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 Posted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 10:05 pm
Who: Shep, Vivi, Alex, Zeke
Where: The Ten Six Bar in Gambino
When: 10 p.m.
Weather: Still hot, with a tinge of humidity in the air. Hazy but cool indoors.
Vivi and Shepard sat at a table in Ten Six, their favorite off-the-beach bar in Gambino. It was a perfect mix of their two tastes: upscale enough to offer good liquor and food and to have clean tables, rowdy enough to have loud conversation and pitcher beers, and packed with people dancing and talking and mingling and flirting. The decor was plain but attractive -- dark wood and barrels of beer, recessed lighting, and deep-colored, plush fabrics on the chairs and bar stools. People dressed in everything from cocktail dresses to dingy jeans, but in the low-light, everyone looked more attractive than usual.
Vivi needed no such help from the light. Her lips were stained a dark cherry red and her eyes were done up dramatically in a smokey charcoal. Her hair, pulled from her face into a low fishtail braid, draped over one uncovered shoulder. She wore a one-sleeved black dress, short and playful, and red-soled heels. She seemed in the mood to play, her expression kittenish, her smile wide.
Beside her, Shepard was also smiling, a rare sustained sight from the man. There was something impish about his expression, his dark eyes darting constantly to the door, his posture relaxed. He wore a plain black button-up shirt, rolled up at the sleeves to his elbows, untucked over dark jeans. Together, the pair of them looked something like waiting devils, each nursing their respective drinks, smiling over nothing and talking lowly into each others' ears.
Whose idea was it to invite Alex to the bar? Nobody could remember. But Vivi had called, and gushed, and absolutely insisted, and here they were, the pair of them, waiting on the Italian's arrival. Rhedefre was overnight at Granny Maplethorpe's home, enjoying all the British correctness of her overstuffed furniture and multitude of books, while his guardians enjoyed exercising their lately-unused hedonist muscles.
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Posted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 10:44 pm
A distant part of her mind told her she might have ought to have should have could have been nervous about meeting the stunning twosome at the bar, but as was true to her character, Alex's excitement drowned out any warnings or semblance of inner self doubt in a roaring crescendo of eagerness. It was a little embarrassing in its own right, but she hadn't been out with friends in so long, she almost forgot what it was like. And the last date she'd been on -- well. Tonight was about moving past that. Time for new memories!
Not that she wasn't aware that it was kind of a staged outing...it was a bar, after all, and while that equated to people and good times, it also equated to booze and the aftermath thereof. She had warned Shep how she got when she had enough drink in her, and though she didn't intend to drink enough to do more than feel good, they had invited her out explicitly with that warning in mind. For that reason, Alex might have purposely picked the pair of jeans that clung low and hugged her in all the right places, and it might have been why her halter-blouse was just the right mix of deep green and bright pattern on the hem to bring out her eyes. This wasn't the 'get dressed up in a dress' type of outing (that she knew of), but it was a different type of dressing up, one she wasn't overly familiar with but infinitely more comfortable with. With her hair securely bound in her standard work fashion (and hey, it was damnably hot!), she waltzed into the bar with her arm slung around the back of a man that easily out-shined her with his smile alone.
She hadn't intended to bring back up (and she was arguing with herself that it WASN'T a back up move, it wasn't a date right?), but Zeke had to make mention of how she was a hummingbird that day with how she practically vibrated with energy, and somehow, that turned into her roping her little brother into accompanying her to the bar. Nestled against his side and warmed by the familiarity of his presence in an unfamiliar bar, she was doing well to maintain her smile -- until she saw them.
Have mercy.
It was impossible to miss them, even through the packed room of bodies and the lighting that was moody and just so. Vivi, the flawless goddess, all dark dramatic, dressed in secrets to discover -- and Shep, damn his rugged good looks and that smile oh god almighty, he was looking...rather...
"Wow," Alex breathed, the word quiet enough that it was possibly barely audible to the man on her side. And for the moment, she almost wanted to bolt, not knowing how to face two beautiful people and to be the center of attention. Luckily, her hold on Zeke kept her anchored and it seemed her feet were having none of her brain's sudden social anxiety, delivering the nervous woman and her companion directly to the table.
