"Ehem, Earth to Lelani," Alana announces, clearing her throat and gaining my attention, "Seriously, what is up with you? You have been out of it for the past two weeks."

"Oh, whatever," I sigh, continuing my work as I wipe down the tables in Mama's cafe. "That is so not true." My hands work tirelessly, scrubbing the washcloth against the table in meticulous circular motions.

"Oh, no?" She laughs as she stops her work to bring attention to mine, "Lela, you've been wiping down that table for the past 10 minutes."

The fabric stops moving beneath my fingertips as my eyes cut around to the rest of the seating in the restaurant, realizing that Alana was already finished cleaning them all.

Okay, maybe she's right. Maybe I have been a little spaced out.

We both plop down into the bamboo seats at my table and Alana reaches out a playful hand, squeezing onto my arm reassuringly as she asks, "You know you can talk to me, right? What's got you so distracted, chicka? Is it Brodie? Have you seen him since the whole incident with your Dad?"

"No," I cut out quickly, in complete denial, "Brodie has nothing to do with any of this. I could care less. Really, I mean that. He didn't show up to lessons last week and he didn't show up yesterday either. And that's fine. He's a grown man. He can make his own decisions. Like he said, it was for the best anyway. I mean, it's not like anything could have come between the two of us. Not with my past. Not with my Dad. I don't care. I'm over it. It's fine. Besides-"

"Lela," Alana says firmly, cutting off my rambling and tilting her eyes towards me, totally unconvinced, "I said it once, and I'll say it again. You're full of shit." With that, she stands from the table and begins making her way towards the hostess's stand in the front.

I follow behind her joining her with the intent of defending my case as I grab the laminated lunch menus from her hands. I spray them down lightly, wiping the invisible germs off of their surface as I argue back, "I'm not full of shit. I swear Alana, I'm over Brodie. Besides, we knew each other for like, what? A month? It's really not a big deal."

My heart beats fast inside of my chest, and I start to become afraid that she might hear it. Her eyes roll as she tightens the apron tied against her waist, preparing for the lunch rush that's about to hit us. "My parents knew each other for two weeks and got married, and they're still together. So your argument is completely invalid."

"Well, then what? What can I do to convince you that I could care less about that stupid marine, huh?" Alana laughs, firing me up even more. "You know what, you don't want to believe me... I'll literally go out with the next man who walks through that door if that's what it takes me to prove to you that Brodie is out of sight out of mind."

The cafe doors swing open as soon as the words leave my mouth. The bell hanging around its handle rings, announcing a customer's presence and forcing both of our stares towards the entrance. My eyes widen as a pair of dusty camo pants and brown combat boots come strolling towards the hostess's stand. Jet black hair and a handsome smirk fall directly into my eyesight, making my stomach swirl, while also making me hate myself for the challenge I just presented to Alana.

"You know what?" My best friend taunts, taking in the sight of the tall and muscular marine standing in front of us, "I think that'll work just perfectly."

"Alana," I warn, whispering through gritted teeth, "I didn't actually mean that, I-"

She holds up her palm to me, making me go silent and letting me know that she wasn't listening to any more of my excuses. "You said it, not me," her voice whispers back, a smile coming to her face as she shrugs her shoulders, "Now, prove it."

"I was wondering when I'd get to see you again," Hammond chimes out, looking me over with his rich, dark eyes. "I want you to serve me today," he says matter-of-factly, before grinning over to Alana and asking, "If you're okay with that, of course?"

"Oh, that's definitely okay with me!" She patronizes, her lips smiling ear to ear, "I'm sure Lelani, here, will take great care of you."

I'm going to kill her, I'm going to actually kill her.

"Right," I laugh awkwardly, trying to subside my sudden frustration while my mind scrambles to figure out a way to get me out of my self-made dilemma, "Right this way."

I can feel Hammond's stare on me as he follows behind me, and I try to calm down my breathing as I motion to a booth in the far back corner of the brightly colored restaurant. "Where's your entourage today, huh?"

Hammond chuckles, tossing his camouflage hat off cooly as he slides across the light-colored leather seat. He keeps his playful eyes on me as he answers back, "I wanted to come by myself today. Plus, coming alone gives me more time to work on convincing you to go on that date with me."

I cock my head down to him, trying to keep my smile hidden away as I retort back, "Is that so? How do you plan on doing that?"

Hammond reaches past the tabletop, patting his palm against the seat across from him and inviting me to join. I reluctantly take a seat as he answers back, "Well, first I'd start by letting you know that I'm a very good dancer."

"Well, that's unfortunate because I'll have you know that I'm a shit dancer so I'd be a pretty lame partner. You'll have to come up with something better."

