Page 11 of Not Over You
As much as they had planned to leave after another drink, they hadn’t, and that was because Rayma didn’t want to leave with Jordan still there. It’d been three years since she’d seen him, and even though he was still the ruggedly handsome man she remembered, a lot about him had changed. He’d aged well, the angles of his face were more pronounced, his scruff was thicker, his smile and the way he carried himself more confident.
He was sexy when she met him—a rookie cop with a lot to prove—and now the man exuded this quiet confidence that had her practically salivating from where she stood waiting for the bartender to make her drink.
“Hi,” came a deep voice from behind her.
She didn’t have to see Peyton’s face to know her friend was smiling. She could tell by the way Peyton elbowed Rayma and made a little squeak.
Rayma turned around to find a cute guy with sandy-blond hair shaved shorter at the sides and soft brown eyes, smiling at her. “What’s your name?” he asked, holding out his hand.
“Rayma,” she said, returning his smile and taking his hand. His eyes stayed for a full three seconds on her face before roaming the rest of her body appreciatively.
Yes, she was dressed hot and she knew she looked good. She wasn’t conceited, but she’d taken care in how she dressed to go out tonight and was pleased with the finished product. She’d bang herself if she swung that way.
She’d gone with a new black crop top, dark-wash skinny jeans, and her sister, Pasha’s red bolero jacket that she’d been “borrowing” from Pasha for the last two years. She also had her belly button pierced and had just swapped out the simple barbel for a small fake diamond one, and the tattoo that matched her four sisters along her hip bone was just peeking out above the waist of her pants. She’d let her caramel brown hair with the thick blonde highlights cascade down her back in its natural waves and was wearing a pair of cute and comfortable three-inch black wedges with a closed toe. She could literally—and had—dance the night away in these shoes and not kill her feet doing it. An expensive purchase, but not an impractical or useless one.
“And your name?” she prompted after he didn’t offer it.
His chuckle was dark and slightly raspy. “Sorry, I’m Rhett,” he said, continuing to grin.
“Rhett,” she repeated. “Nice to meet you.”
Another guy, similar in height to Rhett, but with pale blue eyes and chestnut-brown hair sidled up next to Rhett, his grin nearly as big as the expensive watch on his wrist. “This is my co-worker Ethan,” Rhett said, taking a sip from his pint of dark beer.
“And what do you guys do?” Peyton had turned around and was all sexy smiles and flappy lashes. She handed Rayma her drink.
“We’re Realtors,” Rhett said. Rayma and Peyton nodded. “What about you guys?”
“Social workers,” Rayma said.
“Oh, cool. That must be hard, though,” Ethan said, his eyes drifting up and down Peyton’s curvy frame.
“It can be,” Peyton confirmed.
After graduation in June, Rayma had accepted jobs with the Ministry of Child and Family Development, while Peyton worked for a private organization Most days were rough, but there were also some really good days that made their jobs worth the tears they shed when they got home.
“So uh … you guys sticking around here, or are you interested in taking the party somewhere else?” Ethan asked, his appreciation for Peyton’s low-cut top and ample cleavage barely hidden behind the beer glass that covered his face. His eyes were like magnets to Rayma’s friend’s chest.
“Well, we just grabbed new drinks,” Peyton said, “so we’re here until they’re gone at the very least.”
Rayma shot her friend a sideways glance and Peyton returned the look with a cheeky smile before putting her straw between her lips.
The guys just chuckled.
Even though the two men in front of her were chatty, animated, and good-looking, Rayma’s eyes wandered the bar in search of the dark hair and green eyes she’d fallen head over heels for a little over three years ago.
It didn’t take long for her to spot Jordan, but this time, he wasn’t focused on Laura or the guy they’d been chatting with earlier. His eyes were like two hot laser beams and they were directed right at her.
Her insides tightened.
His gaze burned hotter.
Her belly did a big flip.
“We’re on the list at Diamond Back if you guys are interested,” Ethan said, his grin extra big all of a sudden.
Peyton’s eyes widened. “I haven’t been to Diamond Back yet since it opened. The line is always super-long and I don’t know anybody to be able to get on the list.”
Rhett and Ethan’s chests puffed up a bit like proud roosters or something.