kick in the butt. Of course Cal didn’t feel comfortable letting Emerson go to a club at night after her attack, and of course Emerson wasn’t comfortable with it herself. Charles would have done the same thing.
Cal couldn’t be the only guy who came and so he brought his new buddy, Travis. It all made sense now, and I felt like a total jerk. I made a mental note not to say anything about it again to prevent Emerson from feeling self-conscious. She didn’t know it, but I too had many similar experiences. At least twice I was saved by a guy, whom I kept mentioning and who I didn’t want to think about, let alone mention. To this day, no one except him knew about my experiences. SJ. His name rang through my head. Damn it, No, not right now, Megan . I shook my head and took a deep breath.
Then memories of those experiences attacked my mind and I sighed again. What was with me lately? The memories where the only secrets I had ever kept from Charles. Charles suspected things, and he told me that if I didn’t want to talk about it, then it was okay. So I didn’t talk about it. Heck, until recently I didn’t think about it. I think not telling him was mostly for his own sanity. He was a good man but a protective man, and he would have gone into a murderous rage if he knew it all. I didn’t want him carrying that burden. I had seen what it could do. SJ had carried that burden for years, and I hated the way it had plagued him.
Charles’s not knowing allowed me to pretend like it never happened, to pretend like I didn’t exist before him. Not wanting to open that can of worms, I quickly shook out of it and hopped out of the car.
Adjusting myself, I looked up at Travis, who was smiling at me. “You look gorgeous, Princess.”
I cleared my throat. “Thanks.”
Sarah groaned and starting walking in front of everyone. “God, catty much? You look pretty too, Sunshine!” Travis yelled after her, but she just kept moving.
Emerson linked my arm with hers. “Ignore her, she’s just mad that she’s attending this event and not hosting it.” I nodded my head, knowing that wasn’t all she was mad about. I made another mental note to back off of Travis.
The place was called Fireside Lounge and Bar and it definitely lived up to its name. It had a huge, wrap-around outside terrace with fire pits and chairs surrounding them. Inside, there were tables and a bar surrounded by walls that had double-sided fireplaces in the middle. The inside and outside blended because the walls were nonexistent, at least while the place was open. I’m guessing they had pull-down doors, kind of like a garage, for when they closed.
Anyway, it was dark except for the fires and the hanging lantern lights that littered the lounge ceiling. Long, red couches were placed in front of the fireplace walls, with coffee tables in front of them. A dance floor was in the middle of the inside area, right in front of the long bar. There were also pool tables and dart boards in the back of the bar. A mix of country, pop and oldie music played at the perfect volume, and the vibe was really fun. I had never seen anything like it, but I could see how it would be very popular.
We sat in the VIP area that had a long, wrap-around red couch and our own fire pit. The place was also a restaurant and served kabobs that you could cook over the fire to your liking. I got a chicken teriyaki and pineapple one that was amazing. It was a really fun concept, and we all seemed to be enjoying ourselves. I noticed Sarah take moments to inspect things or look around. I knew it was her company that was hosting the opening event, and I was slightly curious as to why she wasn’t working. Asking now didn’t seem like a good idea.
I was having a great time—everyone seemed to be. I was laughing and talking about absolutely nothing and genuinely enjoying myself. I kept checking my phone, and after two text messages to Jules with two replies that Charlotte was still snoozing away, I
Cal couldn’t be the only guy who came and so he brought his new buddy, Travis. It all made sense now, and I felt like a total jerk. I made a mental note not to say anything about it again to prevent Emerson from feeling self-conscious. She didn’t know it, but I too had many similar experiences. At least twice I was saved by a guy, whom I kept mentioning and who I didn’t want to think about, let alone mention. To this day, no one except him knew about my experiences. SJ. His name rang through my head. Damn it, No, not right now, Megan . I shook my head and took a deep breath.
Then memories of those experiences attacked my mind and I sighed again. What was with me lately? The memories where the only secrets I had ever kept from Charles. Charles suspected things, and he told me that if I didn’t want to talk about it, then it was okay. So I didn’t talk about it. Heck, until recently I didn’t think about it. I think not telling him was mostly for his own sanity. He was a good man but a protective man, and he would have gone into a murderous rage if he knew it all. I didn’t want him carrying that burden. I had seen what it could do. SJ had carried that burden for years, and I hated the way it had plagued him.
Charles’s not knowing allowed me to pretend like it never happened, to pretend like I didn’t exist before him. Not wanting to open that can of worms, I quickly shook out of it and hopped out of the car.
Adjusting myself, I looked up at Travis, who was smiling at me. “You look gorgeous, Princess.”
I cleared my throat. “Thanks.”
Sarah groaned and starting walking in front of everyone. “God, catty much? You look pretty too, Sunshine!” Travis yelled after her, but she just kept moving.
Emerson linked my arm with hers. “Ignore her, she’s just mad that she’s attending this event and not hosting it.” I nodded my head, knowing that wasn’t all she was mad about. I made another mental note to back off of Travis.
The place was called Fireside Lounge and Bar and it definitely lived up to its name. It had a huge, wrap-around outside terrace with fire pits and chairs surrounding them. Inside, there were tables and a bar surrounded by walls that had double-sided fireplaces in the middle. The inside and outside blended because the walls were nonexistent, at least while the place was open. I’m guessing they had pull-down doors, kind of like a garage, for when they closed.
Anyway, it was dark except for the fires and the hanging lantern lights that littered the lounge ceiling. Long, red couches were placed in front of the fireplace walls, with coffee tables in front of them. A dance floor was in the middle of the inside area, right in front of the long bar. There were also pool tables and dart boards in the back of the bar. A mix of country, pop and oldie music played at the perfect volume, and the vibe was really fun. I had never seen anything like it, but I could see how it would be very popular.
We sat in the VIP area that had a long, wrap-around red couch and our own fire pit. The place was also a restaurant and served kabobs that you could cook over the fire to your liking. I got a chicken teriyaki and pineapple one that was amazing. It was a really fun concept, and we all seemed to be enjoying ourselves. I noticed Sarah take moments to inspect things or look around. I knew it was her company that was hosting the opening event, and I was slightly curious as to why she wasn’t working. Asking now didn’t seem like a good idea.
I was having a great time—everyone seemed to be. I was laughing and talking about absolutely nothing and genuinely enjoying myself. I kept checking my phone, and after two text messages to Jules with two replies that Charlotte was still snoozing away, I
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