I turn my focus back on the guy and size him up. Red-hot anger rushes through me, and I almost bare my teeth at him like some wild animal. An emotion takes over me that I’ve never felt before. The last thing I want to do is cause a brawl in this place. That isn’t me.
My voice comes out low and threatening, “Get your fucking hands off her.”
He narrows his gaze at me, but then I see his hand let go of her out of the corner of my eye. Ellie takes her arm back and wraps her hand around her wrist where he was holding her. He stares at me, not averting his gaze, and I’m more than happy to stare back. Just for the hell of it, I let a small smile tug on my lips.
He looks at Ellie and dips his head in a curt nod. “Have a great night.”
I watch him, making sure he doesn’t backtrack and bother Ellie again. Soft hands tug on my arm, but I don’t let my eyes falter until the man reaches his table with his friends. I look down and see her hand on my biceps.
“Ro, let’s go.” Ellie pulls me toward her, and I remove my hands from my pockets, setting them at my sides, feeling Ellie’s hand run down my arm to my hand and lock her fingers through mine.
She leads me back to our table, where our friends are staring at us. Each of them carries a different expression: shock, surprise, pleased, giddy. Ellie doesn’t drop my hand when we get to them but grips it tighter like she’s nervous about the man coming back. I give her a gentle squeeze, reassuring her that I’m going anywhere.
“What a creep,” Riley says with disdain.
“I’m sorry I didn’t see what happened, Ellie,” August says with a worried expression. “I would have stepped in.”
Ellie shakes her head. “It’s okay. Rowan stepped in. My knight in shining armor.” She looks up at me with a beaming smile.
I feel my heartbeat quicken at the small compliment.
She takes another long swig of her drink, polishing it off, and sets it back down on the table while everyone continues their conversation over the loud music. Ellie stands on her toes, and I lean down to hear what she’s saying over the music.
“You wanna dance?” She drops back down on her feet.
I stand up straight and look at her. Dance with Ellie? I know I danced with her at the music festival, but that song was more upbeat and fun. This is...I look at the dance floor behind me, and it’s more intimate by the way people are dancing.
Before I let my fear get in the way, I nod my head yes with a small smile, and she leads me to the dance floor. I have no idea how this is going to play out. Do we dance like it's homecoming again? Her hands on my shoulders, mine on her waist, leaving space for Jesus?
My heart thumps through my chest once we get back on the dance floor.
sixteen
ELLIE
I’ve never seenthat side of Rowan before. But I guess when a man grabs a woman after saying no, it can pull all types of emotions from someone else who cares about you. My feelings are bubbling to the surface, and I can’t hold them down.
It was…hot. But I know he was doing it because that’s the kind of guy Rowan is. He will always stand up for someone if he needs to. It doesn’t matter who they are. Best friend or not.
I asked him to dance before I chickened out. I can hear a song playing over the speakers, and the dance floor is fairly crowded with couples. I knew I wanted to dance with him, so I made sure to drink enough to get liquid courage to ask.
His tall frame faces me, and I’m not sure what to do with my hands, so instead of overthinking everything, I let my body take control and do what it wants. My hands find his shoulders, trailing down his biceps and onto his waist. I turn around, pushing my back against him, his strong chest pressed against me.
The dim lights cast a glowing sensation over the dance floor, turning everyone’s bodies into shadows.
I can’t get enough of him. His calloused hands drag along my body, pulling my hips into him. Rowan hasn’t touched me like this in averylong time. I feel his face fall into my neck, the warmth of his breath caressing my skin. My hips sway to the rhythm of the song, and I let my body lose itself to him.
Everything fades around me, and it’s just us.
I turn my body to face him. Needing to see his face. His lips part when our eyes find each other. I see his throat bob, and I fight with myself to push away. The space between us is inches apart, and I can feel the heat of his body.
This can’t happen. I can’t let myself have him when I’m the one who left him behind to move to a new city and start a new life. I go back and forth in my head, from needing him to letting him go. But when I get lost in his eyes, I’m taken back to our first kiss. I can still feel how soft his lips were on mine.
My hands go up his chest to his shoulders, moving toward the back of his neck, where I feel strands of silky, thick hair running through my fingers. His tongue swipes the bottom of his lip and drags it under his teeth. I know he’s thinking the same thing. He wants to taste me just as badly as I do him.
I need to cool myself down because with of the way my heart is pounding, and the ache I feel between my legs, I’m in dangerous territory. Within seconds, I watch him lean down, coming closer to me, my face. I can practically feel his lips inches away from mine. He cups my face in his hands, and my hands find his as I close my eyes.
Shit. Is he about to kiss me?
