"Will you stop fidgeting? You look fine."

I smoothed my hands over the silk material one last time, taking notice to how irritated Zach's voice already sounded as he pressed his lips against my ear, scolding me for trying to adjust the tight dress.

I had been dreading this night ever since Zach informed me of it over three weeks ago.

"Sorry," I mumbled out in an exacerbated breath, trying to focus on anything that wasn't how vulnerable I felt wearing this dress tonight.

The dress was undoubtedly stunning. Yet, it wasn't something that I felt very comfortable wearing out in public as it was a dress that practically begged for all eyes to devour it.

The dress hugged every curve I had tightly; and I mean tightly. The dress was close fitting, acting as a second skin of sorts, showing off my hourglass figure to perfection and leaving very little to the imagination.

It was something I would never choose to wear if I had the choice.

But I didn't.

Zach loved the attention I got from men in the dress. He would revel in the compliments and stares of jealousy that he would get from other men as they took in my curvaceous figure and slim waist.

The emerald coloring of the dress complimented my auburn hair excellently. It wasn't a slutty dress, it was simply eye catching.

And being the center of attention in the packed ballroom with hundreds of eyes on me, watching my every move was certainly not something I was too keen on being.

"Come on," Zach ordered in my ear, his breath tickling the hairs on my neck as he slipped his arm around my waist.

I fought every instinct inside of my body telling me to turn, to scream, to burn his arm off. I had to behave at these parties, even more so than I did at home.

So, as Zach pulled me along with him from person to person, introducing me to complete strangers who I assumed were of importance to his career, I swallowed every bit of anxiety that I could and slipped into the persona of the perfect girlfriend. I only spoke when spoken to, laughed at all of the right jokes, and forced myself to accept Zach's hold on me through the first hour of the party.

"These parties sure are drags but the open bar always helps move things along," one of Zach's older colleagues said as he slapped his hand against Zach's back with a jovial chuckle.

"That they do," Zach mused as he tilted the last of his beer back, his adams apple moving as he gulped down the last few ounces of alcohol in the bottle.

"Babe, you wanna get me another one?" Zach craned his head down to ask me. His deep blue eyes were a bit hazed, his lips turned up into a lazy smile as the alcohol began to take a slight affect.

"Sure," I piped up in a polite tone.

"Good girl," Zach mumbled against my skin as he pressed his lips against my temple in a rewarding kiss.

"Excuse me, gentleman." I nodded kindly to the three men standing with Zach and gave them a smile before turning on my heel and heading to find wherever the bar was in this massive room.

After pretending not to see blatant stares from other men in the room and ignoring the foul comments tossed my way under strangers breaths, I was far past grateful when I finally made it to the bar. My head drooped and I felt drained from the scathing walk up to the bar. My mind was sore as well as my feet and I just wanted to crawl into my bed at home and sleep away this entire exhausting night.

"Someone looks like they could use a drink," a voice said suddenly from the bar, forcing me to rise my throbbing head back up to answer them.

"It's not for m-"

Every thought and word was stolen from my mind, my words trailing off as I set eyes on the man behind the bar.

His expression was just as stunned as mine. Both of our faces resembled that of a deer caught in headlights, eyes wide and mouth agape.

"Peaches?"

My eyes dropped to his full lips as he spoke the name he had donned on me since our first meeting. Images of the last time I saw him and his lips intertwining with that woman's flashed through my mind and I suddenly felt very strange; engulfed in the brutal reality of who the man before me really was.

"Hi," I finally spoke, acknowledging him with a nod.

"What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?"

We both voiced the question at the same time, earning a lopsided smile and chuckle from Kaleb as I tried to fight off my own small smile.

"I'm a bartender," Kaleb answered first, leaning his elbows onto the bar as his eyes bored into mine gleefully. "I work at a bar close to the theater whenever I'm not there. That's why I have to leave at seven every day, so I can make it there on time. I also get hired out for private gigs, hence why I'm here."

I nodded, taking in his revelations as I let my eyes wander over the swirls ingrained in the wood of the bar, wanting to keep all eye contact between us to a minimal.

