Bound Together Read online

Something told me that she was dead serious. But what could I say? She was right. I took a chance and now after only being here for a few hours I had a job. I’d been off campus, had coffee with my new roommate and got a job. Things were already looking up. I rested back on my chair and grinned inwardly as I listened to Amy talk about all the parties and socials we were going to this year. I kind of had to admit that this year could actually turn out to be a lot of fun.

  Chapter 3

  An Apron and an Adonis

  The sun was warm and it heated my skin to the perfect temperature. I could feel the breeze tickling and cooling the nape of my neck as it caressed my exposed flesh. I was laying on a red and white checkered cotton blanket, in the most beautiful meadow that I had ever seen. I lay there for a while, just thinking about how I had gotten there. I could see the outline of a man in the distance. Tall and broad, he was striding over fast. I could just make out his handsome face; the dark penetrating eyes, slight stubble from his morning shave and thick brown hair. He was delicious. My heart was pounding as he came closer to me and my breathing was becoming harsher and quicker. Leaning over me he slowly moved his hand up my thigh, his fingertips caressing my skin as they slid upwards. Leaning into my face, his lips almost touching mine, he let out a soft sigh and breathed my name…“Layla!”

  That wasn’t what I expected…“Layla wake up! You’re late for work!”

  Shit!

  My eyes flew open and straight to the clock. 9: 15 a.m. I was late. I’d only been working at Lorraine’s coffee shop for a week and I definitely did not want a reputation for being late. I jumped out of bed and ran for the bathroom. I showered, pulled on my clothes as fast as I could and pulled my damp hair back into a tight ponytail. I quickly put on some mascara and lip gloss. There was no time for the full works this morning. Looking in the mirror I winced at my reflection. Not great but it would do.

  I rushed back out to find Amy holding the door open with one hand and a granola bar in the other. “You’re an angel.”

  I thanked her as I grabbed the granola bar, which would have to serve as my breakfast, and ran out the door.

  “What would you do without me?” she yelled after me. “Go hungry!” I shouted over my shoulder before running as fast as my feet could carry me to work.

  This was not good. I could see the shop and it was clearly busy. Breakfast and lunch times were the most hectic for us. I was sure I was in trouble. I crossed the street and hurriedly walked the few yards to the shop. Searching my bag for my apron, I leaned back against the door and gave it a hard push with my behind so that it opened while I continued to look for my apron.

  “Shit!”

  I snapped my head up, turned around and gasped in horror. Holding his coffee in one hand and his now dripping nose with the other stood a tall, highly irritated man.

  “Oh my god. I am so sorry. Here let me help you.” I grabbed some napkins off the nearby table and began trying to stop the man’s nose from bleeding.

  He waved me off and pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers. “No, no. My mistake. How was I to know that someone would be ass walking their way into the shop? I mean, who watches the direction they’re going these days?” His voice was oozing with sarcasm. I was a little pissed at his attitude. It wasn’t like I had done it on purpose.

  “It was an accident. I didn’t see you because I was looking for my apron. You clearly didn’t see me either. What’s your excuse for not seeing me through a glass door?”

  He gawked down at me, raised his eyebrows and shook his head. I stood my ground and stared right back at him. Opening his mouth to respond, he was interrupted by a frantic looking Lorraine who had left her spot at the counter and was now striding over to us. She scanned our faces and then held her hands to her mouth. “Oh my goodness Jared. Are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital?” Well at least I knew the name of the man I had just assaulted with a coffee shop door. He took his fingers away from his nose and checked to see if it was still bleeding. It wasn’t. Lorraine led him to the office and I followed, feeling like I should apologize again, even if he had acted like a jerk. I stood in the doorway and watched Lorraine. There really wasn’t that much blood. What a baby. Jared was sitting on the chair at the large desk facing Lorraine, as she wiped him down with a damp cloth.

  Once she’d finished cleaning him up she lifted his chin so she could inspect his nose. “There. Good as new and as handsome as ever.” She said smiling at Jared before giving me a warning look as she walked out of the office. Yep. I was in trouble.