It was all she could do to smile and not stare. "Aphrodite, Adonis," she greeted each with a crooked upward lilt of her lips and a tilt of her head. "Wonderful to see you again~"
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Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 10:48 am
Staged outing or not, Zeke was just happy to have been "roped" along for the ride. It hadn't taken much to coax the raver into coming - nothing more than a few select words (like 'Vivi invited me' and 'bar' and 'oh god Zeke') were needed from his big sis to get him just as energetic as she was (if not more so, given his general inclination for energy). All the same, he had heard of this particular bar in Gambino once or twice and had never been, so the idea he would be having drinks with two of his favorite ladies PLUS doing so in a new place was the icing on his cake.
Of course, he wasn't going to go dressed like some scrub off the street! As far as he knew, the bar in question was a relatively high end - and therefore "fancy" - place, and while Zeke wasn't the fancy lad type, he knew better than to show up in the beat up jeans and old but well loved t-shirt he had been wearing at the time. His stipulation, he had teased Alex, was that they carpool and that she would take him home to quickly change for the big event. And so he had. While it had taken a bit of digging in his drawers and closet to find something that wasn't tank tops, t-shirts, beat up jeans, things that belonged in a rave, his general work clothes, or his one lone suit, he now strode with his arm around Alex's shoulders clad in the nicest pair of black jeans he could find and a buttoned up shirt that was, in standard Zeke fashion, an overly bright blue that would stick out from afar as well as not completely buttoned up. The vet left a nice amount of chest showing with his cornicello showing freely against his skin, which had a nice hint of that cologne he liked so much but rarely got to use. Between that, the two-colored tones of his hair, and his joyous, clearly overeager expression, to say the vet 'stood out' was like to be an understatement.
As they moved from sidewalk into the Ten Six, the vet was overcome with a feeling of familiarity but also longing. It had been years - three in fact, but who was keeping count? - since he had gone out to a proper bar like this, with a night of drinks and friends in store. Two jobs kept him busier than ever and he found his free time lacking more than ever as of late. Inwardly, he vibrated as much as he had said Alex had earlier, already darting his eyes around the interior to take in his surroundings. It was a nice place, and because of his overall curiosity, he missed spying their two hosts for this evening as his sister had. He missed Alex's breathy word as well, caught up in the music filtering from nowhere and everywhere to even think he had heard her say something. It was only when she began to pull him in a new direction that he focused again, and the sight of the two people sitting at the bar proper made him grin all the wider. Shep was something not quite dapper and not quite his rugged self and Vivi...Well. As if he once thought the Frenchwoman couldn't get any more stellar, she appears before him as a bombshell!
"Well look who we got here!" Alex cut in with her playful little nicknames and the vet laughed, free and open. "Gods among men, and look at us; we're scrubs. You shoulda picked a shinier shirt, Alex." He shook his head at her with faux disdain, squeezing her to his side fondly, and flashed a wink at the pair who they had now joined. Here was the good company, the drinks were sure to be soon, and the night was still young; let the fun begin!
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Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 2:20 pm
Vivi spotted the duo entering first, and she leaned over just barely to pinch Shepard into looking up, as well. Her eyes narrowed in a smile as she registered the two coming in together, arm in arm as they were, and she did not rise, leaning forward eagerly to their arrival, enjoying the sight of the both of them in the low light of the bar. Alex, the beauty, looked as if she had shined emeralds in her eyes, and Vivi was not shy in the way she looked at the Italian's curves, the hips shown off in those most expertly chosen jeans. And nor was she shy about her appreciation of Zeke, who looked tonight more a man than she'd ever seen him, his clothes toned down just enough to allow the rest of him to get its just display. Had she ever noticed that chest of his? A pity she hadn't. Years had gone by without her appreciating the sight of it.
Shepard, however, turned with his smile intact to the approaching two -- and then it melted cleanly off his face all at once.
Zeke, that great big bag of dicks, what on hell was he doing here, and what on the planet ballsups was he doing with his arm around Alex? <********> he hissed under his breath. If Alex was dating Zeke, he was going to go out of his everloving mind. What did the guy have, a mating dance? Foreign plumage and pheromones that attracted women like Alex and Vivi to him? Maybe he should study under the man's goddamn wing if this was the kind of lady was rolling in.
Vivi calmly stepped on his foot, and Shepard wrestled a grin back onto his face as they came close enough for contact. It wasn't hard to do as he shifted his focus back to Alex, at that perfect olive skin and hey, hello, did that shirt have a back?
He and Vivi stood as the two approached, and mercifully, Vivi went straight to Zeke, arms open, pressing an air-kiss (no lipstick marks!) to either one of the vet's cheeks. Her dress seemed to shine with every motion she made, drawing attention to curves.
