When she burrowed her head against my chest, it took every little bit of restraint and decency I possessed to not throw her over my shoulder, carry her out of here, and beat my chest as I went.
“I need a drink.” Mia smiled up at me and it lit up my world. Fuck, I’d give her anything if she kept looking at me like that. It was damn addictive.
Without a word, I led her to an empty corner booth and settled her in. Looking up, I caught Mick’s eye and made a few hand gestures. Without any fuss, two tall glasses of water and an amused Mick stood at our table.
“Thanks, man.”
I accepted the glasses and handed one to Mia, which she chugged greedily. My arm was still wrapped around her shoulder. At this rate, it might take the jaws of life to remove it.
“How’d you score us a booth? I’ve been watching for one from the moment we came in but they’re always full.”
“It’s who you know!” I tapped the end of her nose with my finger, earning me another mega-watt smile.
“You heading back to work anytime soon?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh.” I was an asshole. I saw the sadness cross her beautiful face and it made my heart soar. She didn’t want to me to leave just as much as I didn’t want to walk away. It was a fucking fantastic feeling. They didn’t make drugs that could get you this high.
I spotted Kenz looking lost and waved my arm, trying to catch her attention. When I did, I knew my time was running out. “Come home with me,” I blurted out before I had a chance to even think it through.
Mia eyed me warily.
I regretted my poor choice of words.
I wished I could take them back.
“Okay,” she answered, barely audible.
You could have knocked me over with a feather. She’d agreed to my ridiculous request. I’d thrown it out there without a single thought and she’d said yes. Maybe the girl was a few sandwiches short of a picnic. I wasn’t about to point that out, though.
“Really? You don’t have to. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I want you to, but don’t feel pressured…” She cut off my ramblings with a kiss that said it all. There was fire and passion and more heat than I could have ever dreamt of. And believe me, the dreams I had where Mia was involved, they made a volcano look like a birthday cake candle. When she pushed her tongue into my mouth, I crushed her body against mine, needing to feel all of her.
“Okay, you two. Keep it PG! There are innocent eyes around.”
Mia pulled back slightly and instantly I missed her warmth. “Sorry, Mum!” Mia apologized sassily, adding a roll of her eyes.
“Hell, don’t be. I’ve waited a damn long time to see you happy.”
Mia flushed under Kenz’s words. Behind me, I heard raised voices and drama starting to unfold. I hated that I knew what it sounded like without even turning around. I wished I could ignore it. I really did. But I couldn’t. It just wasn’t how I was built. “You ladies all right?”
“Perfect.”
Mia’s smile was devastating.
When I heard a table get knocked over, the voices in my ear started booming as the commands and instructions came quick and fast. Pressing a swift kiss to her lips, I said, “Don’t go too far!”
By the time I reached the idiots, they were both covered in what had been their drinks, and the stench of stale beer hung heavily in the air. There was a scantily-clad woman squawking in an irritatingly high pitched wail. The desire to gag her was almost too much. One guy had a split lip, while his friend was sporting a reddened cheek. No doubt a few punches had been thrown and words said, but I didn’t give a shit. I didn’t have the time nor the energy to put up with drunken morons tonight. Together with the three other bouncers who’d descended from the shadows, we led the two men through the club and out onto the street before sending them on their merry way.
For a moment I watched as they wobbled down the street, one walking into a light post as he went. Clearly, they’d had too much to drink and just needed to cool off. Hopefully the couple of hundred metre walk to the taxi rank in the frigid night air would sober them up.
“Thanks, Derek,” a deep voice said as a heavy hand clamped down on my shoulder.
“Just doing my job.”
Needing a moment to myself, I walked around the corner and lent against the brick building. I was sick of this shit. I didn’t want to do this forever. I refused to be the seedy old man, standing at the door of a night club watching girls young enough to be my daughter shake their asses all the time, flirting, trying to get inside. Fuck that. That life wasn’t for me. It seemed as though my decision was made. It was unexpected and caught me off guard. As soon as the thought settled though, the anxiety that had taken up residence in the pit of my stomach eased. That was the moment I knew it was the right decision for me. Now I just needed to tell the two most important women in my life. Zoe and Mia.
