The Scars of Anatomy

20. Sabotage

"Holy shit," Chase hisses. "She actually came?"

I shrug, a triumphant smile on my face.

Chase shakes his head in disbelief. He may or may not have heard some of my nervous rambling about whether she was going to show or not. "I for sure thought she would bail on your ass."

"Nah," I say, more confident now than I was a few hours ago. I knew deep down Olivia would never stand me up, but still, I'd be lying if I said a part of me wasn't worried.

Realizing Olivia and JC's conversation is starting to taper off, I make my way back over to her. Shrugging off my leather jacket, I drape it over the back of a nearby chair, motioning for Olivia to do the same. 

Slowly, she grabs the zipper of her coat and drags it down. Once it's all the way unzipped, she slips it off her shoulders, revealing a black high neck halter top of some sorts, making my breathing falter. While I'm a little disappointed that she's not showing more skin, I'll take what I can get.

I take her in, marveling at her fair, smooth skin in the dim light of the club. She looks so delicate, so feminine, so perfect, all I want to do is drag my lips across her bare shoulder to the small sliver of collar bone showing, up to the long, smooth lines of her neck.

Fuck.

I swear, any girl could come up to me right now with less clothing and I wouldn't be nearly as impressed.

Swallowing thickly, I reach for her coat, deliberately letting my fingers graze hers, and set it on top of mine. I take a step towards her, leaning in to ask if she wants to grab something to drink, my hand reaching around to rest on her back, but I freeze as soon as my hand lands on a smooth, warm span of skin.

All blood flow to my brain seizes momentarily, my hand soaking in the feel of her soft, bare skin. A tingle runs up my arm and down my spine, and I struggle to form a coherent sentence. I clear my throat, my voice still gruff. "Do you want anything to drink?"

"I'll take a water."

I raise a brow. "That's all?"

She gives me a sheepish smile. "I don't drink," she admits.

I nod once. "I respect that. Do you want to stay here or come to the bar with me?"

She looks over my shoulder wearily at all the football players. "I'll come with you."

I suppress a smile, knowing she's still wracked with nerves and isn't quite comfortable enough for me to leave her side yet. Not that I want to. At all.

"Come on." I extend my hand out to her and lace our fingers together, leading her over to the crowded bar.

We stand around the bar, trying to fight our way up to the counter to place our order. As soon as a small opening becomes available, I urge Olivia forward. She slots herself between two people to lean up against the bar and I'm right behind her, my front pressed against her back. I reach forward, resting my hands on the edge of the bar to bracket my arms round her, protecting her from the crowd.

I scan the staff behind the bar, and luckily my eyes lock with Toby from the basketball team. He grins, holding up an index finger to me before grabbing three shot glasses and disappearing to the other end of the bar. He's back in a flash, taking our orders.

"Two waters," I tell him, holding up my index and middle finger to signal to him.

He quirks a brow. "Two waters?" he repeats quizzically, knowing I usually order a beer or a round of shots for the guys.

"Two waters," I confirm.

"You got it, man." He disappears to go grab us two waters.

Olivia cranes her neck to look back at me. "You can drink if you want to, Bronx. Don't let me stop you from having fun," she worries.