"Mon Dieu, but it is you two who should deserve such compliments! Alex, I will faint momentarily. What beauties, you will excuse me for staring quite without reservation all night. Come, sit!" Vivi gestured to the empty chairs around their table. "I must get comfortable as I do so."
"Hey there," Shepard gave Alex a quiet hello, his dark eyes bright with the pleasure of seeing her, and he gave her a (rather rare for Shepard) two-armed hug, his stubbled cheek just grazing her smooth one as he went in and out of it. He sat beside her, the bar's size making all the chairs rather close to each other, close enough that she could smell the faint scent of his soap and cologne. With a tight smile, he nodded at Zeke, and offered the man a quick: "Hi."
Vivi flagged a passing waiter without hesitation. She winked at Alex and Zeke as she did so. "We intend to get you quite drunk, you know, and find out all your secrets."
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 7:06 am
The Italian leaned against Zeke at the squeeze, more for need of support than anything. Damn her legs, they would betray her and knock knees together if she gave them the chance! "You're not even remotely joking," she replied with a grin to the man she called brother, lifting her free hand to absently pat at his own more brightly covered stomach. "You'll just have to shine for both of us, hm?"
But Vivi was moving, and it was impossible to draw her eyes from the flickering form of night-swathed beauty. Disentangling herself from Zeke so the woman might greet him proper, she couldn't hide the easy smile that lit her features at the Frenchwoman's sweet words. "Only if we can catch you," she teased in return, "because sincerely, Vivi -- you must teach me how to tame the night sky and wear it as you do." Does she feel like the velvet she appears to be? she wanted to ask, but Zeke's presence kept her crazier thoughts mute, which was likely a godsend for all individuals involved.
Ah, but there was a hug to be had, and Alex would not lose the opportunity. Twining her arms briefly around Shepard's shoulders, she pressed the line of her body to his in the chaste exchange, never one to be polite about distance in greetings. He smelled wonderful (what was it with the men in her life smelling so divine?) and the brief thrill of the arms around her back would not soon be forgotten. "Shep," she finally found her voice and a seat, thankful for the chance to remove one potential mess of knee-knocking so early in. Leaning over to the Aussie as Vivi retook her seat and Zeke joined, she murmured, "You have a hell of a smile, you should use it more often." A hand lifted to gently touch Shepard's stubbled jaw for emphasis before her attention again returned to the goddess at the table.
Alex made a soft sound at the plans being laid out, arching a brow dubiously at the man to her side. "I'm flattered you're both willing to deal with my assassin persona just to get my secrets, but," folding her hands together, she leaned on her forearms against the table, back dipping with the effort, "you don't have to get me drunk for that. Really, a smile a piece and you can have anything in the world." Just the ambiance of the place made her feel bolder, and that might not have been the safest thing in the world.
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 10:21 am
Zeke grinned at the jab from his beloved big sister, taking her hand and squeezing it when she patted his stomach.
"I'll try," he murmured to her, "but I think this guy has been outshined tonight." When comparing himself to Vivi and Shep and Alex herself, even with his bright shirt and colorful hair he just simply could not match up. When the former of their two hosts came over, the vet delighted in giving her as full a hug as he could (without messing up her pretty dress that is) and did one better when she air kissed his cheeks. He leaned in and pecked her on both of hers openly, unable to keep himself from smiling against her skin as well as enjoying whatever sort of perfume she had put on for tonight.
"Hello beautiful," he said before she pulled away and got back to playing the hostess. The vet looked to Shep and offered him an equally friendly smile, lifting his right hand in a momentary greeting. "Hey Shep, how goes it?"
With that he passed by the man - waiting for the two women to take their seats - and without hesitation took the free seat between Vivi and Alex. With a mischievous look about him and a particular glint in his eye, he wrapped an arm around Vivi and gave her a fond squeeze, foregoing Alex as she was talking to the Aussie man.
"I hope you don't mind me sitting between my two best gals, Shep." He laughed and sat back in his seat, eyes drawn to Vivi as she made mention of getting them drunk. The vet couldn't help but laugh again at that, reaching one hand up to touch the beard on his chin in thought.
