Starting Fires Read online

  “Okay,” I replied.

  “I mean it, Marzy. Not one dollar bill.”

  “I promise, but don’t blame me when I’m drunk and sitting in your lap again,” I said without thinking. Embarrassed, I drew my lips into my mouth and wished that I could take that back.

  Lucas’ grin widened before turning towards me. He draped an arm over the back of my chair and placed his other on the table in front of me, caging me in. “I think I’d like that.”

  Oh.

  I couldn’t help it and smiled back. “Hey Lovebirds,” Wally said, effectively ended my daze. I turned and saw that all eyes were fixed on Lucas and I. Immediately, I sat up and brought the beer bottle to my mouth.

  Lucas seemed unfazed and turned his eyes to him. “What?”

  “We play in like 45 minutes. Is everything set up?”

  “I checked it all before we opened. Should be good to go.”

  For the next thirty minutes, the five of us chatted while we drank. Occasionally, I would feel Lucas’ foot or knee brush up against me. I wasn’t sure if it was accidental or not, but I loved every second of it.

  When it was time for them to start playing, I remained at the table. It was close enough that I would have a good view of the show without having to be stuck in the crowd that was forming. I pulled out my phone to see if I’d received any texts from Nicole or Lacey. Just as I was about to ask them where they were, I felt a hand at my elbow, trying to pull me to my feet. Reactively, I resisted and threw a glare at whoever was trying to touch me. Realizing it was Lucas, I let my face relax. He had another beer for me and I stood. “Hey,” I smiled.

  His fingertips left my arm and rested on my back, right between my shoulder blades. “You gonna come up front?” he asked.

  “I was planning on sitting here.”

  “I can’t see you all the way back here,” he said with a smile.

  I turned towards him, putting our bodies close. “Well, where do you want me?” I didn’t realize the sexual connotation of my words until Lucas gave me a playful grin. Without a response, he began leading me towards the stage.

  As I stood in the front, Lucas hopped up onto the platform. I searched the crowd for Nicole and Lacey and spotted them at the bar. Looking like an idiot, I waved dramatically to get their attention. Once they saw me, they smiled and came over.

  “I’m so excited,” Nicole squealed and I couldn’t help it, I squealed, too.

  I heard the speakers come on and watched Lucas approach the microphone. He was met with whistles, clapping, cheers, and a “take it off!” He smiled, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and looked down at me. “Thanks for coming out,” he said nonchalantly and the bar erupted.

  Charles counted off on the drums and I watched as Lucas belted it out. I don’t know what I was expecting, but this wasn’t it. The air rushed out of my lungs as I watched him pull back from the mic. Wally and Ian joined in with their instruments and Lucas grabbed the microphone stand as he reached the chorus.

  He was wearing a dark grey shirt and every time he moved, the fabric rode further up his stomach. Unlike Fontenot, I couldn’t see his boxers poking out of his jeans. It was nothing but perfectly tan skin. I wondered if perhaps he was going commando, and couldn’t stop the shudder that ran through me. I was so mesmerized by his beautiful, strong voice, and too busy watching his neck strain to even pay attention to what he was singing.

  Far too quickly, the song was over and the crowd went wild. Lucas smiled and looked to me. As our eyes connected, I swear his smile grew, so I flashed him as much teeth as I could and cheered. He ducked his head adorably and turned around to look at Ian. They whispered something to each other and then Wally started playing the first few chords of the next song.

  The entire bar roared their approval and I realized they were playing Hunger Strike by Temple of the Dog. Lucas began singing Chris Cornell’s part. His voice was smooth and rich. Filled with emotion. Another voice joined in and I looked to Wally and Charles trying to see if the Eddie Vedder impersonator was one of them. To my surprise, it was Ian. Quiet and reserved in regular life, but up on that stage—still looking every bit the preppy fraternity boy—he poured out his soul into his microphone. I brought my hands to my mouth in shock. The entire bar began singing along. Not able to help myself, I added my voice to the choir. Seeing me enjoying myself, Lucas looked down and winked.

  For the next hour, the band played some obvious crowd favorites, but mostly cover songs. By the time they were finished, I was sweaty from all the body heat pouring off the people around me and in desperate need of a bathroom break. I left Nicole and Lacey at the stage and rushed to the restroom.

