Looks Can Be Deceiving

I yawned loudly, making no attempt to cover my mouth as I trudged behind Lyndsey into Mancelli's. My fingers, wrists, arms, legs, and feet all ached. I felt out of breath and worn down. I honestly thought my legs would just crumble into tiny pieces, rather than just breaking in half or falling off.

"Britt, get it together!" Lyndsey hissed, grabbing hold of my elbow as I wobbled to the side.

To say I was tired was an understatement. We'd been going nonstop all day, and the night was nowhere near finished yet. I'd worked hard to unpack all my belongings this morning, and once I'd completed that task, Lyndsey and I went out for lunch, as promised. Lunch was actually good; I rather enjoyed it.

But then came the shopping.

Lyndsey's eyes had lit up like a fat kid in a candy store the second she had crossed over the threshold of Macy's. She'd let out a little shriek and took off towards the shoe section. She'd picked some shoes out for herself, and tossed a few other pairs at me. Next, we'd gone to Bath & Body works, for what reasons I was unsure. After Victoria's Secret, the GAP, Forever 21, and Express, I was officially done for the day. But naturally, we'd also stopped at the Coach store, Perfumania, MAC, the Apple store, Mrs. Field's Cookies, Hot Topic, F.Y.E., and fucking Build-A-Bear.

It was ridiculous. And I was now dead on my feet.

"We're with Brian Haner," Lyndsey told the hostess, whose eyes widened before she quickly escorted us towards the back of the restaurant. Lyndsey grumbled under her breath as I stumbled slowly behind her, stopping several times to grab my hand and keep me from falling over.

Once we'd reached our table, Lyndsey squealed and was swept into Brian's arms. I smiled at their affection and looked to see where I would sit. I noticed that there was a vacant seat in between Jimmy and Matt, just as Matt stood and pulled the empty chair out for me. I smiled at the gesture and walked over to his side of the table, flashing a smile at Jimmy as I took my seat.

Everyone settled down as the waitor came forward and began taking drink orders. Brian ordered for himself and Lyndsey, before the waitor moved onto Zack, then Johnny. Matt ordered a Heineken for himself, and I asked for sweet tea. Jimmy finished off the order with Heineken as well. A small round of chatter began as everyone contemplated on what to order next.

"What are you having?" I heard a deep, raspy voice in my ear, and turned to see Matt looking at me. I was mildly shocked that he was speaking to me; he wasn't rude or anything, but he'd stayed quiet the most in the group of men. He seemed to sit back and watch more than he chose to spoke.

I had a hard time responding. His dark shades had been removed and tucked into the collar of his dress shirt, revealing a pair of hazel-green orbs that I never would've imagine him having. His gaze flickered all across my face in an intense stare, something I found slightly unnerving.

I cleared my throat, "Possibly the lasagna. It's a favorite of mine, but I've never had food from here before." I answered coyly, daring to take a look at his face again. His eyes smoldered, and I felt a ball of heat pool in between my legs. Obviously, I found the man rather attractive. And obviously, it was going to take everything in me to hold myself together around him. "So, what are you getting?"

A hint of a smile played across his lips as he brought his menu closer to me and pointed to some sort of pasta and steak entree that he was interested in, "This is one of my favorites. Don't worry, you're in good hands."

Maybe it was because he was so attractive or because he just seemed like an honest person, but hell, I believed him.

"I trust your judgement," I nodded, smiling when my tea was placed in front of me. I thanked the waitor and leaned forward to take a sip of the sweet, dark liquid. My eyes fluttered closed for a moment as the cool liquid slid down the back of my throat, and I let out a refreshed sigh.

I set my glass back down onto the table, just as Matt chuckled, "I'm glad you do," he countered with a raspy laugh, "By the way, you look great tonight."

I felt my own face heat up, but I knew that my dark skin would keep me from giving myself away. It had been a while since I'd received a simple compliment from a male, and I honestly wasn't used to the attention. I tore my gaze from Matt's intense one and attempted to regain my composure before looking back up at him with a hapless shrug, "I had to prove to Jimmy that I knew how to dress."

Matt's chuckle rang in my ear, "Oh, I think you did," he smirked slightly at me, and it was then that I felt my body becoming warm all over, "You wanna know what else I think?"

"What's that?" I asked curiously, tilting my head to get a good look at the hazel-eyed man.

"You're not good at taking compliments." he answered simply.

I furrowed my eyebrows, "What makes you say that?"

"You blush or fidget if I look at you for too long. You avoid eye contact with me sometimes; you look down at your hands or elsewhere."

