What Am I Getting Myself Into?

I had been so busy all night that I hadn't been able to say more than a few words to Eric,but he knew I would be busy. I assumed that was why he had brought some friends. Tommy being there threw a little wrench into my plans of distraction from the,I didn't want to call them feelings, thoughts that were getting a little too cozy with Tommy being around so much. I was thankful for every spilled drink that night,because it kept me away from the bar,away from Tommy. I needed to clear my head if this was going to work out. I noticed Tommy watching me often and tried to ignore it. When I finally got the wave from Kayla that it was time for my break I grabbed a beer,I would normally take a few shots but I still had hours of work to do and stumbling around probably wouldn't be appreciated by my coworkers, and walked over to have a seat beside Eric,nodding to his friends as I took a long swig of my beer and turned to smile at him. "Hey babe" He said,grabbing the leg of my chair and scooting it closer to him before putting an arm around my shoulders and leaning closer to me. I could smell his cologne and though it was nice I couldn't help but think that I liked Tommy's much better. I took another gulp of my beer,forcing that thought from my mind. "Hey buddy!" I enthused and let myself relax in the chair. I learned that Eric's friends were Chris,a tall slim guy with a tan and shaggy blonde hair, and Toby,a shorter stocky guy who was solidly built,but not as muscular as Tommy. I smiled and shook their hands,Toby held on a little longer than Chris and winked at me before letting go. He had short,brown hair that was combed over and a slight beard with almond shaped dark eyes. He was handsome,I noted, but not as handsome as Tommy. Not by a long shot. I growled and shook my head. 'Stop comparing everyone to Tommy!' I internally yelled at myself. Eric raised a brow at me and I gulped down the last of my beer. "You alright?" I shrugged and he dropped it. We made small talk and when Eric got up for a bathroom break, Toby stood and took Eric's seat. "You got a boyfriend? I know Eric is sweet on you but he hasn't made a move.so you either have a boyfriend or hes an idiot" He boldly said,leaning his elbows on the table and turning to get a better look at my face. "Why does everyone keep asking me that?" I laughed and shook my head. "Because you're hott!" Toby shrugged as if it were common knowledge. I rolled my eyes and told him I didn't have a boyfriend,a wide smile spread across his face and Eric came back to the table,an incredulous look on his face when he noticed Toby was in his seat,sitting very close to me. I decided that was a good time to get back to work. "Ill see you boys later,my break is up!" I smiled at them all before tying my apron back on and picking up my empty bottle and their shot glasses before heading back behind the bar.

Tommy was still there but Brendan was gone. I supposed he had gone back home to Tess and the girls. "Need another drink?" I asked Tommy,starting to mix it up before he could even answer. He only grunted. "You okay?" I placed his drink in front of him and tried to get his attention but he wouldn't meet my eyes. "Come on,Tommy." I gave his shoulder a small shove. He shook his head,seemingly to bring himself back to reality before grabbing his drink and tossing it back in one gulp before meeting my eyes and smiling at me. "There you are!" I laughed and he shrugged at me,the smile still on his face. "Can I see you after work?" He asked,taking another drink from me,only sipping on this one,his eyes never leaving mine. "You aren't sick of me yet?!" I asked as if there was no way that he could be anything but. "Never,baby,never" he smirked and I nodded my head at him,before walking away to fill drink orders and see if Kayla needed any help. Thankfully,she did and I didn't see much of Eric or Tommy for the rest of the night. Eric waved to me an hour later,letting me know that he and the guys were heading out. I smiled at them and nodded,wiping the bar top down before a hand reached for mine. I looked up into a pair of warm,almond shaped eyes. "Toby?" I asked. and he placed a piece of paper into my hand before smiling at me and walking out behind Eric and Chris. Eric giving him a look that I couldn't quite read. I decided to just put the paper into my pocket and look it over when I had more time.

Tommy waited around the bar until closing time and I wasn't surprised that when I walked outside after closing up that he was waiting for me,his hands in his jacket pockets. "You're going to wear me out if you keep going home with me like this" I nudged his arm with my shoulder before wrapping my hands around his arm and we headed back towards my place. Tommy didn't say a word,only smiled,but his eyes staring straight ahead. It didn't feel like he was really present and I wondered where his mind was at. "What are you thinking about?" I asked as we approached my front door. Tommy stopped at the bottom step of my porch. "I don't know,Rhian. I know I said I was okay with this,but I don't think I am. I wanted to pummel those guys tonight. With their hands all over you. Flirting with you. I saw that guy slip you something,his number im betting." He signed and ran his hands through his hair. "I don't think I can do it. I don't think I can just sit there and pretend that I don't feel like you're mine after everything we've been doing and just let other guys touch you. I don't." He said,looking down into my eyes and pulling me to him,planting a heart stopping kiss on my lips before letting me go and walking off,towards his home. I stood there like an idiot,looking after him. Watching him walk away. Once he was out of sight I let out a breath that I didn't even know I was holding and walked up to my door,unlocked it and walked in,locking it behind myself before leaning against it and sliding down to sit on the floor. I really shouldn't feel as hurt as I do. I was asking too much from him and I knew it. I knew by the way that he looked at me that I was an idiot for thinking that everything would just be alright. I could tell that he didn't like Eric but now I knew it was just because he was always hanging all over me and Tommy couldn't do a thing about it. I fished the piece of paper out of my pocket and opened it and sure enough,Tommy was right. It had Toby's number scribbled across it with his name at the top and "Call me anytime" written at the bottom. I crumpled it up and sighed before pushing myself up and walking to my room. I stripped and got into bed. It felt empty without Tommy there. I punched my pillow out of frustration and groaned. This was all my doing. I was such an idiot.