Jax (Titan #9)(24)

"Good evening, Miss." The bellman graciously opened the door. "Can I help you?"

What was the matter with her life when she smiled merely at manners. "Could you point me to the bar?"

He smiled and nodded with a sweeping directional. "Straight past the registration desk and then make a right. You'll see a grand chandelier before you walk in."

Just what she needed and didn't know—a chandelier. A grand one, at that. "Thank you very much."

"My pleasure."

She glided through the lobby, following his directions. At the sight of the grand chandelier, Seven paused. He wasn't joking. It was maybe the size of an SUV, with glittering, gorgeous crystals that shimmered in pinks and ambers and purples. They stole her breath and instantly relaxed her.

This was precisely how she wanted to end her night, someplace where no one knew who she was and everything seemed soft and beautiful.

Swank music played in the background, a refreshing difference from the dive bar she had been in. Hell, it was a fresh difference from the dive bars she was used to when she spent the night out with Mayhem. Candelabras glittered, and the plush barstools and well-cared-for bartop might have been as old as the one she'd just left, but there was a difference in how the place was maintained. This was where she needed to be to get away from all of that.

The bartender walked over and handed her a menu on a thick cardboard printout that had today's date. It was nothing like she was used to and everything that she was searching for, at least tonight. The drinks had names, and her goal of a liquor concoction that was more of a masterpiece than a drunken old standby awaited her.

"What do you suggest?"

Two people next to her stood up, pulling her attention from the bartender patiently awaiting her order, and there was Jax. He looked over at the same time but didn't hide his dismay, tossing back his head and laughing.

"Seriously," she muttered and went back to her drink order. "What do you suggest?"

"Smoky Aguardiente."

"What's that?"

"Aguardiente, very Colombian. Anise-flavored, but you might call it firewater, and it's mixed with our house specialty of smoked teas and spices."

"Fancy."

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes." Mostly because Seven refused to look over and needed a distraction. She could tell Jax's attention hadn't left her as the gaping hole of barstools between them remained open.

The bartender made her drink and arrived with the tall, skinny glass, waiting for her to try a sip. "Let me know what you think about the smoked teas."

It would take far more than smoked tea analysis to ignore Jax. She held the well-made concoction to her lips and took a small sip. It was everything she had been looking for and completely unfamiliar. "This is amazing."

The bartender tossed a clean rag over his shoulder. "Thrilled you love it."

Seven didn't have to look at Jax to feel him mocking their conversation silently.

They bantered for another few minutes, and the bartender left. Seven sipped her drink and acted far more preoccupied than she was.

"Hey, you over there." Jax's rough voice raked over her better than any specialty drink could. "I thought I was bad attention for the win."

She fought the urge to ignore him and twisted on her barstool, taking great lengths to cross her legs. "Did you think that I came here looking for you?" Seven arched her pierced brow with as much attitude as she could muster. "Ha."

"Didn't you?"

"Not a chance. I came here to hide."

Jax smirked as though he didn't buy that, and it got under her skin.

"If you don't believe me, I'm blissfully unconcerned." She used her hair as a curtain to block his handsome face then gracefully scooted a barstool farther away and slid her drink over.

Cocky jerk. Did Jax think she was going to troll the streets of a strange country, hoping to run into him? She took another sip, thankful when a small group of businessmen took the empty seats between her and Jax.

The bartender approached with a shot in hand, bypassing the new men, and she glanced up, obviously not finished with her drink. "I didn't order that."

"The gentleman at the end of the bar did."

"Jax?" She rolled her eyes. "Handsome, Italian-looking dude? Dark hair? Looks like he wants to kill everybody?"

"Perfect description." The bartender laughed. "Surly beast."

A beast? Ugh. She wasn't close enough to see his face well in the mirrored bar wall, but Jax was watching her. "Tell him no thanks. You can have it. "

"I'm not going to—"

"Then give it to me, and I'll pour it on the floor."

"Can't have that." He took the shot.

"Was it a tasty one, or did he order me something that tasted like death?"

"It was lovely." The bartender winked. "Or I would've let you throw it on the floor."

"What should I send back?"

He laughed. "You two are going to be interesting, aren't you?"

"I don't know yet," Seven said, more to herself than him. "Send him a shot from me. But don't make it look as pretty."

"Would you like him to remember his name after he takes it?"