“I don’t know. Interesting sounds dull.”
“I thought interesting was the opposite of dull,” I say, scratching the back of my neck.
“No. Intriguing is the opposite of dull,” she says. Then she sets her glass down with a pout that makes her pink lips look fuller. “I’m sorry. I’m not very good at flirting, am I?”
“Not really,” I grimace, “But you’re a great conversationalist.”
With that, she slumps with a persecuted sigh. “God, that’s even worse than interesting.”
“It is?”
“Oh, absolutely,” she nods. “No one wants to be the interesting girl in the room.”
I study her for a moment before clicking my tongue. “Let’s try something else. Why are you here, Charlotte?”
“Because I recently went through a breakup and it sort of triggered a quarter-life crisis, so I wanted to dress up and get drunk,” she says candidly. Her honesty is refreshing.
“I mean, why did you approach me?” I say, turning to face her. My knee presses against hers, and I make a point of keeping it right there.
“I wanted to do something spontaneous and bold. I think it’s clear that I am not good at this, and I’m sure there are plenty of other women in this room who could offer you a much more exciting evening,” she says, hopping off the stool. “Thank you for the beer.”
“Wait,” I say, not really sure what’s going on. “Can I at least have your number?”
Charlotte turns back to look at me with a small smile. “I’m not looking for anything serious, Gavin. Just something I can lookback on with a smile that confuses people and that I never explain to anyone.”
Static fissures under my skin and I stand up next to her.
She’s a little slip of a thing and I tower over her in a way that both our bodies respond to.
I can feel the tension between us.
“Alright. Well, do you want to get out of here then?” I ask.
“Really?” she asks.
“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t mean it,” I tell her.
She blinks, her blue eyes dancing with thrill. “Sure,” she answers and I place my hand on the small of her back and lead her out into the crisp night air.
Chapter 3
Charlotte
“If you’ll excuseme for a moment, I just need to text my friend real quick,” I tell him, stopping in the middle of the hotel lobby.
“The girl from the cantina?” he asks.
“Yes,” I nod. “I’m sending her my location,” I say and look up at him.
This man is tall, very tall. I didn’t realize it until I was standing next to him. “Does that bother you?”
“Of course not. Starting the night with the blatant assumption that your date may or may not be an axe murderer isn’t exactly the best foreplay. I completely understand that from a woman’s point of view, you can never be too careful these days.”
“No, you can’t,” I answer as I click one last button and shove my phone into my purse. “Alright. What do we do first?” I ask.
“Well. I believe we start by getting a room,” he nods towards the desk.
“Yes. Yes, that would make sense.”
