“I saw you!” She was near-yelling as the DJ switched to “Endless Love,” which did zero to mute the outburst. Where was the damn Macarena when you needed it? Superblonde—Vanessa, apparently—said, “You were leaning in and holding her hand. How long has this—”
“Come on, Van, it’s not—”
“How long?” she shrieked.
The guy’s jaw flexed, like he was clenching and unclenching his teeth, and then he said, “Since this morning.”
Vanessa’s mouth dropped open. “You were with her this morning?”
“Not with me with me,” Hallie said, looking around, horrified by the implication. She worked part-time at Borsheims on the weekends, and the guy—Jack—had come into the store that morning and she’d helped him find a ring.
And not just any ring.
The ring.
The will-you-be-a-jealous-hag-for-the-rest-of-my-life? ring.
“She sold me this.” Jack pulled the ring box out of his pocket and practically shoved it in the girl’s face as he spoke through his teeth. “I bought this for you, Vanessa. Christ.”
The box was closed, but Hallie knew a stunning square-cut diamond engagement ring was nestled inside. He’d seemed like a funny, charming guy when she’d helped him shop for the perfect ring, but if he thought Vanessa was soul mate material, he clearly only thought with his penis.
Or else he really was a moron.
“Oh, my God,” Vanessa squealed, her face transforming into sunlight as she beamed at Jack and put her hands over her heart. “You’re proposing?”
He stared at her with his eyes squinted for a solid five seconds before saying, “I’m not now.”
Her smile slipped. “You’re not?”
“Fuck, no.”
Hallie snorted.
Which made Vanessa swing her narrowed, long-lashed—wow, those had to be extensions—eyes in Hallie’s direction. She hissed, “Is something funny?”
Hallie shook her head, but for some reason, she couldn’t make her lips straighten. She kept hearing the dude’s fuck, no and it was just so chef’s kiss.
Before she had a second to realize what was happening, Vanessa grabbed the full glass of chardonnay from where it was sitting on the bar, turned her wrist, and threw its contents in Hallie’s face.
“Gahh!” Cold wine splashed over her face and burned her eyes. Thankfully, as a bartender, she was surrounded by towels and happened to have one on her shoulder that very second. Hallie snatched it and wiped her face. “Hey. Van. What is your problem?”
“You are my prob—”
“I am so sorry,” Jack said, looking pathetically apologetic. He grabbed Hallie’s towel and started patting her dripping neck, which made Vanessa’s eyes grow huge.
“Oh, my God, she’s fine,” Vanessa said.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Hallie said, giving him a weird look as she snatched back the towel. “She seems great, by the way.”
He leaned in closer, so all Hallie could see was his worried face and blue eyes. “You’re good?”
“Yeah.” Hallie blinked and felt like she needed to take a step back. He was too attractive for human eyes, especially when giving that sort of eye contact. She ran her tongue over her freshly chardonnayed lips. “Well, actually no, if I’m being honest. See, I recommend this chardonnay all the time because it’s supposed to be oaky with a rich, buttery finish, but it’s actually dry as hell with a bitter, stale aftertaste.”
He pursed his lips.
“I’ve been perpetrating a lie this entire time.”
His eyes crinkled around the edges and his mouth twitched. He looked like he was about to smile, but Vanessa grabbed his arm and his face changed to straight-up pissed. Hallie watched his throat move as he swallowed, and then he turned around and said, “We need to go.”
Her perfect eyebrows went up. “We’re leaving?”
“Something like that. Come on.”
He led his pretty monster away from the bar, and Hallie mopped up before getting back to making drinks. The entire dust-up had happened over the course of a mere three minutes, but it’d felt like an eternity.
The other bartender, Julio, asked out of the side of his mouth as he poured vodka into five shot glasses, “What the hell was that?”
“Just a batshit jealous girlfriend.” She moved to the other end of the bar and took an order for two whiskey sours. “I don’t even know them.”
“Oh, my God, Hallie Piper, I thought that was you!”