Pursuit of Happiness | Taz Skylar [1]

055. take the edge off

Taz, Eddie and Jay were already at the restaurant when Zoe and the others arrived. The three men were gathered around a table for six in a secluded corner, but they moved when Zoe, Bree and Faye approached, shifting so that Bree could sit in the chair next to Jay. Taz did his best to keep his eyes from lingering on Zoe for any longer than absolutely necessary, but couldn't keep from looking up at Zoe as she walked over to sit down in the chair next to him. She looked tired, but she managed to muster a smile for him as she walked around the table and towards him.

When Taz had left Zoe's apartment that morning, he'd expected that when he saw Zoe again, her demeanor would be something akin to what he'd witnessed on Ivy's birthday, but it wasn't. The sad, faraway look that he'd witnessed in Zoe's eyes that day was nowhere to be seen as she sat down in the empty chair next to Taz.

"Hi," Taz said, resting his elbows on the table and looking over at her. As Zoe settled herself down in her chair, Taz caught a whiff of champagne on her breath and he frowned. "Have you been drinking?"

Zoe looked at him sheepishly, but before she could respond, Bree was explaining, "They gave us complimentary champagne. Zoe had probably a little more than she should have, so if she's silly, that's why."

"Did you get any?" Jay asked, rubbing a hand down the side of Bree's arm.

Bree shook her head, but she was smiling over at Jay. "It's okay. I didn't really want any."

Jay smiled, pressing his face against the side of Bree's head so that he could kiss her temple. "I'll buy you as many bottles of champagne as you want on the honeymoon."

Taz didn't hear Bree's response as he turned back to Zoe. She looked almost guilty, meeting his eyes only briefly before she was looking away, down at her hands as they sat in her lap.

Zoe's voice was quiet in the otherwise loud restaurant, but Taz still heard her admit, "I needed it to take the edge off."

Taz couldn't begrudge Zoe that. Not when she had come back from an interaction that she'd anticipated to be difficult like this, not happy exactly at the very least relaxed. She didn't appear to be drunk, just buzzed enough that the weight of how much Zoe missed her family didn't weigh so heavily on her shoulders.

Taz dropped his hand down to rest next to his leg on the edge of his chair. Zoe glanced over at the others, but when she saw them being far too concerned with their own conversation to notice what she and Taz were doing, Zoe shifted to sit sideways in her chair, bringing her knee close enough so that Taz could brush his fingers across her knee. The ghost of a smile twitched at Zoe's lips, but she showed no other acknowledgement, even when Taz retracted his hand and she missed his touch.

"Okay, can we order now? I'm starving," Eddie spoke up as Taz returned his hand to his lap. If Eddie noticed the interaction that had just unfolded next to him, he showed no indication of it as sounds of agreement erupted from around the table. Zoe hadn't had the chance to look at the menu yet, so she leaned across Taz so that she could read off the menu sitting on the table in front of him while Jay attempted to wave down a waitress.

"You have your own menu, you know," Taz said quietly.

"Yeah, but yours is so much better," Zoe replied, sitting back in her chair and smiling at him. She looked at him for a moment, as if considering something, before she reached over to pluck the black baseball cap that he was wearing off his head so that she could settle it on her own head.

"That's mine," Taz said, reaching for it.

"Not anymore," Zoe replied, smiling at him as she leaned back in her chair. Taz easily could have reached over and grabbed his hat back from her, but her smile was so wide that he decided to leave her with it for the moment.

When the waitress that Jay had flagged down approached the table, Taz expected Zoe to order more alcohol with her meal, but when the waitress asked her what she wanted with her meal, Zoe just asked for a glass of water. Five surprised sets of eyes turned on Zoe, who sunk down into her seat, tilting Taz's hat so that the brim covered her face.

"Oh, so you spend all day drinking my complimentary champagne but don't want to buy your own booze?" Bree asked.

"I can buy you a bottle now, if you want," Zoe offered, peeking at Bree from under the brim of Taz's hat to see Bree smiling at her, more because of Zoe's antics with Taz's hat than anything to do with the long gone champagne.

Bree shook her head, waving off Zoe's offer. "It's okay. I didn't really feel like drinking anything today anyway."

"So you're saying that I was doing you a favour?" Zoe asked, leaning forward and adjusting the hat again so that it wasn't sitting so low over her face. Bree shook her head, laughing, but any reply she might have given was lost as Jay leaned into her side, asking if he could see the dress she'd bought, as if he didn't know that the answer was a firm no.

Zoe settled back in her chair, crossing one leg over the other. The conversation unfolding around her mostly related to the events of the day, Jay and Eddie working in tandem to tell a story about the man who'd measured them and Taz for their suits. Zoe was only half-listening, as the long day and the alcohol she'd consumed began to catch up with her, making her body feel tired and heavy. She was so distracted that she didn't notice Taz place his hand on her head to snatch his hat back until it was already gone, looking over to see him place the hat back on his own head.

As a sort of consolation for losing the hat, Taz draped his arm across the back of Zoe's chair. Zoe was suddenly thankful that Taz was as physically affectionate with his friends as he was with her, because it meant that the only person who batted an eyelid at the placement of his arm was Faye. Given that Faye hadn't seen quite as much of the thoughtless way that Taz threw his arms around Jay, Zoe didn't give it much thought, leaning back so that she could feel the weight of Taz's arm against the back of her shoulders.

"Are you tired?" Taz asked, leaning his head closer to Zoe so that she could hear him over the noise of other people talking. When Zoe nodded, Taz told her, "Once we eat, I'll take you home."

"I'm okay," Zoe said, blinking up at him. "I want to stay out. It's been a while since I've seen everyone. Please?"

"Okay," Taz agreed, tapping his finger against the back of her shoulder. "But if you start falling asleep, I'm taking you home. I don't care what you say about it."

"I think I can live with that," Zoe replied, her smile so soft and fond that Taz had to look away, before his control slipped and he kissed her.