I just kept staring at the man who both frustrated and captivated me more than any other.
I looked at her. “What?”
“Oh, don’t try to bullshit a bullshitter. A fine piece of eye candy is looking at you like he’s in love with you. Plus, I know that look in your eye. Go hop on that!”
“The look of loathing and confusion in my eyes?Really? That’s what is making you say,‘go hop on that’?”
She hummed quizzically, a small smile playing on her full mouth. Her dark complexion nearly glowed and her hair was the definition of a kinky, sex-head mess. “You’re cute when you lie and deflect, ya know. If only I was feeling fruity tonight.” Her hand hit my ass in a smack. “Go!”
“God, you’re fuckin’ crazy sometimes,” I responded, shrugging her hand off my ass. I didn’t know what she was getting at, given we had never experimented together in the slightest, but her comments and philosophical comments regarding my face were not my form of a fun evening. Regardless of us being raised together, going as far to even taking baths together as children, she confused the fuck out of me.
Especially when a man who reallywaseye candy was watching me.
I had enough thoughts in my brain without his presence.
Echo sighed dramatically before shooing me with her hands. “Go!”
“C’mon,” I grumbled. I probably could have stomped my foot like a child. “There is no reason forme to talk to him. Aren’t we supposed to have a girls’ night?”
She laughed. “Yeah, babe, because a girls’ night was gonna happen, anyway. Threesome? You don’t even like girls, silly.” She shoved at my shoulder, tipping back her chin and giving me a look that could rattle any stubborn stars. She was a scary drunk.
Grumbling under my breath, I swung my head back in the direction of Aureo, only to find his gaze still trained on me. Irritation ticked at the back of my skull again and I swore I could feel the pressure in my neck. I was going to wake up with a kink.
Why couldn’t I just be gay? Men sucked.
I grunted, swallowing my pride, and began stomping to the other side of the cavern.
Now I reallydidlook like a child.
I was supposed to have a one-night stand for my birthday. Not an argument.
In mere moments, I was standing in front of Aureo. I looked to his right, nodding my head at Eros—one of the weekend warriors I knew to be an absolute teddy bear—and prayed to all the heavens that he would take the hint.
Thank God, he did.
“I’ll take that as my cue,” he said, chuckling. He turned his head back to mine and it took all my powerto not scowl back at him as he winked. Before he passed me, he leaned down slightly, his whiskey breath hitting my ear. “Get ‘em, princess.”
He walked away and my eyes trailed after him in exasperation.
Why did everyone in this damn place want me to ride Aureo like a mechanical bull?
I turned my head back to Aureo, ready to blow a short-fuse, but stopped when I saw the look on his face. He was still watching me, although I couldn’t see anything below the mask that covered the second half of his face. It wasunnerving. The brown in his eyes nearly danced at me, humor and something akin to warmth watching my every movement.
It made my stomach lurch.
He stayed quiet, making me speak first. “Can I help you with something?”
He snorted, but that was it.
You have got to be kidding me.
“That’s it? You’re just going to stalk me, eye-fuck me, and then turn into a broody alpha-male who grunts like a caveman?”
Nothing. Absolutely nothing, except for the slightest twitch in his brow.
“You could at least tell me what you want. It would be the gentleman thing to do,” I said as my hands wentup to my hips nervously. My shirt had ridden up to the point that my belly-button piercing was showing, skin slick with sweat, but I couldn’t find it in me to truly care. I was confident with my body, and if he was staring at me anyway, then what did it matter to be modest?
My jaw, however, went slack as he leaned forward, picked up a beer on the floor right next to his leather boots, nearly covered by his black jeans, lifted his mask just enough for me to see the square cut line of his jaw and pairing stubble, and took a deep swallow. All while keeping eye contact with me.
