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Instead . . . it wondered about Grant and his “inappropriate reasons.”
“I’m Chuck,” the guy said loudly over the music, snapping Hannah back to reality.
“Hannah,” she said back.
“You are gorgeous,” he said.
She nodded. “Thanks.”
He started to say something, but Hannah jerked slightly when she felt a large hand rest on the small of her back.
She turned around to find Grant, staring daggers at her.
“Oh . . . is this your friend?” Chuck asked, looking at Grant and clearly wondering if he still had a shot with Hannah.
“No, we’re not friends,” Hannah said.
“No, definitely not friends,” Grant agreed, his hand running just an inch lower. He leaned into her ear so only she could hear. “I really hope you’re color-blind, baby, because I’ve been waiting for you.”
She looked over her shoulder and met his eyes. “I never said I’d come.”
He grinned, but there was something sinisterly sexy in his eyes. “Oh, you’ll come.”
Grant returned his attention to Chuck. “Excuse us.” And that was all he said before leading Hannah to a dark, shadowed booth in the corner of the Blue Bar, where the music wasn’t as loud and the people were all facing away from them.
“That was rude,” Hannah said and sipped her drink, her body buzzing with warmth being near Grant again.
“You’re right—that was rude to keep me waiting.”
She frowned at him. “Clearly you found me.”
“Because you enjoy being chased?” he asked. But before she could answer, he finished with, “Why didn’t you meet me?” His voice was deep and insistent. He looked better, if possible, than earlier. With a fresh shirt and slacks, he looked classy, put together, and capable of anything. Something that had her imagination going.
“Why did you want me to?” she asked, turning the question back on him.
“Because there’s something in your eyes . . .” He stared straight at her in that way only he could do and made her feel seen again. “That makes me drown.”
“Drown in my eyes?” she asked, ready to knock away his lame line.
“Drown in the sadness behind them.”
That made her breath hitch.
“This coming from a man that has his own brand of pain behind his eyes,” she countered, trying not to get lost in the deep, dark pools. But he was hypnotic. And he might be a stranger, but she’d recognized his darkness right away. Because she felt it, too.
“You think I’m in pain?” he asked.
“I think there’s more to you than you let anyone see.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because of how guarded you are, but you disguise it with bluntness.”
Grant’s lips parted slightly, and Hanna
h felt like she’d just seen a side of him that she would guess not many saw. A hint of honesty. Vulnerability. And she liked it. Wanted to know him more. To tap into that moment and follow it wherever it took her.
He cupped her neck, his thumb trailing along her throat, and she felt so small, so vulnerable to him. He brushed his lips overs hers, and when he spoke, his words hummed against her mouth.
