Chapter 3: Two
Life's too short to be boring, have fun!!!....
✳✳✳
Nine years later. . .
"Come on man, just one glass." Jake Evans was saying to a distracted Parker.
Parker shook his head, asking himself the reason he was in this crowded bar for the fourth time that evening.
He turned away from Jake, his closest male friend and employee.
"If you are not here to drink or get laid, why are you here?" Jake asked, downing his fifth glass of whiskey for the night.
Parker eyed the man's glass, wondering how much more he could take before passing out on the floor. "I'm hiding from Joline." He muttered.
Joline McCarthy was his current girlfriend, and truth be told, Parker was already sick and tired of her. They'd been together for about six months now, and before her, he had kept relationships at bay, preferring casual sex to the hassle that came with relationships. The only reason he'd decided to even date was because mother dearest had been putting serious pressure on him. He had always been preoccupied with work to put too much effort, and he didn't want to be a shitty boyfriend to anyone. Plus, there was a certain someone always on his mind.
"Arg.. Trouble in paradise?" Jake's voice was slurring a little.
"Something like that. Hey buddy, you know you'll have to be in the office tomorrow, ten sharp," Parker reminded Jake for the third time that evening.
"Yikes, sucks to be me," Jake filled his glass again.
Parker turned to look around the bar again. He noticed a small crowd gathering around the stage where a lone woman was dancing. Her hands were up and her head thrown back in wild abandon. She was average in height even with her three inch heels, she had dark brown, long tresses and her back was turned towards him, showing off a very delectable ass.
Parker swore he knew that ass. From the first time it had been sitting on his chest, the owner raining punches to his face, when he was only five years old, that ass had been imprinted onto his memory.
He pushed off from the table, straining his neck to see her in the dim lightning.
"Someone wants that booty." Jake laughed, turning to admire the view.
"That's Ellie, you dumb twit." Parker slapped the back of Jake's head.
"Ow. That hurt." He held the back of his head, frowning. "Didn't know that ass belonged to the best friend"
Parker glared at him. "Fucking idiot. Give me your car keys, I'm calling you a cab."
Jake jumped up and began to pat his shirt pocket. "Ah, I lost the damn thing. Guess I'll come for it some other time," Jake smiled.
Parker narrowed his eyes, then turned Jake around. He pulled the keys out of his back pocket. "Be safe."
Jake groaned. "Did you just feel my ass?"
"What the fuck? Get your ass home before I kick it." Parker growled, pulling out his phone to call a cab.
He led Jake to the front door, out the bar and into the waiting cab a few minutes later. He hurried back into the bar, in search of Ellie.
She was off the stage and was grinding her ass on a man's crotch. Parker face-palmed himself, knowing she would hate herself for it the next day. He wondered what she was doing in the bar, anyways. It was a Thursday, and he knew she had to be at work as early as eight the next morning, unlike him.
He pushed through the crowd, and finally got to her. He waved the man she was grinding against aside, then held her waist, pausing her movements.
Ellie laughed and wiggled her butt, causing him to flinch as his pants immediately tightened around him. "New partner," She laughed again, she was slurring heavily.
Parker groaned again. She really was wasted. "Ellie, let's go home."
She froze in his arms. "My name is Bunny!" She almost yelled, turning to face him. "Parks? What are you doing here?" She shook her head. "I think I'm going to pass out. Don't let me fall," she groaned suddenly.
Never in my life, would I let you fall! Parker swore. Ellie was not just his best friend, she was more to him, but he refused to say it just yet. At least not to her face. He had practiced spilling his heart out to her in front of the mirror a few times. And in his head, she had turned him down all of the times. He was still waiting for the right time. Parker wasn't sure he could deal with a second refusal. The first and only time, he had played it off as a joke. Ellie had laughed at him, and that has been that. That was nine years ago and it still stung, hearing her joke about it a second time would do more than sting.
He gripped her tightly as she swooned. "Nice one, Ellie," he muttered.
He pushed through the crowd, her head resting on his chest. She weighed almost nothing in his arms. He was careful not to get her long hair tangled or worse on questionable surfaces. He carried her out to his car, fastened the seat belt and went to make sure Jake had indeed left. He looked around a few times, seeing no trace of Jake anywhere. He breathed out, relaxing a bit.
"One down, one to go," he muttered under his breath.
He returned a few minutes later, then started the car. He allowed it to warm up, while his gaze traveled over Ellie. His best friend, his everything.
He had promised himself he'd one day confess his feelings for her, and he was working on that. All he needed was for Ellie to open her eyes and see him for the man he had become, to see him as the only man for her.
He sighed, that was only going to happen in his dreams. Around the time he'd started dating Joline, Ellie had told him she had started dating a hockey player. He had yet to see the guy, but Ellie had been super generous with the details. She had told him his name, where and how they met and a lot of information that Parker had made a point to forget. If he didn't know better, he would say she was rubbing it in. However, he knew better. There was no way Ellie would even care about stuff like that.