"Okay then," he smirks at my challenge, the dimples in his cheeks becoming visible. "I'm a hell of a cook. The grill is my specialty, but Mom taught me a thing or two about baking so I'm pretty good at that too. You name it, I'll make it."

His eyebrows perk over to me, awaiting my response. I can't stop myself from chuckling as I admit, "Okay, now you're talking my language, but I'm still not convinced."

"No?"

"Nope. Give me something else."

Hammond's teeth bite against his bottom lip, bearing his pearly whites and making me shift in my seat as he carefully thinks of something else to impress me. "Hmmm," he hums, "Well, mom also taught me a thing or two about being a gentleman so there's that too. I'm pretty much the best door holder there ever was."

"Oh, is that so?" I laugh, catching Alana's eyes at a table on the other side of the restaurant. She throws me a wink, and I force my attention back on Hammond, doing my best to ignore her mimicking that I can still make out through the corner of my eye. "But what if I don't want a gentleman?"

Now Hammond is the one shifting in his seat, and I smile internally as I catch a glimpse of the short-lived crack in his cocky demeanor. He quickly regains his confidence, leaning his arms onto the table as he hushes back, "Well, in that case, I can be anything you want me to be."

No, you can't. You can't be Brodie.

My eyes drift back to Alana again, quickly reminding me of the whole reason I was having this conversation with Hammond, to begin with. I had to prove to her and myself that I was over him. Maybe a distraction is what I need? Maybe a night out with Hammond is the remedy it'll take for my mind to stop thinking about Brodie- from thinking about his smile and his eyes- about his hands and the way they felt on me- about his lips on mine and other parts of my body-

"Fine," I blurt out louder than I intended to, abruptly putting an end to my jumbled thoughts. "What about a distraction? Can you be that for me?"

"Oh, I can definitely be that," he smirks back, crossing his arms as he leans back into the booth. "Are you free tonight?"

"T-tonight?" I stutter, somewhat regretting my impulsive decision to agree to go out with him.

"Yeah, tonight," he repeats back, "I can pick you up from here at 8:00. Does that sound good to you?"

"Umm, yeah. Sure. Cool. 8:00, but here's the thing," I mention as I spot my friend carrying drinks to a table in the distance, "My friend Alana is coming, so I expect you to have a date for her, too? Got it?"

Hammond squints his eyebrows over to me, looking me over for a minute before eventually agreeing, "Okay."

"He better be a good catch too, or I swear I-"

"Lelani, I've got this handled," he smiles, "You just worry about being ready on time, okay?"

I roll my eyes, finding no amusement in his slightly misogynistic comment. My eyes stay watching him as he scoots out of the booth and stands to his feet.

It'll be a distraction, Lelani. Prove it to yourself and Alana that you're over him.

"Bye, Lelani," Hammond cuts back over his shoulder, walking towards the doors of the restaurant.

"Wait, what about lunch? Are you not going to order anything?"

"No, I don't think so," he says, turning on the heels of his feet to face me again and throwing a devilish grin my way, "I got what I came here for."

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Hammond hops out of the driver's seat, crossing to the passenger side as I collect my purse. He opens the door for me, offering out a hand as I step down from his lifted Dodge truck. I'm immediately thankful for the scents of the ocean and the cool, summer night air as it rushes into my senses, relieving myself of the god-awful new leather smell of his car. His eyes stay on mine as I adjust the thin straps of my casual lavender dress, letting the v-shaped collar fall down lower on my chest and smoothing out the flowy ruffles meeting against the middle of my thighs. Hammonds fingers play with the dark curls that fall against the bare skin of my back as he speaks out, "I'm glad you finally agreed to come out with me."

I cut my eyes up to him deviously, running them along the material of his muscle t-shirt and black denim jeans, "You better be as good of a distraction as you claim to be."

"I think I can manage that," he quips, placing his hand on my back as we wait for his friend Corey and Alana to make their way over to us. Alana is all smiles as strides over to us, a piece of masculine, military-man eye-candy hanging on her arm. Her dark ringlet curls look beautiful, framing her high cheekbones and red-stained lips, as a dress, the same shade of her lipstick, clings to the curves of her hips. Corey is equally as attractive with his blonde, styled hair and blue eyes. He wears a stylish, short-sleeved white polo and black slacks that compliment her outfit perfectly. I have to admit, my impulsive date for the night did a swell job of picking him out.

1 point for Hammond.

I walk ahead of the group, the enticement of loud music and the smell of liquor pulling my feet ahead as we walk towards the entrance of Club Adrenaline. With my head held high, and my back straight, I stroll right past the security guard at the doors, surprised but relieved when he doesn't stop and ask to see my ID. Hammond, Alana, and Corey follow my lead, doing the same and granting all four of us access to the busy nightclub.