  There wasn’t a line, but the stalls were full. Two girls were carrying on a conversation about some “gorgeous guy” as they relieved themselves.

  “You are so lucky,” one of them said. I rolled my eyes and wished that they would just handle their business and get the hell out of there. My bladder was bursting.

  “I know,” the other sighed, flushing her toilet. I said a prayer of thanks and politely smiled as a pretty blonde came out. She held the door for me as I went in after her. The other girl joined her at the sink. “I’m gonna ask him to take me home tonight,” the blonde continued. “Last time, we made out in his car so long I could hardly stand it. This time I’m inviting him in,” she giggled.

  Skank, I thought and immediately chastised myself. I didn’t know anything about this girl and so what if she wanted to have a little fun. Who could really blame her? I wished I were more open about my sexual needs like that. A good, no strings attached, bang might be good for me. I thought of Lucas and gulped. Perhaps I wasn’t quite ready for that. Besides, he wouldn’t be someone that I could avoid once my embarrassment set in. I finished and walked to the sink to wash my hands. The blonde smiled in the mirror at me, and moved to the side as she fixed her already perfect hair.

  When I walked back into the bar, I saw the guys still standing close to the stage with a crowd around them, along with Nicole and Lacey. Charles saw me and his face lit up. He reached through the crowd and pulled me to his side. “So, what’d you think? Do we kick ass?” he asked.

  “You totally kick ass,” I smiled.

  For the next two hours, I laughed with my old friend, Charles, and discovered that I genuinely liked Nicole and Lacey. They were fun and completely open. I didn’t see much of Lucas. Occasionally, he would join our table before he had to go deal with something at the bar or he went off to talk with other friends.

  It was just after midnight and I realized that I’d barely spoken to him. With the alcohol running through my system, I felt brave. I wanted to find him, and spotted him behind the bar serving drinks. I walked up to the only open spot I could find. It was at the very end, right next to the bar trap. His hands were moving quickly as he grabbed a glass and scooped some ice into it. Next, they went for the bottles of liquor and I watched his forearms work with each movement.

  Sensing my stare, he looked over to me and smiled. I waved and sat down on the stool. His eyes kept drifting over to me while he finished the drink order and collected his patron’s money. Once finished, he walked over. “Hey beautiful, you thirsty?” he asked.

  My mind didn’t initially hear his question because I was so hung up on the beautiful part. Finally, it caught up and I giggled like an idiot. “Yeah. I could use another beer.”

  Without leaving the space in front of me, he reached down, grabbed a bottle from underneath the counter, and flicked the top off with his bottle opener.

  I took a tiny sip, and made an Mmm sound. He watched my mouth the entire time, the smile never leaving his. “What are you doing behind the bar?” I asked.

  “One of our bartenders is out tonight. I gotta fill in.”

  Charles walked up and squeezed in beside me. “We’re heading home, Bird. Gonna give your girls a lift. They’re so trashed.” I looked over his shoulder and noticed that they so were. Both Nicole and Lacey were stumbling and gigglin
g uncontrollably as Wally twirled them around on the dance floor. “You ready to go?”

  I probably should. If they left, I wouldn’t have anyone to talk to. “I can give you a ride home if you want to hang out a little longer,” Lucas said.

  A choir of angels sang in my head and I beamed at him. “That would be great!”

  “I’ll be here another hour or so until the crowd dies down. That okay?”

  I nodded. He told Charles goodbye then went back to serving drinks. Bear squeezed my shoulders and placed a gentle kiss against my temple. “Be careful,” he whispered then walked off.

  Jeez… big brother much? What did he think I was going to do? Drop my panties as soon as we made it to the car? I’ll admit I liked the way Lucas made me feel. Every time he looked at me, I felt special, as if he didn’t see anything around him but me. Just me. My cynical side told me it was intentional, but it was still nice to feel that way.

  Lucas told the other bartender that he would handle my side of the bar while she took the other. This kept him close to me and we were able to make eyes at each other as he served the drinks. Unfortunately, they were busy and I didn’t get to flirt with him as much as I would have liked. Fontenot also spotted me sitting by myself and saw that as an opportunity to come talk with me again. “Where’d your friends run off to?” he asked as he sat next to me.

