The Enemy Beside Me

Chapter Two

Constance

The night air had a chill to it that clung to me the second I stepped outside my apartment. Wearing a skintight dress with these high heels probably wasn't the wisest choice on my part. But what else do you wear to a bar when you aren't exactly hoping to leave alone?

I wrapped my coat around my shoulders and kept my purse tucked under my arm as I locked the door and headed toward the bar. Hopefully, tonight will go better than the last time I came to the bar with the girls. It's been too long since I had a stress-free night where I could open myself up to leave with someone in hopes of filling my bed for the night.

Men whistled at me as I walked by them on the sidewalk. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at them. Picking up men wasn't a challenge for me. I didn't have a tremendous ego or anything, but I had the looks that would interest men. My dad kept me locked up most of my life because of it. For reasons in his past, he told me that men weren't always what they seemed. In his mind, I was safe if he was the one protecting me. It was a headache, but I learned to respect him for it. However, when you are a teenager looking to go out and have fun, resentment is the only thing on your mind when you are constantly told no. Eventually, I was able to get out of that stage and be thankful for the protective dad that I had. Not all people could say they had the same.

Once I was out on my own, I discovered my sexuality like any other person would. In my father's eyes, I was still his little girl who never would think to do something like that, but he didn't need to know about that particular part of my life.

The bouncer waiting by the door was always the same one. He had flirted with me a few times, and I often used it to my advantage to get in without waiting in line, but I never gave him the time of day. Call me a b***h or whatever, but when you lived where I did, you had to take advantage of some people to get things you wanted in life, even if it wasn't fair. As bad of a person that may make me seem, that's the way life goes.

Angie and our other two friends were already inside waiting for me. We always got the same booth anytime that we came here. It gave us the perfect view from all sides. We could see those on the dance floor who were already inside when we walked in, and we could watch the door to see who might stroll in for the night. Some nights, it was boring, and no man walked in that caught our attention, but I could tell that tonight wasn't that kind of night. The bar was already packed and full of good-looking men. If I was lucky, I just might score tonight.

"Finally, you made it!" Angie screamed over the loud music.

I looked at the time on my phone, and it was just a few minutes past eight. "Would you chill? I'm here on time as promised. I can see that you guys were eager to get the party started without me." They were already sipping on some cocktails made by our favorite bartender, which is one of the highlights of coming on a Friday night.

The bartender was the best-looking thing in this bar but totally off limits. He was older and married with two children. Still, it didn't hurt to have some eye candy.

One of the many servers came by to ask what I was having. "Scotch, please, and make it a double." He nodded and took off to place my order.

"Look at you! Starting on the strong stuff first thing, huh?" Angie inquired. "What has you all so wound up?"

"Honestly, a bunch of things. College is great, but not exactly what I was hoping it would be. I haven't been laid in months, so I'm looking to change that. Maybe this time, I won't get a guy that is so full of himself. It's a huge turn-off."

And it was. Most men here in Milan had the looks but the personality of a wet mop. They were all so boring because they all thought so highly of themselves. I have yet to find a man in this city that has the ability to think highly of himself because he has every right to. It could be attractive if the man deserved to feel that way about himself. Most of the men around here inherited businesses from their parents and never worked for a single thing in their lives. As open as I was to dating someone, it just never worked out that way. I could find someone to occupy my bed for the night, but it never usually made it past that point. Men I've met weren't capable of relationships unless it was with their mother.

Kay, one of my other good friends, nodded her head along to everything that I said. "Agreed. I'd love to find a guy in this crowd that could get his head out of his ass for five seconds and take care of me for one night. Is that too much to ask?"

Honestly, that was asking a lot. The last time I was sexually involved with someone was a few months ago, and it was just once. I couldn't tell you the last time I had a guy in bed who cared more about pleasuring me than himself.

As I took a seat next to the girls, three guys approached us, one with a scotch in his hand. "I believe that you ordered this, beautiful."

I couldn't help but roll my eyes at that lame-ass attempt of a conversation starter. If a man wanted to get a woman's attention, he should at least think of something outside the box to say first. There wasn't anything about this guy that made me look at him twice. I'm unsure if it was the way he said beautiful to me or that I wasn't interested. When I gave him the cold shoulder, all three of them then walked away.

"Hey!" Angie yelled. "I thought his friend was super-hot. Have you not ever heard of taking one for the team, Constance?"

"Yeah," I laughed. "Because I seem to do it all the time. How about we just have fun tonight. Stop worrying about guys and just focus on us. Let's dance!"

I grabbed Angie's hand and dragged her onto the floor. Kay and Georgina stayed back at the booth, flirting with any guy that walked by them.

