By the end of the song, he was ready to leave the dance floor and turned to go, but Dylan caught hold of his wrist.
He held up one finger and mouthed, “please.”
Callum rolled his eyes. He didn’t want to stay, but he also couldn’t resist Dylan’s puppy dog eyes and thick, pouting lips that were both literally begging him to stay put. So he did, and gradually, he began to relax.
They weren’t dancing together, just close to each other. It didn’t take long for a guy to manoeuvre closer to Dylan and soon they were following each other’s moves. Callum’s insides prickled inexplicably. Was he jealous?
He didn’t have much time to process the feeling, because a pretty brunette put her hands on his hips and started dancing with him. Callum did his best to focus on her. Her hair was long and loose and kept flicking over her face as she moved her head in time to the music. She had a voluptuous figure and wore clothes that accentuated her curves. He held her hips, too, and they danced close. She was better than him, more relaxed and sure of herself, so he followed her lead.
Although his hands were on her, his thoughts weren’t. He kept stealing glances at Dylan and the guy he was dancing with. Each time he did, the prickling sensation got worse, as though a porcupine was throwing a party in his gut.
The guy Dylan was dancing with was good looking. He had long hair, and was wearing leather trousers and a tight-fitting purple shirt that stretched across his heavily muscled chest. Like Dylan, he had several piercings. The guy kept whispering in Dylan’s ear, and every time he did, Dylan responded with a smile and a laugh. Was the guy suggesting that they go and make out somewhere? Or worse, did he want Dylan to go home with him?
Callum knew he had no right to feel jealous. He’d been the one to lay down the ‘we’re just friends’ boundary. Up until the moment Dylan had started dancing with someone else, Callum had been fine with that—hadn’t he?
The girl edged closer to him. Her proximity made his cock ache. She leant close and brushed her lips over his. They were soft. She tickled the tip of her tongue over the seam of his mouth. He allowed the kiss to happen, feeling everything he’d expected to. Heat pulsed through his body, coupled with lust. He moved his hand to her head, holding her gently as they deepened the kiss. She was a good kisser. His body was definitely into her, but his head—his head was on another page entirely, feeling a deep sense of guilt because Dylan was close by and had probably seen him kissing someone else.
Just as he had no right to feel jealous, he had no reason to feel guilty. Logically, Callum knew that, but he couldn’t drive either emotion away enough to truly enjoy the kiss. He broke free and pointed towards the bar, mouthing an apology to the girl. She shrugged and moved away, quickly finding another guy to dance with.
Callum turned and went to the bar. He felt both hot and shivery as he ordered another beer. He was so confused.
“See,” Dylan said, making Callum jump so hard he almost fell off the bar stool. “I knew you’d have fun once you let loose.” He perched on the neighbouring bar stool. “And I told you the girls would flock to you.”
Callum forced himself to smile.
“You could have gone home with her,” Dylan said knowingly.
Callum hunched his shoulders. “Where’s the guy you were dancing with?”
Dylan shrugged and looked at the dance floor. “He’s probably already hooked up with someone else.”
When the bartender gave Callum his beer, Dylan ordered another cocktail for himself. Then he looked at Callum thoughtfully.
“You’ve got…” Smiling, he grabbed a napkin from the bar and used it to dab at the corner of Callum’s mouth. “Lipstick smears. I think I’ve made it worse.” Dylan wrinkled his nose. “Sorry.”
Callum wiped at his mouth. Or at least, he meant to, but his fingertips lingered over the spot Dylan had been dabbing at. The girl had been wearing glossy red lipstick, which had been nowhere near as flattering as the shade Dylan had picked. He wondered what it would be like to brush his fingers over Dylan’s jaw, to press his mouth to Dylan’s and kiss him.
Dylan tilted his head. “You look a million miles away. Do you want to talk about it?”
Callum shook his head. For all his curious daydreaming, he wasn’t ready to voice his attraction out loud. He liked what they had and didn’t want to ruin it by acting on half-baked feelings. He didn’t want Dylan to be nothing more than a test drive.
The barman served Dylan his drink, which was the same blue cocktail as before. Dylan sucked the bright liquid through a straw. The way his lips were pinched together as he stared into Callum’s eyes was sexy. Callum tugged his fingers through his hair.
“You know what, I might go.”
Dylan’s eyes widened. “Was it something I said?” His tone was playful, but his voice trembled.
“No, of course not.”
Dylan pushed his lower lip out slightly. “Darling, I made you run away last week, so we both know that I can put my foot in it big time.”
“You haven’t. I’m just tired, that’s all.”
Dylan’s laugh was fragile. “That’s almost as bad as saying you need to wash your hair.” He put his hand on Callum’s knee. “Talk to me?”
Callum tapped his forefinger against his temple. “I’ve got a lot going on in here and it’s too noisy to think.”
“Good things or bad things?”
