Empty Me Out (The Liquid Series, #1)

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Five days later was lunch with my friends at our favorite café in Milton for a last hurrah of sorts—a time to cherish one final moment of bonding with my girlies before they headed back to college that weekend for the start of the spring semester. We were an eclectic bunch: Maia, a culinary arts major attending school in Rhode Island; Debra, a computer science enthusiast, fine tuning her skills in New Hampshire; and Calista, my overambitious best friend, who was knockin' 'em dead in Amherst, Massachusetts with a double major in theatre arts and psychology. And then of course, there was me, the lone commuter and business major, attending university in Boston. Even though I'd never regretted my decision to live my college experience from home, a part of me had always envied my friends and their independence. And I was going to miss them terribly.

"Kels, you've got to promise to visit me this semester, okay?" Calista looked at me expectantly while chomping into her Monte Cristo sandwich.

Debra jumped in. "Ooohhh, I wanna tag along too! Cali always has a way of finding the best parties...the best." With a sip of mocha late, she continued, "Remember that one last year at the frat house? Oh my God, I think I was drunk for three days straight!" She laughed boisterously.

I rolled my eyes. "This is exactly why I avoid you all like the plague when you're at school." I picked at my turkey club, removing the tomatoes. "I just end up playing nurse maid and cleaning up puke."

"Totally with you on that, Kels," Maia chimed in. "I'm so over the partying scene." Lifting her empty iced tea glass, she signaled the waitress for a refill. "Been there. Done that. Bought the T-shirt." She winked at me—it was nice having someone else on my side.

Calista shook her head exasperatedly as she swallowed another bite of her sandwich. "You only play nurse maid because you won't allow yourself to let loose." She gestured her hands toward me for emphasis. "If you'd just relax and not worry about things so much, you might actually surprise yourself by having fun." And to further entice me, she added, "There are so many hot guys I could introduce you to."

The prospect of meeting someone sounded tempting, but college parties weren't exactly the best places to meet the type of guys I'd be interested in. With a shrug, I offered a compromise. "I promise I'll think about it, okay?" Maybe I could suck it up for one weekend...after all, she was my best friend and I hadn't paid her a visit at campus since sophomore year.

She smacked her hands down on the table in excitement. "That's my girl!" Obviously, she thought I would cave in, and...she was probably right.

Maia tucked a lock of curly red hair behind her ear as she glanced over at me. "You're a glutton for punishment, my friend." With a sympathetic smile and fork-in-hand, she stabbed at her Caesar salad.

"Don't I know it?" I replied, popping a French fry into my mouth. "Cali is still trying to corrupt me. She's persistent, I'll give her that."

"Aw, cut Cali some slack, would you people?" Debra defended. Focusing on me, she continued, "Kels, parties and out of control behavior are a rite-of-passage for college students." Deep in thought, her fingers played through her short, black, bobbed-cut hair. "Since you're always so cooped up at home, she just wants you to experience a little taste of that freedom and reckless abandon you've been missing out on."

"Wow. That's deep," I remarked, but immediately regretted my snark when Debra's face fell flat. "Look, I'm sorry. I get it...I do." I turned to Cali. "You're having the time of your life out there in Amherst, and I know you want to share it with me." My expression now sincere, I continued, "And I appreciate that, I really do....but to be honest, that whole scene...I find it very...overwhelming."

"Okay. Okay." Reaching across the table, Cali grabbed my hand. "I won't pressure you. You come visit only if it's what you want." After a deep inhale, she let out a long, drawn-out breath. "When I was younger, I guess I always imagined us doing the college thing together, you know? And yeah, I love attending school in Amherst and all the fun that goes along with it, but without you there...I don't know...it's not quite the same as I'd envisioned." Tears began to form in her eyes. "It's just that you're my best friend and...I miss you when I'm gone."

My eyes watered at hearing her words. "I miss you too." I gave her hand a squeeze.

"God, now you're making me cry!" Debra sniffled while digging through her purse for a tissue.

The three of us then simultaneously turned toward Maia and burst into a fit of giggles when we noticed the tears streaming down her face. "What? I just love you guys, okay?" She laughed at herself as she wiped her fingers across her wet cheeks.

"Well, aren't we just an emotional bunch." Smiling meaningfully at my friends, I threw some cash on the table to cover my portion of the check. After the others followed suit, we all rose to our feet, giving each other hugs of farewell.

As we approached the exit, I was rifling through my purse, looking for my car keys, when I collided with a man's broad chest. "Kelsey O'Reilly," I heard from above.

I lifted my chin to find Mark, the guy from the bar the other night, peering down at me. His smile was huge and white, perfect teeth gleaming. God, he looked good. The last time we saw each other, he was a little worse for wear, but today he looked like he'd walked straight out of a men's fashion catalog. In that pair of snug fitting black jeans and gray, V-neck wool sweater, I could really appreciate his masculine assets. Lean, yet muscular, his physique reminded me of a swimmer's build. Realizing my mouth was agape, I snapped it shut to feign nonchalance.

He touched my shoulder unexpectedly, giving me goose bumps. "Hey, I'm really glad I ran into you." Recalling our last encounter, he shook his head in embarrassment. "I was so stupid not to get your phone number last week." He let out an exasperated breath, blowing a tuft of black hair off of his forehead. "I guess I wasn't exactly thinking clearly that night."

Surprising myself for being so forward, I replied, "Well, I could give it to you now." Then I paused for a moment. "Uh...if you want me to."

"Yeah. Of course I do." With an enthusiastic nod, he took his cell phone out of his back pocket. As I gave Mark my number, he quickly entered it in before returning his gaze to me. It was the first time I'd seen his eyes properly focused, and they were warm, friendly...the color of caramel. "I look forward to making it up to you," he said with a grin.

"Me too," I replied. Why did I suddenly have butterflies in my stomach?

"Well...I guess I'll talk to you soon, then." Did Mark seem nervous now, too, or was that my imagination?

He turned on his heel to notice Cali standing nearby. "Hi Calista. Nice to see you again," he said while beginning to maneuver through the crowd of customers waiting for tables. It impressed me that he remembered my best friend's name this time. Approaching the cashier, Mark ordered a coffee to go, before briefly glancing over his shoulder to catch me staring. When he flashed me another megawatt smile, I felt the fluttering in my belly accelerate.

Sensing two pairs of eyes burning holes into me, I turned to find Maia and Debra shooting me daggers, their glares making it clear they expected answers regarding my mystery man.

I quickly left the café, not wanting to get into it with them in front of an audience, but they were hot on my trail as I walked the half-block to my parked car.

"So, are you going to tell us about your gorgeous new friend, or do we have to beat it out of you?" Debra asked, standing with one hand on a hip, pretending to be offended at not hearing about Mark sooner. Maia looked more amused than anything. I noticed Cali exiting the café and headed toward us. She didn't look happy. I wondered if Mark said anything to upset her. When she caught up to us, I feared she would spill the beans about how we came to know Mark, but she remained surprisingly mum. In no mood to rehash the gory details of that night, I breathed a sigh of relief.

After looking to Cali for confirmation that she was indeed going to keep quiet, I decided to buy myself some time with Debra and Maia. "I'll tell you...but not right now. It's a...long story."

Dissatisfied with my answer, they jumped to their own conclusions and screamed in unison, "Holy shit, you like him!"