  “They left earlier.”

  He smiled and blew out a cloud of cigarette smoke. “Well, I’m about to get out of here. You look like you could use a ride.” The way he’d said ride made my stomach convulse, and I fought to keep my face from looking completely disgusted.

  “She’s got a ride.”

  I jumped as Lucas leaned across the bar, placing an arm on either side of me. His fingers ran down my forearm before curling around my elbow.

  “Sorry,” I shrugged at Fontenot.

  “Alright, Lo. See you around,” he whispered with a cocky grin.

  Lucas watched him walk off. “I hate that guy,” he said once he was out of earshot. I felt his fingers caress the sensitive skin above my elbow and I sighed. Still watching Fontenot, it didn’t seem like he was even aware that he was touching me. Once he was certain his apparent arch-nemesis was gone, he turned towards me. “I’ll be done in about twenty minutes. Tammy can close tonight. You good?”

  I nodded and thought about putting my hand against his face to bring his mouth to mine. He totally just went all possessive over me. Of course, I didn’t, but Lucas’s eyes drifted down to my mouth and, for a moment, I think he wanted to do the same thing. Instead, he pushed off the bar, putting the space back between us. “You want another beer?” he asked.

  “Uh, I better not. Water would be good though.” After he put the ice cold drink in front of me, he was about to say something, but a feminine voice called his name. She wasn’t standing close to me, but I could still hear their conversation.

  “What’s up, Cindy?” he asked her.

  I noticed that it was the same pretty blonde I’d encountered in the bathroom and wondered if that gorgeous man was taking her home.

  “I don’t know if I should have anything else. I’m sooo drunk.” Cindy flipped her hair over her shoulder and leaned across the bar, giggling even though nothing she’d said had been funny.

  “Want me to close out your tab?”

  “My tab? I thought…” she cocked her head to the side in confusion but recovered. “Yeah. I need to close my tab.”

  Lucas walked off and I stared at Cindy, wondering what that was about. She looked upset, but trying hard to look unaffected. Did she seriously not expect to pay for her drinks? I guess I wasn’t paying for mine, but Lucas had insisted that I didn’t. He returned to her and she was all smiles. “Listen,” she began, “my friend left with some dude and she was supposed to drive me home tonight.” Her pout was well practiced. “Do you think you could give me a lift?”

  I frowned, realizing that Lucas was the guy she’d made out with for hours in her driveway. This bothered me. Way more than it should. Is that why she wasn’t expecting to pay for her drinks? I rolled my eyes and tried to mentally wave the whole thing off. Who gave a shit what he did with his time? Not me. He was just a hot dude that I enjoyed looking at. Besides, I might’ve not even known him when he did that—and if I did, it didn’t matter.

  “Yeah, I could do that,” Lucas told her. I jerked my eyes back to them and saw Cindy run her hand up his forearm, giving him a sultry smile. She whispered something to him and I turned away, not liking the jealous twinge in my gut. I wished that I had left with Charles now. What was he going to do? Take me home and then drop her off? Or just invite her into his house? I suddenly felt like a burden, and took out my phone to text Charles to come get me. This whole thing felt too uncomfortable and weird. Just as I was typing out the message, Lucas came back over. “I’m just about finished here,” he said.

  “Actually, I think I’m gonna see if Charles can come pick me up. I’m really tired,” I lied.

  His entire face fell and I swear he looked disappointed. “What? No! Five minutes. Tops. Then I can get you home.” If Charles came back, I would have to explain to him why I wasn’t leaving with Lucas. And I felt like he would give me some lecture about not giving my heart to him, and “he doesn’t date Marlowe, just forget about him.” I didn’t want to date him! If I stayed and he hooked up with Cindy, I could brush it off like it didn’t matter and maybe that would prove to Charles that I wasn’t some lovesick puppy.

  “Alright,” I agreed, putting my phone back in my purse.

  “Go wait in my office. I’ll be back there in a bit.”