"I see," I shifted, having not expected for someone I had just barely met to be able to read me so well. It was kind of unnerving, but at the same time, it was interesting, "Is that your only conclusion?" I asked slyly, eyeing him with an amused expression.

Matt cocked an eyebrow, a small smirk spreading across his features, "Not entirely."

"Enlighten me," I cocked my eyebrow back at him.

"You sure you wanna know?" he asked, leaning back in his chair before taking a large gulp of his drink.

I shrugged, "I wouldn't have asked otherwise, don't you think?"

"Well, you have a point there," he laughed lightly, his deep, raspy voice ringing in my ears, "To put it simply, if you're so shy with compliments, I'd dare to say that you haven't had a real man before. Maybe a few guys, but no one who amounted to much in your eyes."

I fought the urge to look away from his intense gaze, "A valid conclusion, I guess." I shrugged indifferently, answering honestly.

"But?" he guessed, causing me to smile.

"But it's not a hundred percent accurate," I answered simply, reaching forward for my tea and taking another sip of it, "And that's another story for another time."

With that, I turned back to the waitor, who'd returned to take orders for our meals. I waited until my turn and ordered with a small smile, not missing the fact that the waitor was clearly flirting with me. It was flattering and all, though he wasn't exactly my type. He was nice, however.

Dinner flew by, or so it seemed. Everyone was in high spirits, exchanging jokes and laughter, enjoying one another's company. I loved the lasagna so much that I got another order of it in a to-go box. The bread and the dessert I'd had were to die for, as well. It was nearing midnight by the time we'd asked for the bill, which each of the men split between themselves.

"Where to now, baby?" Lyndsey asked Brian, smiling widely when he coiled an arm around her waist.

He shrugged, exchanging a glance with the others, "Wanna come back to my place for some drinks or something? It's up to you."

Lyndsey then turned to me, "Britt?"

I chuckled softly, taking note of the puppy dog eyes she was shamelessly using on me, "Whatever you wanna do, Lynds. Just as long as I get these heels off."

"Excellent," Brian smiled, taking my friend by the hand and leading the way out of the restaurant, "Where are you girls parked? You can follow us there."

We quickly left the restaurant after that, crawling into Lyndsey's car and waiting for the guys to pull out of their parking spot. Lyndsey was quick to spot what she claimed to be Brian's SUV and turned on the car, following behind him on the dark roads.

"Have you even been to his place before?" I asked suddenly, taking in the curious expression on my friend's face as we followed the dark truck through a large, upscale neighborhood.

My jaw dropped as Lyndsey shook her head, "Nope. We've only been dating for a week, remember?"

"Are you out of your fucking mind?" I hissed, staring at her incredulously as she contently drove down the unfamiliar street, "I get it, Brian's sexy and all, but you dumbfuck! There's five of them and two of us, leading us to God knows where at midnight, and you don't even know where the fuck we are, or where we're going?!"

"We're in Heritage Manor," she answered simply with a shrug of her shoudlers.

"So?" I huffed, nearly on the brink of cussing her ass out for getting us into such a potential mess, "What's that got to do with anything."

"Well, that's where we are."

"What good does it do us to be in some deserted rich neighborhood, all the way on the other side of town from where we live, and from where everyone else that we even fucking know lives?!" I shrieked, glaring daggers into the side of her head. I swear, love just made some people blind and naive as all fucking hell.

Though I really wasn't one to talk in that department, but still.

"Britt, chillax," Lyndsey giggled, "They're really nice guys. You don't have anything to worry about."

"And how would you know?" I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest, "You've only known them for a fucking week!"

Lyndsey sighed, pulling up beside Brian's truck and cutting the car off, "I just do. Now trust me and slap a smile on your face for a while, okay?"

With that, she opened her door and stepped out, quickly hurrying over to Brian's side. I grumbled a few choice words under my breath, keeping tight hold of my cell phone. I'd give my best friend hell if they turned out to be raging psychopaths and we actually made it out of here alive to tell the tale.

As I slowly trudged behind my friend, the others each smiled lightly at me as Lynsdey threw herself back into Brian's arms. I resisted the urge to shake my head and say a quick prayer as I walked to my potential death. Taking a deep breath, I busied myself with looking around.

The house was humongous, clearly one of those typical California mansions you'd see in a magazine. The landscaping looked to be professionally done, not a single plant or brick out of place. Several other cars lined the long, winding driveway; I'd guessed that some belonged to Brian, while the rest belonged to the others. There wasn't a single American made car in the driveway, except for Brian's Escalade that he'd just gotten out of. Everything else was European.