Angie and I were somewhat close. She was my friend, and I was lucky to have one, but I didn't consider her a best friend. I've never had that special connection with a friend ever. But when we were out, we knew how to grab the attention of men we were interested in. The downside was that it often would attract the attention of men that we weren't so interested in. Still, at least we always had a good time.

She latched onto my hips, and we swayed together in a slow seductive rhythm. It was all about the feel of the music that always got me so into it. Only after just a few minutes of dancing did several guys surround us. Angie ended up walking away with one while I was left alone in the middle of the dance floor.

One thing I prided myself on was my strong ability to never take any bullshit. I was a lot like my dad in that department. I was a straight shooter and told you how I felt. Not all people appreciated a personality as strong as mine, but the right guy would come along one day, and it would be good enough for him.

I took a seat at the bar, laughing with a few guys showing minimum interest when a new face walked through the door. He commanded the room with just his presence alone. He was easily over six feet tall and intimidating as hell. That had a lot to do with his figure. This man was covered from the neck down in tattoos, well as far as I could see by parts that were not covered by his clothing. He wore all black, right down to his squeaky-clean shoes. You couldn't miss his toned figure either. It was something refreshing to look at. I didn't want to seem like a creep for staring, but I couldn't shift my eyes away. This had to be the sexiest man that I had ever laid my eyes on. Those piercing blue eyes were enough to make me fantasize about taking him home, though I probably never would. A man that looked like that wasn't interested in a woman like me. Men like that enjoyed the submissive type of woman. I was far from submissive.

When our eyes met, I quickly averted my eyes. That typically isn't my style, but I didn't want to be caught looking at someone that I would never have. Even I knew when someone was way out of my league.

My favorite bartender, Tony smiled at me. "Want another?" I nodded. "So, do you want to talk about what's on your mind, Constance?"

"What makes you think that something is on my mind?"

He laughed. "Well, for starters, you haven't talked to a guy in here tonight for more than five minutes. Does none of them reach your incredibly high standards?"

I scoffed, loving the fact that we were keeping the conversation casual. I knew that Tony caught me staring at the mystery man but didn't want to pressure me into talking about it. That's why I loved Tony. "For one, I do not have high standards. It's called liking what you like. Why waste my time and theirs if I know I'm not even slightly interested?"

"From what your friends tell me, you haven't had a date in months. What are you waiting for if not for Mr. Right?"

When I scrunched my nose, Tony busted out laughing. "Ew. I'm not even close to looking for Mr. Right. I just want someone that puts me first for once. Going home with a guy only for it to end in bad s*x is a waste of my time. Most men in here couldn't please a woman correctly if their life depended on it."

He held up his hands. "Hey, not all men. Sorry, I'm off the table now, but you wouldn't have been saying that if you had met me earlier in life. The difference, Constance, is that you have been dealing with boys, not men. If they were any kind of man at all, they would see how great you are and always put you first. That's why I like talking to you. You don't bullshit and keep it right to the point. One man one day will respect that."

I picked up my scotch and downed it in one gulp. As soon as I set my glass down, I feel this strong presence beside me. I didn't need to look to know that it was the same man that had walked in moments earlier. He was by far the only man in the room who could give off a power that strong without even speaking.

Tony eyed me and winked. "What can I get you?"

"Whiskey strong."

His voice was even more impressive, deep, and commanding. I was almost a little embarrassed by my reaction. It was like I'd never been sitting next to a guy of this stature before. I've met plenty of men similar to him, but not quite the same.

I could feel his head turn to me and hear his slight smirk. "He's right, you know."

"Excuse me?"

This time, he fully turned his body toward mine. Without even touching me I could feel goosebumps formulate all over my skin. "f*****g around with boys will get you exactly what you've been getting. A real man knows how to please a woman in a matter of minutes."

Now I was fully invested in seeing where this conversation was going. "Oh, is that right? And out of this sea of men, how exactly is a woman to tell that by just his looks?"

His blue eyes pierced right through mine. I had to cross my legs to keep him from noticing how much I enjoyed his presence. No man should ever have that much power over a woman.

He leaned in closer to me. So close that I could feel his soft breath whisp against the bare skin on my neck. "By making you feel the way you do now when speaking to me. He isn't doing it right if he doesn't make you wet by just sitting next to you."

Just as those powerful words left his mouth, a man I noticed walking in with him approached. "It's time, Leon. Let's go, man."

Leon. That was this intriguing man's name—a name I was sure not to forget for the rest of my night.

"See ya," he said right as he downed his whiskey and then walked away.

I watched as he walked up the steps to the VIP section without glancing back at me once. Maybe I didn't make that great of an impression for him, but he sure as hell gave a great impression of himself. After my conversation with him, I knew no other man in here would command me the way he just did. It seemed like it would be another night sleeping alone in a cold bed.