A/N - This is the only other story of mine I still have on my mac so may as well post it. It is not complete yet but posting it may give me the kick up the butt i need to finish it. As always, your support is really appreciated - Love this fandom x
It was a typical Friday night in Calico's. The atmosphere was electric as smoke and animated chatter filled the air. Voices competed with the music flooding from the jukebox and you could barely move for the sheer volume of people, all there to unwind and forget the outside world for a few hours. It was a pretty high end bar, not one of those spit 'n' sawdust places you'd see in a western. It was modern and fresh yet it had an almost charm like appeal which is why it was always so packed to the rafters.
The table in the far corner, adjacent to the bar was where most of the noise was coming from. Their party was in full swing and raucous laughter swirled around them like a tornado of sound. The table was littered with glasses and half eaten mini pretzels and they were only just getting started. The three women inhabitants were putting the world to rights in their own unique way and loving every second of it.
Isabelle Barnes, Juliet Humphry and Elizabeth Adams worked at Langley. They had been friends for years and were far more like family if truth be told. Their jobs meant they worked under extreme pressure so having someone to really trust and rely on was imperative and they had formed an impenetrable bond. Their circle was tight and that's how they liked it.. They were professional and highly rated at work but when they let loose, they did so in style.
"Did you see Munsey's face when you pointed out his zipper was at half mast all through that briefing." Juliette couldn't contain her laughter as she tried to get the words out. "The poor guy. He looked mortified and then when the damn thing got stuck as he tried to pull it up. I thought his head was going to explode."
"I was merely trying to be helpful. It's not my fault the guy really can't take a joke." Isabelle shook her head and then more laughter erupted. Out of the three of them, she was the most outwardly confident and outspoken and usually the ring leader for any trouble, in and out of the office.
Elizabeth watched her friends as they spoke. She didn't like getting too sentimental, it had no real place in their profession, but she was feeling very blessed to have such good friends. And the more drunk she got, the more grateful she was.
Her gaze flitted over to the bar, landing on a rather handsome guy who seemed to be staring at her. Elizabeth blushed and looked away quickly. Making eye contact like that was always awkward, but when they were that hot, it was just plain embarrassing.
Isabelle never missed a damn thing. It was her job after all and she could see the pink creeping into Elizabeth's cheeks. She looked over her shoulder and immediately saw the cause of the blush.
"Elizabeth Adams, you seem to have an admirer. He's totally checking you out. And he's not a bad looker either. Time for another round of drinks ladies. Off you go Bess, it's your turn." Her smirk grew and she could almost feel the heat from her friend's face.
Elizabeth shook her head fiercely "I'm not ready."
She had been with her boyfriend, Simon, for 3 years and she thought they were happy. They had a really nice apartment not far from Langley and she was hoping that he would propose sometime soon. But it all came crashing down around her when she got home early to surprise him and found him banging Shannon from next door in the bed she'd picked out for them. To say it came as a bit of a shock was an understatement.
Juliette and Isabelle looked at each other and then back at Elizabeth. "Honey, it's been 9 months. It's time you put that jackass to the back of your mind and moved on." Juliette placed her hand on Elizabeth's arm "He's not worth your time or emotion."
"Simon isn't a jackass. He's just —" Elizabeth searched for the correct phrase but Isabelle beat her to it.
"A total prick?" He cheated on you and then turfed you out of your apartment. That is not a decent guy Bess. Now get up there and flirt with the hottie and bring me back another beer." Isabelle pushed her out of her seat and gave her a wink "Work it baby."
Elizabeth reluctantly approached the bar, swaying on her heels a little as the alcohol buzzed through her body. She leaned over the glass surface and signalled to the bartender. She could feel eyes on her and it made her both self conscious and excited in equal measure.
"I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable." The deep voice to the side of her made her heart beat that little bit faster and she turned her head to see who it belonged to, not that she didn't already know.
Her eyes landed on the handsome stranger and she smiled. "Why would you think you've made me uncomfortable?"
"Because you caught me staring at you." His smile was warm and his eyes were a mixture of chocolate and honey. "But in my defence, you're ridiculously beautiful and I just couldn't help myself."
Elizabeth blushed again and rocked back and forth on her heels "Well, I'm not uncomfortable. But your pick up lines really need some work." Her attention turned back to the bartender "Three more beers and some chasers."
"I'm Henry. And I'm betting your name will be as beautiful as you are." He tried to make it sound smooth but failed miserably and chuckled at his own line "Ok, I totally get your point. That really was shockingly bad, wasn't it."
Elizabeth sniggered "So very, very bad. It's almost criminal."
She moved away from the bar, signalling for the drinks to be brought over and walked backwards slowly, smiling as she spoke "I'm Elizabeth. It was nice to meet you Henry. Have a good one."
As she turned her back on Henry and approached her table, her eyes were wide and her mouth dropped open as she whispered "Oh..My..God."
Isabelle was sporting a huge grin "Oh he's hot. You really need to buy him breakfast in the morning."
Elizabeth laughed but Juliette looked a tad confused. "Huh?"
They waited for the penny to drop and Isabelle helped it along using her fingers in a particularly descriptive way.
"Ohhhhhhh —" More raucous laughter encircled the girls as they clunked their bottles together. "Well here's to Bess getting some tonight then."
