Victoria

 

 

Victoria raised her glass of wine in Melanie’s direction.

“Happy birthday!”

Victoria and two friends, Ashley and Eve, toasted to Melanie’s birthday. Victoria gave her a hug and downed her wine. It was Friday night and they were celebrating Melanie’s twenty-sixth birthday with the usual – dinner followed by drinks at a lounge or club.

“Thank you! Now who’s up for some real partying?” Melanie looked pointedly at Victoria and gleefully said, “I think Victoria’s due for a fun night out, don’t you think? Especially a fun night with a male member of the species. It’s probably been a while for this goodie-two-shoes,” she said playfully, nudging Ashley and motioning towards Victoria.

The three of them enthusiastically agreed that Victoria needed to find a man for the night, while Victoria herself inwardly groaned and flipped her long dark brown hair over her shoulder.

Her apparent reclusiveness had become a joke among them, one she didn’t find funny in the least, but she decided to be a good sport and laughed along. This time. Normally, she’d have some cutting remark roll off her tongue, but it was a friend’s birthday, and she tried to look cheerful. She loved them, but their constant picking on her about her apparent celibacy was a sore point.

“You’re right, it’s time I had a good night out. So, the first round is on you guys! But I doubt you’ll catch me grinding with some hottie on the dance floor. Not tonight. Or ever.” She downed another sip of wine and laughed, attempting to lighten the mood.

Partying was not her thing, at least not the way her friends partied. She didn’t judge them, but she saved the late drunken nights for birthdays and special occasions – basically, occasions where she couldn’t possibly weasel out of it without being considered a major buzz kill.

“Time for dessert first,” Melanie said.

The waiter brought out the dessert, which was a delicious looking black forest cake, and Ashley, Victoria’s best friend, got to work cutting slices for everyone. She hesitated when she got around to Victoria’s slice, and looked at Victoria timidly.

“Umm, how big of a slice do you want?” she asked, looking back and forth between Victoria and the cake.

Victoria chuckled and waved her hand. “It really doesn’t matter, but I don’t want to waste any, so don’t make it too big, please.” She was already full and didn’t want to be bloated for the rest of the night.

Ashley cut the slice and handed it to Victoria. “Is that ok?”

“Yes, it’s great, thanks,” she said with a smile.

Victoria knew she had somewhat of a reputation for being short tempered and curt when annoyed, but Ashley’s timidity was just too much sometimes. She didn’t think she was that scary to deal with. She smiled at Ashley again and went back to the loud group discussion, which revolved around where to spend the rest of the night, and everyone seemed to have an opinion.

Eve was the most vocal of all. “Let’s go to Sips! It’s really close by, and always full of really hot guys,” she said. Her eyes gleamed and she seemed to already be imagining herself on the dance floor, in the arms of Mr. Right-Now.

The others looked at each other, amused. Victoria shrugged, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and smiled. “I really don’t care either way. It’s up to you guys. But really, Melanie should be the one to decide, since it’s her birthday. What do you think, Melanie?”

Truthfully, a crowded club with blaring music wasn’t her idea of a great time, but tonight she would shut her mouth, keep her opinions to herself, and let the others decide.

They all looked at Melanie expectantly. She had already had her share of drinks, so she was a giddy mess, and eager to party. “Yes, Sips! Please! It’s been so long since I’ve been there.”

Ashley rolled her eyes. “Oh please, we were there two weeks ago. On the Saturday, remember? You met that courier business guy, what was his name again?” Ashley had apparently let the cat out of the bag, because both Victoria and Eve raised their eyebrows at this bit of intriguing news.

Melanie quickly shushed Ashley and continued, “Anyways, we’d have a great time there, and maybe even meet some hot guys.”

Victoria smirked. “The last place you’ll find Prince Charming is at Sips, or at any club, for that matter.” Based on the ensuing silence, she realized she was being heavy handed, and softened her tone. “But who knows, anything is possible, they say. It’s a decent enough place, so let’s go there. I have to warn you, though: I’m not meeting anyone tonight, so don’t try to set me up with anyone, ok? I’m not even going to talk to any guys. You’ve been warned.” She looked at each one of them in turn, with raised eyebrows, to make sure they got her message loud and clear.

“Sure, sure,” they all grumbled, with a few rolled eyes thrown in for good measure. Good, she thought. Maybe we’ll have fun tonight after all.

 

****

 

An hour later, they walked into Sips. It was exactly how she remembered it, but somehow better. Flashing lights, loud dance music, and a classy looking crowd that was starting to fill in. Hey, maybe this place isn’t that bad after all. After a few drinks I might even dance a bit, she thought.

Ashley sidled up next to her and yelled in her ear. “So, what do you think?”

Victoria surveyed the room. “Not bad, not bad at all. It could be fun. Should we get some drinks?”

Ashley nodded enthusiastically.

