"Bass," I grunted and then gestured at my instrument.
What? Not that!I screamed at myself inside. Why did I bark that out like a Neanderthal?
My wolf pranced around inside like when he lolled under a full moon.
“What was that?” She furrowed her brows as if trying to follow my conversation.
Join the club. I had no idea where I was going with that.
Damien and Kylie exchanged looks.
"I played bass," I clarified, not that it helped much. Coherent words completely deserted me as sure as if they'd galloped off into the sunset.
Smooth. Real smooth, Forte.
Caleb barked out a laugh, which he tried to disguise with a cough.
"Are you okay?" Piper asked, arching one delicate eyebrow. "You look a bit…flush."
My cheeks heated. My entire body flamed up like a damn phoenix being reborn, leaving every inch of me hot and sweaty. I cleared my throat, desperately trying to salvage this awkward introduction. “Yeah. I mean—I was just…” Stunned by my wolf? He declared you our fated mate. Hell no, I couldn’t say any of that. “It's so hot…on stage. I could use…water.”
"You sure could," Kylie responded and filled a small plastic cup with water from a dispenser at the end of the bar. She thrust the cup into my hand.
"Thanks." I gulped the water, still burning, feeling everyone's eyes on me. When I finished, I gripped the cup so tightly, it crushed, adding to my awkward display.
“Maybe you should get some air, He-Man,” Caleb suggested.
"Fresh air always helps," Piper added with a gentle smile.
Come with me.I fought the words from escaping my lips. No way would she want to go anywhere alone with a stranger who could barely communicate and then crushed plastic cups in a weird, muscle-head flex.
"Right. Air," I said, proving I was a man of so few words and zero eloquent ones. I winced. Could I just rewind the last few minutes and start over? I'd show her that I wasn't usually this inept. I'd woo her with flirtatious banter to show I was interested, be smooth like Van, and not get stuck in this mindless stutter.
“Nice meeting you, Rex. Welcome aboard. See you around the ship.” She waved and turned away.
Nooo. I blew it. As she walked away, I stared after her, and my stomach churned.
My wolf whined as she disappeared into the crowd outside the lounge.
“Man.” Damien appeared beside me. “What the hell was that?”
“That was brutal to watch,” Van added.
I ran a hand over my beard, still stunned, not having a clue how to answer.
“Need to go bark at the moon or something?” Caleb teased.
I groaned. How could I explain my weirdness tonight?
“Lay off, guys,” Kylie said. “You okay, Rex?”
No, I’m a furry buffoon who’s about to jump overboard right now and beg a whale to swallow me whole.
“You look a little—moonstruck,” Van added.
“I’m fine.” I chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of my neck. “Just all that pent-up energy with playing tonight.”
“I get it,” Damien said. “First-time jitters.”
