“You told me I could surprise my next date by taking her to see it.” I leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Surprise.”
“Is this a date, O’Connor?” she asked, peering up at me through thick, dark lashes.
I shrugged. “I picked you up, and I’m paying. I plan on having a good time with you here, and then taking you home where I’ll hopefully get to have some more fun with you. That constitutes as a date in my book.”
That might not be what Prince Charming would say, but she looked skittish, and I didn’t want to scare her off with the emphatic "yes!" that was on my lips. I still wasn’t sure what this was, but I wanted to spend more time with her outside of the bedroom. A date seemed like the perfect way to do that.
I watched as the thoughts running through her head flitted over her face. She settled on amusement. “I can’t believe you managed to get me here.”
“I figured we could experience something new together. You good with that, princess?” I reached my hand out for her, arching a brow.
She examined me before taking my proffered hand. “I guess,” she said hesitantly.
The room was on the smaller side, more intimate than larger clubs. Dimly lit chandeliers hung from the ceiling. The walls were covered in deep red wallpaper and black velvet curtains draped down in front of the empty stage. It had an eclectic feel with a mixture of couches and armchairs, as well as a few tables with chairs sprinkled throughout the room.
The show would start soon, but for now people were still roaming, getting drinks, laughing and talking. I rested my hand on her lower back, gently guiding her toward a small couch in the center. “Let’s get a seat first and then I can grab us a drink.”
She nodded and sank onto the couch gracefully. She looked around, taking in the room filling up with people.
“What are you drinking tonight, princess?” I asked.
“Paloma.”
I nodded and moved off toward the bar to grab our drinks. The bartenders were dressed in drag, putting on a show as they mixed cocktails, tossing bottles and pouring with finesse.
I smiled at the performers behind the bar as they made our drinks, adding a tip to the jar on the bar top before heading back to the table.
I stopped short as a man approached Eve and pulled her into a tight hug, his hands lingering as she pulled away.
I tried to swallow down the quick flare of jealousy. I wasn’t normally the jealous type, but I didn’t like seeing another man’s hands on her. Our agreement to be exclusive while we were doing this friends with benefits thing might not make her mine, but something about Eve brought out my caveman side. I wanted to stake my claim in front of this guy. Whoever the hell he was.
I set the drinks on the table and wrapped an arm around Eve’s waist. “Who’s your friend?” I asked, pulling her closer.
She chewed on her lower lip.
Was that guilt in her eyes? Regret? I couldn’t quite read it before it was replaced with her easy smile.
“This is Jase. We worked together before I got the part inWretched.”
I kept my arm around Eve as I reached out to shake his hand. “I’m Ben.”
He gave my hand a quick shake, his eyes drifting back toward Eve. I didn’t like the way he looked at her, like he wanted to take her home with him, even though she was clearly here with someone else.
What a douchebag. The captain of all douches.
“So, do you two work together?” Captain Douche asked.
“No, um, Ben’s a friend of mine,” she said, looking down to the floor and taking a drink of the Paloma I’d gotten her.
“A friend,” he said, studying her before shifting his gaze to me.
I narrowed my eyes, sizing him up. My nickname fit him perfectly. His shirt was unbuttoned like he was trying to show off his patchy chest hair, and it looked like he’d found some stray flecks of glitter from one of the performers.
He backed up a step, reading the warning in my eyes.
I wiped off the death glare I had aimed his way as Eve glanced at me and smiled into my drink. The lights in the room flickered and dimmed further.
“Show’s about to start. We should probably sit.” I gestured to the couch behind Eve that only had enough room for two.
