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Crossland spun me dramatically, and I laughed as he righted us. “I have two here tonight, actually,” he said, shifting us to the music before nodding to a beautiful woman across the room in a silver gown.
“Wasn’t she on the cover of Vogue two months ago?” I asked, shocked.
“Yep,” he said, spinning us again before nodding to another gorgeous woman in a black gown in deep conversation with a few celebrities I recognized from a super popular TV series on Netflix. “And her,” he said.
“They’re both here with you?”
“Yes.”
“And they both…know that?” I stumbled over the question.
He laughed again. “Yes,” he said. “I’m not an asshole.”
“I never said you were—”
“Ah, but you assumed it since I have two dates.”
“No, I was just clarifying,” I countered.
“They’re both just fine with attending this event with me,” he explained. “It’s as much a networking opportunity for them as it is a date with me. Besides,” he said. “Every woman I date knows I don’t do relationships.” He cocked a brow at me. “I thought I heard you were the same way?”
I swallowed hard, the instant denial on my lips fading away. “I am,” I said, even though it felt like a lie. “I mean, I won’t pretend I can juggle two or more men at once, the way you seem to with partners just fine, but yes, I have a thirty-day rule.”
He pursed his lips, nodding as he continued to lead us around the dancefloor. “Thirty days,” he said. “That’s an interesting rule. It gives you just long enough to really get to know the person, but not grow too attached.”
“Exactly,” I said, my eyes flashing around his shoulder, locking onto Ethan like I had a sixth sense about where he’d be. Because he’d moved, settling into a little half-circle with Gareth, Asher, and Weston, all of them looking too gorgeous to be real.
“What if you do become attached?” he asked with mild curiosity. “What do you do on day thirty?”
“That hasn’t ever happened since I put the rule into place,” I answered. “The dates I’ve had that agreed to the terms are usually in it for the same reasons I am—casual companionship.”
“I get that,” he said, then he laughed and shook his head. “Gareth sure picked a winner in you. Ethan was doomed to lose the bet before he even started.”
I playfully batted his arm. “Like he had a choice,” I said. “Gareth picked me without knowing a thing about me.”
“True,” he said. “But, in his defense, Ethan had been staring at you all night.” He cringed. “Not in a creepy stalker way.”
“He had?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “I think you’re the reason Ethan lost the hand in the first place,” he continued. “He was distracted because he kept glancing over at you.”
Shivers danced across my skin at the thought of catching Ethan’s eye before he’d come over to my table that night. He hadn’t told me that part.
“But trust me,” he said, moving us to the music. “I get it. Casual is safe. Setting up terms is safe. And it’s fun.”
“Have you ever been tempted to invest time in someone for longer than a few nights?” I asked.
“Not yet,” he said.
“What if you were?”
He furrowed his brow. “What, you mean if I actually felt something beyond a fun fling?”
“Yeah,” I said. “What would you do?”
He considered. “I guess I won’t know until that happens,” he said, glancing behind me in the area I knew Ethan was. He smirked, bringing his eyes back down to mine. “What about you?” he asked. “What would you do?”
Fuck, I’d walked right into that one.
“I honestly don’t know either,” I answered. “It’s kind of terrifying,” I continued. “Entertaining the idea of actually giving my heart to someone again.”
Crossland glanced behind me again, his smirk deepening. “Well,” he said, slowing us down. “If the person was anything like my friend, I’d say give him a chance.”
I laughed. “Real subtle.”
“Subtle isn’t really my thing,” he said. “I don’t hand out personal recommendations on the reg either,” he said, voice lowered.
“Are you saying this because you’re admitting you like me or because you want Gareth to lose his bet?”
“Oh, I like you,” he said. “Especially since my dates refuse to dance with me and you never do.”
I laughed, shaking my head. “You need to find you a woman who will happily dance with you then.”
“I’ll get to work on that,” he said, and twirled me—
Right into Ethan’s arms.
“I’m cutting in,” he said, not missing a beat as he picked up where Crossland and I had left off.
Only now, with Ethan’s body flush against mine, my heart was in my throat and heat was simmering down my spine. Such a contrast from the easy, platonic way I’d danced with his best friend.
I glanced over my shoulder, flashing Crossland a smile as he headed off the dance floor and toward one of his dates.
