“Thanks.” I shifted nervously in my seat and stirred my cola. After my somewhat unpleasant experience not so long ago with an ex-boyfriend, I didn’t want to risk giving this guy the wrong impression. “I remember now. You were an…intern at the time. Right?”
“I was a resident. I’ve finished up now, started a new practice with a friend of mine.” Staring at me, he pulled a good sized drink from his bottle.
“Your own practice? You’re doing well.”
“I’m doing okay.”
Small talk. I needed to make small talk. That was safe. “My mother told me you were getting married.”
“Oh, yeah. I got married. But we separated shortly after the honeymoon. Just waiting for the divorce to be finalized.”
That explained the sparkles. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“It’s okay. Melanie and I shouldn’t have married. We were great friends, still are, but we weren’t good spouses. We didn’t expect the same things from marriage.” He waved his bottle. “Enough about me. What about you? Has some lucky man snatched you up yet?” His gaze went right to my left hand, which was resting on the table.
“I’m not married. Yet,” I added. “But I am seeing someone.”
“Ah, then I’m not too late.”
I laughed to hide my unease. “Well, I don’t think my boyfriend would agree with that statement.”
“If your relationship was rock solid, you wouldn’t be here, at a club, alone.”
“I’m not alone. I came with a girlfriend.”
“Yes, Jill.”
“You remember Jill? You couldn’t have met her more than once or twice.”
He jammed his fingers through his hair and cleared his throat. “Actually, I have a confession to make.”
I was confused. “What confession?”
“Jill and I share a common friend. We ran into each other last week, and I asked about you. She suggested I meet you here tonight. But she didn’t tell me you were in a relationship. She said you’d started dating someone but it wasn’t going anywhere.”
I was confused no more. “That little brat. She said that, did she?”
“You’re annoyed.”
“Not with you.” I heaved a heavy sigh. I was going to have to sit down with Jill and find out what the heck she’d learned about Shane. Either she was going to tell me or she was going to stop poking her nose in my personal life. “You’re the second man she’s tried to set me up with recently.”
He took another swallow of beer. “Why is she doing that?”
“She doesn’t like my boyfriend.”
“I see.” His gaze wandered for a second. Then he shook his head. “It’s too bad. It would’ve been nice to reconnect. Bad timing, I guess.” His attention diverted again. He was looking at something or someone behind me.
I twisted in my seat. Blonde. Boobs. Short skirt. “Yes,” I agreed. “It’s just bad timing.”
He stood, beer in hand. “Well, if anything changes, you can find me easily enough if you want to.” He offered a hand. “It’s good seeing you again, Bristol. Really.”
“It’s good seeing you again too, Russell.” I watched him shake his head, his mouth curled down in disappointment. I gave a little apologetic smile and wave. And, after chugging what was now warm, watered-down diet cola, I went in search of my meddling friend.
She was going to get an earful. As soon as I found her. I pushed and wriggled my way through the mass of hot, sweaty bodies to the packed dance floor and scanned the crowd. There were dozens of women and men gyrating to the heavy, pounding beat. Too many. I couldn’t find Jill. I dance-walked across the dance floor, looking left and right, forward and back. At one point, a man grabbed my hand, twirled me around to face him and started doing a freaky dance move that would probably inspire nightmares tonight. I quickly moved along, checking every inch of the space before accepting the obvious.
Jill had taken off somewhere.
I checked our table as I dialed her number on my cellphone.
“Where are you?” I yelled when I heard her answer.
“I’m in the bathroom. Where are you?”
“Looking for you. Be there in a few.”
“M-kay.”
I clicked off and click-clacked through a cluster of men, my gaze fixed on the rear exit leading to the bathrooms. I got as far as the doorway when yet another person grabbed my hand. Really, really tired of being pawed at and grabbed, I whirled around and yelled, “Hands off!”
My gaze locked on a mouth. Then I saw the straight blade of a nose. And from there the chiseled angle of a cheekbone.
“Who did you think I was?” Shane asked, expression like ice.
Oh God, he was angry.
Why? Because I was at a club? Because of what I’d said? Because he saw me having a drink with Russell?
“Who? Nobody in particular. Just another drunk bastard looking to cop a feel,” I said as I fiddled with my purse strap.
His expression darkened. “Are you sure about that?”
What did he mean by that?
“Yes, I’m sure. I’ve been looking for Jill. When I was over there,” I indicated the dance floor with a jerk of my head, “a random guy issued a fairly obnoxious invitation for me to dance with him. Which I refused.”
“Come with me.” My angry-looking boyfriend pushed on my back, steering me back around, away from the exit leading to the bathrooms. Away from Jill.
Deciding Jill wouldn’t notice if it took me a minute or two longer to meet up with her, I let him lead me all the way across the bar to the front entrance. We stepped outside. My ears were ringing.
“What were you doing here?” Shane asked, his gaze raking up and down my body.
I hadn’t worn the sluttiest dress I owned, but with him looking at me like that, I felt downright indecent. I tugged on the hem of my dress. “I came here with my friend Jill. We’re having a girl’s night out.”
“Then who is the guy I saw you with? I didn’t see a girlfriend with you. Not since I walked in the door.”
Oh no.
He thought I’d come here with Russell? I had to straighten this out right away. I hadn’t done anything wrong. Nothing. He had no reason to be jealous.
I lifted my hands. “Shane, you have the wrong idea.”
“Do I?” His head tipped to the side. He moved smoothly, slowly, crowding my personal space bubble until it almost popped. “Did you not have a drink with another man? Was I imagining that?”