Chapter 7
I stand alone for all of ten seconds before a panic attack comes on. I feel eyes on me. Watching. Staring. Laughing that I'm by myself, and I have no idea where Francesca disappeared to.
I feel too vulnerable standing still. I go upstairs, give Sam and Francesca’s names to the bouncer, and find an empty VIP booth. Hopefully, Ian will know where to look for me.
There's a reddish tint to the lighting upstairs. It’s not as loud. You could actually have a conversation here. A curved, rounded bench covered in velvet sits on one side of each table. This area has women in tight red and black corsets, short, puffy black skirts, sheer black stockings, and shiny black high-heeled thigh-high boots serving drinks to the tables. Large round pillar tanks filled with water and fish are spread around the room.
"I thought there was no guy."
I gasp. My heart soars to the heavens. That voice! I have to stop myself from jumping on the table and yelling, “It's him!”
I turn my head so my eyes can confirm what my trembling body already knows. The man standing next to me in gray slacks and a black button-down shirt is the man I've been looking for all day.
“Is he your boyfriend?” His caramel eyes pierce me.
"No."
"Who is he?"
I shrug. “No one."
I owe this man nothing, but I want to make it clear that Ian doesn't mean anything to me. I'm his . If he wants me. I scoot over in the booth, making room for him to sit with me. Understanding my unspoken offer, he slides in next to me.
"He doesn't look like no one. He looks like a guy that wants you."
Embarrassed, I shake my head and drop my eyes. It's hard to admit under his scrutiny because I want him to feel the same intense attraction for me that I feel for him.
“Trust me; he doesn't. He was being nice so that I wouldn’t be alone. He's not interested in me like that. Guys don’t want me like that.” Boy, does that hurt to say, even if it is true.
I don't know if I'm right or if I'm downplaying Ian's interest. It sort of felt like he was interested, but that’s not my life, that’s Francesca’s. And If he truly was, wouldn't he have found me by now? Either way, it doesn't matter. Ian isn't the one I want.
There's something about this stranger that draws me to him. That captivates me. He has me dangling from a hook like a helpless worm. I just hope I don't end up as dead and devoured as the poor squirming creature.
"Of course he wants you." The sexy man next to me assures, moving closer to me on the bench. “He has eyes, doesn’t he?” He asks, brushing my hair behind my shoulder and leaning in with his thigh pressing against mine.
His electric touch sizzles below the surface and commands me. I’ve never reacted to anyone like this. This is the man who holds the key to forgetting Corey. The secret to moving on. Even if I don’t yet know his name.
“I thought about you all day.”
“Really?” My thudding heart lights with a warm glow.
“Mmm. I half thought I was delirious last night. I thought I imagined you or that I was visited by an angel.”
“Sorry to disappoint. I don’t strut around in my bra and underwear while wearing a pair of wings.”
“What I wouldn’t give to see that.” His hand cups my cheek, and his thumb strokes my skin. My face burns from his touch. I hold my breath as he leans in, inches away. I hold my breath, hoping he kisses me as his eyes bore into mine.
I shrug, unable to take his scrutiny any longer, and drop my stare.
“I get the feeling that you don’t believe that you’re beautiful. V ery beautiful.”
His hand drops to my shoulder, allowing his fingers to brush against the exposed skin between my neck and my shoulder, acting like a match sparking against a striking surface. After a few seconds, he slides his hand under my hair and pulls my head close to his lips.
“Is it so hard to believe that I want you? That I can’t imagine a man being near you and not wanting to strip your clothes and have his way with you?”
My mouth opens. Not so much to answer, but in surprise. This is the moment he closes the distance, bringing his mouth to mine. His tongue, soft and gentle, glides between my lips, against my tongue, whirling, twirling. His warm peppermint breath makes my mouth tingle.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” He breaks away, breathing heavily. “It was on my mind all day. I promised myself if I saw you, this time, I’d steal a kiss.”
Wide-eyed and open-mouthed, I sidle up closer to him. So close, I’m almost sitting on his lap. My hands search for his shoulders. They’re so large and muscular beneath my fingers. I want to hold on and never let go.
“Don’t be sorry. If everything you just said is true, don’t apologize.”
My fingers, along with my eyes, trail down his arms, over his large biceps. He’s all hard muscle. I wonder what else is hard. What is wrong with me? I don’t think about men like this! But now that I am, the thought sends a flood of heat surging through me. My breath hitches. My pulse races.
“Now that I’m awake and have free time, are you ready to have some fun?”
“Yes,” I whisper, not sure I understand what he’s asking.
“Good. Because I haven’t just been thinking about you; I’ve been hard for you all day.” He takes my hand and rests it on his engorged length.
“Oh.” Feeling shy and embarrassed, my mouth drops. I pull my hand away, but it’s too late. A dragon breathes fire in my belly. Flames surge up my spine and shoot down between my legs.
This is definitely outside my comfort zone. But what the hell? I’m single. I’m on vacation. Why not have a fling? Giving in to the lust racing through my veins, I pull him back to me.
I kiss him with determination. Sounds of pleasure spill from my mouth as his hands tangle in my hair. Each time I try to pull back, break away to catch my breath, he holds me tighter. Kisses me deeper. Like I’m the answer to his needs. I clench his shirt in my fingers, afraid if I loosen my grip, he’ll float away.
He ends the kiss, leaving me light-headed and dizzy. Holding my head so that we’re only inches away, he leans in and gives my lips one last swipe of his tongue before speaking.
“Let’s go dance.”
I nod in approval and allow him to lead me to a dark corner of the room. The music pounds faster than we move. With his arm snaked around my waist he holds my body pressed against his, his eyes locked on mine song after song. The fluid-like way he moves intoxicates me.
“I know this is happening at warp speed; it’s a little intimidating for me too. And it’s okay for you to say no, but do you want to leave here and go somewhere else to get to know each other?" He asks, his eyes locked on mine. “Somewhere more private?”
This man is temptation.
"I can't. It's my friend’s bachelorette party.”
"And yet you’ve spent the last two hours with another man, then me.” Did that much time pass?
“Yeah, but–”
“Tell your friend you're going back to the hotel. She'll understand.”
"I don't know. I don’t even know your name."
"If I give it to you, will you come with me?"
"Maybe."
“Tim.” His fingertip draws figure eights on my lower back, making my insides quiver. “Now,” He kisses my neck, making me squirm. “What should I call you?"
"Bailey.”
"What do you say, Bailey?" He turns serious, focusing his intense eyes as our fronts are fusing into one.
"Let me find Francesca so she doesn't worry when she can't find me."
He pulls me in for one more toe-curling kiss. “Meet me out front, and try not to pick up another guy along the way."