Ellie moaned beside him. Her fingers clawed at the seat belt. He knew exactly what she wanted even before her eyes blinked open. He had known her for far too long to not get what she was trying to do.
He hurried to her side of the car, yanking her door open and removing the seat belt.
Her warm brown eyes blinked open and Parker's heart stuttered. Everytime Ellie looked at him, he felt a tiny ache in his chest. How her eyes floored him each time, was still a mystery to Parker.
"I think I'm going to be sick, Diego." She smiled warmly at him. She only called him by his last name when she was very drunk. Especially since she hated being called her last name in return, because his first name was similar to her last name.
Parker returned her smile, pulling her hair away from her face. "I've got you, Parks."
She groaned and leaned forward, emptying her stomach on his expensive leather shoes. "Sorry," she muttered.
Parker wiped her mouth as she fell against him, drifting into a quiet slumber.
Parker cleaned her up as best as he could, then returned to his car seat. He was just glad he had not been wearing one of his favorite shoes. He kicked off the shoes and wiped them with paper towels before promptly tossing them to the backseat. They would remain there till he got home, and then be deposited in his pile of shoes to be thrown out.
Ellie's phone rang in her purse. He pulled it out and saw it was a call from a Denis. The three hearts beside the name was enough to tell him Denis was someone she was seeing. It was probably the hockey player, calling to know where his sweetheart was. Parker wondered what would happen if he answered and said he was in love with her. He shook his head, immediately displacing the thought. Parker knew it was his heart breaking when his chest ached and his stomach soured.
Ending the call, he powered off the phone and tucked it back into her purse. He had no right to feel angry and hurt that Ellie was dating someone. He currently had a girlfriend. Even though things were so bad with Joline, she was still his girlfriend. He guessed he should be happy Ellie at least had someone to talk to and create memories with. With work and Joline on his plate, he could admit he had been neglecting Ellie a little.
Parker decided it was time to call it quits with Joline. She had been restless lately and always seemed to have issues with the smallest things. Plus, he had wasted nine years already. Nine years he could have spent loving Ellie. He was ready to try, if she refused, then he could move on. Wishing for Ellie and comparing every woman he met with her had made what little he had of his dating life hell. He was constantly finding faults and getting disappointed with the women he had been with. He realized he hadn't been fair to them or himself. It was time to focus on winning Ellie or giving up on her.
He sent a text to Joline, telling her they needed to talk the next day. After sending off the text, he felt a lot better. It was like a weight had finally been lifted from his shoulder.
Tomorrow. I'll tell Ellie Tomorrow! Parker decided. With this settled, he started the car and continued on the long drive to his house.
Getting Ellie out of the car and into his bed was a breeze, and Parker could admit he liked it a lot. Seeing Ellie in his bed was satisfying. She had been in his room more times than he could count, but she had never slept in his bed. She had always used the guest room when she spent the night. But she hadn't spent the night in his house in months, and Joline had claimed the room as hers when they started dating, she had even moved in at one point. Her things still occupied the bathroom and the closet since the last time she'd been there, and he didn't want Ellie sleeping in the room Joline used. He had actually never shared his room with anyone before, always preferring to spend time with Joline at her place. Most of the times she had spent here, they usually didn't make it up the stairs to any of the rooms. All previous sexual encounters he'd had with women had been at hotels, never his home.
He peeled off her gown and tried not to look at his half naked best friend like a pervert. Especially as she was currently unconscious. He had seen her in bikinis a lot, and Ellie didn't do one pieces. She was all for the skimpiest swimsuits. He had even wondered if she was doing it to torture him. He refused to believe she didn't know it was getting to him.
He got her changed into one of his old t-shirts, then unhooked her bra from underneath. He knew how much she hated sleeping in a bra. He pulled the straps from the arms of the t-shirt, then pulled out the bra from one of the shirt armholes. It was pink lace and he had seen a hint of pink on her bottom half before pulling the T-shirt on. He tried not to dwell on it, but he was sure it would torment him in one of the usual sex dreams he had of her.
After cleaning her face and neck with a cool washcloth, he took a cold shower and changed into one of his old sweats. He checked that she was still comfortable and sleeping before venturing to the guest bedroom to pack up Joline's things. Thankfully they fit in a small duffel bag. He would give it to her after their talk the next day.
Parker lay beside Ellie trying not to bury his face in her hair. He had known her for most of her life, but was unable to put a name to the smell. All he could think of was flowers. Her hair always had the faint smell of flowers along with something more. Something feminine and uniquely her.
Ellie shifted. She flung an arm around his chest, tucking the other under her chin. One of her legs rested on his groin and Parker froze. She wiggled a little before settling in.
Parker remained still and tried to countdown from hundred. He could feel himself thickening against her warm, soft thigh. It had been a bad idea to put only the t-shirt on her. He should have put shorts on too. He tried to shift, but all it did was make Ellie tighten her hold on him and grumble in her sleep.
Deciding that was his fate, Parker closed his eyes and prayed for sleep to find him.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone