Chapter 3

"Remember the log ride?" Jade breathed roughly, tears of mirth ruining the black eyeliner framing her gorgeous almond shaped eyes.

We were out on Lafayette's penthouse terrace sharing a stoge and catching up on lost time. Lafayette was lounging quietly in a chair; tumbler of fifty year old Scotch in one hand, cigar in the other, satin slippered feet kicked up over the railing. It was hard to reconcile this private Lafayette who was the epitome of everything his father represented and he hated, with the public Lafayette that he presented to the rest of the world everyday.

I was more shaken than I realized after the whole mess with The Surgeon. It was really humbling to know that my life could've been irreversibly changed by one simple text message. I spent all night tossing and turning and woke up at the crack of dawn. During my morning jog, I was intercepted by five photographers and two reporters hounding me with questions about my narrow brush at becoming The Surgeon's latest victim. By lunch, a small crowd had gathered outside my house. I was a prisoner in my own home and started feeling the early stages of a panic attack. It was around then that Jade pulled into my driveway with her mom's homemade pho.

Jade's been my best friend since junior high school and while we went our separate ways for college (she attended Brown University for computer science and could hack her way into any system), our friendship never wavered. It was just so easy to fall back into our old rhythm of telling silly stories and sharing our dreams of our futures every time we reconnected.

When Gran moved to DC during our freshman year in college, Jade's parents unofficially adopted me. They said, since their daughter and my family were both around 200 miles away and we were less than 5, it'd be just plain stupid if we didn't look after one another. In the beginning, I'd go whenever Jade was back during break or the weekends but gradually, Mrs. Fiore started calling me randomly to stop by for dinner. I'll admit, it was kind of weird at first and, unsure of whether or not I was crossing some sort of boundary, I spoke to Jade about it. She called me an idiot and said she'd be at Gran's in a heartbeat if our situations were reversed. My Gran's southern style meals were to die for, but Jade's mother was half-Chinese and half-Vietnamese and her father was Italian and both Mr. and Mrs. Fiore were amazing cooks. I loved when they had me over for dinner, but I valued their company even more. They gave me a glimpse of how life might have been like if my parents were still around and I was truly grateful to have them, and their daughter, in my life.

I downed the rest of my Gin and Tonic in one gulp and cackled, "How could I forget?" I turned to Lafayette and continued, "We were sixteen, at Six Flags and wearing these tiny bikini tops that barely covered anything at all and the shortest shorts we could find. We thought were hot shit and strutted around the place like obnoxious little jailbaits. Then we spotted a group of hot college guys by the log ride and got in line behind them. After some glaringly obvious peacocking on our part, they finally noticed us and started whispering to each other while looking our way." I took a drag of the cigarette and passed it back to Jade. "They shoved and snickered, and eventually, one guy, the hottest one of the group, stepped up to me and whispered,'your tampon string is hanging out.'"

Jade slapped her thigh and chortled, "You should have seen her face-" her amusement overtook her and she spent a good minute or two with her head thrown back, guffawing at my expense. Laughter truly was contagious because Lafayette and I were roaring with laughter right along with the silly bitch. After finally getting herself under control, she wiped her eyes - makeup now completely ruined - and wheezed, "her face, her face immediately turned red as a lobster. But you gotta hand it to her; instead of running away in mortification, she actually-" she took one look at me and started cracking up again.

I snatched the stoge from between her fingers and bumped her off the chaise. After taking a last drag of the menthol flavored cigarette, I snubbed it out in Laf's Swarovski ashtray and finished the story. "I thanked him kindly for his observation and climbed into the log." At Lafayette's appalled expression, I added, "What! We stood on line for over half an hour by that point, and besides, I readjusted myself while on the ride. Saved us a trip to the dirty ass bathroom and time we would've spent waiting in line."

Jade, who'd climbed back up from the floor and was sitting behind Laf on his chaise, nodded her head against his shoulder, and said, "She's nothing if not practical."

Lafayette, silent throughout the story, shook his head and said, "Practical my ass. Readjusting tampon strings in public is revolting no matter how you try to spin that shit. She could've traumatized and scarred someone for life." He looked me up and down with mock disgust. "I'm gonna have to reevaluate our friendship, you nasty ass heifer."