  I rolled my eyes and stared at a now clean and composed Jared. Lorraine was wrong, he wasn’t handsome. He was gorgeous. He had piercing blue eyes that were peeking out from beneath his long dark lashes. He had a dimple in his chin and beautiful light brown hair mixed with a few wisps of blonde; giving it a golden appearance as the light caught each strand. It was cut short and he obviously used some product to give it that ‘I just crawled out of bed look’. As he stood, I couldn’t help but admire his amazing physique. He was tall with broad shoulders and his white shirt, which was now stained with hot coffee, clung to his body. I could see his impressive chest and rock hard abs underneath the now ruined shirt. My cheeks were feeling warm and I hoped he didn’t catch me blushing.

  I watched as he began wiping himself down with a tissue, trying in vain to get rid of the stain. I gave a loud sigh and walked over to him. Staring at the floor I began to make my apologies. “Look. I’m really sorry about the door. And your shirt. And your nose. But it really was an accident. I don’t make it a habit to walk around backwards. I was late for work and...”

  He stopped rubbing at his shirt for a moment and set his gaze on me. He held up his left hand to silence me.

  “Wait. You work here? At Lorraine’s?”

  I nodded. His head fell back and he closed his eyes tightly. He ran his hands over his face and then stared down at me. “Well I’ll be sure to send you the bill for my now completely un-wearable Armani shirt. The nose that you damaged, unfortunately I will have to live with.”

  What a jackass. I was apologizing and he was giving me such a hard time. Jeez was he always such a jerk?

  I fisted my hands on my hips and with a furrowed brow I glared up at him. “Hey! I already apologized and I’ll be happy to pay for your shirt to be cleaned. It was, after all, my fault. But if you think for one moment that I’m going to stand here and put up with your attitude then you’re very much mistaken. You’ll find me in here most afternoons so please do drop by when you have something useful for me. Like the bill for that shirt.” Gorgeous or not, he was still a jackass.

  I turned on my heel and stormed out of the room. He was clearly stunned into silence because he never responded. I wrapped my apron around my waist and began collecting coffee cups off of the empty tables. He breezed past me a few minutes later. Reaching out for the handle on the door he glanced back at me and shook his head before leaving. What a rude, ignorant, jerk-wad!

  Chapter 4

  Playing the Game

  Amy rolled around on her bed clutching her stomach. She’d been laughing so hard for the past five minutes I thought she might lose control of her bladder. Tears were running down her face as she tried to calm herself. Sitting on the edge of her bed she wiped her eyes.

  “So let me get this straight. You’ve been here for one week. You’ve met two smoking hot guys and somehow you have managed to land flat on your back in front of one and then ruin a very expensive shirt and break the nose of the other.”

  She brought her hands up to her mouth, trying to hide her laughter. I cringed and pinched my eyes tightly closed. “Yes. But in my defense we don’t know for sure that I broke his nose. It just...bled…a bit.” That was it. Amy was in hysterical fits of laughter again. She slid forward off the bed, her ass landed on the floor and she began to roll onto her back laughing hard. I was glad someone found this funny because I was mortified.

  Lorraine had been rather lenient with me. She’
d given me a warning about being late but had also said that if the job and school work were too much, she could work out a new schedule for me. I appreciated the thought but I assured her that it would not happen again. As for the assault on Jared, she had simply chuckled and told me to watch where I was going in future. I also assured her the Jared incident was certainly never going to happen again either.

  I laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling. Amy had finished her hysterical floor show and was now a little more composed. She got up and sat by the edge of my bed.

  “You going home for the weekend Layla? Because I heard there’s a great party going on over at one of the frat houses. First week freshman party. We should totally go!” It sounded fun but I had promised dad I would go home for the weekend. Plus I wanted to see how he was doing on his own. I sat up and shook my head at her. “I can’t go. I promised dad I’d visit for the weekend. But you should totally go. Meet people. Meet guys. You’ll fit right in.”

