“Hey,” Ford said, and was I imagining the sharpness in his tone? “Hands off my date.” Then, as if that wasn’t enough to get his point across, he hooked a finger in my belt loop at the back of my jeans and tugged me out of Eli’s grasp.
Losing my footing, I stumbled back into Ford’s chest with a huff, and he placed a warm hand on my waist to steady me.
“What the hell, Ford?” I glanced at him over my shoulder, ready to lay into him, but my breath caught in my throat when I found himright there, his warm, male scent sweeping over me, his eyes freezing me in place.
Every inch of our bodies was pressed together, my back to his front. His head was tipped down toward me, a piece of hair falling over his forehead and into his eye, and his lips were so close, all it would take was one little push up on my toes and then they’d be against mine.
Whether I wanted to or not, I couldn’t stop my brain from questioning what that would be like. Would a kiss from Ford be slow and languid, easygoing and sensual…everything he embodied? Or would it be a mirror of how we were when we were together? Raw, combustible, and so charged, everyone in the vicinity would feel the spark.
Would it be over in a blink before it ever really started, or would we both crave more, unable to get enough?
“Sorry, man,” Eli said, a smile in his tone. “She’s all yours.”
I snapped my gaze away from Ford, all too grateful that Eli had broken whatever spell I’d just been under. The night hadn’t even started yet, and I was already losing myself in ridiculous daydreams. I needed to get my shit together and keep my wits about me. The last thing I needed to do was lose them around Ford McKenzie.
“I’ve got your pit ready,” Eli said. “But first, we need to go over the rules so you don’t accidentally murder each other.”
Ford tipped his head toward me. “She promised she wouldn’t, but you never know with this one. She’s probably plotting it right now.”
“You’re not wrong,” I mumbled under my breath, desperate to slip back into our familiar routine and shake off whatever pull I’d been feeling toward him.
After we’d been prepped and educated on the proper behavior at a place where you wielded weapons for fun, Eli led us out to the main room.
I slid a suspicious glance Ford’s way when he reached over my head and held the door open for me. “Don’t think manners are going to save you from getting your ass kicked.”
“You can try, kitten.” With a wink, he pressed his hand on the small of my back and guided me inside the space while I valiantly attempted to ignore the warmth of his skin against mine.
The main area was exactly as vast as one would expect from a converted barn. A small lounge section was directly ahead of us where a couple people sat on a dark brown leather couch, and a short line had formed at the bar located in the back.
But the main attraction was the collection of pits that ran along the perimeter, each one separated by floor-to-ceiling metal fencing. Tape marked the floor, designating where each person should throw from, and two wooden pallet boards with black-and-red bull’s-eyes painted on them hung at the far end of each pit.
The scent of freshly cut wood filled the air as dozens of people milled about. A low hum of conversation buzzed through the space, interspersed by bells ringing and cheers when someone hit a bull’s-eye.
I only recognized a handful of people as we passed, though that was to be expected, considering how long it had been since I’d been back home. Ford, though… The guy couldn’t walk two feet without someone calling out a hello, which he returned with a smile and a wave.
“I’ve got you guys set up in pit four, and I made the accommodations you requested, Ford,” Eli said with a smile.
“Thanks.” The single word was clipped, and Ford barely waited for Eli to finish speaking before he grabbed my hand and dragged me in the direction Eli had gestured toward.
“Let me know what you think or if you run into any issues,” Eli called after us, shaking his head when Ford didn’t do more than give him a wave over his shoulder in acknowledgment.
“That was rude. And why are you in such a hurry? I know we agreed on thirty minutes, but I didn’t actually start a timer, so you can relax,” I said, luckily able to keep up with his long strides as he tugged me toward our pit.
“I figured we didn’t have much time before you turned back into an insufferable shrew, so I better hurry up.”
I rolled my eyes, but my shoulders relaxed, feeling right at home with this antagonism between us. It was a hell of a lot easier to handle than the unwanted sexual tension that’d suddenly popped up.
I squeezed his hand, still encasing mine, to get his attention. “What accommodations was he talking about?”
“Quit dragging your feet, and you’ll find out.”
“You know you telling me to do something makes me want to not do it ten times harder, right?”
He glanced back, flashing a smile that nearly had me stumbling. “Glad to see your claws are still sharp, kitten.”
Though I tried not to show him that he got a rise out of me, I couldn’t stop my brow from creasing, my lips pursing at the pet name he loved using. I hated it. Especially the way he said it, all condescending and sickly sweet. The only reason he insisted on calling me that was because he knew it pissed me off.
Our pit was located in the far corner and seemed to be the only single one in the area, all the others having double, triple, or quadruple pits lined up together. Had that been the luck of the draw or something Ford had requested specifically…the accommodations Eli had mentioned?