I quickly reached down into my jeans and pretended to touch my panties before hopping off my chaise. Holding my hand out like it was covered in shit, I ran over to the two of them and jumped onto their chaise. Lafayette tried to make a break for it but Jade, ever the astute partner in crime since we were eleven, wrapped her arms around his chest and held him still long enough for me to wipe my hand across his cheek.

If you want to know what sound a grown ass man makes when he's utterly horrified by something, do what I did and you'll discover that it's a cross between a five year old little girl's scream and an elephant's trumpet.

Lafayette threw Jade off with the quickness and made a mad dash for the bathroom. Fucking drama queen. God, I loved him.

Jade and I high fived each other and rolled around cackling like hyenas until we couldn't breathe. Lafayette came back out onto the terrace some time later, most likely after scrubbing his face clean, and cleared his throat.

We looked up.

He had changed out of his silk lounge pants and slippers and was wearing jeans, a grey henley, and boots. Arms crossed with disdain written all over his face, he looked down at us and sneered, "You two are the vilest bitches I've ever had the misfortune of loving. Get your beautiful asses up, We're leaving."

"Where are we going?" I asked, pulling myself and Jade up.

"Food," Lafayette clipped, then turned heel and went back inside.

It was a good thing I wanted to wear my new boots and came prepared instead of just bumming it in sweats like I'd originally intended. I had a black leather jacket on with a thin ribbed tank underneath, a pair of destroyed light blue skinny jeans that were ripped at the knees, my gold name plate necklace that Jase got me for my sixteenth birthday, gold double hooped earrings, an assortment of gold rings that I wore on both hands, and lastly, my Alexander McQueen blue snake skin biker booties. I looked pretty badass.

Jade had on a light pink blouse with soft ruffles down the deep v neckline that I made a mental note to borrow, white skinny jeans, silver accessories, a pair of baby pink scalloped peep toe pumps and a pink purse. With her lush brown hair up in a high bun, her gorgeous kohl lined brown eyes took center stage. She looked beautiful and also fucking sexy. Not the in your face tits and ass everywhere kind of sexy, the understated sultry kind whose sexiness quotient only increases the longer you observe her. And everyone knew that was the best kind.

We headed for the bathroom and spent some time on our makeup in there. Her eye liner needed to be wiped off and reapplied, while I borrowed some concealer to cover the under eye circles I'd acquired thanks to The Surgeon.

Sleepless nights were a bitch. I jumped at every little sound, and shadows scared the ever loving shit out of me now. I was never afraid of the dark, but my house has been lit up like a fucking Christmas tree the second the sun went down. I considered installing an alarm system but decided it'd be a waste of money since another person living in the house would most likely make me feel safer anyway; my subletter search was going well, I was going to be interviewing four potential candidates the next afternoon and had another two lined up for the day after that.

When Jade and I were nearly done, Lafayette called down to the concierge and requested a taxi. A cabby was already waiting for us outside by the time we got downstairs.

"53rd and 6th," Lafayette declared to the driver after climbing in.

"Ooh, the Halal Guys. I haven't had them since Thanksgiving break," Jade practically drooled.

It was one-thirty in the morning and traffic was lighter so we got there in record time. After Laf paid the cabby, we walked over to the food vendor and, even though it was late at night (or was it early morning?), stood in the short line. This didn't surprise me at all, people from all five boroughs - hell, even Jersey - came to these guys for their late night Mediterranean fix.

After getting our food and making sure to load up on the white sauce, we walked over to a nearby bench and dug in. I got the lamb over rice, Jade ordered a chicken gyro and Laf got his usual chicken and lamb over rice combo.

The lamb over rice was delicious. Tender and juicy pieces of marinated lamb meat, crisp lettuce and fresh pita covered in a thick layer of their special white sauce and a drizzle of hot sauce over yellow rice. It was also mammoth sized; more than enough to feed two people.

We finished our food, or rather, Jade finished her gyro but Laf and I still had leftovers - that was how freaking big our orders were - and tossed our wrappers and plates into the trash.

"Where to?" Jade asked, looking sated.

I checked the time on my phone; it was almost two. I grinned, still tipsy from the four Gin and Tonics I had earlier at Laf's, and said in a sing song voice, "We got two hours until last caaall."

