the rest of the bridal party, including the groom, to whom I was first introduced after he was flung from the mechanical bull. They were all very welcoming and all very drunk.

We bar-hopped over the next few hours but ended up back at the Whiskey Cowboy once the live band started playing. I was worried the guys would feel out of place not knowing anyone, but they were having the most fun out of any of us. At one point, Sarah and I looked on horrified as Stuart drunkenly made out with one of Emily’s bridesmaids. Peter and Dan jumped on stage with the other groomsmen and sang along with the band as they played AC/DC’s“You Shook Me All Night Long.”

Sarah and I were dancing and laughing together until our stomachs hurt as we watched it all unfold. The alcohol made everything seem a million times funnier than it really was. I could almost forget about what had happened earlier with Lex.

When the band started to play a slow song, I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Merrick, holding out his hand to me.

“I’m a terrible dancer, but I’m willing to risk it all for you,” he said, smiling. I scrutinized him for a moment, wondering about his motivations before I finally relented. One dance couldn’t hurt, right? I sighed before placing my hand in his. Sarah winked at me as she walked off the dance floor.

“Is this even allowed?” I asked. “Will you get in trouble?”

“I don’t think there are any rules about dancing in the bartender code of ethics,” he teased. “Besides, I’m on my break.”

He pulled me in close, putting one hand around my waist and holding the other out by our chests. I could feel the warmth of his body pressed against mine. It felt like a betrayal even though logically I knew the only person I was betraying was myself. I may be unattached, but my feelings definitely were not. I didn’t want to give him the wrong impression, so I tried to put some distance between us.

“Are you having fun?” he asked close to my ear.

“Yes,” I answered truthfully.

“I was watching you out there. It looked like you were having a good time. It was nice seeing you smile like that. Lex is a fool to miss it.”

“I’m sure he’s fine.” I regretted letting him see that I was jealous earlier. I could already feel he was going to try and zero in on it.

“It was that coworker of his, wasn’t it? The one with the pink hair?”

That shocked the hell out of me. How did he know it was Nicky? I pulled back to look him in the face. “Do you know her?”

“I’ve met her a few times when I’ve been over hanging out with them. She always seemed to be dropping by. I didn’t know if something was going on between them.”

I shrugged, pretending like I didn’t know and didn’t care.

“They say he’s a genius, but I’m not so sure. No man in his right mind would prefer any other woman over you.”

“I don’t really care,” I said. He laughed, obviously not believing me.

He pulled me in even closer. “A little piece of advice?”

“If you must.” I was ready for this damn song to be over.

“Don’t waste your time. Nothing is more important to him than his job… or should I say no one.”

Before I could respond, I felt someone wrap their hands around my right arm, tugging at it clumsily. I turned to see Stuart, his eyes glazed over from the alcohol but still determined.

“What the fuck, man?” Merrick scowled at Stuart.

“What are you doing?” I asked as he continued trying to pull me away.

“I’m s‘posed to be takin’ carof you t’night,” he slurred.

“I’m fine,” I told him.

“You o’viously drunker thn I thought if yur dancin’ with dis asshole.”

“I think it’s you who’s shitfaced.” I was watching him now using my arm to keep himself upright.

“Yeah, man. I think you should head on home now, Stuey,” Merrick said.

“Stuey will kick your ass!” He balled his fists up in front of his face, the move causing him to start tipping over.

“Okay, okay. I think you’re done.” I grabbed Stuart and held him up, looking around for Dan and Peter. I spotted them talking to a few girls in the corner of the room.

I put Stuart’s arm over my shoulder and turned to Merrick. “I've got to go. Thanks for the dance.”

“Remember what I said, Hadley.”

I didn’t bother responding as I walked off.I found Sarah and told her I was taking Stuart home.

“You need help?” she asked as she watched Stuart barely able to keep his eyes open.

“No, I’m good. I just need to talk to Dan and Peter.”

“I’ll go get them,” Sarah offered, making her way towards the guys.

Dan and Peter walked away from their company begrudgingly.

“Do we really have to go?” Peter whined.

“There’s still a few more hours until the bars close,” Dan added.

“Stuart here won’t make it a few more hours,” I pointed out. “But I’ll take him. You guys can stay and have fun.”

“You sure?” Peter asked. He couldn’t hide the excitement in his voice.

“Yeah, I was ready to go anyway.” Merrick had effectively killed my buzz.

The night had grown cooler, and I began to really regret my choice of outfit. My arms and legs were covered in goosebumps as Peter and Dan helped me get Stuart to the car.

“Thanks, Hadley!” they called to me before slamming the car door shut and heading back inside.