Henry watched Elizabeth intently as the evening drew on. He was mesmerised by her beauty and the way her eyes sparkled when she laughed. Her black dress accentuated every curve and those heels — God those heels made her legs seem to go on forever. He wasn't in the habit of picking up girls in a bar. In fact, he'd never picked up a girl in a bar before, it just wasn't his style and thanks to his pathetic attempt at a chat up line,he wasn't about to change that any time soon.. And yet, he couldn't avert his gaze.
She would glance over every so often and flash him a smile. He was pretty sure she was flirting with him, but her smile seemed more genuine than enticing and she hadn't been back up to the bar since their brief exchange so he really wasn't sure. That and she was clearly rather inebriated to say the least, but she was holding herself very well.
He had one of two choices. He could either finish his drink and walk out of the bar, unlikely to ever set eyes on Elizabeth again. Or, he could order himself a neat scotch, allow the buzz from the liquor to dampen his inhibitions, and actually go and speak to the girl. He pondered his options for a few minutes and then signalled to the bartender. That's when he heard the sound of her stilettos clicking against the wooden floor as she approached him and all rational thought was lost.
"That's fortuitous timing Henry. I'll have what you're having." She was stood closer to him than she had during their previous flirtation and the smell of her perfume was assaulting his senses. His eyes landed on the area of silky skin that lay just above her rather ample cleavage. A delicate gold heart hanging down from a chain, catching the light as she took each breath.
Realising he was now just blatantly staring at her breasts, Henry forced his eyes upwards to meet hers and was suddenly lost in a sea of sapphire. He had never seen such a bright blue and it was drawing him in. He could see her smile starting to morph into a grin and didn't quite know where his words were going to come from.
"You don't mind me joining you, do you?" She perched precariously on the bar stool, attempting to remain ladylike while her dress tried to sneak past the point of decency. She was a little out of her depth and way too drunk for this but Isabelle had almost marched her up to the bar herself so there she was.
Henry smiled again and she could feel the hairs on her neck prickle "Of course not. I was about to send a round of drinks over but this is better. I was hoping I'd get a chance to speak to you alone." Oh Henry - That just sounds creepy.
"Well here I am. So what would you like to talk about?" Her fingertips were tracing the rim of her glass and then she dipped her finger into the amber liquid, bringing it to her lips as she sucked it off.
Over her shoulder she heard the cackles from her supposed friends "Yessss Girl." Isabelle's tone almost goading.
She ignored their blatant immaturity and tried to focus on Henry.
"How about the ice-breaker so we can get it out of the way. What do you do Elizabeth?" He knew it was pathetic. He knew she was about to get up and leave but —
"I could tell you Henry, but then I would have to kill you and that would really put a dampener on the evening."
A brief look of confusion crossed his face and then he laughed "Is that right! Sounds very cloak and dagger. Are you a spy or something?"
Elizabeth grinned "It's not something I'm likely to admit now is it.""
"I see your point. And I'd rather you didn't have to kill me. That would be a real shame seeing as this is all going sooooo well right now."
Elizabeth let out a huffed laughed "It's going better than you think." She downed her drink, the burn making her wince just a little and placed her glass back on the bar. She needed to do this now before her sanity reappeared or she managed to sober up. Leaning into him, her lips pressed against the shell of his ear and she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear "I think it's time you take me home."
She slid off the stool and sauntered towards the exit, looking behind her as she reached the door "Are you coming or am I doing this alone?"
Henry paused for a fleeting second, downed his drink and chased after her. As enticing as her "doing it alone" sounded, this was something he definitely planned on being part of.
Henry kicked the door shut behind him and pressed Elizabeth against the wall. His hands were everywhere and his lips were trailing down her neck, his tongue darting out to taste her skin as he went. His hand slid up her thigh, pushing the black dress with it and she let out a soft moan as his mouth connected with hers. It was a sound that rang in his ears and he needed to hear more.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" He halted his actions and caught her eyes in a questioning look.
"Why? Don't you." Her words were breathy and Henry was pretty sure he'd never heard anyone sound sexier. Her voice was low and sultry and it washed over him in waves.
"Yes — But.."
The rest of his words were swallowed as she slid her tongue into his mouth. She was drunk enough to not let her inhibitions surface, but definitely not so far gone that she wasn't aware of her own actions and she was more than willing to consent. Hell, this was her idea and it was making her feel free and liberated. It was good to feel wanted and desired again, even if it was only for the night.
Henry let go of her, only for long enough to remove his shirt and Elizabeth couldn't help the shocked gasp that left her. She was clearly attracted to him and knew he was handsome but when she caught sight of his torso and those muscles rippling just beneath his skin, she could barely catch her breath.
"Someone's been putting some real effort in at the gym." Her tongue darted out and wet her lips. "Who the hell are you?"
Henry smiled and grabbed the hem of her dress, pulling it over her head, revealing the purple satin underwear she always wore under that particular dress. "I'd tell you — But then I'd have to kill you."
Her smile lit up her face like the first rays of sunshine and she raised a brow "I think I'm going to enjoy this."
Henry took her hand and led her towards his bedroom "Ohhh I'm going to make sure of it."