He was in line before he’d finished the thought. The crowd kept looking at his suit. The bouncer took too long checking him over, eyes narrowed. But eventually, he waved Chad through.
Whatever.
Chad straightened his oversized, architectural shoulders and stepped inside like he belonged there.
He had people to see.
NINETEEN
Team Building Exercise
April
Mateo was the one who suggested dancing. “You can’t sit still after eating like that,bellissima,” he said, already on his feet, offering his hand like it was the next course.
“I’m pretty sure sitting still is exactly what you’re supposed to do after eating,” April said.
“Sitting still is for people with no rhythm.” Mateo’s grin was pure temptation. “You have rhythm. I can tell.”
“You can tell from watching me eat?”
“I can tell from watching you breathe.”
Which was either the most romantic thing or the creepiest. April genuinely couldn't decide, but apparently didn’t care because she was taking his hand anyway.
The dance floor dropped in tiers, the lowest level a writhing mass of bodies moving to the bass. Mateo pulled her into the thick of it, bodies pressing close on all sides. He danced with his whole body, completely committed, no half measures. He pulled her close enough that she could smell the cedar and salt of his cologne, a scent that skipped logic and went straight to her pulse.
His body moved against hers, his hips rolling in time with the music in a way that made it very clear this was a preview of a preview of the bedroom.
“You’re tense,” he said low against her ear, thumbs pressing into her back with pressure that promised release.
“I’m in a club with seven men who all showed up because my life imploded,” April said. “Tense feels appropriate.”
"You're allowed to enjoy this, you know." His hand settled on the small of her back, pulling her flush against him so she could feel every movement. "The day's been chaos. This part? This is yours."
"You've been doing that all day."
"Doing what?"
"Supporting me. At the tasting, you told me to be greedy. And every choice I've made since then, every time I said 'yes' to something impossible, it's because you made me believe I was allowed to."
Mateo met her eyes. “Because youareallowed.”
April wanted to argue, to run the numbers one more time. But Mateo had a point, and his body was providing a counterargument her brain couldn’t possibly win against. She stopped trying to calculate the risk and simply moved with him. Mateo leaned in close, brushing a warm kiss to her temple.
April came back from the dance floor, flushed and Killian was waiting. His hand found her waist immediately, pulling her between his legs in a possessive grip. Then he stilled, as if he’d only just realized it.
“I need to issue a formal correction,” he said, low enough only she could hear. His voice had that controlled, boardroom precision, the tone he probably used to announce quarterly earnings. “This morning’s announcement was premature. I failed to secure stakeholder approval prior to the public filing.”
April blinked. "Did you just apologize like a press release?"
"Yes." He said with no hesitation. "I practiced saying 'fiancée' in the mirror this morning. Multiple times. I got ahead of myself because I wanted it to be real."
His hand loosened at her waist. "Do you want me here, or do you want space?"
April stayed. She took his hand and squeezed once. His shoulders dropped. "Thank you," he said, and kissed her cheek.
Liam claimed the next dance, pulling her back onto the floor with that dangerous precision he brought to everything.
