6

Adeline

The atmosphere in the bar is at its peak. It's suffocatingly hot in the room and it's getting harder and harder to work as the customers crowd around the bar. With a tray in my hand, I walk over to Tyler, Garret and Cameron's table to serve their drinks. They have been joined by Jayden and his two buddies whose names I cannot remember. Morgan? No... Scott and Peter, I think, his English friend. I force myself to remain as professional as possible with a smile on my face as I prepare to serve the one person in the room I am trying to avoid.

"Here's the mojito."

"Thank you!"

The blonde-presumably Peter-takes the glass I hand him. He looks at me, his eyes twinkling, and gives me a little wink of gratitude. I blush, secretly hoping my embarrassment won't show in the heat. I serve the rest of the order to Scott and the boys before lowering my eyes to the last glass on my tray. I look up at Jayden, who seems not to have taken his eyes off me since I arrived at their table.

"And the gin and tonic's for you."

It's not a question. I lock eyes with him, still waiting for him to finally say something. I clear my throat, a little embarrassed, and tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. My mouth is dry, my gaze still fixed on Jayden's. After a few seconds that seem like an eternity, his mouth opens.

"Yes," he answers in a deep voice.

My heart jumps, my breath catches as he takes the glass from my hand and our fingers brush. A pleasant shiver runs down my arms and I feel goose bumps on my skin. What is this madness? Humiliated by the sensation that has just spread through my body, I quickly move away from the table, holding the tray tightly to my chest and trying not to let it slip despite the sweat on my hands. I really have to stop this! The shocks I feel every time he looks at me or touches me cannot go on. It's outrageous! I look like a child who is embarrassed by the boy she likes. What's wrong with me? I don't like Jayden! Firstly because I can't be attracted to this complete idiot, and secondly because he is a "half member" of my family. Hands off, both near and far. I growl at myself, calling myself all sorts of names and vowing not to let my emotions surprise me again when I go back to their table. If I go back tonight, that's it. It doesn't seem like it, given the pleading look Mrs. Perfect gives me when I arrive behind the bar.

" Adeline, please switch tables with me. Give me the one you just served."

Her hands clasped in prayer, Ginger looks at me with her fish-eyes and pouting mouth.

"For what reason?"

"Jayden. Your brother."

I tense up. I didn't know she knew him. My eyebrows furrow instinctively, then I try to regain my composure and appear as detached as possible.

"Half-brother," I unconsciously correct myself. By marriage.

"It doesn't matter," she insists, dismissing my answer with a wave of her hand. "Would you do it, please?"

"Go ahead, it's all yours," I capitulate, shrugging and pretending to be nonchalant. Either way, she wouldn't have let go of me all night and would have gotten the damn table back eventually. She thanks me with a hug and waddles off to her new customers in her perfect skirt. I pout. Maybe I gave in too easily? I look at her and realize that even from behind and from a distance, she is beautiful. It's just annoying. She tilts her head back, a sign that she's laughing, one hand on her hip, the other holding her tray. I can't see the faces of all the boys, but I can still watch Tyler, who doesn't seem to be paying any attention to Ginger's theatrics. That should reassure me. He's the type to never look away from a nice cleavage, but he's improving. Only right now I don't care. And the worst part is the uncomfortable feeling I get when I imagine someone else in Tyler's place. Stop it! I close my eyes and quickly push the images out of my head. Pull yourself together! I force myself to go back to work without much conviction, moving mechanically from table to table: smile, laugh, get paid. Occasionally I looked at the guys, still more or less accompanied by a flirtatious ginger. I'm in the middle of pouring a few drinks when Holly positions herself behind me, whispering in my ear to make sure I can hear her over the music playing in the room.

"For someone who pretends to ignore you, I think Jayden has a lot of eyes on you..."

She steps back a little to stand next to me, her hands raised to her chest in a sign of surrender, before adding:

"I'm just saying, that's all."

"What do you want me to do about it?"

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Be Zen.

"It's a good sign, isn't it? Silent but protective brother.

Brother. Suddenly it clicks. As if the heat has finally risen to my head and I'm coming to my senses. I run a hand over my sweaty forehead and push a few strands of hair back into my hair band. I'm tired of my evening, the deafening noise around us has numbed me, and I'm letting my emotions get the best of me. Jayden is my brother. A brother I hate, who makes my life miserable and is never nice to me. And he's not even my type. I like blond, light-eyed, sophisticated, funny, outgoing, and definitely not part of my family. You should be at the top of my list: brothers are off limits!

My best friend gives me a playful look, followed by a little wink.

"It means he's starting to let his guard down," she coos.

"It's all an act, Holly," I mutter. "Don't tell me you're falling for it?"

"Don't be so pessimistic! If he's watching you, he cares, and if he cares, it means he doesn't care that much. I'm sure deep down he likes you."

Yeah, right...

I roll my eyes, struggling to ignore Jayden, who is less than ten feet away, playing pool with his buddies for the last twenty minutes. I know this because I've been watching him too, taking advantage of moments when he's focused to sneak a peek. The muscles in his shoulders, the taut jaw, the slightly upturned nose, the hands gripping the pool cue. I scrutinize everything, trying to confirm what I already know: there's absolutely nothing about him that appeals to me.

"Honestly, I would dream of having this guy in my life. He may be a total idiot with you, but he's a felon. Look at that butt," Holly comments, her eyes fixed on the pool table.

Okay, that was a big lie...

I lower my head and don't answer, preferring to avoid any eye contact with him for the next few hours. Where is Tyler? I might as well accept his coffee; it would help clear my head a bit.