Balefire blasted through the speakers our landlords had so thoughtfully installed in the ceiling of the living room. Someone had pushed the furniture against the walls, leaving a space in the middle of the living room for people to dance. Skirting around the dancing throng, I led Piper into the kitchen where Fitz was already manning the keg. Her friend Saylor stood near him, talking to their other friend, Chessly. A roar went up in the dining room, telling me someone was about to go down in the flip-cup tournament.
“You want a beer?” I asked.
Wrinkling her pretty nose, Piper said, “I’ll pass.”
“Piper doesn’t drink beer,” Saylor said as she lifted her cup to her mouth.
“Would you like something else? I bet we have some vodka in one of these cupboards.” I started to open the cupboard above the fridge where we kept the hard stuff, but Piper laid a hand on my arm.
“Water’s fine.”
I jacked a brow, and she hurried to add, “I’ve been drinking since we showed up at the ADR’s tailgate before the game. I could use a break.”
“Water it is.” I snagged a cold one from the fridge and handed it to her.
A skeptical eye met mine. “You’re not going to push?”
Tilting my head, I shot her a look from beneath my brows. “Though I haven’t known you long, I’ve figured out you make your own decisions. I respect that.”
Fitz handed me a beer and I took a sip, eyeing her over the rim of the red cup. Then a dark thought crowded into my brain. “Wait. Did that asshole you used to date try to make you drink more than you wanted?”
Saylor smirked. “Asshole is correct.” Giving her attention to Piper, she said, “If you don’t give this guy your number, maybe I’ll give him mine.”
“Sitting right here,” Fitz interjected.
“Making a point, Mr.Fitzgerald.” She patted his shoulder. “Besides, I met both of you tonight.” She smirked. Girl was a first-class flirt.
“Butting in is more accurate.” Piper snorted as she screwed the cap back on her water. “In answer to your question, yes. Charlie could be pushy sometimes.”
My fist bunched at my side. When she flicked her eyes down to my hand and back, her brow shot up, and I forced myself to relax. Charlie was the reason this gorgeous woman would let me enjoy her body but not give me her number, let alone go out with me. It would serve the bastard right to meet the business end of my fist for giving her such a strong distrust of men. For a long minute, we stared into each other’s eyes. Hers held questions I desperately wanted to dispel.
Downing the rest of my beer, I set the empty cup on the counter and offered her my hand. “This is a party. We’re here for a good time. Dance with me?”
She drank most of her water, capped the bottle, and set it aside. Then she set her hand in mine. “Are they playing your favorite song?” A half-smile passed over her pretty mouth.
“I’ll know after we dance.”
Fitz’s deep laughter reminded me other people were in the room. “You are smooth, Bax.”
Ignoring my friend, I led Piper back into the living room where Dirty Honey’s “The Wire” was playing loud through the speakers. When Marc LaBelle sang about being a fool for what a girl does, I chuckled at how apt the song’s lyrics were to my current situation with her. With my hands on her hips, I tugged her close, swaying to the music. She’d unzipped her jacket when she came inside the house, and I took advantage of being able to discreetly slip one hand up her side where I skimmed my thumb over the curve of her breast. Her eyes flew to mine, and I couldn’t help but smile at the heat I saw in their pretty, violet depths.
Leaning down, I said into her ear, “Would you like to see my room?”
Turning her head, she whispered back, “I thought you’d never ask.” Her low voice rasped seductively over my skin, and I pulled her close to stop from giving away the shivers rippling over me.
Right then, the song switched to a techno dance mix that had everyone jumping. Letting out a laugh, I started jumping too. Piper caught on, and the two of us jumped our way to the foot of the stairs separating the foyer from the living room. She was smack on my heels as I jogged up to the second floor. Breathy giggles puffed over my back when I stopped in front of the door to my room, pulled out a key, and unlocked it.
As she watched she said, “Let me guess. Other players like to use your room during parties?”
I pushed the door shut behind us and flipped on the light beside the door. “Got it in one. The locks went on the doors after our second party, back before we were of age to buy alcohol. There’s nothing cool about bringing a girl to your room only to find it already occupied.”
Visions of the one and only time I’d experienced that flashed through my head, and I gave a horrified shake of my head and shoulders. Piper laughed.
Tilting my head, I shot her a look from beneath my brows. “Clearly, that’s never happened to you.”
As soon as the words left my mouth, all the fun left the room and slammed the door behind it. Piper went from giggling hottie on a mission to jump my bones to distant ice-princess in a nanosecond.
“You’d be surprised.” The rawness in her response threw me. Before I could reply, she clasped her hands in front of herself and took a tour of my room, stopping in front of the dresser pushed against the same wall as the door. “I see you have the obligatory boobalicious poster on your wall.” Though she injected a laugh into her tone, I heard a hitch in it too.
