The Mechanic

This is my first story on here. I like a story with a long build-up; I hope you enjoy it too! I would love to hear your reactions and if you'd like to read more about Riley and Rowan. Happy reading!

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"Excuse me... This is from the stud over there at the bar." The bartender had a little chuckle as she put a bright green cocktail in front of Riley. "Enjoy!"

Riley's friends exploded in a combination of cheers and wolf whistles. Riley hastily told them to shut up. She was dumbstruck and slightly mortified. This had never happened to her before. She was usually the last person to be offered a drink by a stranger. What was she supposed to do with that? Embarrassed, she looked over in the indicated direction and saw a tall, dark-haired figure raising a tumbler at her. She quickly looked away, unsure of herself.

"Well? Give him a cheers back then!" Her friend Sarah reprimanded.

Of course, Sarah would know what to with this kind of attention; she got it all the time. Riley picked up the glass and briefly raised it at the stranger. She forced out a smile, and turned back to her friends. It was flattering of course, but she didn't really want to be put in the spotlight like that. She already felt like the odd one out in her current company. Ever since she broke up with her boyfriend four months ago, she'd been the fifth wheel within their happily coupled-up friend group. Everyone tried their best to include her and make her feel part of the gang, but the fact remained that they used to hang out with three couples, and now there were two, plus an often grumpy 29 year old single.

With great difficulty, her friends had convinced her to come out tonight, even though she had a great Netflix line-up planned. Halfheartedly giving in, she had not even bothered to make herself look pretty. She had simply thrown on a pair of jeans and t-shirt and taken a brush through her half-long blond hair. All she wanted to do was blend into the background and forget she was 'the single one'. Her friends were having none of that, scrutinising the stranger who had dragged her out of her comfort zone without any scruples.

"Look at that, Ri, a secret admirer!" Oliver sounded genuinely excited for her.

"Not so secret, honey, he's right there... He sure is handsome, though," Jenny said dreamily. Oliver's girlfriend had a soft spot for dark-haired, dark-eyed, exotic-looking men.

"Yeah, he's just your type, hey babe? Maybe if Ri doesn't want him, you can have him," Oliver retorted jokingly, pushing a strand of light-blond hair out of his blue eyes. It was a running joke in their group how different Oliver was from Jenny's usual taste in guys. But the two were madly in love and, in jest, it was Ollie's pride and glory that he could make her love her blond guy.

"So, are you going over there?" Finn jumped the gun, as usual.

"And do what, exactly?" Riley snapped back, sounding more bitchy than she intended.

"I dunno, talk to him? Thank him for the drink? Maybe more..." Finn continued unperturbed. "It's about time you got back on the horse. It's been months!" This was of course unthinkable for someone with Finn's appetite, but Riley hadn't even thought about it and was definitely not planning on jumping some stranger.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to do, sweetie," Jenny reassured her, "just enjoy the free drink. What is it anyway?"

Riley shrugged and tasted the green concoction. It was a combination of sweet and sour and surprisingly tasty: easy to drink, uncomplicated, and yet different from other cocktails she knew. She tried to pinpoint the ingredients but couldn't get beyond lime and probably lots of sugar.

"It's good," she said simply, seeing the expectant faces of her friends, "a bit unusual but good."

"At least he has good choice in drinks then. That's a big plus in a man." Knowing Sarah, she was probably trying to not so subtly steer the conversation back to the possibility of him becoming Riley's man, at least for the night.

"I'll say!" Oliver was looking at her admirer again. "That's a very good whiskey."

The bartender was refilling the stranger's tumbler and Oliver had clearly recognised the bottle, being a whiskey enthusiast.

"Hey, if you don't want him, I might go over there!" He joked.

"Get in line, babe!" Jenny playfully nudged her boyfriend.

While everyone laughed and joked, Riley took the opportunity to study her admirer a bit more closely. He had dark hair, very short on the sides and longer at the top, from where it fell in thick straight locks over his forehead and partly obscured his eyes. He was wearing a dark leather biker jacket with a light-coloured shirt visible between the undone zipper. Unfortunately, that was all Riley could see, as the bar obstructed the rest and he was a little bit too far away to distinguish more details. She had to admit that it was a cool look, and it suited the handsome features of the stranger.

