2.

Lori

I did not wait to see what Travis would do next. I grabbed my car keys from the desk and ran straight out of my bedroom. I rushed past Jessica and Ann in the crowded hallway. Their worried voices shouted my name over the music.

I ignored my friends completely. I plunged out of the apartment building and into the cold night air.

I knew how reckless it was to drive after drinking. But my mind was full of panic. I needed to escape the pain, so I took the dangerous risk anyway.

Driving fast, I did not stop until I got to a quiet bar miles away from the school premises. I went inside with staggered, shaky steps. And slid onto a cracked leather barstool in the farthest, darkest corner of the pub.

I wrapped my arms tightly around my middle, trying hard to stop my body from shaking while I waited to place an order.

"Beer or whiskey?" the old bartender asked. He had a long white beard.

"I need something strong," I muttered. "Something that will make me forget everything that happened tonight." I hated how fresh the image of Travis and Elena was in my head.

Inside my purse, my phone was absolutely exploding with notifications. Travis was calling me over and over. Then a new text lit up the dark screen: Allow me to explain what happened, baby.

I pulled the phone out of my bag and slammed it face down on the sticky wooden counter.

A few minutes later, the bartender slid a glass of dark liquor toward my hand. I took a massive gulp. The harsh burn was grounding. It anchored me back to reality. I was twenty years old today. I was heartbroken, alone, and completely humiliated on the one night I was supposed to be celebrated. I did not even get to blow out my cake candles nor make a special birthday wish.

"Why are you looking at your phone as if something in it is after your life?"

I turned my head slowly toward the deep, smooth voice. I blinked back in shock. Sitting just two stools down from me was a guy. He was holding a glass of amber liquid with a single large ice cube.

It was Lucas Miller. The famous Lucas Miller.

His eyes did not just look at me. He used his gaze to completely eat me up.

"Get the girl another glass of whiskey, Greg," Lucas called out to the bartender. He did not break eye contact with me for a second.

The faint scent of expensive cologne and crisp winter air invaded my senses as he leaned in closer to my stool. “Your phone has been vibrating nonstop. Are you avoiding someone?"

I looked down at the dark screen. Travis was already up to fourteen missed calls.

My voice came out tighter than I intended. “Nobody,” I said. I picked up the fresh glass of whiskey and took a slow sip. I let the hot alcohol steel my shaking nerves. "Just a nobody I am trying to forget.”

Lucas chuckled. The sound came out as a low, deep rumble. "A nobody, huh? How come whoever it is is riling you up like this?" He tilted his head to the side. His dark hair fell effortlessly across his brow. "Emm, you are Lori, right? I think I remember your face from the flyer for the winter pep rally. You are on the varsity cheer squad."

"Yup. That is me," I muttered. A bitter taste rose up in my mouth. "And you, of course, are Lucas. The guy who apparently owns the ice rink and half the campus's hearts."

"I won't lie, I am guilty as charged," he said. A slow smirk spread across his lips. "But tonight, I am just a guy wondering why a girl as beautiful as you is hiding in this hideous bar, almost crying her eyes out."

I found myself blushing at his sudden compliment. It did not sound like the sweet, safe praise I used to force out of Travis. Lucas said it with a casual, predatory confidence. It made my stomach flip in a way that had nothing to do with being sick. He was frustratingly attractive. He looked so handsome I felt like watching him all night.

"I should ask you the exact same thing," I stammered. I leaned my elbow on the wooden bar to mimic his confident posture. "Shouldn't you be at the big frat party or something? How come you are also alone in this hideous bar?"

"That will be because I don't like heavy crowds," he said softly. His voice dropped a seductive octave. His eyes traveled down to my lips before snapping back up to meet mine. "And I like being alone. Or, at least, I did until a few minutes ago. My dorm is only two blocks away from here. It is quiet. There is no stale beer. What do you say, Lori? Want to get out of here?"

My breath hitched in my throat. His dorm.

I heard a loud warning bell ring at the back of my mind. Lucas Miller was a notorious player on campus. He went through girls the way the hockey team went through sports drinks.

But more importantly, he was Elena’s ex-boyfriend. They had broken up last semester in a spectacular, explosive blowout. Elena still whined about it constantly during cheer practice.

Elena had just taken my boyfriend on my own bed.

If I walked out that front door with Lucas, I would not just be erasing Travis from my mind. I would be completely destroying Elena’s absolute pride. This choice was reckless, dangerous, and spiteful.

And it was exactly what I wanted tonight.

"Let's go," I said. I slid off the leather barstool before I could talk myself out of it.