“Let’s treat Melanie, since it’s her birthday. I’ll get the first round,” Victoria said, taking out her wallet. Having a decent job as a junior attorney at a prestigious law firm definitely had its perks. She wasn’t bathing in hundred-dollar bills, but she didn’t have to balk at picking up the tab from time to time, either.

The job came with tough hours, but she hoped it would pay off eventually, and that meant making partner one day. She regularly pulled twelve to fourteen-hour days, which meant that her social life depended on drinking copious amounts of coffee so she can stay awake long enough to go out with her girls or go out on the odd date.

In addition to her job, she also volunteered as a board member of a non-profit charity serving underprivileged kids. The partner she worked with most closely at the firm, Richard Laskey, was the Chairman of the board and had asked for volunteers early in the year.

She thought it was a great cause, and it didn’t hurt that it would earn her major brownie points with him for joining. He was also a good friend of her father’s, who was an attorney as well, and she knew it pleased her father that she took an active part in the community and the firm.

Luckily, the meetings were held in one of the boardrooms at the firm, so she didn’t have to travel far for the weekly Wednesday night meetings. It made her feel warm and fuzzy to be giving back to the community, but it also added to her frantic schedule during the week, so the occasional diversion of a Saturday night out was sometimes welcomed.

They found a spot at the end of the bar. Victoria watched the bartenders spinning this way and that, shaking their cocktails, and straining them into elegant glasses. One of the bartenders, tall and handsome but with a scowl on his face, appeared to be headed for them. His face softened as he reached them and he smiled. “What will it be tonight, ladies?” He had the faintest hint of an accent.

Ashley didn’t hesitate. “Four apple martinis, please.” She spun around and looked at Victoria. “Oh, sorry. That’s ok, isn’t it?”

Victoria sighed and smiled. “Yes, it’s fine. Don’t worry. So long as Melanie likes it, which I’m sure she will.”

Ashley eyed the bartender, looking impressed. “Why were you so grumpy earlier?” she asked him.

He looked up and snickered. “Oh that. Sorry. Never mind, it’s just that some people are assholes. Not you ladies, though.” He flashed them a dimpled smile.

Ashley was smitten. “That’s too bad. About the assholes, I mean. What’s your name? I come here all the time and I don’t think we’ve ever chatted. I feel a bit like a jerk.”

“Andrey,” he said. He carefully strained their cocktails and slid them gently across the bar.

“Thanks, honey,” Ashley said.

Victoria elbowed her. “You’re such a flirt.”

“Just being friendly – don’t hate!” Ashley blushed and grinned sheepishly.

They turned to take the drinks back to Eve and Melanie.

“Hey! What the…” As she turned, Victoria received an elbow to her side, sending most of her drink down the front of her bare legs. “Watch where you’re going!” she shot out, her tone dripping with annoyance.

She glanced at her legs, then looked up at the jerk who caused the spill, furious that someone can be so careless and clumsy. It took every ounce of self-control she could muster not to throw what was left of her drink in his face. Instead, she gave him the best side eye she could muster. He was hot, she admitted to herself, but that was no excuse to go around being completely thoughtless and arrogant.

“Hey, sorry about your drink.” He grabbed a napkin off the bar and looked at her. “Let me clean you up,” he said, eyeing her bare legs with amusement and a slight half-smile. He looked from her to Ashley and back again. Victoria couldn’t believe her ears. What gave him the nerve?

“I don’t think so,” she spat back at him. “Come on, Ashley, let’s go.”

“He’s so hot, though,” Ashley hissed in her ear.

Victoria looked at him and tried to forget about his generally arrogant behaviour for a minute, so she could form an unbiased opinion of his hotness. Ashley was right. He was tall, with dark hair, broad shoulders and a square jaw. His eyes were a deep brown and had a magnetic power, as if he was pulling at something inside her with his gaze. She couldn’t ignore his sexy physique either – he definitely had enough spare time for the gym, that much was obvious.

It was too bad he was such a jerk.

If he wasn’t so cocky, she’d take that hard body home to test it out and see how it rode. But with that attitude of his, there was no way he deserved to get near her. Her friends thought she was a bit on the prudish side, but they couldn’t be more wrong. She wasn’t prude; she was discreet. She liked her men just as much as the next red-blooded woman. She just didn’t advertise her hook-ups.

She told the odd story to her friends, especially if the guy performed extraordinarily well, but in general she liked to keep her private life private. She found that it made life easier if you weren’t always hanging your dirty laundry out for everyone to see.

Ashley was still gaping at him when Victoria grabbed her arm and gave it a tug.

“I said, let’s go! He doesn’t deserve the time of day. I don’t give a shit how hot he is.” As she pulled Ashley along behind her, she took a second glance back. He was still watching her, with a wicked glint in his eye that made no secret of the fact that he planned to ravish her one way or another.