  I smiled and patted her on the shoulder. “Besides it will give you plenty to tell me about when I get back on Sunday. We could discuss it over some take out and junk food.” That seemed to work. She returned my smile and nodded. “Ok, but you don’t know what you’re missing.”

  It had been a long day. With the incident at the coffee shop and the whole week of meet and greets, I was exhausted. Lying on my bed with my arm shielding my eyes I was just staring to allow myself to doze when someone knocked loudly on the door. Amy was immediately on her feet. I sat up and glanced over at the door “Who the hell is that?!”

  She strode over and opened it.

  Standing in our door way was Oliver. He was wearing a pair of loose jeans and a hoodie. He smirked at me as Amy gave him a questioning look.

  “Hey Layla.” He walked into the room and right past a stunned Amy. She fisted her hands on her hips and stared at him. “And you are?” He turned to face her and let out a small laugh.

  “Oh yeah, sorry. Oliver. I live across the hall. I met Layla here on moving day. You must be the roommate.”

  “Amy.” She glared at him and then turned her attention to me. I shrugged and gave her a half a smile.

  “Flat on my back.” I said. She snorted a laugh, suddenly knowing who Oliver was. He sat down by the edge of my bed “Anyway, I just came over to see what you were doing tonight. There’s a bar a couple of blocks over and its open mic night. I was just about to head over with my roommate Nick and thought you might wanna get outta here for a while.”

  Amy looked at me with hope in her eyes. It was obvious she was desperate to go. Other than the coffee shop, I hadn’t been off campus and it was Friday night. “Sure. What the hell. Give me five minutes and I’ll be ready.” I said.

  Amy winked at me and turned to Oliver. Grinning at me he nodded, stood up then walked out the door. Amy closed it behind him and jumped up and down enthusiastically. “Oh my god this is going to be so much fun!”

  * * *

  The bar was heaving with people and the smells of sweat and bitter ales coming from the overflowing crowd was pungent but not repulsive. One look around and I could tell that the décor had clearly not been modernized in quite some time. The dark mahogany bar and large wooden pillars were thick with dust and had several gouges in them which were probably caused by numerous fights and brawls. The walls were covered with old photographs of singers like Elvis and Johnny Cash. There was a sign lit up in florescent blue over the stage with the name ‘Benny’s’ across it and I immediately assumed that was the name of the bar. Instruments were set up and a single microphone stood next to a black chalkboard which had the words ‘Open Mic Night’ scrawled across it. Waitresses were darting between tables and the bar, frantically taking orders. Every table was crammed, including our own. Oliver and Nick had invited a couple of the guys from our building to join us but Amy and I were the only females in our little group.

  We sat at a table near the stage and the guys immediately started talking about the need to find a girl and get laid. Oliver looked over at me and half smiled. I rolled my eyes at him. Men. Always looking for an easy piece of ass. It didn’t bother me, but for some reason, I found myself hoping that Oliver wasn’t like that. He leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Just ignore them. They’re all talk and no action.” He winked at me with a sexy grin on his face. I felt my cheeks flush and hoped that he didn’t notice. His hot breath on my neck made my hairs stand on end and my body suddenly stood to attention at the sensation of it. I nodded in the direction of three scantily dressed girls who were now approaching the guys. I let out a small chuckle, “I hope not or those girls are going to be very disappointed.”

  He laughed and shook his head, picking up his glass and smiling. “Yeah I guess you’re right. So, how about you Layla? You got a guy back home writing you sweet letters and calling you every day?”

  Tipping my head back, I let out a snort of laughter. “Nope. I’m single and have been now for over a year.” I wanted to add, “That’s right Oliver. I’m on the market”, but decided to leave a little feminine mystery for him to toy with.

  I had been with Josh, my high school sweetheart, for two years. He was my first everything. First kiss, first love and the first and only guy I’d ever slept with. But, the summer before senior year he’d gotten a job working in his dad’s shop. We saw each other less and less and I knew we were growing apart. He would hardly call and when I called he was always too busy or on his way out. Mel had suggested we go to the beach to “get me out of my stupid, mopey mood”. I’d agreed and it had made me feel a little better. That was until I saw Josh walking down the beach holding hands with a long legged, bikini wearing girl from the cheerleading squad. They stopped and I saw him kiss her deeply. I marched over, shoved him hard in the chest and told him I never wanted to speak to him ever again. And I never did. Senior year he transferred out of state to live with his mom.

