Excerpt #1
I shook myself out of my memories until I was back in the present. “You two are right,” I spoke, my voice unnaturally loud.
“Tattooed boy toy?”
“No,” I grumbled, throwing a pillow at Sara. “You’re a pain. But I do need a date for the wedding. A good one.”
“Well it shouldn’t be too hard to find you a perfect date. You’re smart, sweet, sexy and stacked,” Sara teased; holding her hands to her chest like I was Dolly Parton.
“Good lord, Sara. How much did you drink tonight?” barked Candace, rolling on the floor in a fit of laughter.
“Not enough.”
“Okay, so I need a date, girls. Problem is, I haven’t dated. Ever.”
“We know,” chimed in my best friends.
It’s not like I didn’t want to date, but after nursing my heart through the drama that was Daniel and Mary Anne, and then weathering the aftermath of Spencer Alexander, I couldn’t stand the thought of opening up to another guy. I’d left home for school to get away from all of the people I’d grown up with and to make new friends. However, once I got here I just ended up immersing myself in my classes and school clubs, and never made time to actually go out. Sara called me a homebody. Candace called me picky. I called myself scared.
Excerpt #2
Date number three in as many days. All I really wanted to do tonight was veg out in front of the television and read a good book. Two bad dates in a row was enough for one week. To make matters worse, it was seven-fifteen before my date showed up. He was forty five minutes late. Then he waved at me and pointed to the restroom. What the hell? I seriously contemplated just walking out of the bar, and went as far as to slide off the stool, when a husky male voice stopped me in my tracks.
"Tom Collins?"
Sigh. That accent could melt the panties off a girl. I was sure it had happened many times. Surprised, I met his warm brown eyes and asked, "You know my drink?"
"It's my job to know what the regulars prefer."
I shook my head immediately. "Oh, I'm not a regular."
He chuckled. That same deep chuckle I remembered hearing the night I left Mark at the bar. "My apologies, three nights in a row…I mistakenly assumed you made this a habit."
"Whoa, what do you mean this?" I asked. I felt my cheeks begin to burn. He actually thought I was trolling for men! I suppose it did look like that to the casual observer. Oh, snap. I didn't want to look easy.
"This? Picking losers for dates - that's what I meant," he stated smoothly, his arm waving about the bar. He turned his back and grabbed a glass and ice. I watched as he made his way around the bar and effortlessly poured the gin, lemon and simple syrup into the glass.
"On the house." He winked and walked away.
Excerpt #3
“Hey Savannah, what can I get for you tonight?”
A voice I recognized stopped me from gawking at the scene down the bar. Noelle, a girl from a study group I’d been in, placed a cocktail napkin in front of me and waited expectantly for my order.
“Oh.” I jumped, startled at the sudden interruption. “Hi Noelle. Um…my friend is waiting at the bar.”
“Honey, it’s gonna be a while by the looks of things.” She laughed. “What do you want, and I’ll go grab it?”
Thankfully, Jax looked over and saw us talking. I waved my hand, signaling him to come over as he wound his way to us. Suddenly my nerves started to get the best of me as I focused on his tall frame. This was starting to feel like a date. Crap.
“Wow. He’s a hottie, girl,” Noelle cooed as she watched Jax. “You two on a date?”
Damn, my cheeks were burning. “Simma down, girl. We just met.”
“Hi there, I’m Noelle. What can I get you?” she purred when he finally arrived at the table.
Her voice and attitude were confident. Of course they were. She had on the requisite skin tight, black, low slung jeans and second skin tank top that were required for all of the female staff here. She was a sexy girl and she knew it.
“Rum n’ Coke for me please, and a plain Coke for her.” His eyes dipped to the creamy flesh flashing above her v-neck tank for a quick glance. I couldn’t fault the guy for taking a peek at what was freely being offered in front of his face.
“Actually that sounds good - add rum to mine too,” I interjected, wanting to calm my nerves a little.
“Sure thing.”
With another quick glance at Jax, she scooted off to get our drinks.
