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“You were Penelope’s first kiss, no?”
Oh.Oh.A cackle escaped my mouth. “Like, a hundred years ago, and I’m not sure I’d call it making out.” I shook my head, hiding a smile. “But say that again when Carter’s around, will you?”
Her head fell back as she laughed, and I thought it may just be the most musical sound I’d ever heard. She uncrossed her arms and swiped at her dress, straightening out the hem that fell along her thigh. As I followed her movements, my eyes caught there. She glanced up to me and as she sucked in a swift breath, I knew my gaze was burning through her. I licked my lips. I was normally much better at hiding my attraction to a woman. I wasn’t one to put myself on display so desperately.
But Macie was an abnormality. She made me feel like one too.
“So…dance?” I found myself asking again. Uncaring if it sounded like a plea.
I could count the minutes I’ve known her on one hand, and yet I knew with absolutely certainty that I’d crawl on hot coals for the opportunity to feel her skin.
She bit her lip again.
“Probably not a good idea.” She pointed at the upper level of the club. “My boyfriend is upstairs.”
Disappointment flooded me. “Shit. I’m sorry. Nobody told me.”
She shook her head, a coy smile still on her face. “No, it’s okay. I mean, at least you ask before groping. Most men here don’t.”
I frowned. “Fuck that.” I nodded back toward the floor. “You dance, and if a hand touches you I’ll remove it, yeah?”
Her blush was instant as she dropped her eyes to the floor. Finally, some kind of reaction.
I realized that she hadn’t said no either time. She couldn’t say yes, though. Not when she was here with another man. And I couldn’t blame her for that because nothing about the way I would touch her would be considered platonic.
When she looked back at me, that blush was gone. As if a mask of cool indifference covered her features. “I’m entirely capable of shoving away scrubby-ass men on my own, but if you need an excuse to continue ogling me, be my guest,” she chimed. There was a playful glitter in her eyes that told me that was exactly what she wanted me to do, even if she couldn’t say it outloud.
I raised one brow at her, a silent understanding. I knew what she wanted, and I’d give her exactly that. Her eyes flared before she flipped her hair behind her shoulder and spun around, sauntering back toward the dance floor, her beautiful ass swaying with every step.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
A boyfriend? Upstairs? While she’s down herealone? I was out here offering to stand guard so men didn’t touch her against her will when she had a man who wasn't even paying attention? I blew out a frustrated breath and stepped into the mosh pit of bodies. I moved around enough to give the illusion that I was dancing, but truthfully, I was only standing. Staring at her.
She was an enigma. I didn’t know her but I could tell already that she’d be unlike any other person I’ve ever met before. I could tell already that I’d never meet someone like her again. There was some kind of current flowing between us, some pull I had to her from the moment I saw her.
I couldn’t tell if she felt too. Her body language, the way her eyes glittered just a bit brighter when she looked into my own, that blush and her coy smile, the sound of her laugh; all things that made me think she did. At the same time, her chilly demeanor and snarky attitude made me think she didn’t feel anything at all. I could tell her mouth got her in trouble sometimes.
I already loved that about her, I think.
In an artificial world, Macie seems real.
Maybe she’s hiding her reaction to me because it makes her feel guilty. It can be hard to recognize an instant attraction to a person when you’re already in love with someone else.
I rubbed at my chest, hating the tension it built when I thought about the fact that she is, indeed, in love with someone else. Probably, anyway. I didn’t know enough about her to know she even had a boyfriend, let alone how long they’d been together or how serious they were. But I did know that Macie lives in Brighton Bay, which likely means her boyfriend lives there too. If he made this trip with her, they’re at least serious to travel together.
But the way her eyes lingered on my body, the way her face lit up when I asked her to dance. That meant something. She saw something. At least enough to make her curious. To make her attracted to me. And maybe I couldn’t do anything about that, at least not right now, but it was enough to mean that in some universe, I may have a chance.
A while later, she reached me again. Panting and out of breath, she let me know she needed a break and was going to head upstairs to check on Jeremy.
Jeremy.What the fuck kind of name is Jeremy?
I nodded as she bit down on her lip again, redness rising to her cheeks.
Fuck. That look on her face is going to ruin me.
“Do you want to come with me?” She glanced behind her. “It looks like Carter is…preoccupied.”
I laughed. “Yeah, sure.”
