Choosing how to love.

The Sound of Laughter

He was just buzzed enough and had pulled up Carla's name on his phone to call her, when a soft laugh floated over the air and caught his attention. He could not place where it had come from, but it sounded so light and happy and he laid the phone done before he realized it.

What did it matter? He groaned as he took another sip of the amber liquid, letting it burn down his throat. But it was there again just seconds later, and he leaned back and watched the crowd, looking for where it had come from.

It took only minutes to find the source, and he watched as a woman threw her head back and he heard it again. The woman was not anything special. Dark blond, or maybe even light brown hair laid across her shoulder and down her back a few inches. It was damp, maybe from dancing, and her features were soft, but she was not a looker, not like he liked anyway. Yet, he found himself watching her anyway.

She was not on the skinny side, but she carried herself well, and had long denim covered shapely legs that ended in heeled boots. Nothing about her was outstanding, so he looked away, back to his glass. He did not need any more women in his life right now anyway.

He heard the laugh again, this time closer, and he tried to keep his head down, avoiding her. Then an equally sweet voice came across the bar.

"Could I have a glass of water, please." He glanced up to see her take the glass, tipping her head back and slamming it down, before asking for a refill. He could not look away as she smiled and bounced around to the music.

"Thanks. I had no idea how parched I was." She giggled and then turned to catch him looking. Shit. He looked away, but it was too late, she had caught him.

"Hi." She smiled at him, but he barely looked up from his drink as he gave her a nod. "Sitting in the dark all alone? By the looks of the whiskey glass, and the grumpy face, it must be a girl." She gave him another wide smile, but he did not return it, and she started to give up when he spoke.

"Pissed off, and yes, at a girl." He was not sure why he even opened his mouth, but he did, and he hoped he was not going to regret it. "Did she break your heart?" Did she just ask him that? Bold. Maybe if he did not answer, she would go away. Of course, just his stupid luck she did not move, she just stood there and stared at him, waiting for him to answer.

"Look, I am not in the mood for company or idle chit chat." He growled and silently hoped she would not keep talking. He was far from wanting someone to flirt with him, or whatever she was attempting to accomplish.

"Idle chit chat?" She seemed surprised. "I was just being friendly and making polite conversation while I waited. Don't bother answering my question though, not interested anyway." She groaned back and thanked the bartender for the water before walking off.

Good. Just go. He wanted to be left alone. But as soon as she turned away, he caught himself watching her go and a small part of him felt a little guilty. He shook off the thoughts. He was not interested either. Nor did he care. He drained his glass and asked for another. And a glass of water.

MADDY

She rolled her eyes and walked off with her glass of water, no jerks for me tonight, she thought as she joined Lacy and the guys they were dancing with. She just wanted to ignore the creep back at the bar.

He obviously had issues, since he was hiding in the shadows, growling at women that were just being nice. It wasn't like she was hitting on him, just just was being nice. Whatever. She turned into Scott and within a few heartbeats, she had forgotten all about him.

Scott was tall and lean and had a boyish charm with his shock blond hair and brilliant blue eyes. He was fun and sweet, and she was already starting to like him. The boys were turning out to be a lot more fun than she expected, and it was fun!