The Fire At Enzos Ch 02

** Writer's Note: Sorry for the long time in between chapters. My life has been hectic to say the least. But, I enjoy writing this. Thanks! - AJLuna

*

Dinner service that night zoomed by. Maybe it was because Audrey spent every free moment stealing glances at Iwan. The way he moved around the kitchen was magnetizing. He seemed to do everything, whether it be frying breaded veal cutlets or slicing garlic, with absolute ease. Which put Dylan at ease, and made the waiters and waitresses less tense.

He also seemed to have an amazing sense of humor. Audrey spent little time around him so she didn't know for certain, but every time she stepped foot into the kitchen, the other chefs were laughing at something he said. She really wanted to hear the joke. She really wanted to just hear his voice.

Before she knew it, another waiter was helping his last table out the door, and the entire staff was cleaning up their respective areas.

Audrey didn't realize how much he feet hurt until service had ended, so she was very glad to be headed home.

Of course, her plan to go home, and sleep late into the next day would be derailed.

Audrey went into the back room, past the kitchen to pick up her purse. She pivoted to be met by a smiling Dylan.

"We are all going to the bar. You have to come, Audrey."

She weighed her options: Go home and have amazing sleep, or go to the bar, have fun, and hopefully get a chance to speak to this amazing Iwan.

* * * * *

Audrey found herself frozen with reservations. She was an assured lesbian. She had been since college. She declared herself bisexual in high school. A massive part of her identity consisted of her being a woman who loved other women. What did this attraction mean for her?

She hadn't even felt an attraction this intense in a very long time. Especially not for someone with a dick. She never thought she would find herself in this predicament.

Now, she's sitting in the corner of a grimy bar, smelling like garlic and oil, nursing a beer.

She hadn't spoken a single word to this man, and he already had her contemplating everything that made her "her". Beer just won't cut it tonight; Audrey needed something stronger.

After finishing her beer, she took 3 rapid fire shots of tequila. Audrey's horizon was starting to sway, and her thoughts were becoming muddled.

"Maybe this is GOD's way of punishing me for hurting Thalia," Audrey mumbled under her breathe.

"Why are you being so anti-social?"

Audrey hadn't even realized that Dylan was sitting next to her.

When she turned to him, his face was oddly close to hers, and he was beaming. He was obviously more drunk than she was. And, she couldn't let that happen.

Audrey simply shrugged at Dylan's question, and walked over to the bartender to request two more shots of tequila.

She put one shot glass to her lips, and tipped her head back. She loved how warm it made her feel. She opened her eyes to grab the other shot glass but it was missing.

Iwan was standing next to her, with what was supposed to be her second shot, in hand. He winked at her before gulping it down.

Whoa. Yeah, Audrey thought he was hot, but no one fucked with her alcohol.

Audrey stepped back attempting to glare at Iwan, but given her level of inebriation, she's sure she just looked stupid.

"You're Audrey, right? Everyone has been really warm and friendly to me, but we haven't exchanged a single word." His voice was deep and smooth.

"I am Audrey. And that was my drink." She slurred. It was hard for her to focus on his face, or her surroundings.

"Well, I saw you ordered two," Iwan leaned in closer to Audrey, and rested his hand on her shoulder. "What do I have to do to talk to you alone?"

At that precise moment, Audrey knew that her mind (and libido) had been playing tricks on her. She didn't like men. They were too forward. Too cocky. And, Iwan was no exception to this fact. She was, indeed, a lesbian.

Audrey shrugged Iwan's hand off of her shoulder, and stepped backwards, intent on not stumbling.

She found Dylan, who then walked her home, and tucked her into her bed before passing out on her coach.

* * * * *

It had been two weeks since Iwan Maguire had been hired at Enzo's, and the kitchen had never run smoother. Dishes were high-quality and came out in a timely fashion. He was a master in front of a stove, and the way he lead the kitchen was effortless. He seemed happy there at Enzo's, and everyone who worked around him was happy.

However, Audrey talked very little to Iwan. When she did, it was about a dish she was waiting on. He did attempt to have small chat with her, and she was very courteous, but she was often too bus trying to get through the busy dinner services to carry any type of conversation with Iwan.

Yes. She still found him attractive, and he seemed to be an overall nice enough guy; but that encounter she had with him at the bar really turned her off. It jolted her back to her senses.

Audrey's life in those two past weeks had been quiet. She worked. She slept. She hung out with Jaime and Dylan. She even ran into Thalia at the same supermarket they had met at for the first time. They chatted for a quick while, and Thalia even told Audrey that she could call her sometime.

Tonight, Audrey was off of work. Another waitress at Enzo's was turning 27 and was having a birthday celebration at her house, of which she invited every single employee to. Despite how classy the restaurant was, when the entire staff congregated in a private area where alcohol was present, it was guaranteed to get rowdy.

Because the party was being thrown outside of the city, in Prince George's County, Audrey decided to hitch a ride with Drew.

