I raise an eyebrow, lips curving. “Sounds serious.”
It’s surprising how easy he is to talk to. No hovering. No lingering stares that make my skin crawl. No obnoxious pick-up lines trying to get me to leave with him.
He’s just… normal. Friendly, even.
And maybe it’sthe alcohol warming my blood, but I feel myself relax. I can feel the tension that was buzzing under my skin since we walked into this barfinallystarts to fade.
“One of the guys is celebrating his engagement,” he nods toward the man in question.
I follow his gaze and spot the blonde guy laughing mid-throw, locked in what appears to be a brutal match against… Oh.
The stunning God from earlier.
The man bun.
I quickly school my features, keeping my expression neutral, but something must flicker across my face. Because when I glance back, he’s watching me. Closely.
His lips curve slowly. “Not big on engagement parties?”
I blink, heat crawling up my neck.
“What? No! That’s—” I flounder, scrambling for something to say that doesn’t sound stupid. “That’s exciting for him! Who’s winning?”
The way his lips twitch tells me he knows exactly what just happened, but mercifully, he lets it slide.
Instead, he throws another glance toward the game. “You know, I'm not really sure.”
I laugh, but he continues, shaking his head. “That’s why there’s so much yelling, they’re trying to decide who’s actually winning.”
I open my mouth to respond, to say literally anything, but no words come out. Oh my God. Surely, he’s going to assume I'm drunk. Which, honestly? He wouldn’t even be wrong.
I try again, determined to salvage what’s left of my dignity, but before I can embarrass myself any further, I’m saved by the bell.
And by bell, I mean Rachel.
She appears out of nowhere, grabbing my arm without so much as a pause, and announces, “Hi, I’m Rachel. I’m so glad you met my friend. She’s sworn off men so don’t waste your time,butthis is our song, so if you’ll excuse us…”
And just like that, I’m being dragged away.
I barely manage to throw him an apologetic look over my shoulder, but all I get in return is that damn smirk.
“Raven, comeon! This is our song!”
I stumble after her, laughing. Only Rachel could bulldoze through a conversation like that and make it look effortless.
“Youwouldsay that! But to be clear, it wasn’t a rescue mission!” I protest, failing miserably at sounding convincing. “I wasn’t even swooning over the accent…”
I pause, then snort. “Okay,maybea little. But he was really hot!”
Rachel lifts an eyebrow, her grin stretching wider. “Exactly. And you were gone for too long. Our song is on, so, priorities.”
She starts swaying effortlessly to the beat while her hips roll with the kind of ease that makes me wonder if she was an exotic dancer in her past life. Or maybe in her current one, and I just don’t know about it.
“We can always go talk to them after,” she adds, throwing me a mischievous look. “Or better yet, maybe we should challenge them to a game of darts. Show them how it’sreallydone.”
I bark out a laugh, shaking my head. “Rachel, we don’t even know how toplaydarts.”
“Minor detail.” She waves me off like I’m the ridiculous one.
