“Come on, Jim.  I wasn’t that bad, was I?”

Instead of answering, he asked the bartender to line up another four doubles of whiskey.  He handed me his wallet and told me to stop him when he ran out.  The bartender and I exchanged a look.

“Jim, if I’m not driving and you’re drunk, how are we getting home?”  I’d left my brothers with Nana Wini.  What would happen when they got back to the house and I wasn’t there?  I began to worry.  How could I be so stupid?  When I’d asked Jim to teach me, I’d just wanted to put some distance between Emmitt and me for a while, not drive away.

He winked at me and drank his whiskeys, this time spacing them out by a few minutes.  I took a sip of my beer and dug through his wallet to lay out a few bills.  Jim laughed and pulled out a few more.

“So are you going to tell me why you really wanted to kill me today?” he asked when I glanced at the clock on the wall.

“Jim, we should really go back.  Nana has the boys and won’t know where I disappeared to.”

Jim arched a brow at me, and I pouted a little before answering his original question.  I didn’t really want to talk about it.

“I’m avoiding Emmitt.”

“I’ve noticed.  Just can’t figure out why.”

I shrugged and took another sip of beer.  Wine tasted better, but beer won over tequila.  “It’s hard to explain.”

“Not really.  You just need the proper motivation.”  He nodded toward the dartboard.  “I win, you tell me.  You win, I leave it alone.”

I shook my head before he finished his offer.  “No way.  I have no idea how good you are.”  If he could run faster than I could see, how could he miss a dartboard?

“Dice then.  A game of chance.  I might be ready to go afterward.”

Dice, I could play.  I nodded, and he taught me a quick drinking game, only instead of taking a shot, the loser told a secret.  In my case, why I wanted to avoid Emmitt.  In Jim’s case, who taught him to sing in the shower.

Jim womped me.  I took the last drink from my beer.  Jim motioned for another.

“Because I’m stupid around him,” I said in exasperation.

“Explain.”

“I lose focus on what’s important and start talking about things I shouldn’t,” I said then asked the bartender for a sweeter beer.  He gave me funny look but moved his hand from one tap to another.

“Why can’t you talk about things?”

If only Jim had asked what I couldn’t talk about; I would have clammed up.

“Because people take advantage of information.  They use it to gain power, control.”

The door behind us opened, and a few more Friday patrons trickled in.  I replenished the money on the bar as Jim called for more whiskey.  He grinned at me with a twinkle in his eye.

“So you’re avoiding Emmitt because you’re afraid you’ll say something he’ll use to control you?”

I began to nod then stopped myself.  Had I said that?  Damn.  I eyed my beer.

“Don’t blame you,” Jim said interrupting my thought.  “He’s a bit of a control freak.  O.C.D.  Look at how driven he is to finish that apartment for you.”

What?

“I mean, you haven’t even decided if you will stay, yet.  I tried telling him he needed to chill, but no.  Be prepared.  That’s how he thinks.”

“He’s finishing that apartment for us?”  I couldn’t get past that tidbit.

Jim nodded and nudged my glass.  I dutifully took a drink.

“Yep.  Doesn’t think his apartment is a good home for you and the boys.  Apparently, my decorating doesn’t meet his standards.”  He rolled his eyes.

I hid my grin with another sip.

“If he’s not working on that, then he’s always listening for you.  Or Liam.  Or Aden.  He leaves the apartment door open ‘just in case’.  In case what?  I say let it go already.”

I thought he just opened the door in the morning to welcome the boys.  But to have it open all the time?  My heart melted a little.

The door opened, and a larger crowd of men came in.  A few called hello to Jim.  Jim nodded and smiled but didn’t invite them to join us.

“You know what really puts me over the top?” he asked, looking at me with frustration.  “He won’t let me make the pancakes!”

Several people turned to look at Jim.  I studied Jim in surprise, not sure how to respond to his outburst.  Then, I caught a twinkle in his eyes.

“You brat!”  I smacked him on the arm, and he laughed.

He’d picked on my concerns but had also revealed some interesting information about Emmitt.  Things I didn’t know.  Did I have to worry about Emmitt using the information against me?  I didn’t know because I didn’t really know Emmitt.

“Fine.  You win.  I’ll stop avoiding him.”  My stomach flipped in anticipation, and I let out a shaky breath.  Friends only, I reminded myself.  That would be risky enough.  I’d probably say more than I wanted.

“Good girl,” Jim said, smiling approval.  “Drink up.  The music’s about to start.  It’ll get too loud in here to talk.”

I looked around the crowded room and wondered where everyone had come from.  The glass in front of me was cold and full.  Hadn’t I been drinking out of it already?  I thought I’d almost drained it.

“We can go now if you want,” I offered.

“Please, no!” he said, holding his hands up in surrender.  “I just need a few more minutes.”  After all the alcohol he consumed, he didn’t seem the least bit affected.

Three more beer and two hours later, I needed to use the restroom.  A crowded dance floor occupied the space between my goal and me.  I leaned close to Jim to hear myself over the music.

“Be right back,” I half-shouted and hopped off the stool.

He nodded at me with a grin and lifted his glass to sip the beer I suspected he’d been nursing for the past hour.  If he didn’t want me driving, maybe he was sobering up?  Wait, was he ever really drunk?  I felt a bit light-headed and unsure of the real answer.

Without tripping or embarrassing myself, I made it to the restroom.  The small room did little to muffle the blaring music but did offer my ears a slight respite. The time away from Jim and his distracting conversation helped me remember my responsibilities.  Liam and Aden.

After drying my hands, I stepped out of the restroom and carefully started to skirt around the group of bodies writhing to the music.  I craned my neck, trying to spot Jim.  We needed to leave.

Instead of seeing Jim, I met a startling pair of dark eyes for a moment before a random dancer moved in the way.  I froze, doubting what I thought I’d seen.  When the dancer moved, no one familiar stood there.  Dark blue eyes or otherwise.  I shook my head, blamed the beer, and continued to inch forward.  Definitely time to insist we go home.  Jim had to be sober by now.  I wanted to get back to my brothers and needed to apologize to Nana.

The mass of dancers drifted, blocking my route along their edge.  Taking a deep breath, I changed tactics and started to snake my way through the dancers.  I mumbled apologies as I went.  Shoulder to shoulder, bodies bumped and brushed each other as they swayed to the music.  I struggled to make any progress.  An arm encircled my waist, stopping me completely.  I tried to spot Jim at the bar, but the crowd was too thick.  The music too loud to yell.  Defeated, I turned to face my captor.

Dark blue eyes, close cropped dark hair, and a perfect mouth swam before my eyes.  Emmitt.  My heart skipped a beat.  He wore jeans and a faded blue t-shirt.  His eyes unwaveringly met mine.  He studied me with an intensity I didn’t understand.

He leaned in to smell my hair.  Tingles skittered along my neck and arms.

“Hi,” I whispered, tipsy and unsure of his mood.

Folding me in his arms with a sigh, we swayed to the fast music.  “You had me worried,” he whispered in my ear.  He rested his forehead against mine.

“My driving’s not that bad,” I protested, pulling back slightly.  He let me have my space as his lips quirked and he shook his head.