Stuart fell asleep on my shoulder and was snoring in less than thirty seconds. I had to shake him awake when we made it back to the townhomes. He could barely stand as I held up most of his weight, walking him back to his house. He couldn’t answer me when I asked if he had his keys, so I had to do what I was dreading and knock on the door to see if Lex was home. I decided if he didn’t answer, I would just haul Stuart over to my house so he could sleep it off on my couch.

Thinking ten seconds was plenty enough time to wait, I hurried to leave like the coward I was. Just as I turned to depart, the door swung open to reveal Lex standing there, looking wide awake despite the late hour. My traitorous eyes let the amorous part of my brain know that he was shirtless. Think, Hadley, think. I was still mad at him, right?

My heart beat a little more rapidly when our eyes met.We stared at each other wordlessly as the seconds ticked by. His gaze was full of longing as it caressed the edges of my face. I couldn’t look away. That is, until Stuart groaned loudly.

“Damnit,” Lex said, finally noticing Stuart. He grabbed Stuart from me and helped him over to the couch. “The idiot shouldn’t have drank this much.”

“No kidding,” I huffed.

“Best. Night. Ever!” Stuart yelled out to no one in particular from the couch. Within seconds, the loud snoring started up again.

“Where are Dan and Peter?” Lex asked, looking around.

“They weren’t ready to leave just yet.”

“Some friends,” he muttered.

I drank in the sight of him, the alcohol making me stare at his bare chest without restraint. Rational Hadley was working overtime trying to remember that he had insulted her earlier and that we’d gotten into a fight over it. But carnal Hadley kept pushing the memory down.

“Thanks for bringing him home.” His voice was low and mesmerizing.

“No problem,” I heard myself say. We continued staring at one another. Against insurmountable odds, I kept my eyes from slipping down to his chest.

I blinked rapidly, allowing the cogent side of my brain to finally slip back in the driver’s seat. I needed to leave before I did something incredibly foolish like confessing to what I knew were unrequited feelings.

“Hadley,” he said just as I reached the door. I turned to look at him.

“I’m sorry for what I said earlier. I didn’t mean it.” His tone was full of sincerity. “You look beautiful tonight. You always do.”

I let the compliment wash over me, feeling my heart constrict at his words. I wanted to walk over and throw my arms around him, but something was nagging at me that I couldn’t keep to myself. The words sat on my tongue, desperate to get out.

“I danced with Merrick tonight.” I wanted to slap my hand over my mouth for letting the words escape.

“You what?” he asked, his eyes narrowing a bit.

“Your friend, Merrick—” I started to try and explain myself, but he cut me off.

“Yeah, I know who he is,” he said curtly. “What was he doing out tonight?”

“He was the bartender at one of the bars we went to. He said he was working there on weekends to make extra money,” I explained. His entire body appeared tense. “Anyway, he asked me to dance… So we did... but just for one song.” Apparently, I was unable to stop more words from spewing as I dug myself deeper into the hole.

“Is that all you did?” His voice was eerily calm.

“Yes! Of course!” I said, a little insulted that he would even have to ask. The tension around his eyes softened a little.

“Are you interested in him?” he asked, sounding accusatory.

“What? No!” I said defiantly.

“Because he’s definitely interested in you… along with all the others. Jace, Peter, Dan, Zack from La Caretta. Just take your pick.”

What was he implying? For the second time tonight, it felt like I was being called a slut by the man standing in front of me.

“I’m not interested in any of them.” I was actively trying to rein in my temper. “I’m going home alone, just like I always do. Not sure you can say the same.” I looked up the staircase toward his bedroom, wondering if Nicky was there between his sheets. The thought made my stomach roll.

“There’s no one up there,” he said.

“You sure? Pink seemed to be your favorite color tonight.” The alcohol was making the filter between my brain and mouth nonexistent.

His eyes sharpened. “I told you it’s not like that anymore.”

“Whatever you say. It’s none of my business anyway.” But there was a small part of my heart that was elated to hear him say it. It wasn’t enough to make me forget what he’d just said about me and all the guys I could get with as the anger burned through me once again. This whole conversation had been an exhausting dance of sidestepping landmines, and I could feel how close we were to an explosion. It was like being on an emotional roller coaster, one that I desperately wanted to get off of.

I was suddenly physically and emotionally spent from this entire night. The only thought going through my mind at the moment was getting out of this ridiculous outfit so I could crawl into bed and be blissfully unaware of all my problems for the next eight to ten hours.

“Look, can we just pretend this night never happened so we can get back to being friends again?” I asked, deciding that was probably best. It wasn’t at all what I wanted, but clearly, something wasn’t working between us. He hesitated to answer, looking as if he wanted to say something more.

“Sure,” he finally said, sounding as defeated as I felt. “Whatever you want.”