She felt a pang of guilt for thinking this way. It had only been four months; she had barely gotten over Dan. But then again, their relationship had fizzled out a while before that, and they had split amicably. Surely, she'd deserved to move on then? So what if she felt attracted to a stranger in a bar? There was nothing wrong with that, was there?

Thankfully, her friends' conversation had moved on and Riley had some time to sip her cocktail and contemplate. She found that her gaze kept wandering in the direction of the bar; she hoped no one would notice. The stranger did not pay any attention to her and was chatting to the bartender. It was like he'd already forgotten that he'd bought her a drink not fifteen minutes earlier. Riley wanted him to look over at her. But what would she do if he did? Grin stupidly again? And then what? Maybe she should go over and talk to him after all. He was clearly interested in her, otherwise he wouldn't have send her a drink. So she had nothing to lose, really. Except, she would never hear the end of it from her friends. But the same was true if she didn't go over...

"Do you think he'll come over here?" Riley was dragged from her reverie by Finn's question. Although there had been a break in their attention for the stranger, he clearly wasn't off her friends' radars either.

"I mean, I would," Finn continued, "if I'd bought a girl a drink, I'd want to at least talk to her."

The others murmured their agreement. Riley tried to keep the panic from showing on her face. Oh god, what if he did come over? She'd have to talk to him with all her friends watching and probably behaving inappropriately. She could not let that happen.

"I might go and say 'thank you' quickly..." Riley tried to sound casual, "I guess that would be the kind thing to do."

"You go, girl!" Sarah burst out, and Ollie and Finn fist-bumped each other.

"Go get him, and tell us all about it later. We'll want to know aaaall the details!" Jenny clearly wanted to live vicariously through Riley.

"I'm just going to thank him for the drink, nothing more," Riley tried feebly, but her friends were all beaming with excitement and clearly did not believe her. Riley huffed and turned away. She took a deep breath and, the remainder of her cocktail in hand, made her way towards the bar.

"Erm... hi." Great start, Ri, very eloquent. The handsome stranger and the bartender had interrupted their conversation when Riley came over, and now the bartender quickly made herself scarce towards the other side of the bar. There were clearly some glasses in dire need of cleaning.

"Hi there." The stranger's voice was slightly husky but softer and quieter than expected. Riley was now close enough to take in the angular jaw line, smooth skin, and brown eyes with dark eye-lashes. The stranger pushed a lock of dark brown hair aside and revealed two identical black rings in the helix of the right ear. As the realisation dawned on Riley, the stranger cracked a broad grin.

"Not what you expected?"

Certainly not. Riley had come over to talk to a handsome man and found herself facing a... handsome woman, she guessed she could say. She was certainly striking, with powerful features and a confident gaze. She was a bit older than Riley, probably in her mid-thirties. She was at the age where people had usually figured out who they were and were unapologetically secure in their self-image; 'this is who I am, take it or leave it,' her body language said.

The total picture oozed masculinity and Riley could not fault herself for mistaking her for a man from across the room. Yet, now that she was closer, she could see the finer feminine details of her skin, her lips, her elegant neck, her long slender fingers. Riley realised she still hadn't said anything and remained lost for words as she started stammering.

"Erm, I came over to thank you for the drink... so erm... thank you."

"You're very welcome." The woman was still smiling at her, looking amused. Riley's head was swimming. She had just accepted a drink from a woman, but not in the 'buy a drink for a friend' kind of way. This woman was clearly interested in women in a different way; Riley had seen enough lesbians to recognise the signs.

So, did this mean she was interested in Riley? Of course; Riley reprimanded herself for being stupid. Why else would she buy a drink for a stranger in a bar? And Riley had accepted, and had now come over to chat. She had given all the signs of being interested too, while clearly she was not. She was not gay. She had only come over because she thought the stranger was a guy. She had messed up and felt that she had to at least set the situation straight. She felt flattered but did not want to get the woman's hopes up.

"I... Thank you, really. I appreciate it, you buying me a drink, I mean..."

"Yeah, you mentioned that. Really, you're welcome." The woman's amusement increased as Riley struggled through her words.

"Yeah, I know... I just want to say... I'm not... I'm flattered, but I'm straight..."