Laf shook his head, "Nuh uh. No way. You're one drink away from going Sookie on us. We are too fuckin close to my hunting grounds and there is no way in hell I'm gonna be seen with you in public when you've Sookied."

He was exaggerating. Kind of.

"Psh, I'm a friendly drunk. Everybody loves friendly drunks." I said indignantly, arms crossed against my chest.

"You're a friendly drunk fifty percent of the time, babe. The other fifty, you turn green. As in Hulk green. I'm not in the mood to throw down tonight. Not after what happened last time."

"It wasn't my fault! The guy grabbed my ass, what the fuck did he expect to happen?"

"I'm not talking about the guy you kneed in the balls, that mofo deserved it. I'm talking about you picking a fight with the seven foot tall, four hundred pound bouncer! You know I got your back but dude, can you please choose someone closer to my size next time?"

Jade, who was watching this exchange with obvious amusement, asked, "Why'd you pick on the bouncer?"

"He was feeling up a woman who was clearly shitfaced." I replied, head held high.

She nodded. "That'll do it."

In the end, Lafayette caved and pulled out his cell to look for the closest bar near us on Yelp. While waiting, I reached into my bag and pulled out a tin of Altoids mints, popped two in my mouth and passed the rest around. After a few minutes of research, Laf settled for one within walking distance. Jade and I each grabbed an arm, sandwiched Laf between us, and tottered four blocks when Laf suddenly stopped and knocked in a 1-1-7 pattern on a nondescript black door.

Confused, I looked up and around but there wasn't a sign or anything to indicate that this was a bar. The only thing of note was an old school looking cast iron bell hanging on the wall beside the door.

Before I got to further examine the place, a slot in the door slid open and a pair of wary looking eyes peeped out at us.

"What do you want?" The man asked testily.

Laf bent to place himself at eye level with the probing eyes and responded cryptically, "Repeal the 18th Amendment."

Abruptly, the slot slid shut and the door creaked open.

Jade and I looked at each other, grinned, and followed Laf inside the speakeasy style bar.

The first thing I noticed was how quiet it was. Bars, as a rule, were rowdy places. There was chatter here too, it was only natural, but it was done in soft murmurs. The second thing I noticed was how dark it was. The ceiling, walls, and floor were done in dark wood paneling and the furniture was either black leather and dark wood, or red velvet and dark wood. Other than the candles placed on the tables in the lounge at the back and a handful of chandeliers (light bulbs dangling in haphazard patterns which could be considered as modern art or, you know, garbage) here and there, the only light source was at the bar.

Unlike the rest of the place, the wall behind the bar was red brick with wall insets. And in those niches were liquor, obviously, while candles that illuminated the bar and whomever stood behind it filled the smaller slots. Tonight, it was the big blonde bartender wearing black pants and a black dress shirt with the top buttons undone and his sleeves rolled up and held in place by silver armbands. He looked like a demonic angel, or something equally dichotomizing, as he chipped away a block of ice with an ice pick and flirted with two women at the bar.

"Jeezus, do people still do that?" I murmured, as we slipped through the dwindling crowd.

"Don't know, don't care. Why are you thinking about ice picks instead of the perfect male specimen wielding it?" Laf murmured back.

I looked at Jade, my ally in all things debatable, for her agreement.

She licked her lips, "You're on your own with this one girl, blondie is fine."

Jade and I slowly made our way over to a table in the lounge area while Laf went to order our first round of drinks. After sliding into a comfy red velvet love seat, we shrugged off our jackets and bags and looked around.

The owner was obviously going for a prohibition style bar vibe and definitely succeeded. From the creepy eyes through the door asking for a password to the dim lighting and dark decor, there was a noticeable air of intrigue and nostalgia that I found almost exciting. I half expected to hear coppers pounding on the front door demanding entrance.

"Hot guy, three o'clock." Jade whispered.

I leaned back and flipped my hair to the side, using the move as my cover to steal a glance in that direction. Holy hell, hot guy indeed. Shoulder length dirty blonde hair, kissable lips turned up in a grin, strong jaw line; he looked like Travis Fimmel during his Calvin Klein years.

"Remind me to thank Laf for finding this place." She continued to whisper.

"Oh yeah," I murmured in agreement.

The place was crawling with eye candy. One of which was headed our way.

