Page 55 of Tanner

Willa reaches up and runs her fingers through his hair. “I have a feeling I won’t be going home for a long time. Don’t worry; I won’t ghost Ryan in the morning.” She’s making a joke.

Ryan steps back, covering his mouth and saying, “Ooh.”

They think they’re being funny. Before, we were toasting to one-night stands. They have no idea I’m not in the mood to laugh.

“You just met this guy, and you’ve already decided you’re going to sleep with him?” I say, rather accusatory.

Willa’s jaw falls. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“You just met Ryan,” I state.

“How long did you know Tanner before you went home with him?” She’s not really interested in the actual time frame. More like trying to make a point.

“More than thirty minutes!” I sigh, feeling more than deflated. I’m acting like such a bitch.

“Just tell Tanner I’ll see him later,” Ryan says to me, but his eyes are back on Willa.

“You’ll have to tell him yourself. Have a great night, guys. You’re … just be safe, okay?”

Ryan drops his head to Willa’s shoulder before turning to me. “Are you leaving him? Again?”

“It’s not going to work out.”

“Damn it,” he growls. “She has no idea,” I hear him say to Willa as I walk away.

When I pass the booth, our glasses are still on the table, but Tanner is nowhere to be seen. He’s not by the bouncer when I exit, and he’s not on the sidewalk as I leave.

Closing my eyes, I try to fight the sting of tears and shake the feelings away. While I might be upset that Tanner is younger than me, I’ve never felt so childish in my entire life. And the only one I have to blame is myself.

12

TANNER

“Fuck!” I call out as I watch her taxi pull off from the curb.

When she left the booth and headed toward the restrooms, I walked right up to the bar and ordered a shot. It was strong and burned, but it did the job.

When I saw Harper again, she was standing outside the building, hailing a cab. I fought with myself over going after her. By the time I came to my senses and got outside, she was driving away.

This is why I don’t date women my age. I can’t take the drama, can’t stand the bullshit. Yet here I am, standing in the street, calling after the back of a fucking cab that’s driving away with my older girlfriend. Maybe it’s just women in general.

How’s that for drama on a Friday night?

“Tanner, what the hell are you doing?” Derek calls from his post.

I hop back onto the sidewalk and out of the way of the cars honking at me. Inside the bar, I grab an open stool, smashing myself in between a group of horny coeds and a guy trying desperately to argue sports stats with his buddy.

I order three shots and a beer. I take the first and hiss through my teeth.

“Hey there, stranger.” Laney Shultz from class appears. Since she has to squeeze in, her body is flush to my side.

In class, she wears Juicy sweats. At the bar, she always does herself up. Tonight, she’s got on tight jeans and a sequined halter top that’s cut low. If I were Chris, I’d tell her she had nice tits. Lucky for her, I’m not. Plus, hers aren’t the ones I want.

I take my next shot. It goes down smooth.

She bites her lip. “You drinking alone tonight?”

I slide the third shot over to her while taking a swig of my beer.