He didn’t.
“Just one dance.” With a laugh, he glanced toward the dance floor, and when he swung back to me, his lips were pursed.
“Okay, I lied,” he admitted immediately, mischief twinkling in his eyes. For a second, his smile had a boyish charm. “Give me five dances, then you can ditch me if you’re not feeling it. No harm, no foul.”
His nonthreatening smile was disarming my attitude brick by brick, but I cut my eyes to the side, trying to keep my face unimpressed.
I bit the inside of my lip, feeling my resolve start to slip. It was just five dances. It didn’t soundthatterrible.
Lark and Nathan were still tangled up in their own drama, so I wasn't going to be saved by her. And honestly, moving around might help burn off the alcohol faster.
That’s all this was.
A familiar song pulsed through the speakers, one I always danced to back at the shop. Like it was muscle memory, my body started to sway.
Apparently, that was answer enough.
His cold hand wrapped around mine, tugging lightly. Not forceful, not demanding, just enough to lead, leaving me the opportunity to pull away.
I didn’t. I slid off the stool and followed.
“If you get anywhere near an artery, I’ll kick you in the nuts, this I swear. Vampire or no.” I warned.
He chuckled, guiding me through the crowd. “Sure. Sure. That's to be expected.” Then he looked back and tilted his head. “Though I’m pretty sure the woman doing the kicking earlier was blonde, no?”
Shit.
I groaned under my breath. Of course he saw that.
“S-she’s the bubbly one,” I scrambled, trying to connect it back to my threat. “If she’s willing to go that far, imagine what I’d do.”
His smile only widened.
“I like my women difficult.”
Before I could respond, he tugged me forward with one arm. My breath hitched as I stumbled forward, landing flush against his cold hard chest.
My mouth had parted, prepared to give him an earful when his head dipped, his face brushing into my hair before he took a long, deep inhale. My words slipped away. A quiet exhale followed, like he was savoring something. I was racking my brain to remember if today was a hair-wash day.
“It makes it worth it,” he murmured, “when I finally get a taste.” His husky voice made my stomach flutter against my will.
A heavy, warm breath slipped through my lips, my pulse pounding hard against my ribs. Almost without thinking, my fingers curled against his chest. The muscle beneath my palms tightened, shifting under my touch.
I had the sudden, reckless urge to explore the muscles under my hands. Trace the lines with my finger tips and see how far that tension ran.
Supes always had unfairly perfect bodies, and this one was pressed right against mine.
His arm slid around my waist, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us. Chest to chest. Legs brushing. Our hips moving together in slow, steady rhythm with the beat.
The crowd thickened without warning. Bodies pressed in from all sides, bumping into us, forcing us closer.
Heat climbed, making it uncomfortable since I was already hot from drinking. I glanced around, searching for an out, but then his cool hand slipped beneath my shirt, settling against the center of my back. The contrast sent a quiet shiver through me, easing something tight in my chest.
“Relax,” he murmured against my ear, his grip on my waist firming. “It’s just five dances, then you’re free of me.”
The music shifted—slower now, heavier, something that wrapped around us and wouldn't let go. Our bodies swayed in sync, locked together.
Even though my mind tried to remind me he was a vampire, someone that could hurt me, it was hard connecting those thoughts to the male in front of me.