Dark wavy hair cropped short, tanned skin, great fucking bone structure; the man was the reason Tall, Dark and Handsome was coined. He was dressed casually in a pair of jeans, Timberland boots, and an olive long sleeved tee that fit snugly against his heavily muscled frame.

"Ladies," he said in a deep baritone voice, "this seat taken?" He gestured towards the love seat across from us.

I opened my mouth to say it was, but Jade beat me to the punch and replied, "It just became vacant."

Okie dokie then.

His eyes crinkled at her words as he sat down. Up close, lines at the edge of his eyes became noticeable but it didn't detract from his good looks. It somehow made his five o'clock shadow and rugged look that much sexier, fitting and authentic as opposed to someone who purposely groomed themselves to achieve that look.

"I'm Tray," he said, extending his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Tray. I'm Jade and this is my girl Sookie." Jade replied, shaking his hand.

I shook his proffered hand and gave him a noncommittal smile. Some chitchat later, we learned that Tray was somewhat of a regular here. We shared that it was our first time there and that we, in fact, didn't even know the name of the bar.

To which he replied, "Northman's."

The conversation segued into our professions and Tray shared that he owned an auto body shop and splits his time between New York and California, where his other shop was. Jade and I told him a little about our studies. Well I said very little because one, I wasn't the interested party and two, guys had a tendency to zone out once I started talking about fashion. After showing an adequate amount of interest in Jade's computer science background for me to deem him worthy of my girl's time, I decided that I'd sat for an appropriate length of time, gave them both a warm smile, and stood.

"I'm gonna go check on Laf."

Jade, who looked like she was about to kiss me, nodded.

After a detour to the bathroom, I made my way over to the bar, feeling eyes on me the entire time. It was disconcerting, and I surveyed my surroundings but didn't see anyone looking at me.

About five feet away from Laf, a deep voice murmured in my ear, "Can I buy you a drink?"

I turned and stared into the deep green eyes of the Travis Fimmel lookalike.

Taking a step back, I shook my head and replied, "Thanks, but my friend's already getting my drink."

"The next one then?" He asked, a boyish grin on his face.

My knee jerk reaction of a rejection was on the tip of my tongue, but then I considered the question - perhaps more pensively than necessary. After four years of single-minded, dogged determination, in two weeks I was finally graduating with the Bachelors of Fine Arts degree I worked my ass off for.

That meant I was now free.

Reassessing my priorities, I gave him another once over. Tall, six-foot-two give or take an inch or so, deep green eyes, great jaw line, and full firm lips. He wore a light blue dress shirt (mostly unbuttoned and untucked) over a plain white tee, jeans and a pair of white chucks. He was beautiful. Unfortunately, too beautiful for my taste; I liked my men a little rough and with more man and less pretty.

I guessed I was taking a little too long to respond because he worked his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture that I found endearing.

It also cemented my answer.

I winked, replied, "If you're still around," and walked over to Laf whose back was to me and was chatting with a pretty brunette.

Boobs thrust out, one hand placed suggestively over her cleavage, the other on his chest. Her eyes were slightly closed in that bedroomy way, her plump red lips were lifted in a seductive smirk. Her body language screamed that she wanted him, and she wanted him now. Too bad, so sad. He'd never reciprocate those feelings, babe.

Lafayette's body, on the other hand, was coiled tightly and leaning away from her. He looked extremely uncomfortable. Never one to lead a woman on, I was betting she was either too dense to get his hints or just straight up chose to ignore them.

I closed in on them and looped my arm through his. Tilting my head to look at him, I asked, "Who's this, hon?"

Relief flashed across his face before he pulled me in closer to his body and kissed my temple.

"Baby, meet Lorena. Lorena, this is Sookie."

The brunette's face flushed with embarrassment and I suddenly felt like Regina George from Mean Girls.

Lafayette must've been on the same page as me because he leaned towards Lorena and placed a hand on her arm effeminately. In all the years I'd known him, outside of joking around with me or Jade, I'd never seen him be anything other than how he was - which was masculine to the nth degree.

He leaned towards her and whispered conspiratorially, "We're attending FIT together."

Bless his heart.

The light finally dawned in Lorena's eyes and I swear, her face twisted a second before the nastiest smirk appeared on her face.

