She giggles as her eyes travel across the VIP section toward the bar, where Theo and Chase are standing with their backs tous. “I’m serious, Whit. That man is just as taken with you as Chase seems to be with me.”
I also look at the bar, appreciating the way Theo’s changed out of his work clothes and into a pair of dark wash jeans that do wondrous things for his backside. The two brothers are attracting all kinds of attention as they stand next to each other at the bar. The two of them are similar in brawn, though Chase has Theo beat. Chase’s shoulders indicate lots of hours dedicated to the gym.
I chew on the inside of my lip as I drag my gaze away from the men. “Something did happen with Theo last week.”
Leila’s eyes sparkle as she leans in. “Tell me.”
I fill her in on the broom closet incident, and Leila gets more and more excited as the story goes on, but her face falls when I tell her the ending.
“That’s it?” she asks. “You didn’t kiss him?”
“He almost kissed me, but then my phone rang and interrupted us.”
Leila crosses her arms, looking unimpressed. “You left your ringer on?”
“Yes, and guess who was calling?You!”
She frowns at me now. “Well, consider this my apology. That’s a bit anti-climactic, if you ask me.”
“It felt anything but, though,” I admit, remembering how Theo’s hands felt on my waist as he steadied me in the supply closet. “You know how they say they feel a spark in all the romance books and movies when they touch? Well, I felt a freaking inferno.”
Leila’s eyes widen but she doesn’t say anything for a moment, processing what I’ve just admitted to her. Finally, right as Theo and Chase turn from the bar to head back to our seats, she says, “Okay, well, we’re going to have to do something about this.”
I don’t have the chance to question what she means by that before the guys return. Chase makes a big show of handing Leila her drink, falling to one knee and holding it out for her. Theo, however, rolls his eyes at his brother and slides my vodka tonic across the table toward me.
I give him an appreciative smile as I take a sip. Theo’s eyes are on me the whole time, his expression soft and affectionate. It’s doing stupid things to my insides. There’s always a certain level of awkwardness to seeing people you work with outside their usual setting, but this is something completely different.
Theo looks more like a single, available man now than my boss. And that’s a fact I can easily see myself falling victim to.
Boundaries have already been crossed, but I’m worried that we’ve barely begun to brush the surface.
We sit in our booth for a while more, making small talk. Eventually, Leila has enough of it, and when the music changes, she hops up and announces, “I love this song. Let’s go dance!”
Before I have the chance to protest, she’s pulling me out of the booth, out of the VIP section, and onto the dance floor.
I can’t help but laugh when I’m dragged out into the middle of the floor, and Leila rounds on me, giving me a bright smile and urging me to dance with her. I have to admit, she did pick a great song to dance to.
Letting myself relax for a few minutes, I dance shamelessly with my friend, swaying my hips and raising my arms above my head as I move with the song's beat.
The flashing lights, the hum of alcohol in my system, and the thrum of the bass rattles through my body, and I really start to enjoy myself. It’s been so long since I’ve let myself loose like this, unworried about my outward image or appearance. I dance like no one’s watching and sing my favorite songs at the top of my lungs.
Time seems to blur together as the mix of songs continues endlessly. Out of my peripheral vision, I notice Theo and Chase have come down from the VIP section onto the floor to dance with us. I can feel Theo’s eyes all over me as I dance, but I’ve had enough drinks already tonight that I don’t seem to care.
When sweat starts to bead on my forehead, and my chest rises and falls with my breathing, the music changes to more of a slower pop song. Leila simultaneously grabs Chase’s hand and then pushes me toward Theo with a wink and a “See you later,” before disappearing with her man.
I watch the two of them walk away, and I’m a little bummed that Leila’s left me. Then I remember Theo, who is standing right next to me.
My eyes travel over him, and maybe it’s the headiness of the air around us or still the alcohol, but I boldly ask, “Want to dance?”
His eyes crinkle in the corners, and he closes the distance between us, not wasting any time in sweeping me up into his arms. His large hands circle my waist and pull me flush against him. I gasp at his brazenness but wrap my arms around his neck to hold myself steady.
Theo looks down at me. I shiver with the intensity of his gaze, feeling like I’m exposed from head to toe. But I like it.
I like being seen by Theo Hurst.
I’ve always been one to impress. It’s something I always strive for, but Theo sees past all of that. He sees past the perfectionist side of me that always aims to please. Though I’ve been with plenty of men before him, they’ve never looked at me the way Theo looks at me. As though he’s never seen anything quite like me before.
As if I’m extraordinary. As if I’m exactly what he’s been waiting for.