Audrey wore a strapless sweetheart cut red and white polka dot dress, that cinched under her boobs and flared out slightly below that. She paired it with a simple leather jacket, and high heeled back Mary Janes. She wore her curly hair in a high pony tail, and applied hot pink gloss to her lips.

She heard her iPhone quack, and she knew that Drew was texting her his arrival. She grabbed her cobalt blue clutch, and hurried out of her apartment.

She saw the familiar beat up 1980-something Toyota sitting in front of her building. Once Audrey was seated, Drew sped off, out of D.C.

The 30 minute ride to the party went by quickly. Drew and Audrey were so comfortable with each other, they could easily carry a conversation and their silences lacked awkwardness.

Before finding the house where the party was happening, they could hear the music thumping loudly through the neighborhood. The bass seemed to shake the block.

People were spilling out of the front door of the house into the yard, red plastic cups in hand. It was loud. It was crazy.

It always amazed Audrey at how people don't change from college. Parties and how they were divided always seemed to be the same. The potheads congregated in the backyard. All the "hot" girls danced, while the "hot" guys either danced with them or watched them from the wall. All the others were busy getting drunk or making fun of everyone else within their group of friends.

She immediately saw the birthday girl taking shots, and she went over to hug her and wish her a happy birthday. And, of course, her and Drew took two shots.

The alcohol made her feel loose and warm and happy. Just as she was taking her third shot, one of her favorite pop songs began blasting through the stereo. Grabbing Drew's hand, she pulled him into the middle of what looked like the living room and began dancing.

Dancing with Drew was always fun. He was a guy, but he was safe to dance with because he was her closest male friend. She let his hands wander places she wouldn't let other guys, within limits, obviously. Drew shifted behind Audrey, so that his crotch was pressed against her ass, and he wrapped his arms around her waist. As they bounced to the music, Drew pulled Audrey closer to him. His alcohol soaked breathe tickled her ears.

* * * * * *

Audrey and Drew had been at the party for about two hours at this point. Audrey stopped drinking an hour after they arrived simply because someone had to drive them back home; and, Dylan seemed intent on reaching liquor-induced oblivion. He was stumbling over people, pulling on Audrey's dress, and obnoxiously hitting on any girl that walked past him. Walking through the house, she found the basement where a beer pong game was going on. And, being her luck, Iwan was down there, playing against the younger, blonde hostess.

She hugged the people down there that she hadn't seen in the rest of the party, with the exception of Iwan.

"I play the winner," she announced to the room.

The hostess lost which meant Audrey had to play against Iwan. He probably thought it would be an easy win against her but Audrey played beer pong all through high school and college. She also used her feminine charm to win. When Iwan was aiming the small ping pong ball for her cups, Audrey leaned over the table so that he got a view of her cleavage.

He missed.

"Ah, the power that comes with being a woman," Audrey said, causing the room to erupt into laughter. It even got a slight chuckle from Iwan.

"So, you play dirty. That's cool," he replied, standing back and folding his arms across his chest.

She sunk her shot perfectly. They went back and forth, until they both had one cup left.

Audrey leaned over to take her shot. The ball bounced of the rim of the cup. And, Iwan's ball whirled inside the rim, and went in perfectly. She chugged the contents of the cup, and began walking upstairs. She had been down there for about 20 minutes and Drew had not followed her. She needed to find him before he got into any trouble.

Once reaching the top of the stairs, a large hand landed on hers. She turned around to Iwan.

"Can I get a good game hug, Audrey?"

Audrey did not honestly care at the moment. She was intent on finding Drew, and possibly leaving soon after that.

"Sure, why not?" She replied wrapping her arms around him. His arms snaked around her hips. She felt something she hadn't felt in a really long time: secure. She was usually attracted to girls that were smaller than her, so she never had the pleasure of feeling fragile and little.

To be honest, the angry, little feminist inside of her was struggling with this newly discovered pleasure.

She began to pull away and he pulled her back so that he could talk in her ear.

"I really want to apologize if I offended you my first night at that bar. I really didn't mean to, and I want to get to know you."

Audrey pulled away, and she couldn't help but let the smile creep onto her face.

"He isn't a complete asshole," she thought to herself.

Iwan asked Audrey for her phone number, and she obliged him, before turning off to continue her search for Drew.

Audrey heard Drew before she saw him. He was yelling at some guy about how terribly the Redskins would do that season. She grabbed Drew, they toured the house doing their "goodbyes", and finally left. Over the two and a half hours that the party had been raging, the intensity did not seem to decrease. People were passed out on the front lawn, and a couple was doing unspoken acts in a bush. Not to mention the sea of cups and beer cans that now flooded the street.

Drew was so inebriated Audrey had to assist him in getting in tot he passenger seat of his own car. She turned on the lights and pressed her foot to the accelerator, feeling the roar and vibration from the old car's engine.

At a red light, Audrey saw Drew's hand move in her peripherals, and she felt it land on her knee. It slid slowly up to her mid thigh.

"This will be a long drive," Audrey thought to herself, pulling off from the green light.