She opened her mouth, but before she could spew whatever hate she was undoubtedly close to diarrheaing out of her second asshole, the bartender leaned across the bar and inches from my face, he asked with a slight, indiscernible accent, "What can I get you, Gorgeous?"

Saved by the bartender. I gave him a grateful smile then tugged on Laf's arm and turned him with me to face the bar.

"Did you order the drinks yet, Laf?"

He dislodged my hand from his and threw his arm over my shoulders. Looking over our shoulders, he replied, "Not yet. That chick was like a goddamn pitbull with a bone."

"You've been standing here talking to her this whole time?" I asked, incredulously.

It had to have been a good twenty minutes or so since we got here. Hell, my buzz was all but gone.

Laf looked at me and muttered, "Pit. Bull."

"I'll bet. Alright, first round's on me. And don't expect to see Jade until last call."

I loved my girl to death, but she was more than a little boy crazy.

He nodded sagely, "Hot guy. Got it."

I turned towards the bartender, who was watching our exchange with open amusement, and smiled.

"We'll have whatever you recommend, Handsome." I said, and hopped onto a black leather stool.

I took the opportunity to check him out again. Tousled hair, electric blue eyes, unshaven face; he was really good looking and the whole rolled up sleeves, open collar bad boy thing he had going on really worked for him. Judging by the amount of women I glimpsed flirting with him and hanging around him since I got there (three batting their lashes and trying to get his attention at that very moment), and the fact that he was obviously reciprocating the flirting, I'd say he probably saw a lot of action after his shifts.

He inclined his head and murmured, "As you wish."

My head jerked up to look at him. I was a sucker for The Princess Bride references.

At my reaction, the corner of his mouth raised slightly.

Smug bastard. I wondered how many women he used that line on.

Lips pursed, I smiled at him indulgently and shook my head.

Laf and I went over our schedule for Wednesday's BFA fashion show and decided that I'd sleep over his place on Tuesday night that way I'd have plenty of time to get to school and prep the next day. He confirmed that he and Andre, one of the guys he was seeing, would drop by the show early to do my makeup and help out as much as they could. He also confirmed that the lounge for the after party was booked and accommodations (bottles and private section) would be made for our large group.

At that, the bartender returned with our drinks which I then paid and tipped him for; one in a martini glass and a darker one in a tumbler. He stayed planted in the spot and raised an eyebrow, gesturing for us to try them.

Lafayette took a swig of his amber hued drink and nodded his approval.

"Whiskey old fashioned." He surmised. "With a little something extra. What is it?"

The bartender grinned. "Replaced the usual teaspoon of sugar with a tablespoon of pure maple syrup."

He then looked at me expectantly.

I took a sip of my champagne colored drink. Sour and minty, and I definitely tasted gin; I had no idea what it was.

It also wasn't life altering or all that great, to be honest. The only mint I liked in my drinks were in a Mint Julep. Hell, I barely tolerated Mojitos and those were the shit.

In the end, I settled for, "It's... interesting."

This made him smile for some reason, and he extended his hand, "Eric." He glanced at my chest and asked, "Sookie a nickname?"

I was about to ask how he knew my name when I remembered the name plate necklace I was wearing. Instead, I shook his hand and replied, "Hey Eric, and nope it's my legal name. My parents had a sense of humor."

"One of a kind, like its owner." I didn't know whether to blush or gag at the amount of cheese he was dishing. "Never seen you here before."

"First time here." I replied, taking another sip. Damn, that was going to be the last time I left my drink up to a bartender.

Eric stuck out his hand for Lafayette to shake and leaned in to murmur, "Lorena doesn't take rejection well. Watch my back, I were you."

That put me on alert and I immediately began sweeping the bar for the crazy brunette. She was gone.

Laf and I sat around, shooting the breeze. My drink was still almost untouched by the time he was done with his. Never one to waste, I held the thin straw to the side with my pointer and downed the drink in three gulps. I must've made a funny face because Laf laughed and called me a light weight.

The second I placed my empty glass on the bar top, a shadow descended upon my left side. I looked up to find none other than the pretty boy from earlier.

"I'm still around." He grinned.

I shook my head and laughed at his adorable persistence.

"So what'll it be?" He asked.

It was at this point that I realized I didn't even know his name.