"I dunno if you guys really want to get Alex drunk. I've heard stories." He stared around the table for emphasis and when his eyes finally landed on the Italian woman he gave her a tilt of his head and a knowing look that included a raise of one pierced brow. She would know full well where these "stories" had come from, but he hoped she wouldn't give Brad too much of a licking for telling him. These things just came out after all and his view of Alex was made just that much better for it! He couldn't keep up the stern look for long though and was soon back to jovial grins and bright eyes again, clapping his hands together once and rubbing them at the prospect. God, how long had it been!
"I don't think you'll have to get much alcohol in me either, but where's the fun in just letting secrets go willy nilly?" He looked to Vivi. "Bring it on, Vivi! What're we knocking back first?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 11:48 am
"Oh, but you misunderstand me!" cooed Vivi innocently, holding up a finger to keep the waiter hooked, but seeming quite unconcerned with his presence. It didn't matter -- the waiter seemed plenty hooked by their table, and made no pretense of trying to tear his eyes away from the ladies. "It is the prying that I am most looking forward to!"
She then twisted to the waiter. "We will have a round of martinis to start. Stiff. Spill a little in the glass, will you not? And see if you can't spot us a little something extra, in a smaller glass."
She held up her forefinger and thumb in the general size of a shotglass, indicating her desire.
As she spoke, Shepard took his seat across from Zeke and between the ladies, the aspect of the table forcing his chair slightly closer to Alex than to Vivi. He returned Zeke's smile by pure reflex, the expression slightly plastic. He only hoped it communicated none of his thoughts.
His two best gals, his mind spat. The arrogant wanker. If Zeke was with Alex and gunning for Vivi, Shepard might end up smacking the damn peacock with one of his two bests fists.
"Great, great," the Aussie answered the man, silencing himself by finishing off the rest of his beer, getting ready for the round of martinis that was -- by the way the waiter was indicating Vivi and her swift wink toward the bar -- coming sooner rather than later. He turned his attention toward Alex, relaxing instantly at the sight of her, but it was Vivi who spoke.
"Ah, Alex! I would be more than happy to teach you all of my night time trickeries, if you should teach me yours," she said with a tone of complete innocence, her eyes very wide and pretty as she spoke. But afterward, she let out a lovely, throaty laugh, and squeezed Zeke's arms. "And what of you, cheri? Do you warn us against letting this one drink?"
"I think we can handle the assassin," Shepard said coolly over the mouth of his beer bottle, a faint smile playing at his lips. "Although I'm not achin' to get a chair broken over me, either."
Maybe, he thought pleasantly, Zeke would offer to take over that duty.
At that moment, the waiter swung back, to the huffing displeasure of the next table, setting down four martinis -- and beside them, four shots of a pleasantly devilish liquid, bright red in color.
"Four martinis and four Succubi," said the waiter, eyeing Vivi and Alex with a sort of restrained hunger.
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 12:13 pm
A dark brow lofted at the enunciation of words, watching Vivi closely. The waiter was too, and when her younger brother pipped up, the flirty air was momentarily electric.
Alex shot Zeke an accusatory glance. "I tried to warn them. If the idea of lil' ol' me taking down my hulk of a brother isn't enough to scare them, then I believe them fearless." Even so, her index finger extended from her clasped hands to point at the brightly colored male. "And if you get too tipsy, I'm calling him for you. Don't even test me young man!" She was hardly teasing, even if her tone was light and playful. "Besides, if Shep thinks he can handle me, he can take the brunt of my attention." The woman crossed her legs at the knee beneath the table, playfully bumping her calf against Shepard's. He was the one who called her an assassin, so he got to deal with the side effects of an amorous, tipsy Alex.
The sound of her name drew her attention away from stink-eyeing Zeke and poking at the rather stoic Shepard and back to the enigma across the table from her, softening her expression -- before the words promptly made her green eyes a touch wide. No matter how it was said, even she could only interpret it in certain ways when it came from those dark lips. "Temptress," she murmured loud enough to be heard, glancing to Shepard. How did he live with her day in and day out and let her out of the house at all? Alex wasn't sure she would.
Like the mature woman she was, she stuck her tongue out at Shepard at his chair comment, pretending to be indignant at the claim and propping her chin up on her knuckles, giving him a mock-dirty look from the corner of lidded eyes. The martini laid out before her drew her gaze, only briefly glancing to the waiter and noting his look at Vivi, missing the look to herself entirely. "Succubi, hm." She tried not to draw that line between the name and the lady of the night across the table, but she was quicker to think than to slap herself mentally for such things.
