Chapter 6: Drinking and Drunk Men

The wind whistled past our skin as we walked down the streets of Seattle. It bothered Kansas, who sported a smaller coat than mine, but I was okay with it for once. I was determined to drown my sorrows from this morning, and a little wind wasn’t going to deter me from such. When we arrived at the club, Adonis, I saw that the line was exceedingly long, and the bouncer was not having a good time. He was scolding a few underaged girls for having fake IDs, and they didn’t seem to want to budge, until one of the guests in line barked at them to leave. It was amusing to watch, and we made our way to the back of the line.

Getting in didn’t take as long as I thought, and I held back a smart remark when the bouncer tried to say my ID was fake. Partly because no one had thought I would ever move back to Seattle, but when he saw that my ID was real with his blacklight, and that I was who I said I was, he let me in with an apology. I only nodded my head and walked past him. Kansas met me inside, and squealed with excitement, handing me my go to drink, a tequila sunrise. I loved how sweet they were, and how the tast of alcohol was almost nonexistent.

“Ugh, I need to find a man! Be my wingwoman, please.” Was the only thing I could hear apart from the loud music blaring throughout the packed club.

I shrugged my shoulders, and started to scan the club for any potential suitors, and froze when my eyes caught sight of Ford Mitchell sitting at one of the VIP booths. He was deep in a conversation with a wealthy looking man, and around him were several other professional men and a few scarcely dressed women, adorning expensive jewelry. One woman, a goddess-like blonde with a sparkling silver dress, was hanging on the arm of one of them, looking at Ford as if he were her next meal. Kansas was tugging at my arm and questioning what I was looking at, and when she saw what had me frozen in my place, she smiled wider. 

“Who is that gorgeous specimen standing in front of his table?” Kansas asked, trying to fix her already perfect dress. 

“Kans, I don’t know, and I don’t want to know. I came here to forget about meeting that insufferable man, not to be in the same place as him.” I groaned, placing my head in my hands. I looked up to see Kansas smirking at me.

“Well I would like to know, wish me luck, sweet Alice.” With that she gave me a confident wink and sauntered off on her hunt.

There was no way that the universe could be doing this to me right now. I was walking around the various tables scattered around the dance floor to find a place to sit when I bumped into someone. Without looking up I mumbled a quick apology, trying to step aside for the person to walk through. When the person didn’t move, I looked up to see a rather drunk man staring at me with disgusting hunger in his eyes. If it weren’t for my already sour mood, I would have just walked away, but something in me snapped.

“Can I help you?” I spoke with disgust in my voice. The man perked up at my voice and leaned closer to me.

“Yeah, baby, you can definitely help me with something. Wanna dance?” His eyes were lustful, and his arms snaked around my waist. I pushed him off with enough force to make him stumble, and fixed my dress.

“Get the fuck off of me.” I snapped, trying to exit the situation without further harassment from him. He seemed to get pissed at my reaction, and I quickly turned around, bumping into yet another person. 

My apology was more clipped this time, and when I looked up to see who I had bumped into, I saw a familiar pair of emerald eyes glaring, but not at me this time. Ford Mitchell was glaring at the overtly drunk man, and seemed to react faster than me as he caught his sloppily thrown fist. I saw that it was aimed at me, and shock coursed through my veins.

“You know, it's frowned upon to lay your hands on a woman, I suggest you find some place to sober up before you end up in a holding cell.” Ford’s words seemed to cut through the man's drunken state, and with wide eyes, he scurried away. 

“I never thought I would say this, but thank you Ford Mitchell.” I shouted over the thumping bass. Ford merely shrugged, and placed an arm around my shoulder. I was about to protest when he leaned down to my ear level.

“I’m assuming you don’t want to be approached again, so allow me to buy you another drink.” His voice was like velvet, and if it were anyone else, I would have swooned. He was right though, I just wanted to drink in peace. I hadn’t noticed until I saw his shirt, but my drink spilled all over it.

“Fine, but only because it will keep men at a distance, and I want to drink in peace.” My tone was surprisingly playful. 

I let Ford lead me to the bar, and I sat on one of the empty stools. When Ford took a seat next to me, I saw one of the bartenders come up to us immediately. I guess that was one of the perks of being in the public eye so frequently. Ford was famous, and people were inevitably attracted to fame. I could tell Ford was a bit irked by the bartender’s enthusiasm, but he remained polite as he ordered us our drinks. When the bartender passed them to him, he handed me mine and I took a large gulp, ignoring the slight burn from the alcohol. 

“Would you like to talk about what happened or keep it light? I’d like for this to be believable Ms. Carroll, I assume just buying a drink and leaving would leave an open target on your back.” Ford asked, his eyes held a mischievous glint to them, and I sucked in a breath.

“No, keep it light, tell me about your day or something.” I managed to get out after another large gulp. I had to pick my battles, and right now, a conversation with Ford would be the better alternative to more drunken encounters from ogling men.

“Well, as far as Mitchell Publishing Inc, things are going smoothly, but I assume you don’t want to talk about that. So my lunch was quite nice. My assistant, Geoffry, picked up some sushi from the Japanese place down the street. Alaskan rolls, and crab rangoon, my absolute favorite. What did you have for lunch?” His breath tickled my neck as he leaned closer. The music was getting louder and I’m sure it was only because he wanted me to hear what he was saying.

“Rocky road ice cream, it was quite delicious.” I kept my answer short and sweet. He seemed to be concerned, his brow twitched a bit, and a frown formed on his perfect lips.

“Are you saying you had ice cream for lunch? What about breakfast, or dinner?” His question irked me a bit, but I kept a smile on my face.

“I just had ice cream, and a bagel with cream cheese and avocado today, I was a little preoccupied with my emotions.” I mumbled the last part, hoping he wouldn’t hear my confession. 

By then, my drink was gone, and the bartender had put another in its place. I scanned the club, hoping to find Kansas, and was less than shocked  when I saw her chatting up the man that was in front of Ford’s table. When she looked in my direction she gave me yet another   

“I see, well, it seems Arlo has taken a liking to the brunette in the red number. Would you like to dance?” I was shocked by his question, but with a fuzzy mind, I finished my new drink with a few gulps before nodding and taking his hand.