now he wanted to sulk and regret it. Hell, no.
Any other girl might have taken the hint and walked away. She couldn’t leave Chris like this. And spending Valentine’s Day without him would just plain suck. Pact or no pact, they were best friends. She was there to stay.
“Chris, talk to me.” He didn’t say a word. She was going to need the help of alcohol to keep her cool with him. The cold beer hit her stomach, chilling her body another degree. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she set the can on the table with a thump and moved to get another from the fridge. Chris placed his hand on her arm to stop her. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach.
“If you’re staying, you’re drinking the good stuff with me.” He reached over the armrest, and she heard sticky plastic pulling apart. There was a cooler next to him.
Chris turned on the lamp behind the sofa before he plunked two frosted shot glasses onto the coffee table. He poured from a tall, dark bottle and handed one to Hannah. She lifted it to her nose. “Jameson?”
He grinned. “Is there any other whiskey? Now down the hatch like a good girl,” he said before throwing his drink back into his mouth.
Hannah could drink like the rest of the guys most of the time, but something about that particular brand of whiskey got to her and fast. She also had an empty stomach. If she threw it back like Chris, she’d be a slobbering mess in no time. She knew she should take her time and sip it, but he was watching and waiting. The silence between them grew into an unspoken challenge.
She raised the glass to her lips and tossed back the dark brown liquid. Lord, it burned down the throat and into the stomach! It took all her willpower to resist coughing, and her eyes watered.
Chris steadied her hand with his and poured more into her glass. The alcohol must have already made its way into her system. She could have sworn his fingers lingered too long before sliding away.
Damn. Every nerve responded to him in with a violent intensity she’d pushed down for a long time. Tonight could prove to be too hard to be around him. Maybe another drink was all she needed to keep her feelings in check.
This time she sipped from the shot glass enjoying the slow warmth as it slid down. Chris downed another shot and poured some more. She traced the lip of her glass with her index finger as she watched his head tilt back, his Adam’s apple bob, and moisture glisten on his lips.
She clenched her thighs when the ache between her legs grew uncomfortable as she thought about licking the alcohol off of those lips. This wasn’t good. They’d been buzzed around each other before, and she’d been able to keep it together. Tonight shouldn’t be any different.
“You ever get tired of being alone, Hannah?”
Her vision swam when her eyes snapped to his face and took a moment to steady. “Huh?”
“You know. Most of our friends are married or will be getting married soon. It’s just you and me on the singles’ scene. Don’t you get tired of it?”
Hannah didn’t have any complaints about being single. Everyone in her life had been unreliable or untrustworthy with the exception of Chris. She didn’t depend on anyone but herself from day-to-day. Chris was a rare gem in her life.
Her job as a bartender didn’t give her much hope for the possibility of ever having a stable relationship. The shit people told her about cheating, lying, and all kinds of other crap they did to each other was enough to keep her single.
“I don’t know,” she said. “It’s not like there’s a lot of outstanding guys out there just dying to show me what it’s like to have a healthy relationship. I doubt I’ll ever settle with one guy for long. I’ll always get let down or hurt. It’s just the way it is.”
His eyebrows drew together. “Even me?”
“We’re not like that, you idiot. I’m talking about the guys I’ve dated. You’re different. I know you’d never hurt me like they
Any other girl might have taken the hint and walked away. She couldn’t leave Chris like this. And spending Valentine’s Day without him would just plain suck. Pact or no pact, they were best friends. She was there to stay.
“Chris, talk to me.” He didn’t say a word. She was going to need the help of alcohol to keep her cool with him. The cold beer hit her stomach, chilling her body another degree. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she set the can on the table with a thump and moved to get another from the fridge. Chris placed his hand on her arm to stop her. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach.
“If you’re staying, you’re drinking the good stuff with me.” He reached over the armrest, and she heard sticky plastic pulling apart. There was a cooler next to him.
Chris turned on the lamp behind the sofa before he plunked two frosted shot glasses onto the coffee table. He poured from a tall, dark bottle and handed one to Hannah. She lifted it to her nose. “Jameson?”
He grinned. “Is there any other whiskey? Now down the hatch like a good girl,” he said before throwing his drink back into his mouth.
Hannah could drink like the rest of the guys most of the time, but something about that particular brand of whiskey got to her and fast. She also had an empty stomach. If she threw it back like Chris, she’d be a slobbering mess in no time. She knew she should take her time and sip it, but he was watching and waiting. The silence between them grew into an unspoken challenge.
She raised the glass to her lips and tossed back the dark brown liquid. Lord, it burned down the throat and into the stomach! It took all her willpower to resist coughing, and her eyes watered.
Chris steadied her hand with his and poured more into her glass. The alcohol must have already made its way into her system. She could have sworn his fingers lingered too long before sliding away.
Damn. Every nerve responded to him in with a violent intensity she’d pushed down for a long time. Tonight could prove to be too hard to be around him. Maybe another drink was all she needed to keep her feelings in check.
This time she sipped from the shot glass enjoying the slow warmth as it slid down. Chris downed another shot and poured some more. She traced the lip of her glass with her index finger as she watched his head tilt back, his Adam’s apple bob, and moisture glisten on his lips.
She clenched her thighs when the ache between her legs grew uncomfortable as she thought about licking the alcohol off of those lips. This wasn’t good. They’d been buzzed around each other before, and she’d been able to keep it together. Tonight shouldn’t be any different.
“You ever get tired of being alone, Hannah?”
Her vision swam when her eyes snapped to his face and took a moment to steady. “Huh?”
“You know. Most of our friends are married or will be getting married soon. It’s just you and me on the singles’ scene. Don’t you get tired of it?”
Hannah didn’t have any complaints about being single. Everyone in her life had been unreliable or untrustworthy with the exception of Chris. She didn’t depend on anyone but herself from day-to-day. Chris was a rare gem in her life.
Her job as a bartender didn’t give her much hope for the possibility of ever having a stable relationship. The shit people told her about cheating, lying, and all kinds of other crap they did to each other was enough to keep her single.
“I don’t know,” she said. “It’s not like there’s a lot of outstanding guys out there just dying to show me what it’s like to have a healthy relationship. I doubt I’ll ever settle with one guy for long. I’ll always get let down or hurt. It’s just the way it is.”
His eyebrows drew together. “Even me?”
“We’re not like that, you idiot. I’m talking about the guys I’ve dated. You’re different. I know you’d never hurt me like they
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