"I'm Sookie and this is my friend Lafayette."

He ran his fingers through his hair then extended his right hand. "Alex," then he muttered to himself, "I can't believe I forgot that step."

This had my hackles raising. Was he seriously following some sort of macking handbook? Why an obviously good looking guy needed one was beyond me, but the fact that he did lowered his rating on the scale from Too Pretty but Sweet down to Serious Sleezeball.

"Listen, Laf already got our orders in so maybe next time, yeah?" I said dismissively, hoping he'd get the point and just vamoose.

To my dismay, confusion clouded his face and instead of taking a hike, his eyebrows furrowed as he asked, "But I didn't see him place an order."

My back straightened and I glanced at Lafayette for help. This guy either lead an extremely sheltered life or was clueless as hell about women, body language, or hell, plain English.

Suddenly, two bottles of Fat Tires plopped down in front of us. I looked up to find Eric standing there with a cross between amusement, embarrassment and... pity on his face.

"Your beers." He announced. Although unnecessary, it was still appreciated.

"Hey, big bro. Let me get one of those too." Alex said.

They were brothers? I did a double take. Both blonde, tall, same build but that wasn't really saying much since they had nothing else physically in common.

Eric reached under the bar and pulled out another beer. After opening it, he handed it to his brother and locked eyes with him. A few seconds of some sort of secret guy/brother silent exchange later, Alex's cheeks flamed and he ran a hand through his hair again.

I tensed when Alex leaned down and said quietly into my ear, "I'm sorry I was an ass."

At the same time, Eric pulled Laf into a conversation with another group of customers.

I looked at Alex and studied him. He really did look contrite and judging by the redness still on his ears, he was also humiliated.

My body relaxed.

"You weren't an ass." At his look of disbelief, I continued, "You weren't an ass. Persistent to the point of borderline creepy, yes. An ass, no."

He plopped down in the stool next to me and nursed his beer dejectedly. "I've never done this before."

"Done what?" I asked, confused.

"The bar scene." He waved his hands around. "Any scene. I've been with the same girl since I was seventeen." Then, silently and with so much anguish I could've sworn the words were ripped straight from his heart, he said, "I just found out that she's been cheating on me with one of my boys."

Well, fuck.

I placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Look on the bright side."

He lifted his chin from the bar top and glanced at me.

"You found out before you married her."

His head plopped back down.

"You're young, hot, and very sweet. There are plenty of women out there who would consider themselves lucky to have that kind of devotion from you."

He shrugged.

Jeezus, I was horrible at this.

"You're free now. Not tied down by anyone. Your options are wide open. You could pick and choose from the entire female dating population of New York - hell, the world if you're into traveling. Imagine all the possibilities. All the women just waiting for the opportunity to meet you." Thinking I was onto something, I continued enthusiastically, "Maybe, maybe it was fate. Destiny. Predetermined. That your heart would get broken by such a callous bitch. I mean, if you've never experienced heartache or been through the lowest of lows, maybe you wouldn't be able to appreciate or recognize the highest of highs - meeting the one, falling in love again. Learning to love again. I mean that in itself is amazing. But this time with the right woman." I nodded and continued with conviction, "A woman who will love, cherish and adore you and everything you've got to give. A woman who will handle your heart with care and who understands that your love is a precious gift, not something taken and tossed aside ruthlessly."

His posture didn't change at all throughout my spiel.

I sighed and tried a different tactic. "You're also free to sleep around."

His head turned to look at me.

My shoulders slumped. "Have sex with all kinds of women."

He pushed his body off the counter.

I lowered my head to look at my lap. "Different chick every night."

He sat up straight.

I folded my arms on the counter and placed my head on them. "I know where you can meet models and regular chicks who just want casual sex."

And at this, he grinned his adorable boyish grin and asked, "Where?"

I sighed. Another good guy lost to the brotherhood of players thanks to a heartless woman.

Closing my eyes, I mumbled, "My school is having a fashion show on Wednesday. Plenty of models and a student body comprised of 85% females. I'm sure you'll leave with at least half a dozen numbers of women who want the same thing as you." I turned my head to look at him, "But make sure they know you're not looking for anything serious. There are plenty of women into casual sex, you don't need to go breaking any hearts. That's just cruel."

