She slowly nodded.“I’d like that.”
Nick brought her up against his body and slanted his head to kiss her.
All at once, a male voice shouted at them.“Hey.It’s theHashtagNicksDickguy!Dude, how’s it hanging tonight?”Then the man laughed.
The sound of that cruel laughter grated on Claire’s last nerve.
Luckily, the bar was loud enough that not everyone heard, but several people in the vicinity stopped what they were doing and turned toward Nick.
Nick tensed under Claire’s hands.“Fuck,” he murmured.
Claire whipped around, her body coiled with rage.How could that consummate douchebag do it?Why would some idiot troll spoil a perfectly good evening with his nasty comments?When she got a hold of that loser…
She took a step but Nick stopped her.“Claire, it’s okay.I’ve got this.”
Nick pulled himself up to his full height and walked over to the man.The guy had been chuckling, but his chuckles stopped when Nick approached.Only then did he seem to realize the handyman had about five inches on him.
Nick stopped in front of the man.“Did you have something to say to me?”
The dude put up his hands.“Nah, man.”He looked to others in the crowd for support, but was met with stern faces.
“Because I’d prefer if you said it to my face,” said Nick.
“You’ve got it all wrong.I was really just goofing around.”
“Goofing around.Right.Here’s the thing, friend.Words have impact.You should think about that before you speak next time.”
It may have been Claire’s imagination, but the man shriveled.Confronted by Nick’s calm and powerful demeanor, he had no choice but to retreat.“Sorry about that.Won’t happen again.Good show, dude.”When the guy realized others were staring him down as well, he left the bar as quickly as he could.
As Nick made his way back over to Claire, a few people clapped and patted him on the back.
But his smile was all for Claire.
This man…her heart raced for him.It flip-flopped and somersaulted and danced.
Not long ago, she’d thought her heart had forgotten how to sing.
Now, it belted out a new melody.
He pulled her into his embrace, and she snuggled up against him.She couldn’t get close enough.
“You were awesome, Nick.Youareawesome.”
He kissed her on the nose.“Come on.Let’s get a drink.I want to show you off to my friends.”
Chapter Nineteen
His head still buzzing from the noise, Nick drove back to his place.Claire was at his side.She had told Adele and Mia to head home on their own.Because they’d all driven in with Mia, it hadn’t been a problem.
He had her all to himself.
After such a tumultuous night at the Bamboo Gigolo, and a successful return to the stage, he was eager to have some quiet time with Claire.
Not that he planned to keep her quiet.He planned to give her cause to make noise—lots of noise.
Specifically, by screaming his name.
Cocky, perhaps, but he couldn’t help it.He was on a high, and it was all because of her.With her support, he’d been able to reclaim his love for music.And thanks to her, he’d kept his cool during that interaction with the dude in the bar.
