Page 7 of A Duet of Darkness and Dreams

“Baby, where are you going?” asks the blonde, pulling on my belt.

I watch as Isabella’s dark hair swings out of sight, the green door closing behind her. Blinking, I look down at the pouty face of this girl who’s eye level with my dick. “Sorry,” I mutter, “I’m going to grab a fresh bucket of beer.” I pry her hand off my belt and head for the door, barely registering the whoops and cheers of the guys behind me at the prospect of more alcohol.

But before I’m even out the door, a large hand grasps my shoulder and I find myself staring into James’s dark eyes.

“Where are you going?” he asks.

“Uh, for a smoke.”

He frowns. “You remember what I said? Keep your paws off Becks’s friend.”

Goddammit.“Yes, yeah. I remember.”

“Are you sure?” he probes. “Because you’ve been eye-fucking her the whole goddamn night.”

I push his hand off my shoulder. “Yes, take a chill pill. I’ve got Blondie over there on the hook anyway.”

He glances over at the girl I left by the couch and, seemingly satisfied, steps aside to let me leave. “Good.”

“You have no faith, Walton,” I say with a smile.

He rolls his eyes. “For good reason.”

I shake my head and make my way down the narrow hall, searching for that white leather mini skirt and those silver wedge sandals. As I look over the heads in the crowd, wondering where the hell she disappeared to, I stop. What am I even doing? Why am I following her? What exactly is my goal here? I just promised James thirty seconds ago I wasn’t going to go after her, yet here I am.

I just want to talk to her. That’s all.

My eyes hone in on the patio door opening and closing, a head of dark brown hair and hoop earrings glinting in the neonlights.There she is.I squeeze my way through the crowd then push out into the cool autumn air. A few heads turn my way and another few guys congratulate me on our set, but I can’t help searching for Isabella.

As if by sheer will, the crowd parts and I spot her leaning against the brick exterior wall, a cigarette pinched gracefully between her fingers. I swallow back a grin and head toward her. As I approach, I falter.What’s your plan here, Dave?Closing my eyes, I scrub a hand down the length of my face. Before I can do the sensible thing and turn around though, she looks up, and I’m caught in her sights like a tractor beam.

“Oh, hey,” she says, as she stands up straighter.

“Hey.”

What the fuck?Her brows lift, waiting for me to say something.Say something.

“Can I bum one of those?” I point to the cigarette in her hand, still fixed between two long fingers tipped in red nail polish. “Forgot mine inside.”

She blinks, then breathes out a laugh. “Yeah, of course.” Opening her bag to pluck out her pack of cigarettes, she offers the box to me, and I take a smoke. “Now we’re even.”

“Huh?”

“From earlier. You gave me one, and now I’m giving you one. Even.”

I chuckle. “Right.”

“Need a light?” she asks, pulling a lighter out of the front pocket of her skirt. That damn mini skirt.

“Uh, yeah . . . I guess I forgot that too.”

She clicks the lighter and takes a step toward me to hold it up. Leaning forward, I can’t look away, and her eyes hold me to her as I light the cigarette and take a long drag. We’re close, and I have to clench my hand to keep myself from reaching out andtouching her hair. It was so soft before. Like a cloud. All of her looks soft.

The light extinguishes, and her eyes dart away. I step back, realizing I shouldn’t be standing so close. Blowing out a plume of white smoke, I murmur quietly, “Thanks.”

Isabella leans back against the brick. “No problem.”

“So what did you think?”

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