He nodded enthusiastically and handed me his phone. After programming my contact info into his phone, and him forcing a promise out of me to introduce him to like-minded women (and I knew more than a few who'd totally jump his bones, no strings attached), I took him up on his earlier offer of a drink and got two shots of tequila too. Two shots lead to three, and before I knew it, I was past buzzed and tiptoeing the line to drunk.

Sufficiently lubricated, my mood took a turn for the better. See? Totally a happy drunk.

That's why I didn't hesitate to answer when a woman sat down in the seat Alex vacated and asked, "Sookie Stackhouse?"

"That's me." I grinned.

It's why I also didn't see the glint in her eyes when she asked, "You live in Bensonhurst, right?"

"Yup," I replied, popping the P and taking a sip of my Apple Martini.

It was soo good.

So I took another sip, and another sip, and another. Next thing I knew, the nice lady was buying me a shot of whiskey and a Long Island Iced Tea as a chaser.

"Don't you have a brother named Jason?"

"I sure do."

"And your parents are Corbett and Michelle, right?"

It still didn't penetrate that a woman I didn't know was asking me some extremely personal questions.

"They were," I replied, happily taking a pull of the delicious drink.

"Were?" She asked.

"They're dead now. Car accident, DOA." I gulped down another mouthful.

I also didn't see the triumphant smile on her face. But Eric, who observed our exchange with a watchful eye, did and went to get Lafayette.

"Oh, that's terrible! I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Don't worry about it, babe. They've been dead since I was two. Can't miss something you don't remember having, right?" I grinned and took another long pull through the straw.

"That's a great way to look at it. So, are you dating anyone now?"

"Nope," I replied, popping the P, just as Laf sidled up next to me.

"Hi, I'm Lafayette Reynolds, Sookie's best friend. And you are?"

I realized I didn't have a clue what her name was so I turned to look at her.

She laughed nervously. "I'm Selah. Selah Pumphrey."

"That name sounds familiar. And pretty." I piped.

"And how do you know Sookie?" He asked.

Eric must've been curious too because he crossed his arms against his chest and stood planted in front of us.

"We've chatted before."

"Oh? Sook, do you know Ms. Humphrey?" Laf turned to me and asked.

Then, I remembered.

So I threw my hands joyously in the air and yelled, "Sheila Humpme!"

A hush descended upon the bar but I was too out of it to notice.

"She's the reporter who kept hounding me the morning after The Surgeon almost stole my uterus!" I continued loudly.

That's when Eric's deep, threatening voice ordered, "Think you should leave now."

I looked up to see if he was talking to me. Nope, his glacial blue eyes were aimed at Sheila. Yay me for not getting kicked out of a bar again! I took another sip to celebrate my small victory.

"I think I'll stay right here." She retorted.

Ooh... Bad move. Even I knew it because Eric's face and posture went from tense to straight up pissed the fuck off.

Leaning across the counter, he placed his face directly in front of hers and said slowly, dragging out the words but enunciating them so clearly an idiot would understand, "Get. The fuck. Out."

Sheila was one stubborn chica because her ass stayed planted in the stool next to mine. "No."

Uh oh. I knew what was coming next because it's happened to me more times than I cared to remember.

Eric looked across the bar to the door where a bouncer was, drew back his lips and whistled loudly through his teeth.

The bouncer crossed the bar in long strides and looked questioningly at Eric.

By then, everyone who was still there had gathered around at the bar to watch the show so everyone heard Eric when he pointed his chin at Sheila and declared, "Want her banned."

I thought back to the bars I was kicked out of. Nope, I've never been banned anywhere for life. Another small victory, so I took another sip.

The big guy nodded, tugged Sheila out of her seat and began pulling her towards the exit. She put up a hell of a fight; screaming, clawing, kicking. He ended up carrying her ass out.

The second the door slammed shut, I let loose a giggle. Jade, Tray, Laf, Alex and Eric all looked at me like I was crazy.

I shrugged and with an enormous smile on my face, I said, "I'm just glad it wasn't me," and took another sip.

A/N: I got impatient.. So our girl gets to meet Eric a few days earlier than planned.. Bad Salmon, bad!

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pics are up in my profile, as usual. You ladies might find Tray particularly delicious; who doesn't love half nekkid pics of David Gandy? Not me!