Chapter 1
Ryan
“THIS IS WHERE you’re meeting up with the potential love of your life? The place he’s taking you on your first date? Um, I don’t know about that, Jude.”
I glanced over the roof of the Uber to the small pub it’d pulled up in front of and eyed the dull grey door and brick façade. “You might want to rethink this.”
“I never said love of my life.” Jude shut his door as I walked around to meet him. “That was you. I said hookup. I plan to relax and enjoy myself tonight.”
“Still.” I buttoned my peacoat as I stepped up onto the curb and a plastic bag tumbleweed plastered itself to my pant leg. “It’s a little bit…underwhelming, don’t you think?”
“Well, I don’t need him to impress me.” Jude waggled his brows. “His photos already did that. Especially the third one of his—”
“Rare and expensive stamp collection?” I chuckled and shook my leg in an attempt to free myself from the plastic tentacle now clinging to it. “I’m so glad you dragged me down here for that.”
“I dragged you down here because you could do with a little relaxing yourself. You’ve been working too hard lately, Ry. When was the last time you went out anywhere other than to get Alexander a coffee and his dry cleaning?”
Okay, so he might have a point. I couldn’t actually remember the last time I’d gone out. The past few weeks at work had been hectic to say the least. Several big news stories had broken at ENN, and as personal assistant to the nation’s top news anchor, Alexander Thorne, that had meant busy days and nights organizing his schedule and making sure he got everything he asked for.
I loved my job, so sue me. But it really had put a damper on my love life lately.
“Plus,” Jude said, “I kind of wanted you here because this place is…”
“A little sketchy?” Right on cue, the corner light flickered as if to emphasize my point.
“Maybe? So it’s a little less shiny than we’re used to. I’m sure after a couple of drinks things will start to look better.”
That wouldn’t be all that difficult, considering the shiniest thing I could see right now was a broken bottle on the pavement. But Jude really wanted this, and if the situation was reversed, I knew he would tough it out for me.
“Okay, I’ll stay for a couple of drinks.”
“Ah! You’re the best—and who knows, maybe you’ll meet someone with an impressive stamp collection.”
I laughed at his ridiculous grin, but when Jude pulled open the door and we stepped inside, my humor instantly dissipated. We might as well have had the words FRESH MEAT printed across our foreheads.
Never had the term “stood out like a sore thumb” felt more accurate, as the door to the pub slammed shut behind us and everyone inside turned to see who’d entered their local watering hole.
Now, as a rule, I tended to frequent the same ten or so bars/clubs within a two-mile radius of my apartment. They were familiar, and I knew how to get home from them even when three sheets to the wind. This place, however, was anything but familiar.
Clearly popular on a Friday night, the pub was bustling. There were several groups of guys off to the right standing around a pool table, and running the length of the old building was a packed wooden bar. There were a few old keg barrels acting as extra seating around makeshift tables, and on the other side of the establishment were several booths.
They were all full tonight, and I almost groaned, because I would’ve done just about anything to slip into one of those and disappear right now. It was more than obvious we weren’t from around here, and if Jude hadn’t assured me this was a gay-friendly pub, I would’ve already been out the door and hailing a cab.
“Do you see him?” I said, hoping the answer would be a big fat no. But when I turned to press Jude for more, I spotted him making his way down the booths, tossing a wave over his shoulder in my direction.
Well, that answered that. He was heading toward a big, brawny guy with a week-old scruff who greeted him with a tilt of his chin. He was just Jude’s type, and while I was happy the guy hadn’t stood my friend up, that meant I had to sit here for however long until I knew one way or another that Jude was happy with his…situation. Then I could leave.
Resigning myself to my fate, I made my way over to the busy bar and picked a spot at the far end. Several heads turned in my direction as I unbuttoned my coat and took a seat on one of the cracked red vinyl stools. The counter in front of me was scuffed up and worn, with stain rings on it.
A far cry from the shiny bar tops I usually sat at—or watched men dance on—but it would do. A bar was a bar, right? And as long as it sold alcohol, I wouldn’t complain.
“Hey there. Whatcha drinkin’ tonight?”
I looked up from the counter and into the leathery face of a man who appeared as rough around the edges as the bar itself. He had on jeans, a white tee, and a flannel shirt that hung open over the top of it. His sleeves were rolled up his forearms, revealing several faded tattoos, and when I dragged my eyes away from them and up to his face, I thought I caught a smirk before his lips pulled tight again.
When he said nothing more, my eyes flicked to the back shelf, where there were several different bottles of whiskey, bourbon, and scotch. That was it, other than the standard local beers on tap.
Sooo, I was guessing a cosmo was out? “A bourbon, neat, thanks.”
He gave a nod and left to get my drink, and I was about to lay my coat across the counter when I thought better of it, looked to the seat beside me, and then decided to just keep it in my lap instead.
The low bass of some classic rock song thumped out of speakers I couldn’t see, and with nothing else to do while I waited, I pulled out my phone and began an aimless scroll through my social media.
I clicked on the notifications I was tagged in and spotted one from my best friend, Gabe. It was a “memory” posted from a few years ago. The two of us were standing in my living room and Gabe was holding up a set of keys. It was titled: Roommates!
I grinned, remembering how excited we’d been that day, and then commented underneath: Yeah, until you ran off into the sunset with Marcus and left me with all the bills LOL
Not that I blamed him. Who would? Not only had Gabe gone and fallen in love this past year. He’d gone and done it with one of the most eligible bachelors in Chicago, who coincidentally turned out to be the president of the company I worked for.
It seemed that everyone was falling in love these days. My boss had just gotten married, Gabe had moved in with his lover, and Jude—I glanced over my shoulder to see him leaning across the table laughing at something Scruff Man had said—well, at least he was trying.
“Bourbon, neat.”
“Thanks,” I said to the bartender as a tumbler was placed in front of me, and when I downed the contents in one quick gulp, I winced. Cheap didn’t exactly translate to smooth, but at least I wouldn’t go broke to get a good buzz going tonight.
“Now that’ll put some hair on ya chest.”
The slurred voice caught my attention, and I turned to see a short man in a crumpled jersey and jeans sidling up beside me. His bloodshot eyes locked on the open collar of my shirt then roved a little farther down, and I had the sudden urge to fasten my top two buttons.