"Your turn."

"Uh, just here with my boyfriend."

A moment of silence passed between us.

"Boyfriend? I didn't know you were taken," Kaleb said, his voice somewhat hardened.

"Yup. Three years."

"Wow, long time," he mumbled out. His gaze was off; it's normal confident gleam nowhere to be seen.

"Yeah. Can I get a Miller lite, please?" I asked, bringing Kaleb's attention back to his actual job as he snapped back into action.

"Uh, yeah, sure."

"Here you go," Kaleb said as he sat the bottle down.

"Thanks."

"No problem." Kaleb nodded at me, resting his hands against the bar, still keeping his eyes trained on mine. The moment was quickly becoming all-consuming and I decided that it was time to leave before I exploded on the spot from the amount of sudden tension surrounding him and I.

"See you at rehearsal," I stated in a polite tone as I took the beer off of the counter and walked away, not feeling the need to wait for his response.

After a few minutes of searching, I found Zach again in the crowd and took my rightful place next to him.

The conversations from earlier were still the topic of discussion but as the men droned on about numbers and figures; I was finding it increasingly more and more difficult to keep up. My thoughts kept drifting to the man at the bar.

What are the chances that the very man I had been avoiding these past two weeks, is the very same man I'm now forced to be in the same room with on a completely theater unrelated event?

I think Kaleb had picked up on my desires to stay away from him and talk to him as little out of character as possible. He had been trying even harder lately to make conversation, flirt with me, and even tried to touch me a few times again like he had at the one rehearsal.

Yet, I just chalk that entire moment up to coincidence.

Sure, I had never been as content in anyone's hold before but there is a perfectly explainable reason for that; for why I didn't have a panic attack when our eye connected and he even tightened his grip on me.

There was a perfectly good reason.

I just wasn't entirely sure of what that was yet.

"Babe, another beer?"

Zach's question tore me from my confusing thoughts as I turned my gaze towards him.

"You sure you want another one?" I asked, knowing all too well how Zach got when he had too much to drink.

A sliver of terror ripped through me as Zach's once indisputable, sapphire eyes flipped and sizzled with fire at my question. He straightened his posture fully, enlarging his already taller frame, and took a dominant step closer to me.

"I'm sure."

"Okay, I can go look for one of the waiters walking around with them, yeah," I muttered out in a quick breath, turning on my heel.

Alarm shot through my veins as I felt Zachs powerful hand wrap around my upper arm and tug me back into him. My body collided with his toned frame. His lips found my ear.

"Just go to the bar, Leah. Don't make me ask again." His voice was a raspy threat in my ear that had me quickly accepting his words, nodding frantically so that he would release me.

"Thanks, babe," Zach crooned sweetly in my ear, loud enough for everyone in the group to hear before shooing me away to get his beer.

Back to the one place I was determined to avoid for the rest of the night.

Here we go again.

Kaleb spotted me before I even made it up to the bar, giving me a surprised look. I returned his look with a tight smile, walking up the final steps to the bar as he too walked up to his side of the bar.

"You come back for something for yourself this time?"

"No, just another beer for Zach," I answered back shortly, wanting to keep this interaction as brief as the last. Kaleb's head reared back a bit and his brows dipped together in question.

"Is this Zach paralyzed or something else immobilizing like that?"

Confusion swarmed my mind as my eyes pinched together at the sides as I shook my head. "No."

"Then why can't he seem to get his drinks for himself?" Kaleb asked, judgment tinting his radiant blue eyes.

"He's busy," I shot back.

"Hey," Kaleb said as he held his hands up in surrender. "I'm just saying, it's kind of a dick move if you ask me to keep sending your girlfriend to get drinks for you."

"Well, good thing no one was asking you," I shot back in a hushed voice.

He was pushing far too many buttons too quickly for my liking. I was tired, I didn't want to be here, and the last thing I needed was some prick telling me how to live my life.

"Ouch," Kaleb said in shock as his eyes widened at my spiteful statement. "Damn, Peach, you've got some fiest in you."

Realization of just exactly how I acted began to sink in, filling my mind with regret at my unwarranted attitude. He was just stating his opinion after all.

