God, he was so f**ked.

Leaning against the bar, he took a swig of his whiskey as the music pulsated around him. Claire was at Harper and Jakob’s watching Alison because they had something to do tonight. Phillip was glad that Claire got along so well with the Titov’s and that she wanted to watch Ally. She said she wanted to start saving money. For what, he didn’t know, but he supported her, even offered to give her an allowance if she cleaned the house. The therapist liked this, and so did he. He just hoped it was progress in the right direction.

Since Claire was going to stay the night with Ally, it left him alone. Since staying in was pointless, he called Erik to see if he wanted to come out. He expected Erik to say he couldn’t. To his surprise, his parents had Dimitri, so he and Piper said they would meet him out at the club. They weren’t supposed to be there for another hour, but Phillip couldn’t sit much longer and left, deciding to get the party started early.

He was three drinks in, talking up a hot blonde that he had no interest sleeping with, when Erik cupped him on the shoulder. Turning, he smiled as he shook hands with his best friend before giving him a manly hug. Leaning over, he kissed Piper’s cheek before saying, “Hey guys.”

“Hey,” Erik said, pulling Piper into the crook of his arm. “This place is packed.”

“Sure is, let’s get a table,” he said, turning back to the blonde. He flashed a quick grin as he said, “My friends are here. I hate leaving someone so gorgeous, but I promise I’ll come find you later.”

She giggled in a way that made him want to cringe before she smiled. “Sounds good, here,” she said, handing him a card that told him her name was Stacy Ruble, and she worked for a company called BNC. “Call me.”

He flashed her a grin. “I will.”

Phillip then leaned over, kissing her cheek. When he parted, he knew damn well he wouldn’t call her. She was fun to flirt with, but he could tell she was looking for the one, and he was in no way, shape, or form the one. His life was crazy right now, and he had no time to look for that special someone. With a grin on his face, he turned and started for his friends, but when he noticed the girl that had been starring in his wet dreams standing beside Piper, he stopped dead in his tracks. Like it had been doing all week, his heart kicked up in speed as his groin tightened, while he took in every inch of her. Reese was wearing the shortest red skirt ever, the back of her thighs begging him to lick them. The black top she wore was see-through, giving him a view of the sexy black lace bra she wore. His hands itch to unbutton each button before nibbling at the lace that enclosed her br**sts from him. Her hair cascaded down her back, and she wore red high heels that had a black heel on them, which made her legs so f**king sexy it made his mouth water. He was so hard, and he had no clue what to do next.

When Erik turned and looked at him, his eyebrow came up as he said, “What are you doing?”

Piper and Reese turned and while Piper just smiled in a friendly way, Reese’s eyes darkened as she took him in, her eyes stopping at his groin, before a Cheshire cat-type grin came across her face. When her eyes met his, he lost his breath. He didn’t understand the pull that had manifested between them, but it scared the living shit out of him. He couldn’t risk putting anything crappy between him and Claire, but taking in the gorgeous woman in front of him, he was tempted to take the chance.

Shaking his head, he said, “Nothing, just taking in the two most beautiful women in the room.”

Piper’s face darkened in color as Reese ran her tongue along her bottom lip, her eyes still on him. He knew he should just go home, he couldn’t handle this, but he knew damn well he wasn’t going anywhere. Not when Reese was close enough to touch.

“Well, stop staring at my woman, the other one, have at it.” Erik laughed as Piper nuzzled closer, looking between him and Reese.

“You’ve meet Reese right, Phillip?” Piper asked with a small smile.

Leaning onto the table, he looked over at Reese and said, “I have had the pleasure many times this week.”

Reese’s mouth picked up at the side as she said, “He’s been around for like ever.”

“I know; I just wasn’t sure if y’all had officially met.”

Reese shrugged her shoulders as she said, “I don’t think we have, but we know about each other.”

Phillip smiled as he held out his hand.

“I’m Phillip Anderson.”

Reese bit her lip before placing her small hand in his. As he held her hand, his eyes bored into her. She smiled as she said, “I’m Reese Allen. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” he said in a throaty way that had Erik laughing.

“Be careful with that one, Phillip. She’s the evil twin,” Erik teased.

Reese laughed as she pulled her hand from Phillip’s. Flashing him a grin, she said, “Maybe.”

Phillip shrugged his shoulders, his eyes still on Reese as he said, “I like playing on the dark side.”

Erik laughed as Piper shook her head. Reese just held his gaze, her eyes swirling with lust and all things dirty, as Phillip’s heart hammered in his chest. He watched as Reese brought her straw to her lips as she slowly sipped the drink, her eyes locked on his, and he knew at that moment there was no way he could move out from behind that table. If he did, everyone was going to get an eyeful. Looking away before he jumped over the table and promptly kissed the f**k out of her bright red lips, he turned to Erik and said, “How’s Dimitri?”