"To pay the bills I work as a waitress at Clover."
His laugh was nice and so was the way his warm brown eyes sparkled from it. "Clover, nice place...too rich for my blood though."
I was curious about how he knew of the place since he had just moved here but Todd had taken Lena so he probably learned of it from him. "Mine, too."
"Have you always wanted to be a writer, Ember?"
Before I could answer, Lena spoke up from across the table. "Em's been writing since we were kids. I can still see her with her second-hand clothes and knotted hair, her little tongue out as she concentrated on her stories. Her dad and his friends were her biggest fans, always encouraging her, always loving everything she did."
I thought I heard a touch of sour grapes in her address and had the sense she wasn't exactly being flattering to me and then Todd asked, "Is she any good?"
Hello, I'm sitting right here.
"Well, she certainly tries really hard."
My eyes flew to Lena's who was looking at me like an angel but I didn't miss the contempt burning deep in those green eyes.
"The full, academic scholarship to college that I won through The New York Times would suggest that some in the literary world would put me in higher standards."
"Oh, don't get upset, Em, I'm just playing around. Of course you are a very talented writer."
I didn't know why I never saw it before but my dad and Trace were right. Lena was not much of a friend. Dane reached for my hand under the table and lightly squeezed it and I found the gesture to be oddly very comforting.
After dinner we went to Sapphire and while Lena and Todd dry humped against the wall, Dane and I sat at the bar. Luke was working and he winked at me as he made our drinks. Once they were placed before us, Dane turned to me and lifted his glass to mine before taking a sip.
"I hear you play the piano."
"I do, yes."
"I'd like to hear you sometime."
"Yeah, okay. What brought you to New York?"
"I'm a freelance graphic artist. An assignment brought me here."
"Oh, graphic artist, that sounds like fun."
"I enjoy it and not just the work but getting the opportunity to meet new people."
I held his gaze as I asked, "Did you know this was a setup?"
I saw the grin a second before he answered, "I did, yes."
We spent the next half an hour talking and though on the surface Dane seemed like a great guy, there were a few things that really rubbed me the wrong way. One, his hand shake was wimpy; two, his eyes were constantly drifting about eight inches below my eyes and three, he was too agreeable. When he excused himself to use the restroom I was actually grateful for the reprieve.
"How are you doing, beautiful?" I looked up into the smiling gray eyes of the bartender.
"Hi, Luke. Can I hide behind there?"
"Sure thing."
He leaned over to rest his arms on the bar before he asked, "Blind date?"
"Blindsided. I thought I was going out to dinner with my roommate and her boyfriend."
"Not cool."
"My sentiments exactly."
"If you want to hide, Ember, you better do it now because here he comes."
"My father taught me never to cower." I offered with a little smile.
"I think I'd like your dad. Do you want another drink?"
"Water would be great, thanks."
"You got it."
Dane slid back into his seat with his hand coming to rest on my thigh.
"Are you about ready to go?"
"Ah, I was just getting a glass of water."
"I've got to be up early but I'd like to see you home, safe and sound."
"Oh, okay. Where's Todd and Lena?"
"They've already left. They're staying at Todd's tonight."
Luke returned then with my water.
"Thanks, Luke." I said as I reached for the glass. I saw the look that Dane gave to Luke and that he seemed almost too much in a hurry to leave.
"If you're in a rush I can catch a cab."
"No! I mean that wouldn't be very gentlemanly of me."
There was definitely some weird vibe coming off Dane and I knew I wasn't the only one to sense it because Luke kept glancing over at me. I finished my water and as soon as my glass touched the bar, Dane immediately reached for my hand and pulled me from my stool. Before we could move from our spot I heard my name in a familiar baritone coming from behind me.
"Ember."
I turned to see Trace. He was in his favorite outfit of faded jeans and a t-shirt. The bruises on his face were almost completely gone: only a slight discoloring under his eyes lingered. He looked beautiful but then I noticed the look in his eyes. He looked almost possessive and even though I wasn't a fan of possessive men, I think with Trace I wouldn't mind so much.