Page 85 of Body Shot

Beck laughs, white teeth flashing in his dark beard. “I also have a very big . . .”

My eyes pop open.

“. . . wit,” Beck finishes. “I’m a fun guy, right, Hayden?”

“Right,” I wheeze, while Carrie collapses into giggles next to me.

“Jesus, I thought he was going to brag about the size of his dick again,” Marco says, passing behind Beck. Beck flashes him a one-fingered salute and Marco laughs softly as he begins moving glasses from the tray Beck just set down. “Come on, asshole, stop flirting with the pretty girls and get back to work. We’re ready to get started.”

Beck salutes him properly this time, and Marco calls for everyone’s attention. “Okay, welcome all! Some of you were here at our last tasting, so you’ve already heard some the history of tequila, but for those who are new to this, I’ll just briefly fill you in on that.”

Carrie and I have heard this before, but I still pay attention as if I’m in a classroom, idly jotting down some of the terms he uses.

“No Will and Brian tonight,” Carrie says in a low voice. “Hey, I never told you Will called me.”

“What? When?”

“The other day.”

“Did he ask you out?”

“Yes.” Carrie grimaces. “Like I’d go out with him, knowing he asked you first.”

Hayden bites her lip. “Sorry.”

“Hey, you don’t need to apologize. And I can totally understand why you didn’t want to see him again.” She glances meaningfully at Beck. “Heis hot as fuck.”

“I know.” I sigh happily.

We start sampling tequilas and every time I take a sip, I feel Beck’s gaze on me, hot and wicked and knowing. We’re both remembering other times . . . back in his office when he let me sample the Don Alvaro, at his place where he licked it off my naked body . . . I squeeze my thighs together at the pulse of lust there and sigh again. I try to focus on tasting the liquor, closing my eyes to savor it and identify the different notes.

“That’s so fucking sexy.”

My eyes fly open. Beck is leaning across the bar to whisper in my ear.

“Watching you do that . . . you look so intense . . . like you’re about to have an orgasm.”

I grin. “The tequila’s notthatgood.”

“It is when I’m licking it off you.”

“Don’t remind me.” I swallow a moan. “I’m trying not to think about that.”

“Maybe we’ll have to try that again.”

I catch Carrie watching us with an interested expression on her face. Then Marco approaches her. “So, belleza? What do you think of the blanco?”

Carrie runs her tongue over her bottom lip and Marco’s eyes darken. “Peppery. With hints of citrus.”

Marco clears his throat. “Uh, yeah.”

“I totally made that up,” Carrie adds.

Beck and I exchange smiles and he pushes away from the bar to start pouring the next sample.

“The history of tequila is part myth and part fact,” Marco announces to all. “Last time we heard about the facts. Now I’ll tell you a story about Tzinzimiti, the goddess of darkness. The native Mexican tribes hated and feared her because she devoured all of the sunshine and light from the villages. In order to keep her at bay, the Mexican people made human sacrifices to her.”

“Eeep,” Carrie mutters.

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