Chapter 6: The Lounge

Amelia

I had just pulled into my driveway when my phone rang.

I checked the caller ID, it was Brianna.

I smiled tiredly as I pushed the car door open and stepped out. "Hello?"

Her voice burst through the speaker. "It’s Friday, Amelia. Don’t even think about hiding in your house. You are coming to that new lounge with us. This time, no excuses."

A laugh slipped out of me before I could stop it. Typical Brianna, always dramatic and always right in my business.

"Relax," I said, nudging my front door open with my shoulder. "I’m definitely coming."

"Mm-hmm," she hummed suspiciously. "Because I already made plans with Zoey. We’re meeting by eight."

My brows lifted as I glanced at the time on my phone. 6:17 p.m.

"Okay, okay," I said, kicking the door shut behind me. "I’ll be there."

"You better," she warned, then hung up.

The quiet of my apartment settled around me immediately.

Then my body moved on autopilot, the same routine I followed every single day. Shoes off first.

I nudged them aside with my foot. Next, the dress. I peeled it off as I walked toward my room, already reaching for a towel. Shower. The warm water poured over me, washing away the long week, the office tension. I stayed under longer than I planned.

By the time I stepped out, I felt much lighter.

I quickly changed into something comfortable and grabbed the takeout I’d picked up on my way home. Nothing fancy, just something quick to fill my stomach. I ate at the kitchen counter, scrolling absently through my phone. I had actually missed the girls.

Work had been swallowing most of my time lately, and I hadn’t realized how long it had been since we all hung out properly.

After eating, I lay down "just for a minute."

Big mistake. Because the next thing I knew, time went by too fast.

I jerked upright. 7:39 p.m.

"Crap."

I rushed to my closet.

Tonight wasn’t about overthinking. Just simple, easy and comfortable.

I kept it simple. I pulled on black jeans that hugged in the right places and paired them with a dark blue sleeveless sequin top that caught the light when I moved. Not too much, just enough.

I applied a light makeup. Mascara and gloss.

I let my hair fall freely down my back, running my fingers through it once, twice.

Then I stepped back and looked at myself in the mirror. Satisfied.

Grabbing my phone, bag, and car keys, I headed out again.

—

The lounge was already alive when I arrived.

Music pulsed faintly even from the parking lot as I walked toward the entrance. Inside, the air was warm and buzzing, lights flashing, people laughing, bodies moving.

And then I spotted them.

Zoey was the first to see me. She shot up from her seat dramatically.

"Finally!"

I laughed as I reached them, and the next second I was being pulled into hugs from both sides.

"I missed you guys," I admitted as I slid into the seat.

Zoey was already waving down the server. "Shots!"

I raised my hand immediately. "Absolutely not. Get me soda."

Both of them turned to stare at me.

Zoey narrowed her eyes. "You’re joking."

"I drove, so I can't afford to take alcohol right now," I said simply.

She gasped like I had personally offended her. "Why would you bring your car? You should have taken a cab. Amelia, you are boring."

Brianna burst out laughing.

I just shook my head, smiling despite myself. "I like my boring life, thank you very much."

We were still laughing when a man walked past our table and threw a very obvious wink in my direction.

I frowned immediately.

Zoey and Brianna? They lost it.

"Oh my Gosh," Zoey wheezed. "They’re already noticing you."

I rolled my eyes.

"Please," I muttered.

Zoey leaned forward with a wicked grin. "Okay but seriously… when last were you with a man? Like actually with one?"

My head snapped toward her feeling my cheeks heat up. "Lower your voice!"

She only grinned wider.

"Seriously though, You haven't had a real date since... what? Tristan?"

I shook my head once. "Nope."

Tristan. I met him in College. I was twenty at the time and back then I still believed feelings were… simple.

I had loved him. Completely. The kind of love that makes you stupid and soft and blind in all the wrong ways. Then he cheated.

And just like that, everything cracked open.

Given what my father’s betrayal had already done to me growing up, Tristan’s own betrayal didn’t just hurt, it wrecked me. That period of my life had been… ugly. Embarrassing. Painful.

Looking back now, it almost felt unreal. Funny, even. Because there was a time I genuinely believed I wouldn’t recover from it.

But I did. Completely.

I'd had flings, short meaningless things but real commitment? No.

"I’ve had flings," I said lightly, coming back to the present. "But dating? I don’t know about that. I’m focused on my career."

Brianna snorted. "You can date and still focus on your career, you know."

I lifted my hands in surrender. "Okay, enough about me and my non-existent love life. What have you two been up to?"

That was all the invitation they needed.

We spent the next hour talking as Zoey immediately launched into a dramatic story about her new supervisor who apparently thought emails were optional, while Bianca complained about a client who kept changing their mind every five minutes.

I laughed, relaxed, chimed in here and there.

But somewhere in the middle of the conversation…

Something shifted. It was subtle. Just a feeling.

Like awareness prickling at the back of my neck.

My smile faltered slightly.

Zoey was still talking, but my attention drifted, because suddenly… it felt like someone was watching me.

I turned slowly, my eyes scanning the crowd, faces, movements, flashing lights.

My gaze landed on a far corner, a VIP booth.

And then I saw him.

Adrian Langford. Sitting there with a glass of amber liquid in his hand. He was leaning back with his eyes locked onto mine.

My fingers tightened slightly around my glass.

For a second, my mind went blank.

Should I acknowledge him? He was technically a client. But we weren’t friends. And if I was being honest… I still didn’t like him. So I looked away and forced my attention back to my friends.

Zoey was now halfway through another story, completely unaware of the sudden shift in my focus. I nodded at the right moments, even laughed once.

But the awareness didn’t leave and my curiosity was a traitor.

I looked back letting my gaze drift toward the corner just to see if he'd looked away. He hadn't.

He was still staring at me, disturbingly intense, unblinking and steady.