26. Huntley
Chapter Twenty-Six
HUNTLEY
It took a little coaxing.
River had said she couldn’t dance. I’d been going to leave it alone, not pushing her to do anything she didn’t feel comfortable with.
Even if I longed to feel her in my arms.
But when she’d confessed that she had never danced with a guy before, the ladies worked their magic, gave her a pep talk, and soon after we had eaten, I found her nestled in my embrace.
I was one lucky fucker for sure.
We swayed back and forth, River’s arms wrapped around my waist, her head lying over my furiously beating heart. I rested my hands on the small of her back and my chin on top of her head.
She felt so right against me. Like she was made just for me. My mother would probably tell me to make sure I didn’t mess it up.
I didn’t have any plans to do so.
The date had been going well. We teased and laughed with friends, the food was great, we checked two firsts off her list, one with the date itself, and another with the dance.
Well, make that three—the unexpected kiss. While we had kissed before, it hadn’t been as intense or filled with heat. Don’t get me wrong, I would cherish the first one until my dying breath, but there was something to be said about the taste of her on my tongue.
River tasted of sweet peaches on a warm summer’s day.
She didn’t really have a list. Maybe I was the one keeping track. I wanted the extraordinary woman to get to experience everything that would make her happy, feel special and bring a smile to her face.
Another song had started and when River didn’t move a muscle, I was more than content to keep her locked in my arms. The band was singing Almost Paradise. I thought about the same song playing during the movie Footloose and wondered if River had seen it. The words were perfect at that moment.
In fact, the whole evening had been perfect.
Until instinct kicked in and all the hairs on the back of my neck suddenly stood on end as a chill slithered down my spine.
Not wanting to scare her or make her move, my eyes darted around the room. All our friends were on the dance floor cuddled up together.
But it seemed all the guys had gone on alert too, getting the same niggling feeling I was. We may not have all served together but we easily communicated with our eyes.
There was a threat somewhere, but where the fuck was it?
And who was the target?
Bronson motioned with his head toward the table and I watched the others acknowledge by nodding back. The timing seemed to be with us because the song ended so us leading every one of our women to the table didn’t seem so abrupt.
Moving my hands to River’s hips, I gently pushed her back a touch so I could see in her eyes. “Let’s go sit down and grab a drink.”
I dropped my hands and held out a palm, letting her grab on and then I moved her in close to my side and pulled her with me toward the group that had all made their way there too. Once we were seated, I scanned the room again.
“What the hell is going on?” Teal asked, pulling my attention to everyone around the table.
Kace looked at his wife. “What do you mean, babe?”
“Don’t babe me, I can see your protector goggles have dropped into place and you’re tense about something.”
“You all think you're so subtle, but we know you too well. I felt the moment something changed when we were dancing,” Brinley told her husband Rowan.
Gemma pointed at her man Bodie and then her brother Paxton. “Cough up what’s going on, both of you.”
The other ladies were nodding in agreement and I felt River’s eyes on me, so I turned to take in her reaction.
“You slightly tensed too out there on the dance floor. Is something wrong?” she asked.
Shit, I wouldn’t lie to her, but I didn’t want to worry her either. “Remember I told you before to always pay attention to your instincts and not dismiss it if you get a feeling? Well, I felt like someone was watching us.”
River frowned and my stomach dropped.
I went on to add, “But the feeling is gone, that’s the good news.”
Whatever had caused the creepy feeling to wash over me, may not be an issue anymore right then, but I wouldn’t dismiss that it had been there. Especially not when all the men had noticed .
All of a sudden, someone was clapping their hands and I turned to see Alley practically bouncing in her seat, her palms smacking together. “I’ve got a bat in the car. It’s been a long time since I got to use one.”
“Honey, I don’t think now's the time?—”
Landon didn’t get to finish because the laughter of all the ladies that erupted washed him out and echoed throughout the whole place.
“Let’s have a toast!” Ruby yelled, holding up her wine glass. All the women followed suit, Lake included, but her glass was full of grape juice due to her pregnancy. “To Alley, grabbing her bat and showing these men how we take care of things.”
Alley’s husband Landon was looking at his wife with a silly grin and face full of admiration. The girl was batshit crazy sometimes and he loved every bit of it.
All the other men were practically rolling their eyes, but they were every inch in love with their quirky women as I was mine.
Because I do love her.
All the ladies held up their glasses and leaned across the table to hover in the center, my girl included, to clink glasses and cheer, causing the other patrons to look our way.
“To Alley and her bats!” they all shouted.
The guys all chuckled, now more relaxed. It was clear they all noticed the threat was no longer around us. I just wish I knew what the fuck it had been. I would stay vigilant but wanted River to continue to have a good time.
All the ladies seemed to enjoy themselves after that, with a bit more dancing, a whole lot of laughter and maybe a wee too much wine. By the end of the evening, all of them, except Lake, were a bit tipsy.
It was the second time since meeting River, I’d found myself driving her home after a bit too much to drink. Only this time, there was no sadness surrounding us in the car. She giggled and babbled non-stop as we drove to her house.
And she never let go of my hand.
Her stare was full of clarity.
River may have been feeling the effects of the glasses of wine she’d consumed, but I could read her gaze like an open book.
She glanced at my mouth and licked her lips. The kiss from earlier was clearly on her mind and wondering if it would happen again.
I was happy to oblige with a goodnight, end-of-date kiss, but that’s all it would be. I knew she wasn’t ready for more and there was no way anything beyond that would ever happen unless she was completely sober.
“Are you going to kiss me?” she asked breathlessly, voice full of need.
The sound went straight to my cock.
Down boy, behave.
“Do you want me to kiss you, sweetheart?”
As I took a few steps to get to her, she whispered, “Yes.”
Knowing Bronson would be bringing the kids home any minute, I didn’t have much time with River alone. I wanted it to be just the two of us when I claimed her mouth again.
Leaning one arm against the door beside her head, I slowly brought my other hand up toward her face. Just as I was about to ask permission to touch her, she said, “Don’t ask, just do what feels right. I trust you and just want you to treat me like any other girl.”
River looked down at the ground, studying the floor then. Doing as she asked, I placed my fingers under her chin, lifting her head so she had no choice but to look at me when I spoke.
I swiped my finger over her sultry lips. “You’re not like any other girl I’ve met. To me you’re the only girl that has ever mattered.”
Her breath hitched.
“One day I’m going to share all my secrets with you,” she said softly. “But today, I just need to feel your lips on mine.”
River’s tongue darted out and touched my thumb, causing a hitch in my breath that matched hers from seconds before.
Wasting no more time, I bent down and took her mouth in an earth-shattering kiss.
When we broke apart, she laid her forehead on my chest.
“Best date ever,” she whispered.
I didn’t tell her I didn’t have any competition since ours had been the only date she’d ever had. Instead, I rested my chin on top of her head like I’d done when we were dancing and wrapped her up in my arms again.
“Yeah, best date ever,” I echoed.
She burrowed in even closer.
“My warrior,” I whispered.