  Oliver leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. “What happened?”

  I glanced at him then back down at the drink in my hand. “The usual thing. Young. First love. Guy turns out to be a cheating slime ball.”

  He put his hand over mine and smiled.

  “Well, I’d say he’s an idiot and a real douche.”

  I knew he was trying to reassure me but the touch of his hand on mine was giving me sinful ideas. I thought about his hand sliding up my arm to my neck, caressing it as he kissed me with those beautiful lips. I could feel myself blushing again. What was wrong with me?! I nodded and smiled back at him as he removed his hand from mine. Oliver wasn’t like the other guys. I could tell. But boy did I hope he wasn’t just all talk. I could use a little action in my life.

  I was just starting to relax and enjoy myself when a large, balding man walked onto the stage, bellowing at the crowd for the first sacrifice to come and take the mic. People were talking amongst themselves without paying him much attention and a few heads turned his way but no one seemed to be brave enough to volunteer. Then, out of nowhere, Amy’s hand shot up like a rocket. I stared at her with wide eyes. What was she doing?

  “We are!”

  I nearly choked on my drink. Who the hell were we? I glared at her and prayed she meant the royal we and not me and her we. The guy at the mic smirked and invited her up. She quickly got to her feet and grabbed my hand, which I tried frantically to release but her deathlike grip kept me captive in her palm.

  “No Amy. No way. Not in a million years are you getting me on that stage. You’re crazy! I can’t play an instrument and I am not singing.” I hadn’t sung on stage since high school when I was the lead vocalist for a small band. But that was years ago and I was extremely out of practice.

  Amy pulled my arm so hard I thought it might dislocate. Instead, I was flying out of my chair and onto my feet.

  “Oh nonsense. I’ve heard you singing to your iPod and in the shower. You rock! And I play the piano and sing. Come on, we’ll be like our very own girl band! This is college and we’re supposed to be having fun re
member, so play the game Layla.”

  I wasn’t getting out of this because before I knew it, she was pulling me to the stage. I glared back at Oliver pleading with my eyes for help but he just shrugged at me, shaking his head and grinning from ear to ear.

  “Thanks a lot,” I mouthed, feeling a little pissed that my new friend was taking delight in my predicament. But that just made him laugh. Giving Nick a nod, he gestured for him to join us on stage. Rolling his eyes, Nick got to his feet, followed us up and sat behind the huge, red drum kit that was on stage. One of the guys from our table had also climbed up and was hooking up a gorgeous metallic blue guitar to an amp. Feeling like a proper band, I smiled to myself as anticipation and adrenaline began to bubble beneath the surface of my skin. Nervous butterflies swarmed inside my stomach and I fought the urge to bolt as Amy sat at the piano.

  “Let’s sing this one!” Amy shoved a sheet of paper at me that had the music to the song ‘Fading Like A Flower’ by Roxette. I did love the song and I knew it well, but singing in the shower was one thing; singing it up on stage, in front of a herd of strangers, was another. But there was no time to chicken out now. Amy was already playing the intro with Nick and the blonde stranger not far behind. Giving them a quick nervous smile I took a deep breath, walked up to the mic, closed my eyes and sang. It actually sounded good. Really good. I snuck a peek over my shoulder at Amy and she was beaming at me so brightly I thought she might explode. This was fun. My lungs were belting out notes that I never even knew I could reach. I felt amazing. I grabbed the mic stand and caressed it with my free hand as I sang. The bar was buzzing as people began to walk over to the stage area to watch. People were rocking and singing along to the chorus with me. The adrenaline rush I felt made my confidence soar, leaving me breathless as I sang every note pitch perfect and loud. My ears were ringing as the sound from the large speakers boomed through the bar. I was making people rock, dance and sing to the beat. I’d never felt so exhilarated.