Chapter 22 Lucia #2
Lucia felt warm and bubbly as they walked into the hotel, happy to be out for a night with a group of friends for the first time in a long time.
When they finally made it into the bar, Lucia and Isa both looked up in awe at the crystal chandelier, marveling at the pink chairs, pink tables, pink everything.
“This may be the only champagne bar I’ve ever been to, but it’s certainly my favorite.”
Lucia smiled at that. Her smile widened when she saw her friends already seated at a table. She was excited for Isa to meet them, even if she wasn’t certain they would get along. She’d made Isa promise to be nice, especially to Maya, but nobody could get Isa to do anything she didn’t want to do.
“Hi! This is Isa.” She then pointed at each of her friends. “Jenna, Leigh, Maya.” They all exchanged hugs before sitting down.
“We ordered first rounds for you guys, hope that’s okay.” Jenna smiled pleasantly at Isa. “How’re you liking Charleston? How long are you in town?”
“It’s nice, though I’ve only really been on King Street. We’re going to Saltwater Cowboys tomorrow, hanging by the water, and then I leave late tomorrow evening.”
“Oh, Rudy and Colton love Saltwater Cowboys. I think it’s Colton’s favorite place to be, on the rare occasions he isn’t in football mode.”
Maya laughed quietly beside Lucia, though it sounded forced. When Lucia looked at her closer, she could see the sadness that’d been there at Jenna’s house still lining her face, and she wondered what might still be weighing on her.
Just as their champagne arrived, her phone buzzed. When she saw who’d texted her, the warmth from the alcohol spread through her whole body, those pesky butterflies fluttering around again.
Colton
Take care of Maya, I think she’s upset.
Colton
I’m sure dinner with our father didn’t help, even if it was her idea, but something’s been wrong since she got here.
Lucia
Always.
“Lucia?” Jenna had been talking to her and she hadn’t even realized.
“Huh?”
“I was asking how things have been with you and Colton. I remember the beginning stages with Rudy, especially with the spotlight, though I bet there’s a bit more of that for you two.”
Lucia stowed her phone, not wanting to get caught texting the very man they were talking about.
“Oh, good, good. We’re really good.”
A mischievous grin spread across Leigh’s face. “Do you get to see him when you travel with the team?”
Lucia chuckled, not sure why Leigh looked so impish. “Yes, if we get time, we try to see each other.”
“And the sex?”
For the second time that night, Lucia choked on her drink, not quite certain why her friends were so interested in her sex life.
“Ugh, gross. That’s my brother.” Lucia stifled a laugh at Maya’s words.
Jenna leaned forward toward Maya, her cheeks rosy like she hadn’t had an opportunity to talk like this for years. “What’s up with you and Cooper, anyway?”
Maya went rigid as four pairs of eyes fell on her. She downed her glass of champagne and then cleared her throat. “Nothing. He’s Colton’s best friend, and he’s like a brother to me.”
Lucia was having a hard time believing that, but if Maya wanted to pretend, she wasn’t going to out her. Later, she would try to talk to her separately.
Jenna looked unconvinced as well. “He looks at you like you put stars in the sky. The same way Colton looks at Luc.”
Lucia was startled at that. Isa tensed beside her, like she, too, wasn’t sure what to make of the comment.
Did Colton look at her a certain way when they were around others?
She certainly hadn’t noticed, but if Jenna thought so, he was doing a great job of acting.
All those Redditors who’d made fun of his sandwich commercials were seemingly wrong about his skills.
Her phone buzzed against her chest, and she pulled it out as stealthily as she could. Which was not at all stealthy, if the displeased look on Isa’s face told her anything.
Colton
You never take care of me when I’m upset, what’s that about?
Lucia
I’ve taken care of you plenty.
Colton
Like when?
Lucia
How about the night after I met your family?
She felt her cheeks pink at the memory, knowing the alcohol was making her overconfident. She deleted the text she’d started writing, which detailed their night a bit too clearly.
Colton
My god.
Colton
How is that not anti-boundaries?
She smiled at his use of her words. Her friends’ laughter reminded her where she was, and she tucked the phone back into her dress.
Her friends continued talking about everything from the season to Jenna’s precious children to Devin’s wild parties—at which point Isa promised she would try to make the next one.
Lucia was glad Isa was getting along with her other friends, her chest aching as she remembered that she only had her for a day.
