AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Lainey
In the year after weboth turned eighteen, Cass dragged me out with her a lot—usually to clubs where I danced all night and got blisters on my feet that were as big and bothersome as the guys that hit on me. So, when Cass insisted I go to a club with her this Saturday, I naturally assumed we were going to a nightclub, not a dive bar north of the city that looks like it’s a meeting place for miscreants.
The Golden Roo houses a small stage, old ripped red leather seating, and around twenty pool tables. The walls and floors are covered by a thick blanket of dirt and grime, and I’m betting this place hasn’t been properly cleaned for more than a decade. I dread to imagine the germs lurking under the filth. I feel as though I need a tetanus shot just from walking through the door.
If I’d known we were coming here, I wouldn’t have dressed in the clothes I’m currently wearing. Jeans and a jacket would have been fine. Instead, I’m dressed in an incredibly short purple and black striped one-sleeve dress, and my three-inch see-through lace black heels. I have a black jacket on, but it only covers my dress, not my stockingless legs.
One of the men standing at the bar undresses me with his beady eyes and gives me a nearly toothless smile, causing me to shudder. I may run screaming if he actually walks over here. I long for the safety of the nightclub I believed we were going to. A place where bouncers take care of any problems and the music isn’t a horrendous cross between metal and grunge that makes you wish you were deaf.
Cass has been wearing a slightly guilty expression ever since she told me she couldn’t find anyone else to go out with her tonight. I left the new manuscript I just started working on at home because she didn’t want to go out alone.
“Are you going to tell me what we’re doing here?” I ask her.
She’s too busy scanning the place to answer my question. Clearly, she’s looking for something or someone. After a moment, her gaze locks on a table near the back of the place and a smile slides across her face. At first, I can’t tell if I know the man who’s playing pool by himself, but the moment he turns towards us, I realise that I do know him.
“Cass! You told me this was going to be a fun night out. Not that you were stalking Duncan.”
It’s Saturday night, Ben’s dedicated night out with the guys, and I can’t help wondering if he’s on his way here. Excitement pings through me at the thought of seeing him, but I’m not sure he’ll feel as happy to see me. He’s religious about this one night of the week he and the guys get together and go out. And hook up.
She gives me a sheepish smile. “I’m not stalking him. I’m kind of, um, dating him.”
“What?”
Judging by the way Duncan grins as he takes in Cass in her little black dress, her presence is definitely wanted. The two of them make googly eyes at each other until I put my hand on my friend’s shoulder and shake her to get her attention.
“Explain, Cass.”
Cass holds up two fingers to Duncan, indicating we’ll be a couple of minutes. After he blows her a kiss, I take her by the arm and steer her towards the bar. I ask the bartender for a pre-mixed bottle of vodka and cranberry, and Cass asks for a beer as we take a seat at the bar.
“Best to drink something that was bottled somewhere else,” she says, looking at the dirt on the walls.
My thoughts exactly.
“Want to tell me when this started?” I ask as the bartender puts the drinks in front of us.
“About a month and a half ago.”
“After Barnaby’s?” I ask sharply.
I knew that Cass and Duncan exchanged numbers six weeks ago, the same night I reconnected with Ben, but she never said a word about them seeing each other after that.
“I know you’re upset with me,” she begins.
“I thought he never called you.”
“I never said that.”
“You didn’t say anything at all! Every time I brought up Duncan, you changed the subject. I figured it was a sore spot and stopped asking. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Duncan isn’t like the guys I usually date.”
“So?”
Like Ben, Duncan has the whole bad boy vibe down pat. He has dark blonde hair, tattoos, and posts in his ear. Generally, Cass sticks to dating actors, musicians, or professional types rather than bad boys. But she also looks for people who are ambitious and Duncan fits that bill. He’s working on expanding his parents’ business and plastics empire, and has already been successful in increasing their profit margin.
“And I’m not the kind of girl Duncan usually dates, either,” she adds.
“Duncan doesn’t date, period.”
