His eyes locked onto hers, leaving her breathless for a moment.
"just one drink." he added.
Her mouth opened, ready to protest but the intensity in his gaze made her hesitate as he let go.
He didn't look like a cocky guy trying to hit on a waitress instead, he looked like an attention seeker whose agenda is so unreadable.
Her inner voice screamed at her to walk away.
This isn't the time to admire a nicely carved jawline in a night club. Specially not when she's working.
But against all logic, she found herself sliding into the seat across from him.
"Fine," she said in mock frustration. "But only because I need a break from people grabbing my ass on their way to the bar. I'm not a walking cocktail menu you know?."
His lips quirked, a glimmer of approval in his otherwise unreadable expression. "Good. What are you drinking?"
She folded her arms, leaning back with as much confidence as she could muster. "That depends. Are you buying?"
He let out a low rich chuckle that made her stomach flip in the most inconvenient way.
"I wouldn't dream of letting you pay."
The bartender arrived before Lila could think of a witty reply.
He held up two fingers, signaling for another whiskey and...
"She'll have a whiskey sour," he finished smoothly, not even looking at her for confirmation.
Lila's eyebrows shot up. "Bold move assuming my drink, Mr. Broody-in-the-Corner. What if I wanted a cosmopolitan or, I don't know, a glass of water?"
His mouth curved into a faint smile vanishing before it could form. "You don't seem like the type to sip on something watered down. Besides water's free. where's the fun in that?"
Lila narrowed her eyes at him, but a tiny part of her was impressed. "Fair enough," she said, leaning back in her chair. "But if this drink sucks, you owe me a huge tip and an apology."
"I'll take my chances," he replied, his eyes soften for a bit.
The bartender returned quickly, setting the drinks on the table. Lila took her glass and raised it toward him.
"Alright, let's make this interesting," she said, eyes glittering with mischief. "If I can guess your favorite childhood cartoon, you pay my rent this month."
Dominic blinked. What a weird way to flirt with a guy.
He let out a low chuckle, shaking his head. "Are you that confident?
"Try me." she replied confident beeming all over her face.
"Fine." he said, setting his whiskey down on the table. "But if you guess wrong, you owe me something."
Lila tilted her head. "Like what?"
"I'll let you know when I think of it."
Lila narrowed her eyes, pretending to think it over. "You've got a deal. But fair warning. I'm basically a cartoon psychic." She studied him for a moment, tapping a finger against her chin.
"So… let's see." She squinted "You seem like the Gargoyles type. Brooding, intense, a little too serious… and suspiciously quiet. But underneath all that stone?" She smirked. "lies a cute teddy bear."
The corner of his mouth twitched. He definitely was trying not to smile.
"Close," he admitted. "But no. Try again."
"Damn it." She dropped back into her seat, groaning. "Alright, fine. What was it?"
"Tom and Jerry."
Lila stared at him like he'd just confessed to eating cereal with water. Then she burst into laughter.
"You? The broody whiskey guy? Liked watching a cat and mouse beat the crap out of each other?"
He shrugged, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "What can I say? I appreciate chaos with a purpose."
Lila shook her head, grinning despite herself. "Alright, fair. But that's one point for you. Don't let it go to your head."
"I'll try," he said, sipping his drink. "But I think I've figured your favorite cartoon already."
"Oh really?" she said, crossing her arms. "And what's that?"
"Looney Tunes. Specifically, the one with the Tasmanian Devil."
Lila froze, lips parting slightly. Damn. He was right.
"You remind me of the character, always tearing things up and pretending you didn't notice the mess you left behind," he added.
Lila let out a soft embarrassing laugh. "Wow. Rude. But also… fair."
She raised her glass in mock surrender. "Fine. You win. But don't get too cocky... I'm just getting started."
"Good." He leaned forward, his dark eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made her heart skip a beat. he said, his voice a bit lower than before. "I'd be disappointed if you weren't."
For a second, the noise of the club seemed to fade into the background. Lila's breath caught in her throat, her pulse quickening under the weight of his gaze.
Oh.. my.. gosh.
She wasn't sure if she was playing a game or the game was playing her.
"Your turn," he said softly, interrupting her moment. "Why don't you tell me something about yourself?"
She hesitated, then smirked. "Fine. I'm ambidextrous. Comes in handy when I'm carrying trays of drinks and avoiding lawsuits from clumsy customers."
He chuckled. "Impressive. But that's not what I meant."
What, then?" she asked, tilting her head.
"Something real," he said, his tone dipping into something deeper. "like who woman Lila is."
Lila blinked, caught off guard. For once, she didn't have a witty comeback. And for once her name felt pleasant to the ear.
She looked down at her drink, twirling the glass between her fingers. "Well," she said slowly, "where's the fun in mystery if I tell you?"
He smiled again, but this time it didn'tquite reach his eyes. "Fair enough. But I don't like mysteries for long."
Lila leaned in, narrowing her eyes playfully. "In that case, let me solve one for you."
Dominic raised a brow, intrigued. "Go on."
She pointed a finger at him, her lips curving into a sly smile.
Her reaction made him smirked. "Do I really seem that predictable?"
"Oh, definitely," she teased, tapping her chin.
"Let me paint the picture. You probably have a yacht, but you never use it. You own more suits than normal clothes.. I mean.. look at you." She pointed slying at his outfit. "Who wears this to a club. And..." She leaned into her chair again slightly raising her glass. "You seem very secretive."
A rare laugh slipped from his lips, shaking his mask contineously. The laugh was deep and genuine, probably the first genuine laugh she had seen from him.
"You're not wrong," he admitted, his eyes glinting with amusement. "But I don't have a yacht, if that ruins your theory"
Lila gasped dramatically, clutching her chest. "No yacht? How do you even cope? What do you do when you want to look rich and bored at sea?"
"I suppose I'll have to settle for private jets and penthouses," he replied dryly.
She rolled her eyes. "Tragic."
Dominic leaned in, resting his elbow on the table. "And you? If I guess right... you live in a shoebox apartment with a heater that only works when it's 90 degrees outside and a roommate who steals your food. You work two or more jobs, don't sleep nearly enough, and deal with more nonsense in a day than most people could handle in a week."
Lila's smirk faltered for a second.
Okay, ouch.
Life of the poor.
He wasn't wrong. Not even a bit.
"Wow," she muttered, shooting him a mock glare. "You don't hold back, do you?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Just a guess."
"You know what? Fine," she said. "i'll just call you Spike."
His smirk twitched. "Spike?"
"Yeah," she said, indirectly pointing at his face. "Your're too blunt, bold and I don't know. Haha"
"I thought I was supposed to be mysterious," he said.
"Oh, you are." she admitted, her tone softening. "But if you give me another hour, I'll have your entire life story mapped out."
"You think I'll stick around that long?" he asked, a challenge sparking in his voice.
She leaned back, crossing her arms with a grin. "You'll stay. You're having too much fun pretending to be mysterious."
Dominic studied her for a moment, his gaze lingering on her for a moment.
"You're different," he said quietly, almost as if he were saying it to himself.
Lila blinked at the sudden sincerity in his voice. "Uh… thanks?" she said awkwardly, unsure how to respond.
"Not a compliment," he said with a smirk. "Just an observation."