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I chuckled, smacking the metal box at an angle, hard on the right. There was a loud click and John Denver’s voice filled the air, one of Mr. Davidson’s favorites. He played this song every week and tonight was no exception. His eyes closed as the music washed over him.
“There ya go. Problem solved.”
He murmured his thanks under his breath as I scooted away towards the bathroom. Might as well take a quick potty break while I was out from behind the bar.
I shoved through the black metal door of the ladies’ room, heading straight to a stall. I did my business, then washed my hands at the sink, pausing a moment to touch up my pale pink lip gloss. Smoothing my hair down, I straightened my shirt and sucked in my stomach. Not bad for thirty-three, I supposed, especially given the fact that I spent little to no money on cosmetic products and barely had time to exercise.
With a sigh, I pushed the door open and hurried out, running straight into Liam.
“Are you stalking me?” I asked, stepping back from his warm body, his broad chest. Somehow resisting the urge to bury my face into his shirt and inhale his clean, spicy scent.
Good gawd, FOCUS, Macy.
I tipped my head up at him, gazing at his face, his strong, square jaw. He was even taller than I’d thought; I barely came up to his shoulder.
“Uh, no. Just looking for the restrooms.” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. The air between us practically crackled with electricity, and it wasn’t from the jukebox or the overly humid room.
“Oh. You’re in the right place.” I pointed my thumb to the left, at the door behind me.
“Great.”
We stood there awkwardly for one second, two, then three, until a group of ladies turned down the hall.
“Sorry,” I said, my body brushing up against his as they squeezed by to get to the restroom, forcing us back together again. Liam’s hand dropped down to my hip, pulling me in closer to him as they pushed past, steadying me, and my breath caught in my throat, my skin flaming beneath my shirt at the contact.
“No problem.”
As soon as I could, I backed away from him, caught off guard by my visceral response. Things like this never happened to me; what was it about this guy? Maybe I’d been off the dating scene so long I didn’t even remember what it was like anymore.
“Okay. Have a nice . . .” my voice trailed off.What was I going to say? Have a nice pee? Oh boy.
Liam chuckled. “Thanks, I will.” He grinned, then headed into the bathroom, the door swinging shut behind him.
I exhaled, my pulse slowly returning to normal as I wound my way through the crowded room.
“Where the heck were you?” Steph asked, hand on her hip.
“I had to pee,” I said, grabbing a dishrag and swiping at the bar, avoiding eye contact.
“You took long enough. I’ve been swamped up here!” she moaned, pouring a tall glass of white wine. It was the first time I’d seen her serve a drink all night.
“Sorry,” I said, feeling no remorse. All I could think about, to be honest, was the feel of Liam’s body crushed up against mine, his strength as he supported me.
“Well, aren’t you going to ask me how I did?” Steph scooted next to me, leaning in so close the scent of her drugstore perfume tickled my nostrils and not in a good way.
“Yeah, sure. How’d you do?” I swallowed hard over the lump in my throat, keeping my eyes on the neat row of glasses in front of me.Why was I nervous? This was so stupid.
“I think he’s definitely single,” she said, her voice high-pitched and excited. “I didn’t get his number yet, but there’s still time, right?”
I glanced over at her, her eyes all wide and glossy with hope.
“Yes. Still time for sure. Can you do a quick spin in the back, by the pool tables? We’re running kind of low on glasses.”
Steph sighed, like I just put her out. “I guess.” She swiped a tray from the ledge beneath the bar and headed towards the pool tables at a turtle’s pace. I figured that task would take her at least twenty minutes; I really should talk to Big Ray about his hiring practices. Steph was nice enough, but she had zero hustle.
“Can you close us out?”
I looked up to see Quinn leaning up against the bar, his hands steepled together.
