"Stop looking for her. When Meggie is with Mike, she is in another dimension, and nobody else exists," Denver says. He attempts to loop his arms around mine as my eyes search for Meggie in the crowd. He walks me back toward the floor, stopping where three girls move their hips with the beat. "This is Amaya, Luna, and Danika," Denver quickly points toward them. "We are all part of the same group. Maybe they saw her but don't have so much hope she is still here."

The three girls notice our presence as we approach. Denver says something to each of them, and they all shake their head no.

"I was hoping for a ride."

"Relax, Cassidy. I'm with you. Meggie can be selfish, especially when she is drinking."

"I bet it was all a setup," I say in frustration. Denver moves his arm away with a laugh.

"Okay, you win. I begged Meggie to bring you over here. I put all the pressure on her."

"I knew it."

"It was your fault. I didn't ask you to be attractive."

I spread my fingers through my hair, "Denver, let's not go there..."

He nods, "You don't seem to give me much of a choice, but... to make things easier on you, I'll grab a beer."

My hands clench over my dress as Denver heads to the bar. My back touches the wall while I watch hundreds of people dancing under the flickering green and purple lights. "Hey," I hear a voice coming from next to me. I turn around to see a tall, familiar guy with olive skin and a remarkable pair of jeans and white shoes.

"I am sorry I bumped into you earlier and didn't apologize."

Right. I think to myself. "Are you apologizing an hour later?" I ask in disbelief.

"Well, some people never apologize. You should be grateful," he says with a smirk.

"I almost ended up in the hospital," I exaggerate just to be a little dramatic.

"Ah ah. I'll pretend I believe that. I'm glad your brother saved you."

My brother? Is he talking about Denver?

"I'm Daniel, by the way." I hear his voice through the beat, his warm breath reaching my neck.

"I'm Cassidy."

"Cassidy is a beautiful name. I've never seen you here. First time?"

"Yes, first time."

I slightly flirt with Daniel. I smile at him as he asks more questions. Somehow, it makes me feel good.

"I must confess I've been watching you for a while. What do you like doing in your free time?"

"I guess you'll have to find out," I smile back at him.

"Well, in this case, I'll give you my number. What about lunch tomorrow?"

"I'm working tomorrow, but we can go to dinner."

"Dinner sounds even better," Daniel says. As I was about to get his phone number, Denver approached. "Oh, you are the guy who almost killed her a while ago," He spit the words into the air with an ironic smile.

"Sorry, bro. It was unintentional. Would you like to get a shot with me?" Daniel offers Denver. "The offer is good for you, too, sweetheart," Daniel looks at me.

"Sure," Denver replies fast enough. His eyes are genuine when he takes the offer from Daniel, but I can see the concern in his expression. We all head to the bar, and I wonder how this thing will turn out between Daniel, Denver, and myself.

"I'm good. I'm done drinking tonight," I tell Daniel, and Denver shoots me a glance.

Aaron runs to the counter as he spots coming to the bar. "Two shots on me. You know my preference."

"I bet," Aaron answers, grabbing and fixing the small glasses.

"Have you seen Meggie?" I ask him. But Aaron is so busy fixing the drinks he doesn't even look at me. "I'm assuming she is under the covers with Mike Winters."

They all laugh, and I am without words. Next, Aaron hands Daniel and Denver the shots. The two guys toast and bring the small shots to their mouths, swallowing just one sip and shutting their eyes for a few seconds. The shots seem strong.

"This is the real deal," Daniel breathes and opens his eyes. "You don't know what you're missing, sweetheart," He looks at me.

"Next time."

Daniel and Denver talk about football as I sit and listen without registering any interest. When Denver checks his phone, Daniel approaches me and holds my hand. "By the way, I like your brother."

"He's the best, isn't he?" I smile sarcastically, watching Denver asking for a beer from another bartender.

"Yeah. We should all go out sometime."