"Sorry," I mumbled out, my shoulders sinking in defeat.

"Hey, no, don't be sorry. I was out of place, it was my bad. Plus, it's kind of nice to see that side of you."

"What?" I asked, disbelief clear in my voice.

"Yeah," he said nodding."You're always so timid and shy. You don't talk to anyone unless they talk to you first and the only time I ever see you any other way is when we're on stage. It's just nice to see another side of you. Even if it's upset and aimed towards me, it's just nice to see you alive and not just drifting by... hoping no one notices you."

I was stunned into silence at his words.

He likes that I yelled at him?

I was reeling with confusion and I knew Kaleb could tell I was lost in his words and lost for what to say

"You're not used to people talking to you like that, are you?"

Slowly, I shook my head, twiddling my fingers together as I continued to try and piece together some form of cohesive thought from his short speech. Kaleb hummed inquisitively, nodding his head with his light blue eyes still trained on mine with no indications of letting our connection go.

"Sorry if it was too blunt. That's just-"

"No, it wasn't," I quickly cut in, shaking my head. Kalebs lips lifted into a small smile, his eyes swelling with delight.

"Good."

I don't know why, but I didn't look away. Our eyes stayed transfixed on each other's, seconds passing with neither of us breaking the connection. I knew something was passing between us, a bond of some sort forming, but I found that I couldn't stop it.

And by the looks of it, neither could he.

"Hey, buddy can I get a Crown Royal?"

My eyebrows shot up with the interruption, promptly breaking mine and Kaleb's tie to each other. I steered my gaze away from his, dropping my head towards the ground with shame coursing through my body.

I was furious with myself and my head was blurred with thoughts of why our connection lasted so long without either of us breaking it.

As I was stewing in my pit of judgment, I heard a thud in front of me on the bar top, alerting me that Kaleb had retrieved Zach's beer.

Without hesitation, I grabbed for the beer, not daring to look towards Kaleb's captivating stare again and scurried off towards Zach thanking my lucky stars that I was out of there.

Unfortunately, that didn't last for long.

Not even twenty minutes later, Zach had ordered me back to the bar to get his fourth beer of the night for him.

I did so reluctantly.

The reason for my reluctance being whenever Zach got to a certain point of intoxication, he became... different. The degree of his attitude change whenever under the influence depended on how he was feeling towards me that day.

If he was upset with me for some reason unbeknownst to me, the beating that night would be worse. I would wait in agonizing terror, waiting for the moment he would strike. That's how he liked to go about it whenever he was intoxicated. It became more of a game to him.

But I would take his savage game any day over the other miserable situation that came whenever he was drunk and not upset with me.

On those days, Zach always liked to express his love for me... physically.

Usually, he was too worn out from work for sex but that all seemed to change whenever he was drunk and happy. He always found time for me then and it was always the singular, most traumatic experience.

Thankfully, that was rare and as I strolled up to the bar for the third time tonight, I prayed. I prayed that neither would happen, of course, but if it had to be... I would take the beating graciously.

The bar was cleared out now for the most part, the party coming to an end. Kaleb was facing away from me, cleaning out some glasses, his biceps flexing with every turn of his hand inside of the dirtied glass.

The tight, black shirt he was wearing was practically sinful it looked so good on him. It clung to his every muscle and left very little to the imagination; much like my dress.

I was beginning to feel myself flush, my mind overrun with thoughts and memories of how he looked without a shirt. How memorizing his body was, how terrible I felt for wanting to reach out and touch him; to feel the hard ridges of his stomach underneath the tips of my fingers...

And then someone cleared their throat.

My eyes snapped up, meeting those intoxicating eyes that were becoming all too familiar.

My eyes had widened,my lips parted and embarrassed to have been caught staring. Kaleb's full lipswere pulled up, obviously trying to fight off a smug smirk that wanted to makean appearance

"You just can't stay away from me, can you, Peaches?"

"I-uh, I just need another beer," I stuttered, still trying to come back down from the shame of being caught.