  He gestured towards the employee’s only door. I got off my stool and went through it. I think I was standing in some sort of stock room. There was an exit and boxes of liquor, beer, and other random supplies lining the walls. To the right was a big metal door that I assumed was the cooler. To the left was a short hallway. A doorway was open with light pouring out of it. It was an office. A very messy office. It wasn’t small, but it wasn’t large either. In one corner was an L-shaped desk. I walked over to it, and glanced at a few of the papers littered across the top. Stacks of invoices that were months old, bar receipts, to do lists, they were all jumbled into a mess. How did he ever accomplish anything in here?

  Lucas rounded the corner and saw me eyeing it. “I know what you’re thinking,” he said, smiling as he walked in. “But let me assure you, there is a method to my madness.”

  “Really?” I arched my eyebrows, not seeing how there could be any method amidst this chaos.

  “No. Actually there isn’t.” He dropped a big stack of receipts on his desk then reached around me to open one of his drawers. Inside were even more receipts and I felt an uneasy feeling wash over me. I wasn’t obsessive compulsive, but when it came to keeping books, and balancing spreadsheets, an overwhelming desire to be perfect and organized tingled in my veins.

  “Sheesh,” I mumbled. Lucas chuckled as he fished his keys out of the drawer. “I’m sorry,” I added—in a way, I was insulting him. “I’m an accounting major.” I said, hoping that would help clarify my shock.

  “I know. It’s a mess.” He dangled his keys and I followed him back into the stockroom. Cindy was already waiting for us and when she saw him, her face lit up—that is, until she saw me. The smile immediately vanished, but she recovered well. “Alright, let’s get going,” Lucas said and started for the door. Cindy latched onto his arm to support her “drunkenness.” I had a feeling she was putting us on, but whatever.

  Since I didn’t know what Lucas drove, I followed behind them. As we approached his vehicle, my mouth fell open. “She’s a beauty isn’t she?” Lucas grinned with pride. “1969 Buick Skylark 4 Door Hardtop.” He ran his hand across the hood with a heartfelt sigh. In the darkness, I couldn’t be sure what color it was, but it looked dark blue.

  Owning a vintage car only made Lucas seem more appealing. I crossed my arms over my chest and walked towards the back door. “I like it,”
I told him not wanting him to know that I thought it made him more attractive, but also not wanting to be rude.

  “It’s gorgeous,” Cindy smiled over the top as she started to get in.

  “You mind riding in the back?” Lucas asked her. “I’m dropping you off first. No sense making Marzy crawl up front afterwards.”

  Her face fell, and she looked a little heartbroken. “It’s okay,” I said, hoping to make her feel better. “I don’t mind riding back here.”

  “No,” she turned to me with a forced smile. “He’s right. It makes more sense.”

  This is why I’d wanted to call Charles to come get me. I was so uncomfortable. If I hadn’t been there, Lucas and Cindy might be getting it on in about 20 minutes. I admit a part of me was jealous about that, but I also knew that I had no right to be. Whatever mutual attraction Lucas and I felt was just that—an attraction. I barely knew him. I knew he was charming, but he also might be a womanizing asshole.

  As we pulled out of the parking lot, I felt the tension in the air increase. Cindy’s audible sighs and grunts of frustration were hard to miss. Lucas turned the radio on, the volume low. After a few moments of silence, I couldn’t take it. “Your show was good,” I told him.

  “Thanks,” he replied not taking his eyes off the road. “Glad you could come.” Then back to the awkward silence. I leaned against the door and counted streetlamps as we drove. Not soon enough, we pulled into the driveway of a townhouse. Before the car even stopped, Cindy was opening the door. She slammed it shut and took off inside. “You’re welcome,” Lucas muttered as he reversed back into the street.

  “I think you embarrassed her,” I said.

  He snorted. “How?”

  “Well…” I trailed off, unsure if I wanted to tell him what I overheard.

  He flashed his handsome grin at me. “How did I embarrass her?”

  “When I went to the bathroom earlier, I overheard her talking about some guy she made out with in her driveway. She said that she was going to have him over again tonight and implied that there would be some… uh… stuff happening between them. I assume that guy is you, and I totally ruined it for her, so she’s pissed. And I don’t blame her, if I thought I was going to get lucky and some random girl ruined it, I’d be pissed, too.”