"Sure," I tell Daniel. The thought of Denver being my brother makes me want to laugh hard, but I silence myself before telling him the truth. I wonder if I should find Denver as my brother offensive since we are nothing alike. Instead, I play along with Daniel just to get by. As much as I want to get Daniel's number, Denver doesn't seem to leave us alone or give us privacy. Eventually, we all return to the dance floor with Denver playing the third wheel.

"Are you okay with him bothering you?" Denver asks me.

"Daniel is not bothering me," I tell Denver. I want to tell him he is the only person bugging me tonight. Not Daniel.

"Don't you think he seems a little desperate?"

"Does he?" I shoot Denver a look. "Are you sure he is the desperate one?" I don't want to sound rude when I finally see Meggie on the other side of the floor. She is out there alone—no sign of Mike. "I think I found her," I tell Denver. "I'll be right back."

"Better check on her. She doesn't look good," Denver pushes me.

"Don't worry, sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere," Daniel assures me with a flirting look. "I'll be right here when you come back." I stare at him.

I nod and head to Meggie, wondering what happened to her. The tears keep streaming down her face, "Meggie, what happened?"

"Mike and I had a terrible argument," she tries putting her words together but fails to speak them right. Danika cut the crowd with a glass of water in her hands. "She'll be fine. Every time she comes here, she drinks more than she should. She comes with Nike, they fight, and he goes home without her."

"Wow," I tell, wondering what Meggie is doing with Mike in the first place. Now, for sure, we both don't have a ride home. I think to myself.

Danika stops as Meggie drinks the water, "I will drop Amaya, Luna, and Meggie off at their place. Do you have a ride?"

"Nope. She said Mike and her would drop me home."

"I don't have space in my small car. Can Denver drop you off instead?"

"Denver doesn't have a car. We got a ride here on his bike. I'd rather walk on my way home. It is very uncomfortable riding in his thing, but I'll figure it out."

"Thanks for understanding."

"It's fine," I tell her. "Make sure Meggie gets home safe."

"We will."

They all leave together, carrying Meggie outside to the parking lot. Meggie tried hard to find balance in her legs but fell to the side at every step. I head back to where I was with Daniel and Denver, but to my surprise, Denver is the only one on the floor.

"Where's Daniel?" I ask him.

"He's gone," Denver smiles as if he had something to hide. Then he spits the words he was hiding for a moment, "You made the poor guy think I was your brother."

"I didn't tell him anything. He assumed that."

"Well, I told him I am not your brother, and I met you tonight just like he did."

"So, you made him think we are on a date?"

"I don't know what he thought, but he sure left," Denver smiles again.

"Well, in this case, I go find him and tell him I'm not on a date with you," I am certainly annoyed.

"Don't bother doing that. He is right there," Denver points to the dancing floor. I watched Daniel talking to another girl in the same flirting way as he was with me. She giggles at him, and then he moves to kiss her. She kisses him back.

"I knew this guy wasn't serious about you. Let me take you home."

***

Instead, Denver ordered me a cab to take me home. I am grateful for him doing that so I won't have to get a ride on his rusty bike.

"That guy doesn't seem good for Meggie," I tell him.

"We all know that, but you don't want to be on Mike's wrong side. He can be nasty."

"I don't care."

We head outside to wait for the cab. The breeze blows my hair as Denver places his hands on my naked shoulder. I flinch at his gentle touch. His hands are warm despite the cold beer glass he'd held minutes ago. I barely knew about him, but he told me his father lived in New York, and his mother traveled worldwide. He also tells me he has a sister.

Then, the cab stops in the middle of the parking lot, and he holds me back. "Cassidy, I like you," he tells me the words spontaneously out of his mouth.

"You don't even know me."

"So what? I felt the connection. Do you think we ever could? Know each other?" His voice is soft, almost a whisper.

"Maybe," I say, heading to the cab with Denver's help. He opens the back door as I jump into the vehicle. The cab drives off the parking lot as I watch Denver until the driver makes a turn and Denver is out of sight.