AllFreeNovel
Share Us
With his glare fixed on Courtney and her dance partner, Seth marched across the room to the bar and ordered a drink, then settled on a barstool to watch and drive himself crazy.
Already he could tell Courtney was drunk—her smiles came too easily, but slid away just as quickly, and her laugh was too loud, not obnoxious but not Courtney. He’d spent the entire day studying her smile and drinking up her laughter, he knew the genuine articles, and these were not them.
When Courtney turned away from her dance partner, he thrust his hips in her direction then shot the men next to Seth a thumbs up. Rage burned in Seth’s veins, but he remained on the barstool silently sipping his drink. The bartender served asshat man-child’s friends another round, and one of the men carried the drinks to where Courtney and her partner still danced. Seth watched as the two replaced Courtney’s nearly empty glass with a full one. He’d seen enough.
Pushing away from the bar, Seth stomped through the crowd and straight to Courtney.
“Mind if I cut in?” he asked, not waiting for an answer before he pushed between Courtney and her partner.
“Hey dude. We’re dancing here.” The guy grabbed Seth’s shoulder, but he couldn’t move him.
Courtney looked up at him. Her eyes were wide and unfocused.
“You okay?”
Her breath hitched and she took a step back, but she nodded.
“You dancing with this guy?”
“You can see she is.” Asshat came to stand beside Courtney. “Move along. Get your own date.”
Seth’s gaze searched Courtney’s face. Obviously she’d chosen to dance with this guy at some point, but did that mean she wanted to keep dancing with him now that Seth was here?
“Well, she’s dancing with me now.” Seth slipped his arm around Courtney’s waist and tugged her against his chest. She fit against him so damn perfectly.
“Uh uh.” Now Asshat put his hand on Courtney’s shoulder, trying to pull her away. “I paid for those drinks she’s been downing. No way in hell you’re getting the benefits of that.”
Seth’s grip on Courtney’s waist tightened until a small grunt of distress passed through her lips. He forced himself to relax and reached for his wallet. Pulling out more than enough to cover any drinks the man may have bought Courtney, he slapped the bills against the guy’s chest. “Consider her debt paid, now get the fuck out of here.”
The guy looked to his friends who were back at the bar, not interested in offering any assistance, then to Courtney who was staring at Seth as if he’d grown two heads.
“Fuck this,” the guy mumbled and pocketing the cash, pushed his way through the crowd.
Courtney wiggled out of his grasp. “What was that?”
Was she serious? He’d just saved her from . . . he didn’t know, but surely it wasn’t good. “He was going to fuck you.”
Her mouth dropped open. “No, he wasn’t. You say that like I have no say in what happens. I’ve already told you I’m not on this cruise to hook up with anyone and if I were—” She clamped her mouth shut.
He pushed closer. “If you were, what?”
“Nothing.”
“Uh uh. You’re not hooking up with anyone and if you were, you’d what? Hook up with him?” He gestured in the direction Asshat had fled.
She shook her head. No, she’d already told him his would’ve been the only name she would’ve put a check by. Triumph flared in his chest.
“You want me to go get him and let you finish your dance?” he asked. “Give me the word Courtney, and I’ll drag him back here. He can even keep the money and ply you with more drinks.”
“I only had one, maybe two,” she protested.
“Oh honey.” He shook his head. She had no idea. “I think you’ve had a few more than that.”
She nodded, then latched on to his shirt when she started to tilt. “You think we could get out of here?”
Without another word, he slipped her hand into his and led her off the dance floor and out of the club.
“I think I’m feeling a little seasick,” she told him as they made their way to her cabin.
