Avriel Kaplan: Well dressed, well groomed, beautifully handsome, quiet and brooding and exactly the kind of man Ariel Declan doesn't need to know. But, that is not for her to decide.
Alexander Kirk: wickedly handsome, well known and well liked, egot...
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He was tall, muscled and lean with short cropped and neatly styled sandy blond hair, rich blue eyes and a 'you can't say no to me' kind of attitude. He looked like he was God's gift to women, but he looked like he believed it too. Ariel's dark hair and pale skin caught his blue eyes as he approached the bar she was wiping down. Her smile was warm and charming. It was the same smile she gave every patron when she looked up at them. He didn't seem to know that. He imagined she flashed it just for him.
"What can I get for you?"
"Alex." He said slowly letting his voice drop, so that it was low and sounded, at least to his ears, sexy. She looked at him, confusion rolling through her deep green eyes. She prided herself on knowing the common drinks as well as some of the more exotic ones but, she had never heard of a drink called Alex. She hid her confused facial expression well and asked him to clarify.
"I'm sorry. I don't know what drink that is. Can you tell me what's in it and I can see if I can make it for you." Her voice was gentle and kind, exactly what it needed to be to keep the situation from escalating and the person on the other side of the bar from feeling any embarrassment, as if he could. Alex's approach pulled Avriel's full attention from the woman that had sat down beside him. He caught the small exchange. He could not suppress the smiled that lit his eyes at the miscommunication. It worked for him. He found it entirely too amusing that it did not work for Alexander.
"It's not a drink. It's my name." Alex gave Ariel a debonair smile flashing his perfect teeth at her. He spoke with confidence and arrogance. She was certain that he had the two confused.
"Oh! Okay. Well, um. What can I get you to drink, Alex?" Ariel smiled back at him and looked down at the hand he offered. There was no way she was touching him. She raised both her hands slightly letting go of the towel she'd been using to wipe the bar.
"Sorry, can't. health and safety." She shrugged and physically stepped back from the bar, taking her towel with her. "What'll you have?" She asked again as she quietly refused Alex's hand. She didn't make it a habit to allow patrons to touch her, she didn't know where their hands had been and if they'd been properly washed. She was not about to make an exception. She busied her hands behind the bar securing the glass and ice she'd need to make the drink he was sure to order. She squinted her eyes at him and looked down at the glass so she could frost it. Then looked boldly into his eyes.
"How about a Hopper or perhaps a Jimmy with a twist," she settled on, "a Jimmy with mint?" She smiled when his expression told her that she had hit the nail on the head.
"Perfect." He smiled again leaning on the bar in an effort to be in her space. She depressed the foot pedal to frost the glass then set it on the bar between them. "You should name a drink after me." His eyes were bright and clear. They were the right color, or what used to be, but he was barking up the wrong tree.
"Why would I want to do that?" Her tone was still light and kind.
"Why wouldn't you?" He easily countered. Avriel rolled his eyes.
"I don't know, but I generally need a reason. I can't readily think of one." She casually tossed the words in the air. At the end of the bar, Avriel smiled.
"Hmmm, I can." Alex chuckled and kept on smiling, unfazed by her slight towards his ego.
"Sorry." Ariel summarily dismissed his idea with a delicate shrug of her shoulders. His arrogance was showing, and it completely turned her off.
"I'm sure I could give you one." Avriel felt an unexpected surge of anger.
"Not a chance." When she finished making his drink, she set it on the bar on top of the little coaster. "Tab?"
"Yes"
"Card." He held up his little card for her to scan and took his drink in his other hand. His eyes never left hers as he sipped it.
"Perfection," he said licking his lips.
"Thank you. Anything else?"
"Just your name, Doll."
"Doll is all that is required." She said sweetly and turned to go. Alex reached out and grabbed her arm to hold her near. He wasn't done talking to the green-eyed little vixen. Ariel froze, her arm trapped in Alex's large hand. She turned back to Alex and looked down at his hand on her arm. When her eyes raised to his they echoed cleanly the words she said. "You need to let me go. Now." Her voice was cool and calm, but her eyes promised death if he refused to comply with her demand.
At the end of the bar, every muscle in Avriel's fine frame tensed. He was prepared to move and intercede if need be. It would be wrong of him for he had made no claim on the woman, but she was clearly uncomfortable with the contact. Yes, the club had some magnificent bouncers, but they would be no match for even an intoxicated Alex. Luckily, Ariel was.
From a safe distance, on the other side of the room, dark eyes watched with more than a casual interest. Alex let Ariel go with an apology and she went on to serve other customers.
