“Jasper, they’re with me, I’ve got it.” As Landon finishes making the drinks in front of him and makes his way to us, Charlene walks past and smirks at us.
“Thought you weren’t ever coming back to this bar. Amazing how things can change so quickly.” She winks at me, placing two glasses down in front of the two people next to us. “Oh, and happy birthday. Have a great night, and remember, drinks are on me.”
“Like hell they are. Go and do your job and stop annoying the guests.” Landon comes to a stop in front of us, shooing her away.
“Guests now, not just customers. Interesting,” she calls over her shoulder to him and then keeps going about her job.
I can’t help but crack up laughing. I understand why he gets along so well with Charlene. She doesn’t take his crap, but you can also see she cares about her friend.
“Don’t encourage her.” He rolls his eyes and then slides his hand across the bar, taking hold of mine and pulling me toward him as he leans forward.
“Happy birthday, Poppy, I’m looking forward to helping you celebrate.” His eyes fall to the very low V in the top that I wore deliberately for him. My body starts vibrating with that tingle that it seems to get when Landon is around. And then he does something that shocks the hell out of me.
Closing that last few inches between us, he very softly kisses me on the cheek and then whispers in my ear, “By fucking you senseless, and if you’re lucky, I might even let you come, just because it’s your birthday.” That low growl is his weapon against me. He knows I can’t do anything to stop my walls from falling the moment he opens his mouth and speaks like that.
Even though the music is loud, he still manages to hear me when I gasp. “You like the thought of that, don’t you, temptress.” And then he is gone, and I can feel the change of the air around me. Putting distance between us again, he has the cockiest grin on his face as he pulls a bottle of Moet champagne from under the bar, pops the cork, and pours two glasses. Pushing them toward us, he says, “Happy thirtieth birthday. May it be as special as you, Poppy.” He puts the bottle on ice behind the counter and walks off to serve more people.
“Holy fucksticks, if you don’t go home, pack your boxes, and move back to Boston, then I will be sending you for a brain scan. Because I orgasmed just watching you two together. That is seriously fucking hot.” And while Autumn is talking with no filter like normal, my body is having a meltdown.
“I can’t… I just… Fucking hell.” I lift the glass of Moet to my mouth and chug it. Because otherwise, I’m not going to survive this night, or this man.
I already knew that, yet here I am, ready and willing.
“It’s my birthday, yet I’m the one making sure you get your drunk ass home safely.” With my arm around Autumn’s waist, I walk her to her front door and help her get the key in the lock.
Landon drove her home and is sitting in the car in her driveway as I get her inside.
“Well, your boyfriend, I mean fuck friend, kept giving me free drinks. It would’ve been rude not to accept them,” she mumbles as I get her down the hallway and into her bedroom.
“That’s not quite how the night went, but you won’t remember it tomorrow anyway. Now you’re on your own. Get your sorry ass into bed, and I’ll call you in the morning.” Autumn drops onto her bed, and I bet she will be out cold in about ten minutes, probably in the clothes she’s still wearing. And although I could spend the next twenty minutes wrestling with her to get her changed, take some Tylenol, and drink water, she will still be smarting from a hangover in the morning. And to be honest, I have somewhere to be.
It's my birthday, and I want to get every single minute I can from this night.
“When it’s my thirtieth birthday, can you order me a big hunky man to take home as my present too?”
I just laugh as I pull off her shoes. I throw the blanket over her, turn the light off on the way out, and lock the front door as I head back to the car. She’ll be snoring before we even make it out of her street.
“Is she all sorted in bed?” Landon asks as I settle back in my seat and he reverses out of the driveway.
“Yeah, and blaming you for getting her drunk because you were being nice and letting her drink whatever she wanted.”
His deep chuckle fills the car. “I was about to cut her off, when I saw it was time to close up anyway. I wasn’t worried whatshewas drinking, I only cared aboutyou. Because we both know if you were drunk, I would be tucking you into the spare bed in my house, taking a shower, and fucking my hand trying to forget what I missed out on.”
“You love to talk dirty, don’t you?” And I’m not going to admit how much I love it too.
“Only with you, and that’s the truth.” He looks sideways at me, holding my concentration for five seconds, and then looks back to the road.
Autumn’s house is about ten minutes from Landon’s, so my apprehension is starting to build, because unlike the first time, this isn’t a spontaneous thing. We know the moment we walk in the door, the plan is to be naked and continue where we left off.
“Is it hot in here or is it just me?” I ask as I undo my jacket to let some air in.
“Do your jacket up,” he demands, glancing sideways at me.
“Why?” I reply.
“Because if you don’t, we won’t make it home.” His stare is fixated on my thighs and my short skirt that bunched up a bit when I sat back in the car and is now barely covering anything.
I can’t help playing with him.
