Dare Me (Dare Me Series Book 1)

Dare Me (Part 38 - Alexis)

The line is long tonight, and the music from inside Red can be heard on the streets. This time, though, the bouncer recognizes me, and there's no need to look on the list. He automatically unhooks the rope and welcomes us in. Claire gives me a sideways glance, and I shrug. We make our way down the velvet hall and through the all-black sliding doors. "Shots," Claire says. "And beer," Brennen throws in. We maneuver throughout the crowd, and walk toward the bar. "Hey," someone yells. I look up. The bartender waves us over to the side. I look back at Brennen and Claire before we slide through the thick group of people. "You're Alexis, right?" he asks. "Yes," I reply. He nods. "Go have a seat at one of the tables." He points toward the back wall. "You'll be taken care of." "Okay." I look at my friends with a smirk, remembering what Colby said to his bartender the last time we were here.

Take care of her like you would me.

Bossy, bossy, boy.

"Well, let's go," Brennen says. Once we get to a table, we all take a seat and a server walks up immediately. "What can I get you three?" she asks. We each tell her what we want, and Claire leans in after she walks away. "Guess this is what you get if you're fucking the boss." I hit her arm. "I'm not fucking him." "Looks like I'm not the one getting us the hook up anymore," Brennen says over the music. I give him a tight smile. "You two have no right to judge me. I know your secrets," I say, pointing at them both. Claire laughs as the waitress walks back up with our drinks and I feel the tension finally easing between us. I'm so relieved. "Damn, that was fast," Brennen says. "Enjoy," she says. "Your night is on Mr. Brock." She smiles. "Let me know if there's anything else you need." We all look at each other. "Thanks," I reply. "But that's not necessary." The waitress looks confused. "You heard the woman," Brennen says. "Tell Mr. Brock he can take care of this one, but we've got the rest." I smile over at him because he gets me. The waitress nods and then turns to walk away. We three reach down and pick up our shot glass. I'm sure Colby is just trying to be kind, but paying for our drinks is not needed. We all work. We can pay for our own shit. "Here's to a great fucking night." Brennen holds up his glass. "And to many more," Claire says. We clink our glasses and down the shot. Music that Claire loves comes on, and she grabs my hand. We leave Brennen to enjoy his beer and head out to the dance floor. Time passes, and more drinks go down with some burning more than others. My legs start to hurt, and my feet start to throb, but I'm having a blast. We're standing at a table nursing some beer as we take a break from dancing. Brennen's talking to some girl he used to date over at the booths, and I still haven't seen Colby. I texted him earlier and he wrote back saying he would meet me here. "So, you wanna finish telling me about that kiss?" I ask Claire. She takes a sip of her beer and wipes under her lip. "Nothing to tell, really. We were drunk. He kissed me." "Oh, that's it. Nothing else you can mention?" I ask sarcastically. She rolls her eyes. "It was a long time ago. I made him stop, afraid my brothers would see and kill him. I'm not sure if he came to his senses when I stopped him or what, but he never tried again, and it was like something lit up inside of me. I feel like we had the exact opposite feeling from it." "What do you mean?" She looks behind her at Brennen before turning back to me. "I mean, I fell for the guy, and he wants nothing to do with me." "Claire, you're blind as shit if you think that boy wants nothing to do with you." "Well, I'm blind as shit then," she replies, straight-faced. "He's over there talking with a girl now." "He broke up with her, remember?" "Doesn't matter. I'm going for another drink. You want one?" she asks. "Nah, I've still got more than half left." "Okay. Be back." The lights twirl above us, and I lift my hair off my neck just as I spot Colby coming from the back of the building. I'm pretty tipsy at this point, but damn, he looks good. Where is he coming from, anyway? I look behind him, seeing only crowds of people and a solid brick wall. All of a sudden, I'm knocked sideways, and I feel my shirt get drenched. "Shit," I say, pulling it away from my skin. "I'm so sorry," a guy says. He takes his beer napkin and starts patting my shirt dry. "Dude, I got it." I stop his hand from touching my breast. "What the fuck happened?" I turn to see Colby standing beside drunk beer spiller and me. I exhale. "Just a little spilled beer," I reply, airing out my shirt. "Get the hell out of here," Colby says to the guy. "Hey, man, I didn't mean to." "Clearly," he says, grabbing my arm. "Colby," I reply, like chill out. "Come on. I've got a shirt upstairs." "Wait, I need to tell Claire."