Colorful lights dance all around the crowded space as we step inside, illuminating the bodies gathering at the bar and moving together on the dance floor. The air is thick and humid, streams of smoke coming to life underneath the rays of rainbow lights bouncing off the walls. Fast and upbeat music booms from the speakers at the DJ stand ahead of us, making my ears ring and drowning out any and every thought coursing through my head, and creating the perfect distraction.

"Lelani," Hammond's voice sounds out, as his hand grips gently against my arm and grabs my attention, "You want a drink?"

"You're not old enough to order drinks," I giggle, never having thought of his age before.

"You wanna bet?" He smirks, bringing his mouth closer to my ear for me to hear. "Just turned 21 this July. Now, what do you want to drink?"

"Vodka," I reply simply.

"You want that with Coke or-"

"Vodka," I repeat again, "Two shots of Vodka."

"Don't you want a chaser or anything?"

Alana steps up beside me, tossing my hair with her fingers and explaining for me, "Does it look like this wild thing needs a chaser?"

"I guess not," He laughs, giving my short body a once over, "Two shots of Vodka it is."

Hammond turns on his heel, heading straight for the bar and ordering our drinks. Alana turns to me, her eyes animated with elation, "Lelani Kahale, I think you may just be my favorite person in the whole wide fucking world."

I giggle, completely amused by Alana's boy-crazy frenzy. "You like Corey, huh?"

"Do I like him?!" Alana exaggeratedly gasps back, gripping onto my shoulders and affirming, "Lela, he could literally drag me to that bathroom right now and I'd ride him like a damn mechanical bull!"

"Alana, you'd ride any man like a mechanical bull if you had the choice!" I cackle back, enjoying the feeling of genuine laughter as my giggles leave me.

"Hammond isn't so bad either, you know?"

"Yeah, I guess," I hush back, my mind immediately remembering Brodie.

Alana's eyes narrow over to me, naturally recognizing the change in my mood, "Lela, you're not over him, are you?"

I cut my eyes over to Hammond at the bar, and grins back to me, flashing his beautiful smile. I force my lips upward, wanting so badly to enjoy the night like I want to, but knowing that those aren't the brown eyes I want on me right now. "It's fine," I lie, not wanting to ruin the night and bringing my attention back to the conversation, "Let's just have some fun tonight, okay? You deserve some fun!"

"Are you sure, chicka? We don't have to stay if you-"

"Alana," I express firmly, "Let's just down some shots and dance, alright?"

In perfect timing, Hammond and Corey walk up behind us, their hands full of different colored shot glasses. Hammond offers out one of the glasses to me, but when I go to take it, he pulls it away from my fingertips, bringing it to my lips instead. I smile, arching my head back slightly as he tilts the shot glass and pours the vodka into my mouth. The liquid burns as it slides down my throat in one single gulp, heat coursing through my neck as the drink makes its way down into my chest.

"I'm impressed," he confesses, gulping down the contents of his own shot glass.

I glance over the crowd surrounding us, smiling as I soak in the idea of the fun night ahead of us, and once again losing myself in the distraction of Hammond's company and the anticipated effects of the liquor I just consumed. Without understanding why, my eyes go straight toward the doors of the club, immediately recognizing one of the bodies striding through them. Brodie's lips are pulled upward, his brown coffee eyes not recognizing mine, too distracted in conversation with the two friends at his side, as they walk towards the cushioned stools of the bar. I can't seem to pull my eyes off of him, his presence reminding me of his dark brown hair and the way it falls so messily on the top of his head. A black Rolling Stones t-shirt hangs against his torso, while loose, ripped denim pants and black Vans complement the staple piece perfectly.

My heart immediately drops as a girl with long, silky, and straight auburn hair meets beside Brodie and his friends. A black bandeau top peeks through her sheer, fishnet shirt, immediately making me do a once over of my own apparel, which in comparison to her's, looks so simple and childish. My fingers grasp against the ruffled purple material, desperately wishing I had access to a damn closet right now.

"Hey," Hammond mutters, noticing my attention fading, "How about a dance, huh?"

Once more, my eyes go back to Brodie, his friends, and the breathtaking ginger-haired girl with them. Her black, manicured fingers trail up Brodie's back, as she leans across the tabletop of the bar and calls out her order to the bartender. I focus hard on the movement of her hand and the way she smiles over at him, making my throat ache as I gulp back the scene playing out in front of me.

He's with someone else. He found a distraction...now give yourself permission to one, too.

I yank my eyes away from the four of them, snatching the second shot glass from Hammond's fingertips and quickly sucking it down. His dark eyes widen, but before he has any time to question my motives, I grab onto his wrist, yanking him towards the dance floor, "Yeah. Let's fucking dance."

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😂

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