Page 69 of Cross the Line
But Willow is her own woman. She can make her own decisions. I just don’t know whether they’ll lead to more friendships destroyed. Guess all I can do is wait and find out.
‘Let’s get out of here,’ Mark says from across the room, slipping his phone into the pocket of his slacks. ‘I’m letting you off the leash tonight, Dev. You better make the most of it.’
‘Oh, I plan to,’ I reply, choking back the guilt that threatens to bubble up into my throat. I undo the top button of my shirt as if that will help, but it only draws a wolf whistle from Chava, who must take it as a sign that I’m ready to let loose rather than a nervous tic.
He loops an arm around my neck, putting me in a headlock. ‘Gonna finally get you laid tonight, mano. Everyone wants to suck a winner’s dick.’
The comment surprises a laugh out of me before I can stop it, but it eases my guilt as he drags me to the door. If he knew I had zero plans to go for any of them, he’d razz me to no end.
‘We gotta grab Willow,’ I remind him and Mark as we step into the hall, nodding to a few other Argonaut guys who are headed out as well.
Tonight’s going to be chaos – the good kind this time – for the team. It’s a great fucking feeling knowing that I’m the reason everyone is happy, and I’m already desperate to keep it going. But that’s only if Buck will let me get away with it again.
Chava leads the charge to Willow’s room at the end of the hall and pounds on the door, crooning her name as Mark and I catch up. I open my mouth, ready to tell him to cut it out, but I’m rendered speechless as the door swings open.
If there were any lingering doubts in my head about getting into a relationship with Willow, they’re gone now. Because everything I need is standing right in front of me.
‘You ready to hit the town?’ Chava asks as she steps across the threshold of her room.
Somehow, unlike me, the man resists drinking in every inch of her.
She looks good in everything, the Argonaut uniform included. But in tonight’s little black dress that dips low in the front and shoes that can only be described as fuck-me pumps? Keeping my hands off her is going to be an impossible task – though maybe that was her aim. By this point, she knows exactly what she does to me.
Her red-painted lips curve into a smile as she beams up at Chava. I’m only a little jealous that the sparkle in her eyes isn’t for me.
Okay, fuck it. I’m a lot jealous. She should be looking atmelike that.
‘Where are we going?’ she asks as she pulls the door closed behind her. ‘I’m up for whatever, but I wouldn’t mind knowing the game plan.’
Chava’s reply barely registers as I watch her step further into the hall, unable to look away. I’ve always been aware of Willow – how she moves through a space, how she speaks, how she reacts – but it’s different now. The awareness is so much stronger, like there’s a string tethered between us. Like it’s tugging me to her.
It’s not until her attention finally shifts to me that I realize I’ve been holding my breath, and a hit of warm vanilla floods my senses as I inhale. As Chava and Mark walk ahead of us to get to the elevator, the former still chatting away, she falls in next to me. And,finally, there it is – the smile I’ve been waiting for, that look of pure and open adoration, the one she gave me before I went out and won the race. It sets every cell in me on fire.
‘Hey, champ,’ she quietly teases, long lashes batting as she regards me. ‘Excited for tonight?’
I nod, but I’m not interested in talking about myself. ‘You look amazing,’ I tell her, glad we’re out of earshot of the others.
It’s a weak compliment, but it’ll have to do for now. I’ll save the poetry and the Hindi movie lines for when I have more time and the privacy to worship her in the way she deserves.
Her smile shifts into a smirk, her eyes flicking over me. There’s a new heat in the dark depths when she meets my gaze again. ‘You don’t look so bad either.’
Fucking hell, I’m so gone for this girl.
‘You doing okay?’ I ask her. I need a distraction to keep myself from doing something unwise – like dragging her back to my room in front of all these people.
‘Yeah,’ she says. The back of her hand brushes mine as we walk slowly toward the awaiting elevator. ‘I am.’
I search her face in profile. We’ve had a little time to think about what happened earlier, and I need to be sure we’re still on the same page. ‘Promise?’
‘Promise.’
The conversation we’re dancing around will have to wait until we can sneak away. Whether that can happen tonight remains to be seen, but I’m desperate for it. I can’t let what’s hanging between us linger. I want to make moves. Make decisions.
Make choices that could change everything for us for ever.
——
The club is loud and hot and decorated with more American flags than I’d ever expect to see in Hungary, but I’ve certainly had worse nights out. The champagne is flowing, the music is decent and the people gathered to celebrate are having a good time. I can’t even complain about how packed the place is, considering it’s why Willow has been practically pressed up against me for the past hour.