The guys seemed to form a circle around me as we walked up the stone path to the doorway, something I found slightly odd, yet comforting. I'm sure they didn't even realize they were doing it, but it was almost as if I had my own human shield. It was kind of cool. We continued through the front door of the house, and my mouth dropped.

What the fuck kind of money was this kid making to stay here?

The house was even more beautiful on the inside than it was on the outside, and that itself was saying something. Like the outside, nothing was out of place. It was clean from top to bottom, with luxurious furnishings and style. It seemed lived in, however, and clearly it was a bachelor's pad of sorts. It was extremely nice.

I looked to see Lyndsey squealing and clapping her hands, Brian laughing at her excitement. The others went ahead and made themselves comfortable, taking residence in what looked to be a living room or den of sorts. They each crowded around the TV, quickly turning to some game as Brian and Lyndsey took off on a private tour.

I most certainly was not following along for that one.

With a sigh, I trudged into the living room with the others, taking a seat on one of the sectionals and immediately kicking my shoes off. I crossed one foot over the other and leaned back, sighing gently as I rolled my ankles, hoping to get some of the feeling back in them.

I looked up as Jimmy stood, "I'm gonna get some drinks. What's everyone want?"

"Jack," answered the one with green eyes.

"Sam Adams," the small one, Johnny, said.

"Goose," Matt nodded at his friend, before everyone turned their gaze to me, "And what'll the lady have?"

"Captain and Cola." I answered quietly, shifting uncomfortably under their gazes.

"Alright, Jack, Sam, Goose, Captain n' Cola," Jimmy ticked off on his fingers with a dopey smile, "Be right back!"

"So, Brittany, how long have you and Lynds known each other?" the one with green eyes asked, flashing me a crooked smile.

I eyed him carefully, "A while."

He noticed my discomfort and chuckled, "I'm not gonna bite your head off, I promise."

I sighed, "Since college."

"So, like four, five years?" he tried again, since I liked making things difficult and all.

"Yup."

"You're mighty quiet," Matt laughed, causing me to cock an eyebrow.

"Not necessarily. I just don't have much to say," I countered, curling up in my spot, and staring him dead in the eyes. A smile twitched at the corners of his lips, and he chuckled again, a deep, rumbling sound ocming from him.

"And why don't you?" he smirked, flashing me a playful smile.

I rolled my eyes, "Cause I'm tired. I think y'all forgot that I've been dragged through a mall all day."

"Y'all?" Johnny laughed, looking at me with an odd expression.

"Umm... yes?" I asked, staring back at him with an odd expression of my own, "As in, you all?"

"Where are you from?" asked the green eyed guy, whose name I still couldn't remember.

"Zack, she's clearly from the south," Jimmy grinned, waltzing back into the room, arms loaded down with drinks.

He passed the green eyed man, who I now knew to be Zack, the bottle of Jack and a glass, then handed Johnny a bottle, handed Matt a bottle of Grey Goose and a glass, set two Heinekens down for himself, then handed me the bottle of Captain Morgan and a bottle of Coke.

"I know that much, dipshit," Zack rolled his eyes, pouring the dark murky liquid into his glass, "But I wanted to know where in the south she's from."

"North Carolina." I answered simply, sending each of the men into fits of laughter.

I cocked an eyebrow. What was so funny?

"Nooo-oar-th Care-oh-lah-nahhh," Johnny mocked my 'accent' with a giggle, though his was completely exaggerated to make me sound like a fucking hillbilly.

I rolled my eyes, laughing too, "Shut up."

"Shuuut uupp," he continued, teetering with laughter, "Do they have piggies and chickens runnin' around in the backyards there, too?"

I smirked, "Just as many natural blondes with real boobs that y'all got here."

Johnny groaned, "Well, damn, you got me on that one."

I smiled brightly, "I know."

Johnny sighed before going right back at it. Soon, he and Jimmy were both "squaredancing" around the room, pretending to chew tobacco and hack spit everywhere. And we can't forget the--

"YEEEEEEE DAWGGY!" Jimmy belted at the top of his lungs, tilting his head back to let out the most banshee like sound I have ever heard. "HOWDY, Y'ALL!"

I shook my head. Californians.

I'd never even seen a real pig before. I've never done this...squaredancing business before in my life. I have no idea where that comes from. And the chewing tobacco and spit thing? Well, that was for real country bumpkins out in the country. Not all of my home state was the country, just like not all of California was the beach.

"You'll get used to it after a while, " I turned to see Matt chuckling at me, "They're always like this."

"Who says I'll bother to stick around?" I replied slyly, crossing my arms over my chest as I gave the man a challenging stare.

He smirked, "Oh, I'm bettin' that you will."