After they’d had perhaps too many glasses of champagne, they staggered out of the pretty bar as a group.
“Everybody have a ride? Rudy’s coming to get me and Leigh if anybody needs to be dropped off.”
“Colton’s getting me,” Maya responded sleepily.
Lucia frowned a little, worried about her. Maya had barely smiled all night, and toward the end, she’d had a couple more glasses than the rest of them, her eyes closing and her head resting on Lucia’s shoulder until they’d gotten up.
“We’ll order a car,” Lucia added.
That seemed to wake Maya up. “Colton won’t like that at all. You can come with us.”
“Oh, no, it’s okay. We don’t mind.”
Maya shook her head. “Yeah, that’s not gonna work. I feel like you know my brother well enough to know he’s not gonna go for that.”
Lucia sighed, exchanging a glance with Isa, knowing Maya was right. “Okay, I guess we’re going with Colton, then.”
Jenna clapped her hands together happily. “Great! Rudy will be thrilled to see how absolutely wasted his wife is.”
“You deserve it. You take care of the munchkins more than anybody.” Leigh patted her best friend’s shoulder, though the motion was awkward since they were leaning against each other for support.
Jenna sighed happily, a loving smile on her face. “True.”
Rudy was there quickly, helping his alcohol-addled wife into his passenger seat and Leigh into the back simultaneously. He'd sat in his car until Colton's ridiculously overpriced car found them.
If Lucia thought the alcohol had warmed her against the December chill, the feeling that flooded her as Colton’s eyes looked her up and down set her ablaze.
She watched him swallow as they landed on the slit of the dress that exposed her leg, made longer by her tallest heels.
The feeling that was beginning to become far too familiar found its way behind her navel, desire to feel his warm, calloused hands all over her body, caressing her in places she hadn’t even known she’d liked until him.
Isa nudged her, and Lucia realized Maya was already in the back of his car. Colton tried to help Isa into the back, but her best friend nearly snarled at him as he opened the door for her.
“I see Isa’s still not my biggest fan,” he whispered to Lucia as he helped her into his passenger seat, his hands warm on her waist, searing through the fabric of the dress.
She tried to think of something clever to respond but found herself giggling instead. Perfect. Colton had once said she and alcohol and heels didn’t mix well, but she was starting to wonder if it was actually her and alcohol and his presence that rendered her brain into mush.
The car was quiet as he drove them to her house, the only noise coming from a snoring Maya.
Finally, Colton broke the silence. “Did she seem okay? I’m really worried about her, but she won’t tell me what’s going on. And she never drinks like this.”
Lucia remembered the forlorn expression on Maya’s face at their Thanksgiving dinner, which had only seemed to vanish when she’d been near Cooper. It’d been there, subtler, all night tonight, and she wondered if maybe she did know why.
“We didn’t get to talk about it, but something tells me it’s got something to do with a guy.”
Colton’s hands tightened on the wheel, his veins becoming more prominent, sending Lucia’s heart into a jackhammer. They didn’t speak for the rest of the ride, and Lucia felt Isa’s eyes flicking between the two of them.
When they reached Lucia’s house, Colton walked them both to the door, keeping his hands on or near Lucia at all times. When she finally managed to get the door unlocked and open, Isa said, “Luc, I’ll meet you inside.”
“Huh?”
“Go inside, osita. I need to talk to Colton.”
Isa shoved her into the house. Then, Lucia watched, stunned as her friend closed her door, pushing her out of the conversation with Colton.
She heard Isa talking to him quietly. When she tried to wrench open the door to chide her best friend, she found it held tight.
When did Isa get so strong? she wondered.
Colton’s response was low, muffled completely by the door. They continued in that fashion for a few minutes, though Isa’s tone seemed to shift as the conversation went on. Finally, the door opened, knocking Lucia back.
His eyes found hers, and the sweet smile he gave her had her own lips inching up. He walked away, and Lucia closed the door and whirled on her best friend.
“Isa, what did you say? He’s doing something nice for me because he’s secretly a sweetheart. He doesn’t deserve to be ripped to metaphorical shreds for that.”
Isa wouldn’t meet her eyes as Lucia locked the door.
“You’re right.” Finally, her eyes met Lucia’s. “But I’m not the one who’s going to rip him to shreds.”