“Oh.” He tilts his head. “Who was the lucky guy?”
“Just… my old boyfriend. That’s it.”
Old boyfriend.God, that felt weird to say.
“So your ex?” he asks.
I swallow. “Uh. Yeah. My ex.”
Not exactly a lie.
He’s quiet for a second.
“Wow.”
I glance over. “Wow what?”
He shrugs slightly, and I can feel the honesty in his voice when he says?—
“Just that you’re absolutely gorgeous. I’m surprised you don’t have a boyfriend.”
My heart stutters.
“I mean… how would you even know I’m gorgeous with these masks?” I ask.
He touches my forearm.
A zing travels through me.
“It’s not about your face. Or your body. It’s youraura.Although yeah,” he chuckles, “you’re easy on the eyes too—from what Icansee through these ridiculous masks.”
“I’m flattered,” I say, cheeks warming. “You probablywouldn’tlike my face, though. So I’m glad we’ve got the masks on. And with your taste in auras…”
“You’re hilarious, Luna. Maybe I’ve got a thing for mysterious auras. Or maybe it’s just that you’re not wearing socks with sandals. Either way, you’ve already won half the battle.”
We fall into a rhythm, talking about random things—how he’s into cooking and creating recipes, how I grew up around food and love testing new ideas in the kitchen. It’s weirdly comforting, chatting about Tex-Mex spice ratios while a girl is moaning through a spanking twenty feet away. But I’m enjoying him. Whoever he is.
After a few minutes, he nudges me. “We should probably socialize in the social room.”
“Good call.” I nod. “Benny’s rules.”
We move into the lounge and claim a small couch near the back. Still masked. Still anonymous.
“From what my friends tell me, that scene back there was pretty standard,” he says.
“How’d you end up here, anyway? Was it your idea?”
“Nah. My buddies dragged me. Said it’d get me over my ex.”
“Oh. Bad breakup?”
He hesitates. “She hooked up with my teammate. While we were still together.”
My heart pinches. “I’m so sorry.”
He shrugs. “It sucked. But I’m over it.”
“What kind of team?”
