Even If It Hurts -H.S. AU

26

I'm sitting on a stool at the bar, twirling the ice around in my drink. I glance over at the booth I was sitting in the night Harry tracked me down and convinced me to sign the contract. Of course he would pick here for our first date.

I see someone lean against the counter next to me, out of the corner of my eye, but I don't turn to look.

"Whiskey, neat." A deep voice says. "And another one for the lady."

"I can buy my own drinks." I mumble, smiling into my glass when I take another sip.

"A woman as breathtaking as you, shouldn't have to."

"Cute." I mutter and turn in my seat. I'm met with a cheeky, dimpled smile. "What a line." I say sarcastically.

His eyes trail down my body, taking in the black, skin tight dress covering me. He pauses when he reaches my crossed legs, the hem ridden up on my thighs, and he inhales deeply through his nose before his eyes find mine again.

"That dress looks incredible on you, but it would look even better on my bedroom floor." Harry says with way too much confidence, and I nearly spit my drink out as I laugh. "Now that was a line." He laughs along with me.

"Does that really work for you to pick up women?" I raise an eyebrow at him incredulously.

"I don't usually have to resort to bad pick up lines," He says, bringing his whiskey to his lips and takes a drink. "you're the only one that makes me work this hard."

"That was douchey." I exclaim and widen my eyes at him. "Wow."

"I'm kidding, Vi." He laughs, smirking at me.

"No, you're not."

"I'm not." He admits and I shake my head at him, both of us laughing softly.

"It's eight o' five." I mutter, looking up at him over my glass, as I take another sip. "You're late."

"Technically," he says, finishing his whiskey in one gulp, "I'm not. I was in the building the whole time, I just wasn't here."

"Huh?"

"Come on." He says, throwing a hundred dollar bill on the counter before he extends his hand out toward me.

I step down off the barstool and take his hand, eyeing him suspiciously. He smiles and leads us out the doors and presses the up button on the wall for the outdoor elevator. He turns to look at me while we wait, lifting our hands that are intertwined, and I do a spin for him.

"You really are stunning, baby." He says lowly and I feel my face heat as we step onto the elevator.

"You don't look too bad yourself." I smile at him and he pulls me into his side, pressing his lips against my temple.

He looks handsome, as always. He's wearing a dark blue button down, which I'm just realizing is the first color I've seen him wear besides black or white. The top few buttons are undone, allowing the gold cross around his neck to peek out. I run my thumb along the rings adorning his fingers and he smiles down at me. The elevator doors open and my attention is pulled from him when I realize where we are.

"No way." I mumble as he pulls me by my hand out of the elevator with him.

"You didn't think our first date would be at a bar did you?" He chuckles and holds the door to the restaurant open, the sign above it reading Cameron's in big script.

"Our actual first date was." I say as he leads me to a table in the center of the room and my focus is pulled for a moment by the wall of windows overlooking the harbor.