Pretty Baby Ch. 06

"So, what's your poison, young lady?"

I looked up at the bartender. He was an older man, with a real friendly way about him. Thinning hair, moustache and a slight belly, he looked kind of like my father.

"Strawberry martini?" I asked tentatively.

He nodded. "Coming right up."

I thought a moment as I watched him take up the bottle of flavored Absolut. "No, wait."

The bartender paused, looked back at me. "Changed your mind?"

I smiled. "I've changed a lot of things," I said. "Why not my drink? I want something different."

He pursed his lips around a half-smile. "And what's different for you?"

"Anything without strawberry vodka," I said.

He chuckled. "Okay. Something different . . ." he replaced the vodka and looked at the bottles beneath the mirror along the back wall. "How about a classic?"

"Sure. Anything. Surprise me," I told him.

The bartender gave me a non-flirtatious wink, grabbed a bottle. I watched him pour a dark liquid and add some sweet and sour. He dropped in a cherry and set it before me. "It's not fancy, but I think you'll like it."

I sipped the drink, finding it bitter and sweet and a little tart. The flavors mixed well and were satisfying on my pallet. "I like it," I said, smiling at the bartender. "I like it a lot."

He grinned. "Amaretto sour," he said, and winked again. "An intelligent woman's drink."

I laughed softly and even blushed a little. "Thanks."

The bartender patted the counter and pushed up. "No problem," he said and went back to polishing his glasses.

I flipped through the pictures some more, lingering for a moment that showed me and Julie kissing. She had been pretty drunk at the reception, too. I remembered when the invitation came and it said "and guest." Julie had been pretty surprised when I asked her to go to the wedding with me. She had jokingly asked if that meant she was my date.

And then the morning after, waking up in the hotel bed, naked and snuggling each other . . . with Julie giving me dreamy 'good morning' smiles. I was glad I had remembered most of that. I reminded myself to give her a call when I got home. I hadn't talked to her in over a week. We were planning on seeing each other over Christmas; she had a new boyfriend she wanted to show off.

"Mind if I intrude?"

I glanced to the owner of the voice as he stood a few feet away, giving me a hopeful smile. A handsome man, not much older than I, I figured. A little stocky, with short dark hair and very friendly brown eyes. He was dressed in a white T-shirt under his black leather jacket, and blue jeans. Just a nice guy. A regular guy.

I smiled. "Sure."

He grinned like a kid on Christmas morning and took the stool beside mine, setting a motorcycle helmet to the side. He peeled off thick leather gloves and set them carefully on the bar. "Vacation pictures?" he asked.

"Wedding," I said, and showed him one of Erin and her new husband Ross.

He looked closer for a moment. "Wow. Beautiful girl. Were you in the wedding?"

I shook my head. "Just a guest," I said, feeling comfortable with this stranger.

His eyes shone as he smiled. Jesus, he had gorgeous eyes. Not dark at all. Nothing intimidating or mysterious to them, just . . . gorgeous.

"I'm sorry," he said, and offered his hand. "I forgot my manners. My name's Dylan."

I smiled back, a little touch of warmth spreading through me. I took his hand, feeling the gentle strength of him. "I like that name," I said, then blushed. "Alyssa. My name's Alyssa."

His eyes kept shinning. He didn't let go of my hand, and I didn't want him to. "Tell you what," he said. "Let me buy your drink, and I'll get one, too . . . you show me some more pictures and I'll tell you about my vacation in Germany."

"You went to Germany for vacation?"

He nodded. "I grew up there, in fact," he said.

I was starting to like Dylan more. "Then it's a deal," I said.

Dylan signaled the bartender, ordered something called an 'Optimator' that turned out to be a thick, dark beer. "Don't trust a beer I can see through," he commented after his first sip.

"So let's see those pictures," he said, leaning closer. I liked the smell of his cologne. It wasn't fancy. Just a warm, manly scent. "And then . . . who knows? Maybe we can grab some dinner. It'll take a while to tell you all about Germany."

I bit my lip, smiling. "Yeah. Who knows? Anything's possible in this crazy world."

-finis-