I prayed it was her brother.
She said a few more words, and then Chloe left the group, heading toward the restroom.
I followed.
Waiting outside the door was the longest five minutes of my life.
CHAPTER SEVEN - CHLOE
IN THE BRIEF moment Tyler appeared once more with my drink and I tore my eyes away, Gavin had disappeared. I wondered if I’d been wishing to see him so much that my mind had made him up, and it had simply been just some other ginger-haired male.
I headed to the bathroom to take a moment and gather my wits. My cheeks were already red. I braced my arms on the sink and inhaled deeply, counting back from ten and trying to calm my racing heart.
God, if that was him… if I hadn’t imagined him…
It was just one night.
I left the bathroom full of fake confidence and told myself he was just another guy, that seeing him was no different from seeing Lana for the first time in months. It was only shock, nothing more—
I was yanked backward, whirled around, and suddenly I found myself pinned against the darkened wall. The familiar heated scent hit me, and I had to dig my heels into the ground to keep my knees from buckling.
All previous thoughts evacuated my numb body.
Gavin hovered there, my navel to his, his forearm flat against the wall above my head. I couldn’t hear the music for the sound of my heart thudding violently.
Pain stretched in his eyes. Neither of us knew the words to say. Memories of a night lost—a night I had almost begun to think had been a dream—flashed behind my eyes. Every touch, every smell, every kiss… an intoxication of lust that I hadn’t felt since being with him.
Lana’s laugh echoed from the ballroom, breaking me from my trance, and I wondered if she’d seen Gavin pull me into the shadowed corner away from the rest of our colleagues and partners.
His grip on my wrist loosened, and he trailed his fingers up my arm. It was a gesture that had me curious if he was as mesmerized and in shock at seeing me as I was at seeing him. I could barely catch my breath, my chest heaving against his. I’d forgotten how consuming his presence was in the five years since we’d seen each other, and once more, I had to remind myself not to fall.
“What are you doing here?” he finally whispered. “What are you…” He started to reach up to my face, like he would swipe my cheek with his thumb, but instead hesitated. His weight shifted from foot to foot, tongue running across his lips. He looked so confused, so torn.
“I didn’t think I’d ever see you again,” he said, his voice so quiet that it was as though he were only saying it to himself.
Did he not know it was my marketing company he’d hired?
“Hi, Gavin,” I managed once I caught my breath.
A smile flinched on his lips. “Hi, Chloe.”
God, I’d missed the way he said my name.
I swallowed, unsure of what to do with myself. I was trembling with nerves and adrenaline and pure lust. It was as if my body was crying out for his touch, wondering why he was so close and not caressing every inch of my skin.
“This is weird,” I managed, a light, nervous huff of amusement leaving me with my shaking voice.
Gavin didn’t let up, but that smile widened, his dimple appearing, and this time he did touch my cheek. “I can’t believe you’re standing in front of me,” he said softly, those fingers trailing on my neck and pushing my hair back. I opened up instinctively, lifting my chin so that his thumb brushed my jaw to the front of my throat. Fuck, his hands…
I think I could have stayed right there in his embrace and not said a word for hours. Just touching him, remembering his body and how it bent and fit to mine.
“Did you not know?” I asked, still in a trance.
“Know what?” he whispered, and I could feel his breath on my cheek.
“That it was my company you hired for the rebrand.”
Gavin pulled back, our eyes locking on one another. “Your…” He released me, and the cold absence of his touch burned like cold fire. I wanted him flush to me again. Those few seconds had felt like a long-lost home. I craved it. I craved that warmth, that lingering touch.