Kaleb sighed, threw his white bar towel over his shoulder, and came forward to rest his elbows on the bar top.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Alright," he agreed with a sigh as he reached down to grab another beer. "Are you sure you don't want anything? Not even a glass of wine?"

"No, I'm good."

"Come on, live a little. Just one glass. What's the harm?" Kaleb asked as he came back up, beer in hand, but didn't give it to me yet.

"I told you, I just don't like the taste."

"Bull. Every girl likes the taste of wine," Kaleb retorted with determination engraved on his handsome face.

Jesus, this man doesn't quit.

Okay, a little truth won't do any damage.

With a labored sigh, I let my own elbows drop onto the bar top.

"Zach, doesn't exactly like it when I drink. It upsets him so... I just don't do it," I said as nonchalantly as I could, throwing in a shrug for effect.

Kaleb's eyes flashed with irritation as he cocked his head to the side, narrowing his eyes at me.

"You get his drinks for him, you don't drink yourself because he basically tells you not to... you do know that just because you're his girlfriend doesn't mean you're his slave, right?"

Not true.

"I know that. I just-"

"Hot damn, I think it's my lucky night," a voice interrupted next to me at the bar.

I turned my head to find a short man with messy brown hair; probably heading into his 30's standing there eyeing my body with lust brimming in his stare.

"You looking for someone to go home with, gorgeous? I could sure show you a good time," the stranger said with a wink.

"Fuck off, man. She's not interested." My head turned rapidly back to Kaleb as he cursed at the man, his eyes pinned on the strangers in deadly daggers.

"And how do you know that?" The man didn't plan on giving up as he took a step closer to me, causing my body to tense and my mind to panic.

"Because she's my fucking girlfriend," Kaleb spat as he sprang into action and lifted up a part of the bar and stepped through, bringing his large frame in front of mine and blocking the man from reaching me.

Girlfriend?

"Sorry, man. Didn't know," I heard the man say just before I spotted his retreating form from behind Kaleb's massive body.

"Thanks," I mumbled out under my breath, feeling a bit scattered with the events that just conspired.

"It's no problem. I've dealt with pricks talking about you all night. This asshole was just my breaking point," Kaleb growled out, his lips turned into a deep scowl.

"Really?" I asked, my voice light with surprise.

Kaleb's honest eyes dropped to greet mine.

"Yeah, you... in this dress." Kaleb's eyes left mine, dipping down and shamelessly raking over every inch of my body clad in the tight, seductively teasing dress. His quickly darkening stare lingered over my cleavage and he swallowed; hard.

He shook his handsome head as his eyes locked back onto mine. The evident lust swimming in his bright blue eyes sent a shock wave of fear through my body and a hint of...excitement entangled in the mix.

"You look fucking incredible tonight, Leah and every single guy in here noticed and I had to endure listening to them talk about the things they wanted to do to you all night long. I almost lost my shit more than a few times."

An odd sense of security wrapped through my mind as I took in his protective words. A gentle smile graced my lips, my eyes softening as I gazed up at him.

"Thank you." And then a thought struck me.

"Your girlfriend must always feel really safe with you around."

Kaleb's brows tugged together. "Girlfriend?"

"Uh, yeah. I saw you two outside of the theater a couple weeks ago, um... kissing."

Something clicked behind Kaleb's beautiful gaze, understanding a bit of embarrassment, if I wasn't mistaken.

"Yeah, that wasn't my girlfriend," Kaleb admitted as he ran a hand back behind his neck, rubbing it awkwardly.

Huh?

"But..." I muttered out just as a dreadful thought entered my mind.

"Oh my god, you were cheating?" I asked, disbelief and anger swelling in my words.

"No! Shit, no! I'd never do that," Kaleb quickly interjected, his eyes wide as he shook his head, taking a step closer to me again.

"I may sleep around but I would never stoop that low. Fuck that."

Sleep around.

Understanding slowly crept into my mind. My mouth slacked as I tried to wrap my brain around what Kaleb was telling me.

"Oh..."

"Yeah, that girl just met me after rehearsal that day. I hooked up with her a few times..." Kaleb trailed off, letting me fully absorb the new, stunning information.