Gliding her fingers across the table to delicately trace along the clear stem of the martini glass, her eyes flickered between all three at the table. Unabashed, she admitted, "I have no idea what to do with this. Appletini's I get, but Succubi...?" Lifting her chin, she then plucked the shot glass up by the lip, eyeing the red liquid within. "Feeling a bit Alex in Wonderland at the moment..."
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 12:52 pm
He watched Vivi curiously as she ordered their drinks, momentarily biting his bottom lip from the anticipation of what was to come. The squeeze on his arm brought him back and he looked at her with his best attempt at doe eyes.
"Me? No no, I'm just preparing you to for what is to come if Alex gets in over her head." His grin stretched and his face was beginning to ache. It was a pleasant sensation and the vet didn't dare try to stop; he couldn't even if he wanted to, especially with that look his sister shot him. "C'mon Alex, you know what'll come of that. You'll get the telling off and I'll get whisked off to good times-ville." He poked her extended finger with his own, then stuck his pierced tongue out at her enough so the stud caught the light and glinted. He wasn't sure that was how it would go down, but Brad being Brad and Alex being the little sister, it wasn't an unlikely scenario. Regardless, a tussle would more than likely happen later on when two of the three parties were sober again. "Besides, I'm sure you're a tiny bit curious about what drunk Zeke looks like; don't deny it!"
He left it at that - save including a look that meant he was more than a little interested in seeing the barstool breaking, big brother takedown-ing, police calling terror that was drunk Alex for himself - and turned once more to Vivi, only turning back when Alex's word reached his ears. It prompted a quirked brow but nothing more as the waiter had promptly returned and Zeke had to take in what was set down before him. He took the shot glass in hand and raised it so he could eye the hanging light above them through the red liquid, humming lightly to himself before setting the shot down again. He had to elbow Alex for her comment.
"You drink it, of course!" He tilted his head at her. "All in one go, or - as they say - in one shot. Hence the name." He knew he'd be getting a hit or something for that so he steeled himself, but he couldn't resist being a wise a**. That was one of his default settings with Alex, and the dial had to be clicked up a couple notches for an outing, naturally.
"So how are we doing this secrets thing? Are we all gonna wait till we're tipsy or is this 'one secret per beverage'?" He looked around the table, thinking a vote would sort this. "I'm good for either or, might as well get the kids stuff outta the way first right?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 1:19 pm
Good-times-ville? Calling her brother on Zeke?
A strange expression of incomprehension flitted over Shepard's face, like a bubble suddenly popping. He had the strange impression that he was missing something important. As Zeke and Alex spoke, he shot a quick look at Vivi, a second of puzzlement, but looked away when she only lowered her eyelids and smiled a teasing smile at him.
No help there.
Shepard was, however, electrically conscious of Alex's leg brushing against his, and that low-spoken word, temptress. He took the shotglass in his hand and lifted it to Zeke, then Vivi, then finally Alex.
"Issat the rules, then?" he asked, with every evidence of cheerfulness. As he made the motion, he straightened one leg, crossing the other at the ankles, nonchalantly running the toe of his shoe the length of Alex's calf and to her ankle. He stopped there, a natural motion, both unaffected and quite deliberate.
"Well, then, I can start before Vivi ups the ante too high too soon," he laughed, then threw back the shot in a quick motion, the gesture clearly done many times in the past. He let out a pleased sort of hiss-cough as he put the glass down heavily. It was a well-named drink. It had a sweet, slow burn down his throat, and settled almost floatingly into his stomach.
"My, but what secrets has the Shepard?" said Vivi with a smile.
"Plenty, temptress," said Shepard, his smile becoming somewhat wolfish. "Arright. Sober secret number 1: I used to be an engineer."
"What a boring secret!" Vivi complained instantly.
"That's why it's sober!" returned Shepard.
Vivi shook her head with displeasure and lifted her own shot up, first to Shepard, then Alex, then Zeke. "Ridiculous. But they are your rules! To your continued health, my beauties!"
And she downed her own drink, the light catching the red of the liquid before it disappeared, giving her the sudden look of a lost heroine drinking some illicit potion. She let out a bubbling laugh after, placing her empty glass beside Shepard's, her red lips curving into a delicious smile.
"Sober secret, as you say, number one: Once, still in the cirque, I was engaged to be married for three whole minutes!"