The woman laughed. "Oh, don't worry, I'm very accepting of straight people. I have a lot of straight friends, actually... What's your name, straight girl?"

"I'm Riley." She felt a bit stupid for her comment now, but she still thought it was better to make such things clear from the start. She could have been smoother about it, though, that much was true.

"Nice to meet you, Riley, I'm Rowan." That was a cool name, Riley thought, it really fit her. Rowan offered her hand and Riley could see a tattoo covering the back of it, starting from the second knuckle and disappearing into the sleeve of her jacket. She shook it.

"Nice to meet you too... I should probably get back to my friends, though."

"Really, already? They seem to be handling your absence well enough." Of course, Rowan was right: the two couples were chatting away happily. They probably had been peeking over at first but, now that the first introduction had been made seemingly successfully, they had eased off the ogling until new developments occurred.

"This stool is killing my back. Let go sit over there. It's a bit more comfortable. Unless you're really going to run away already?" Rowan gave her a challenging look and pointed at a two-person table a bit further back. It was less centre-stage and further away from her friends' table, so at least Riley wouldn't feel like she was being watched. She did not want to lead her admirer on, but she was fascinated by this confident, unusual woman.

Rowan didn't seem to mind that she wasn't interested in her in the same way, so Riley decided it couldn't hurt to just have a chat, until her cocktail was finished. She was pleased that she'd made it clear that she wasn't gay and had cleared away any potential misunderstandings, however awkward her way of doing it had been.

They settled down at the small table, Rowan's back to the bar and Riley's friends.

"So, let me guess: you did not want to come out tonight but your friends dragged you." Rowan said it with full confidence, as if it wasn't a guess at all.

"What makes you think that?" Riley didn't want to admit straightaway that she was right.

Rowan looked at her intently, as if she was trying to read her mind. "You were going to read a good book, curled up on the sofa with your... dog."

Riley couldn't help but smile. "I was going to watch Netflix. And I have a cat, not a dog."

Rowan smiled smugly. "I knew it!"

"What gave it away?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the fact that you kept checking your watch. Nice one, by the way." Rowan nodded at the chunky watch dangling off her wrist. It was Dan's and it was too big for her, but she loved it and he had let her keep it after they split up.

"Were you deciding what would be an acceptable time to fake inconsolable tiredness? Dreaming of a cup of tea at home?"

Riley laughed. "Okay, you're onto me. That's exactly what I was thinking. I'm a terrible person!"

"Not at all," Rowan grinned, "so, give me the dirt. Why would a beautiful, young, straight..." Rowan emphasised the word by raising a finger and pausing. Riley felt sillier by the minute for bringing it up. "...girl rather spend a Friday night at home with tea than hanging out with her friends? What's wrong with them?"

"There's nothing wrong with them. They are great. It's just that..." She paused, wondering how to phrase it. "They are so happy couple-y, you know?" As soon as Riley said it, she realised she just stepped into a minefield of potential ways to over-share.

"And you are not happy couple-y?"

"Do I look happy couple-y to you?"

"Not right now, no." Again, that cheeky grin. "But it could be that you left your happy couple-y other half at home."

"Nope, no such thing... just one half left of a not so happy couple." Oh yes, there it was, over-sharing like a pro. Riley wished she could take the words back as soon as she'd said them.

"Ah you know what, being a couple is overrated anyway. I personally love the freedom of being single."

"Yeah, I bet you do. So, what's your story? Is your free, single self here all by herself to hit on straight women?" Over-sharing wasn't half as bad when it was reciprocated; perhaps she would take the bait.

"Amongst other things..." Rowan laughed, "it's always a bonus when I get to do that on the side. But no, actually I am here because she's my friend and I never get to see her because she's always working." She nodded towards the bartender.

"Well, you are doing a great job catching up with her." Riley couldn't help but tease a little.

"Touché. I should go and apologise to her right now." Rowan didn't look sorry at all, grinning like a Cheshire cat at Riley's cheeky rebuke. "Can I get you another drink while I'm at it?"

Riley looked at her empty glass in surprise. When did that happen? She had planned on staying only as long as it would take her to finish her drink, but now that the moment was here, she realised she did not want to leave yet. Just one more couldn't hurt, right? They were just bantering anyway, no harm done. She nodded and opened her mouth to speak but Rowan interrupted her.

