Page 31 of Bastard Bartender

His dark brows rise in approval.

With a deep breath, I lower my mug. I motion to his phone and ask, “So, what are your plans for today?”

“I’m meeting some guys for an exotic car ride.” He tilts his head to the side with a slight grin growing across his face. “What do you have going on today?”

“No real plans. Why? I have a feeling whatever you’re thinking, I’m gonna have a hard time saying no.”

He lets out a laugh and then says, “Do you like fast cars?”

“Fast cars, as in being in one? Or fast cars, as in watching them drive by?”

“Being in them.” He steps closer, and I can feel the excitement radiating off of him already. “A few friends and I booked an exotic drive today. We get to drive a McLaren, Lamborghini, Porsche, and a Ferrari. Why don’t you come and sit in the passenger seat?”

My eyes open wide. “Are you for real right now?”

“Yeah, it should be fun. Are you up for the wind in your hair and some excitement racing through your veins?”

“Can I trust you as a driver?” I eye him playfully.

“You’ve trusted me to stay the night in your home, so what’s the difference?”

I grin and nod my head. “Touché. Do I have time to change?”

He looks at his watch. “Can you get ready in twenty minutes?”

I set my coffee down. “If you have friends going, then I need to put my face on.”

“Your face?”

“My painted face. A girl is always set to look her best when in the company of men. Plus, I need to find the perfect driving outfit.”

“Oh, you don’t actually get to drive.”

“We’ll see about that,” I reply with a smile and a swing to my hips as I walk to my bedroom.

* * *

We pull up to an industrial area right outside of the city and into the lot of a run-down warehouse where other vehicles are already parked. Before he turns off his engine his phone dings with an incoming text message and he lifts it to read. Hitting only one letter he responds and then puts his phone back down as he reaches for the keys to shut the ignition.

“Did you just respond to someone with the letter E?” I ask, not trying to act nosey but confused by what E means.

He lets out a laugh under his breath. “I guess you can say my mom and I have our own alphabet game going.” He glances my way with a slight grin. “It’s her way of checking in with me since my parents live so far away. She knows I don’t like long daily drawn out conversations so she texts me with just a letter and I respond with the next letter. This way she knows I’m OK. It makes her happy so I go along with it.”

I can’t help the smile that grows over my face. Hearing he’s so sweet to his mom definitely makes him even sexier than I already thought he was.

Nic blows off the conversation like it’s no big deal and opens his door. The other vehicles follow suit, as if they were waiting for him to arrive to exit as well. Three men meet us in the middle of the parking lot. Nic slaps hands with the guys who look to be about our age—late twenties.

“Guys, I’d like to introduce you to my friend Evette. Evette, this is Mario, who you might remember as Destiny.” He points to a tall, thin man in white jeans and a black zip-up hoodie with white piping. His hair is silky and dark yet not as long as the other night.

“Pleasure to meet you, sweetheart. Don’t worry; we gave that jerk a good scare the other night. He won’t be hitting on anyone for a long while.” Mario smiles, raising his high cheekbones, and waves.

“That bald dude is Logan,” Nic introduces.

I smash my lips as I recall Nic saying Logan believes in open-eyed orgasms, and we shake hands.

Nic points to the third guy. “And this is Alejandro, but we call him Dro.”

“What are you doing, hanging with this loser?” Dro slaps Nic on the shoulder, obviously playing with him.