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 1:43 pm
"Gambino's balls man, that was years ago!" she made a motion with one hand, waving off Zeke. "And I don't want to hear that, he's my brother for goodness' sake!" She did, however, give him a rather begrudging look about 'drunk Zeke.' Curious? Naturally, but if he turned out to be a version of her drunk, that wouldn't be healthy for anybody involved. One assassin was enough! But, it wasn't like he was a little boy and she couldn't treat him any less; he was responsible for some of the best times she'd had in the past few years.
She did, however, reward him with a sharp smack against his arm, not hard enough to hurt for long but good enough to sting. "Thank you, Captain Obvious! I meant -- I didn't know if you mix them, like Jager Bombs. Meany." But she was satisfied that the other two didn't heckle her -- in fact, Shepard seemed to have another ploy in mind for a distraction, one that worked remarkably. Leaning back subtly as the drinks began, she struggled to repress a silly little smile as she moved her foot to the side and lightly drew the toe of her shoe along the side of his.
Alex listened to the rules, her smile a bit crooked with her amusement, eyes lingering on each as they bantered. She was having a hard time being anything less than charmed, especially when Shepard used her previous word at Vivi so easily. "Why is it a secret though, hm? That's a feat unto itself--" But Vivi's secret snapped her head to the side, eyes wide. "Engaged? Now that's..." Oh. She had to carefully word her response, lest it be taken the wrong way. "...unfortunate for the lad that it didn't carry through, fortunate for the rest of the world." She raised her shot glass to Vivi. "Me included. Mercy."
And that was as good a time as any to down her shot, doing so deftly with curled fingers and making a soft 'tsk!' sound from one side of her mouth at she accommodated the burn. She was never a fan of strong liquor tastes, but it was easy to overlook in present company. Like Shepard, she found the name well suited, for all the warmth that spread through her body. "Yeow! Alright, secret secrets -- ah." Carefully balancing her glass on the previous two, she divulged in a lackadaisical manner, "I was shot. Knicked the bone but was clean through otherwise." Beaming a smile to let it be interpreted as they pleased, she turned her expectant gaze heavily upon Zeke.
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 2:11 pm
"Ow, Alex!" He laughed and rubbed the smacked part of his arm. "I know he's your brother, but let's be real here. You will get told off and me? Well you're lucky I'm a private man in that respect. I could go on for days. Hell, it could go on for days if I'm liquored up enough." He spoke airily, waggled his brows at her, and threw her a wink to tease her all the more. He knew she would rather feign ignorance than even think - let alone hear - about her brother and himself in such ways but he couldn't resist teasing her with it. It made her flustered, and in Zeke's book that was a good look on her.
His attention was drawn from Alex to Shep when the Aussie began the round of drinks and secrets. Shep's secret was definitely child's play and he had to agree with Vivi there. The older man had that build to him and when Zeke had first met him, Shep was working on a motorcycle.
"Not too surprising," he said with another tilt of his head just as Vivi picked up her glass. Like Alex, his eyes did widen when Vivi revealed her number one and the vet had to nod with Alex's words. "I wanna know more about that. Some daring young man on the flying trapezes, like how that old song goes?" He chuckled and then it was Alex's turn and it was her turn to get an awed look. For as well as he knew his sister, he didn't know that. His mind slipped and he started to ask the obvious questions, but her eyes upon him - as well as the eyes of their companions - made him stop and reach for his shot. He knocked the mixed drink back, hissing but licking his pierced lips afterward, and set the glass atop the rest, laughing as the tiny tower went tumbling.
"s**t," he stacked the shot glasses back up. "Well if that isn't an omen, I dunno what is. But lemme think here..." Zeke crossed his arms over his chest, and put on a look of thinking hard, including sucking on his lip ring. After a few moments his face lit up - both with delight and something a little more devious - and he changed his posture. The colorful man relaxed in his seat and put his elbows on the table, chin resting atop folded hands, smiling jovially around the table and meeting everyone's eyes in turn.
"Zeke secret numero one: I am occasionally paid to fist livestock."
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Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 2:27 pm
I could go on for days. Hell, it could go on for days...
Alex's brother.
And Zeke.
Could go on for days.
The Jeopardy waiting music played slowly in Shepard Ryan's head.
Alex's brother. And Zeke. Could go on for days.
Doing what?
Playing Scrabble, you dumbshit.
