I turn to face Ben and am about to slide out of my seat, but since Ben hasn’t moved his arm, I’m caged between him and the bar. I look up at him and find he’s already looking down at me. My breath gets stuck in my chest as I take him in at such a close distance. His hazel eyes are dark as he stares into my eyes. Our faces are just inches apart, and I see his nostrils flare. His jaw is still tight as we gaze at each other.
I feel like a gazelle stuck in the gaze of a lion, and I don’t dare move a muscle for fear of him pouncing on me. It’s like the room disappears, and all I can see and sense is Ben.
I’m startled when I hear Scott yell. He must have been trying to get our attention for a bit.
“Here’s your check.”
I take a deep breath and scoot back into my seat so Ben can reach past me to sign the check. His arm brushes me as he hands the check back to Scott, and it sends a thrill through my entirebody. I feel my core clench at the slight contact, and my face flushes with embarrassment.
Ben takes a step back, and I make my escape, excusing myself to go to the bathroom.
I lock myself in the bathroom and lean against the door. My heart is racing, and I’m feeling hot and bothered. The brief encounter with Ben felt so intense. Was he mad that Scott was flirting with me? I mean, Scott flirts with everyone, not just me. I’ve seen him flash the same lopsided grin and wink to many of his female patrons. I know that I’m not special to him other than how well I’ll tip him at the end of the night.
Fanning myself, I use the toilet and walk over to the sink to wash my hands. I’m tempted to splash my face with water to cool down, but I doubt my mascara would survive the waterboarding. Instead, I wet some paper towels and place them over my neck and chest to cool down.
Once my heart rate has calmed down and I’ve reapplied another layer of lip gloss, I square my shoulders and take a deep breath. I walk back into the bar, which seems to have gotten more crowded in the short time I was in the restroom. I find Ben by the bar, but he’s not alone.
A beautiful blonde dressed to impress in her tight dress and kiss-me-red lips is talking animatedly with Ben. I watch as she leans in close to him and whispers something in his ear. Ben smirks at whatever she says, and he looks over her shoulder to find me standing awkwardly at the edge of the crowd.
It looks like he’s about to get lucky, and even though I feel like my heart dropped out of my butt, I muster up an encouraging smile and a thumbs up. If I was alone, I could slap myself for making such a stupid gesture. I don’t want him to think I’m upset with him for talking to another girl. Besides, that was the whole point of tonight, wasn’t it? So we could help each other find someone, even if it’s just for the night.
Even if that was the plan going in, I suddenly feel sick to my stomach and just want to go home. I work my way through the crowd to the front door, and when I step outside, the cold air is a stark reminder that I left my jacket at the bar. I hope Ben remembers to grab it on his way back with whoever he was talking to at the bar.
I’ve barely made it a block before I hear hurried footsteps behind me. I look over my shoulder, but before I can make sense of what’s happening, I’m grabbed by my upper arm and pushed up against the building. Arms braced by my head, I look up to see it’s Ben. His posture is tense with restraint. I gulp as I stare up into his eyes as they bore down into me. His pupils are huge and obliterate his beautiful hazel eyes. He’s breathing through flared nostrils, and I see the muscles in his jaw tick with anger.
“Never leave like that again,” he commands in a low growl.
My tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth as I gape at him.
“Do you understand me?”
I nod in answer.
He edges closer, his eyes darting between mine; then, with a frustrated growl, he steps back. Running his hands through his hair, he turns away, hands on hips. He has my coat across his shoulder. He takes it and gestures for me to put it back on.
I’m bewildered as he helps me put my coat on. I’m not sure why he seems so agitated. I’ve never seen this side of him before.
“I’m… I’m sorry…” I stammer, though I’m not sure what I’m apologizing for.
He nods brusquely and gestures for me to lead the way back to our apartment. After a hesitant moment, I take a step and we begin our short trek back. We don’t talk until we’re rounding the block to our apartment.
“You left without me,” he retorts.
“Oh. I thought… I thought you and that girl were…”
“You thought wrong.”
My brows furrow in confusion, and I glance at him. He takes a deep breath and clenches his fists.
“She’s friends with Melissa. She saw me at the bar and wanted to know what happened.”
Oh. Well, I guess I read the situation completely wrong…
“I saw her whispering in your ear, so I thought… you know…”
“She wanted me to bring her back to our apartment.”
“What?”
