Red took off down the hall to call for an ambulance. I could hear her talking to the operator, but all I could do was stare at Mom.
Chapter 22
Alex (Now)
As I walked into The Den for trivia, I didn’t know what to expect from Drew. Were we still keeping things between us? I decided to let him take the lead even though I wanted to shout it from the rooftops.
I was the first one there, so I said hello to Papa Jack and headed for our table. Bridget met me there with a beer and quickly took off to put in my food order. I dropped my bag and shrugged out of my jacket.
I was just about to take my seat when a meaty paw landed on my shoulder. I jumped and turned to see that Papa Jack had come up behind me. “Jesus!” I breathed, pressing a hand to my chest.
“Nope, just me.” I rolled my eyes at him. So funny.
“What’s up, Pop?”
“I was gonna ask you the same thing,” he said, crossing his beefy arms across his broad chest.
“I’m good.” I was confused. What was he getting at?
“You’re like one of my own, Alex, and I have to tell ya, you have been a bit of a mess the past few weeks.”
He was right. I’ve been a total mess. I’ve been running around like a freaked out Chihuahua.
I sank down into my chair. “I know,” I said.
“If this is about my bonehead son, you need to tell me. I will straighten him out for ya.” He stood up straighter and I looked up at him, my eyes wide in panic. He put his hand on my shoulder again. “I saw that kiss he planted on you. If ya ask me, it’s about damn time he came to his senses.” He shot me a wink.
“That was just one of Sean’s games. Drew and I aren’t together.” I was scrambling, trying to throw him off the trail. As far as I knew, Drew still didn’t want people to know.
“Ya should be. That fool boy of mine needs to get his head out of his ass. Finding a girl like you only happens once in a lifetime. I should know,” he said, his eyes going misty. He pressed a calloused hand to my cheek. “You remind me so much of Emma. She was just as stubborn and never could take a compliment.” He took a breath and dropped his hand. “If he doesn’t see that in you, then he’s dumber than he looks.”
I hadn’t realized I’d started to cry until he wiped a tear from my cheek and pulled me into a hug. He released me and looked into my face. “He doesn’t deserve you.” I laughed, reaching for a napkin to wipe my face as Drew came in.
Papa Jack headed back to the bar. When he passed by Drew, he playfully smacked him in the back of the head. “Ow! What was that for, Pop?” Drew said, rubbing the back of his head. Papa Jack didn’t respond. He just shook his head and went back behind the bar.
As Drew got closer to me, he saw my face and his brows drew together. “You okay?”
I wiped at my face and smiled up at him. “Yeah, I’m fine. We were just talking about your mom.”
He gave me a sad smile and took a seat. He reached out and wiped a tear from my face with his thumb. I looked at Papa Jack, who was standing behind the bar. He smiled and kept cleaning the glasses.
Everybody else filed in a little later. We had a great time. It seemed to be business, as usual. Drew draped his arm over the back of my chair, but it really wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.
I waved to Bridget to bring me another beer when Sean said, “I think Bridget wants me.”
We all burst into laughter and Sean looked around the table “What? She does. All the ladies want me. Right, Alex?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows at me.
“Oh yeah, it’s taking everything I have not to crawl into your lap right now,” I deadpanned.
Sean scooted back his chair to show me his lap was free. I just shook my head at him and he leaned in, putting his elbows on the table.
“I’m telling you, she’s been vibing me for weeks.” He watched as Bridget placed drinks on her tray across the bar.
David raised his eyebrows and lifted his beer. “Go for it, then.”
Millie swatted at David. “Don’t encourage him.”
Sean sat back in his chair with a smirk. He looked up and saw that Bridget was approaching our table with my beer on her tray. She grabbed the bottle and leaned over him to hand it to me. Before I could take it from her, Sean grabbed her waist, spun her around, and pulled her down into his lap. “Hey there, gorgeous.”
Bridget scowled at him and reared back, slapping him hard across his face. Millie’s eyes widened. Drew and David started to laugh, trying not to spit beer on each other. Bridget scrambled from Sean’s lap, spilling my beer all over me and the table in the process. She gave me a small smile to say sorry and glared at Sean before stomping away.
Millie quickly grabbed some napkins to clean up the mess and I attempted to dry my shirt. She handed me a handful of napkins and gestured toward the bathroom. I smacked Sean on the back of the head as I got up and went to the bathroom to clean the beer from my chest.
I managed to clean and dry my blouse enough for it to no longer be transparent, but there was nothing to be done about the beer smell. I opened the door and started heading back to our table when an arm pulled me to the side hallway.
I was pressed against the wall and Drew was pressed against me. We were in the back hallway that led the keg closet, next to the payphone no one used any more. He smiled and leaned in close.
“Thank god Sean is an idiot,” he said, his lips against my neck. “I didn’t think I would have a chance to get you alone.” He pressed his lips to the spot behind my ear and I moaned.
“Drew, we can’t,” I said unconvincingly. “Not here.”
“They won’t find us back here.”
He ran a hand down my chest and cupped my breast. He gently rubbed his thumb over my nipple through my damp shirt and it instantly pebbled in response. He smiled and leaned in, kissing me hard. He thrust his tongue into my mouth. I moaned and gave in, kissing him back and pulling him closer as he hiked my leg up on his hip, grinding into me.
Every kiss from Drew was better than the last. The soft touch of his lips, the hard sweep of his tongue, and the growl that escaped from the back of his throat as his fingers dug into my hips was indescribable. When he broke the kiss, we were both breathing heavily. He leaned his forehead against mine.
“We need to get out of here. My place?” he asked. I nodded.
He released me and handed me his keys as I straightened up and fixed my clothes.
“You go first,” he said. “I’m gonna need a minute.” He adjusted himself and gave me a shy smile.
I kissed his cheek and headed back to the table, putting a little more sway in my hips than I usually did.
Papa Jack had Sean backed into a corner. He was giving him a lecture about the appropriate way to treat a woman. That would take a while.
I got to the table and said goodbye to Millie. She waved at me and shot a nervous glance at Sean. I patted her shoulder. “He deserves it.”
She nodded and turned to ask David to intervene.
***
I got to Drew’s place and had just turned the key when, all of a sudden, Drew was behind me, pushing us quickly through the door, his lips on my neck.
He turned me to face him and tugged at my damp blouse, pulling the tail from my skirt and up over my head as he walked me backward into the apartment. We kissed, stumbling out of our clothes until my back hit the kitchen island. He moved from my mouth to my neck and down my chest. When I opened my eyes, he was on his knees, running his hands up under my skirt, pushing it slowly up my thighs.
Oh my God, those hands. Just the thought of Drew touching me had me soaked. When his fingers reached the thin lace of my panties, he pulled them down, letting them fall to the floor as he pushed my skirt up until it caught around my hips.