Shepard looked blankly at Zeke, his animosity toward the man draining, his expression completely and utterly flummoxed. Again, Vivi's shoe came to his rescue, as the Frenchwoman applied a slight pressure to his foot to jar him from his confusion, and when his eyes slid toward her, she rolled her own and winked.
For the briefest of moments, Shepard thought he might just kill himself right then and there. Break the bottle on the table and just end everything.
Long months of distaste for Zeke Farris, only to find out that the ******** was gay.
Vivi hid her amusement in her martini glass, taking a long slow drink as she watched Shepard struggle valiantly to return to form. She had seen him try bodily not to put his palm to his face before. She was doing so again now.
"Oh, no, not a dashing trapeze artist, although Jean was certainly willing, the old dog! No, this one -- he was an old wealthy fool! He thought asking was a mere formality, and so I said yes to see his reaction. And then, well -- as you say, my darling Alex, I felt quite fortunate." She smiled slowly, her dark glittering eyes on Alex's green. "Quite very fortunate to be free."
Shepard, regaining his composure, took a long drink of his martini and then popped the olive, his eyebrows raising as Alex divulged her secret. He let out a long, low whistle, and raised his eyebrows. "Well, damn it, look at that. You really are an assassin in there somewhere, aren't yeh? Or a badass, at the very least."
"Indeed," agreed Vivi huskily.
Shepard took another drink, although this one did not go quite so smoothly, catching in his throat as Zeke spoke, nearly causing him to spit the beverage out again. An incredulous laugh broke through instead, the drink mercifully going down instead of out.
All of a sudden, within the space of three minutes, Shepard went from loathing the man across from him to liking him rather robustly. Maybe it was the hot spread of his third drink of the night. Maybe it was just hard to hate someone who probably went shoulder-deep into a cow. But either way, the ice was broken.
"Geezus!" Shepard gasped, his eyes amused. "Well, s**t!"
He took another drink, making quick work of his martini, and shook his head. Thus unburdened, he resumed his attention to Alex's foot, softly nudging the side of it, locking ankles with her briefly.
Beside him, Vivi laughed without restraint, playfully swatting Zeke's arm.
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Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2014 1:43 pm
The woman playfully curled her lip in a mock-sneer at Zeke, though the expression melted into an easy grin, the warmth of the liquid already making her limbs feel lighter and her mind less burdened. Alex tilted her head with curious interest at the mention of this Jean and why he would feel the need to ask marriage on formality...didn't that usually come with getting preg--? The Italian shook her head abruptly, expression showing how perplexed she was by the notion, but when Vivi's eyes fixated on her and those sweet words acted like icing on the warmth spreading through her, she was certain that any train of thought she may have ever possessed in her life dissipated on the spot. God, but that woman was beautiful, everything about her from delicate brow to the humor she shared, and Vivi knew it. What power to wield over unsuspecting admirers like herself!
Shepard's sound next to her made her bat her long lashes a few times, coming out of the hold Vivi's gaze had on her and looking to him, her grin returning in crooked fashion, brow arched high. "I can show you, if you'd like. I have many scars, actually, and their stories are great, from bear traps to ice picks to Raevans gone wild...they just aren't quite as pretty to look at." There was only a very slight lilt and fall of her voice at the end, a touch of self consciousness that lingered. It wasn't that she was comparing herself to the flawless beauty that was Vivi or the rugged perfection that was Shep, but she was aware she wasn't...attractive that way.
No, a quiet voice whispered in her head. Don't go there. Chairs will be broken. Alex abruptly smiled to herself, leaning subtly towards Shepard and briefly unlinking their feet -- just in case one of them called her out on her offer.
But no, Zeke had to go and start off his secrets with fisting animals. Alex had to cover her mouth to stem her laughter, though it wasn't a surprise -- she knew the man had a degree in husbandry, but he could not have possibly put it in a less appealing manner. Extending her free hand, she playfully echoed Vivi's gesture and swatted at his arm. "Now how in the hell are we supposed to top animal procreation techniques? Man, couldn't you have saved that for later when were all too drunk to stop laughing?" Face alight with good humor, she drew her fingers over the base of her martini glass and took a sip, her eyes glowing with mirth over the lip of it
"Mm. Really, I'm a little afraid to see what else you have in store for us. But!" She sat up from Shepard, turning to look at the man with an arched brow. "You owe us another secret! Vivi told us more about her engagement, I divulged a bit more about my scars, and you sir," her fingertips delicately tapped against his shoulder, "are up to bat again before Zeke puts us to shame once more."
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