Page 32 of Come Back To Me

I smiled impishly. “Again, I’m sorry. Hope I didn’t, uh, interrupt you.” Luckily he was standing at a urinal, and not in a cubicle. Oh God, this couldn’t get any worse.

“Lucky for you I was done.”

Kill. Me. Now.

“I’m Alex, by the way.” He stuck out his hand, and then laughed when I hesitated to take it. “Shit, sorry.” He stepped in front of the basin, and washed his hands.

“Kenzi,” I told him. “My name’s Kenzi.”

He smiled, and my belly did a little flip. Damn, he had a nice smile. And a nice mouth.

“Nice to meet you, Kenzi. Even if it’s in a bathroom.”

Not my finest moment, but hey, at least Alex was being a gentleman about it.

Maddy was going to love this…

“Can I buy you a drink to apologize?” I asked, feeling strangely at ease with him. “It’s the least I can do for walking in while you were, you know…”

“Taking a piss?”

I pinched my lips together, and then covered my mouth when a raucous laugh escaped. Alex grinned, showing off his row of white teeth. Man, he was actually hot.

“Is that a yes?” I asked, trying not to laugh harder.

“Depends,” replied Alex. “Are you going to get me drunk, and take advantage of me?”

“Do you want me to?”

Surprise suffused with the butterflies in my belly. I was flirting with a complete stranger, and it was refreshing. I was relaxed for the first time in weeks, and it didn’t go unnoticed that much of my anxiety was caused by trying to figure out what happened between me and Vaughan before my accident.

“I haven’t decided yet,” replied Alex. “I think you should dance with me though, and give me the chance to decide.”

I found myself saying, “okay” and when I didn’t say anything else, it became a little awkward, just the two us smiling in the men’s bathroom.

That’s when I remembered…

“Shit! Maddy!” I’d completely forgotten about her. Alex raised a brow, and I explained, “My best friend. I left her alone at the bar.”

“And what about the guy you’re hiding from?”

I’d forgotten about Vaughan too. And wasn’t that the point? He’d said we needed time, and then walked out. So that meant it was okay if I met new people, right?

Right.

“I’m not hiding anymore,” I replied, shrugging.

“Good.” Alex opened the door, and held it for me. “Buy me a drink, and I’ll dance with you.”

It was my turn to lift a brow. “Who said I wanted to dance with you?”

“Don’t you?” he shot back, challenging me with a cheeky smile.

When I didn’t reply, Alex took my hand and led me back into the club. I didn’t let go of his hand, and when Maddy caught sight of us, her eyes widened. Vaughan was nowhere to be seen, but once I told Maddy how I’d met Alex, it didn’t really matter. I shoved the possibility that he was still there somewhere, watching me, to the deepest recesses of my mind, and danced with Alex, and then Maddy, until my feet hurt. If that was what moving on with life felt like, I didn’t want it to end.