"Let me surprise you. You liked that one, right?"

At Riley's confirmation, Rowan sauntered off to the bar. Riley couldn't help but admire her confident swagger and the way she pulled off the masculine look. She could now see the lower part of her body, which was previously obscured by the bar and the table. She was wearing black leather biker boots and faded jeans that were probably meant to be fitted but hung quite loose on her narrow frame. One leg of the jeans was halfheartedly tugged in the boot, while the other had come out completely and hung frayed, dragging the floor. Riley's mum would have a fit if she saw that; Riley just smiled at the nonchalance of it.

Rowan leaned onto the bar to chat to her friend. Riley's eyes were drawn to the back of the jeans, now taut over a very firm looking butt. She couldn't take her eyes off it, all the while reprimanding herself for checking out a woman's ass. But, then again, there was nothing wrong with appreciating it from a purely aesthetic standpoint, right? If that was all it was, though, then why did Riley feel a blush forming on her cheeks and did her belly give a brief, restless flutter? It must be that cocktail. And they probably just cranked up the heating in the bar.

As Rowan returned with another cocktail for Riley and a whiskey for herself, Riley willed her cheeks to return to their natural colour and her belly to calm down.

"There you go. Cheers!"

The cocktail was different from the last one; this one had a yellow to orange gradient and a slice of orange on the edge of the glass. Rowan seemed very pleased with it so Riley thanked her and took a sip. It was spicy, but still sweet, and had a pleasantly intense lingering aftertaste; it contained ginger and orange and who knew what else. It tasted like Christmas and summer at the same time, like good times that left happy memories, like all her favourite days of the year had all come at once. Even as she thought that, it sounded overly poetic to Riley. Yet, suffice to say, the cocktail was very good.

"Wow, that is nice!"

Rowan looked at her triumphantly and chuckled. "You like it then? I thought you would." Riley felt like she was missing the clue of some inside joke; surely it couldn't be this amusing that she liked the cocktail?

"Yeah, I do. What is it?" She asked, slightly suspicious.

"Tell me, do you like it more than the previous one?"

Sensing she was setting herself up for more secretive amusement, Riley admitted: "Yeah, that other one was very nice, I could definitely have more of that too, but this one... I wouldn't have thought it from the look of it... I've never had anything like it, it's amazing!"

Rowan tried to keep a straight face and tried her best to suppress another grin. "It's quite something, hey?"

"Okay, seriously, what's so funny about this cocktail? What is it!?"

"It's funny that you like this one so much more than the other. Just a silly thing, but funny nonetheless..." Rowan chuckled again.

"If you don't tell me what these are right now, I'm going to ask your friend over there. I'm sure she'll tell me, customer is king and all that." Kind of a lame threat, Riley realised, but hopefully it would still sway her.

"Okay, fine. The first one you had - which was nice and you could definitely have more of - is called a 'Lesbian virginity'."

"No way, you're making that up!"

"Way, straight girl."

"There's no way that's on the menu of this place. This is not a gay bar, why would they have cocktails with such names?"

"Ah, true. It's a speciality of a girls' bar in town, but my friend Megan there knows how to make it. She takes the occasional shift there too."

Rowan looked pleased with herself. So it was the names of the cocktails - and their implications - that she was so amused about. It was silly and immature of course, but Riley had to admit that it was quite funny. She felt a bit giddy thinking about her virginity - lesbian or otherwise - around Rowan. And this was only half of the joke. Did she want to know the rest? Exactly how deep in the gutter was Rowan's mind at this point? How deep would Riley allow hers to go?

"Very funny. So what's the other one?"

"I'm so glad you asked. The second one, the one you're happily having right now... The one you think is amazing and you've never had anything like it... is called 'My merry gay first time'. Apt, no?"

Riley laughed despite herself, despite getting the feeling that their chatting and bantering was maybe less innocent than she had thought. Sure, it was a joke, but the underlying teasing and the repeated exaggerated, bordering on sceptical, use of 'straight girl' were not lost on Riley.

"Oh, that's very clever. What are you, a 14 year old boy?" She said sarcastically.