Maybe I am, too.
The crowd at the bar shifts, revealing Pierce gathering his coat and leaving. His shoulders are slumped, but I can’t bring myself to feel bad.
“Good riddance,” Mina mutters as she follows my gaze.
I throw back the rest of my drink and as I do, the DJ kicks up the music.
I grab Mina’s hand. “Let’s dance!”
She flashes a grin, already moving to the music as I pull her toward the dance floor. I look back at James. “Coming?”
He stays seated, an amused look on his face as he watches us. “I think I’ll sit this one out.”
Bodies sway around us, and I get lost in the rhythm, Mina’s energy infectious. I glance at James across the room. His eyes are steady on me, and I’m caught between wanting him here and enjoying the freedom of him watching from afar.
Mina spins me around, and I laugh with abandon. I let myself enjoy it, the music pounding through my body, the blur of voices and colors, the feeling of being untethered.
When I look back again, James is threading through the crowd.
He’s not leaving, I realize, but making his way to me. By the time he reaches us, I’m breathless and a little dizzy, but he steadies me, his hand firm on my waist.
“Thought you were sitting this one out?” I yell over the music.
He leans in, his voice low in my ear. “I changed my mind.”
The warmth of his breath sends a shiver down my spine. Mina gives me a knowing look and slips away, leaving me alone with James.
I’m hyperaware of everything: my heartbeat, the weight of his hand on my hip, the way his body moves with mine. I’m trying to remember to breathe.
The music shifts to a slower beat, and he pulls me closer.
My heart is racing, but I’m not sure if it’s from the dancing or how his eyes lock on mine, intense and searching. I wonder if he can tell how much I want him to kiss me right now.
The music slows, and so do we. He doesn’t let go of me, and I can feel every inch of him against me.
“Avery,” he says, and there’s something in his voice that I can’t place.
I look up at him, waiting, wondering if he’s going to say anything more. The moment stretches between us, and I’m about to say something when he leans in. I think he’s going to kiss me, but he stops, his mouth close to my ear.
“If you keep grinding on me like that, I’m taking you to the parking lot and I’m gonna do something I really shouldn’t do with one of my employees. Behave,” he grits out.
I lean away, looking him in the eyes. Embarrassed and flustered, I say, “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize—“
His grip tightens on my waist, sending a wave of heat through me. It could be my natural desire for him or the liquid courage coursing through me, but I suddenly don’t care about the consequences. I lean into him, snake my hand around to the back of his neck, and get on my tippy toes to whisper in his ear.
“What if I don’t want to behave?”
Who am I?
He trails his fingers up my arm, grabbing my hand that’s on his neck and pulling me through the crowd toward the door. I quickly wave goodbye to Mina, and that’s all the attention I cangive her before focusing back on the man leading me toward the parking lot.
When we get to his truck, he opens the passenger door and says, “In.”
I watch him as he rounds the front of his truck, and it feels like my heart is beating out of my chest.
Are we really doing this?
He climbs in the driver’s side, moving the seat back a little like he’s done this before. I shake the thought from my head as he grabs my elbow, hauling me on top of him and says, “Get over here.”
