Page 128 of Falling Overboard

“Are you going to freak out?” Georgia asked, worried.

“I’m okay.” I put my hand on top of his and he turned it over so that we were holding hands. He always exuded so much comfort and warmth. Was I sweating? I was worried that I was sweating.

“Yeah, no, you totally look like you’re okay,” she said and I knew she was teasing me. “A toast!”

That got everyone at the table to stop talking and that anxiety of mine started up again. I was afraid she was about to tell everyone about me and Hunter.

Instead she said, “Here’s to alcohol! Helping people make regrettable, life-altering mistakes for thousands of years!”

Everyone else cheered and clinked their glasses together. Hunter made eyes at me over his glass and I leaned in.

I knew I shouldn’t ask the question, but it was like I couldn’t help myself. “What are you thinking about?”

He set his glass down. “All the ways I’d like to take that dress off you.”

A spike of desire struck deep in my gut. “That’s not fair,” I whispered.

“Not trying to be. Here.” He handed me a basket full of bread. “I asked the waitress to bring extra bread for you because you wanting bread is usually a safe bet.”

I hadn’t even noticed the waitress distributing everyone’s dinner. I was ravenous, but not for food.

Food was the only thing I could have, though.

I pretty much attacked the steak I’d ordered. Thankfully, it was one of the best filets mignons I’d ever had. And Andre cooked this sort of thing regularly. I was kind of glad the chef hadn’t come out with us tonight and had opted to go to bed early. I felt a little like I was cheating on him with this dinner.

“Is it good?” Hunter asked. He had some kind of seafood platter.

“It’s like crack made out of beef,” I told him, offering him a bite. And I watched every moment of him taking it from my fork, the way his mouth closed around it, how he slid the meat from the tongs and ... why did I suddenly feel woozy?

He leaned in close. “You have to stop doing that.”

“Doing what?”

“Saying things that make me want to kiss you.”

My temperature spiked and I wished, more than anything, that we were alone.

He picked up one of his oysters and offered it to me. “Do you want to try it? I’ve heard they can be quite the aquadesiac.”

“I’ve never really been into oysters.” I ignored his pun and also decided that I wasn’t going to tell him that it looked like someone had dripped snot onto a shell. And if it really was some kind of aphrodisiac, I definitely needed to steer clear.

He said, “We’ve got that charter tomorrow, so think of it as the clam before the storm.”

“Oysters aren’t clams.”

“Yes, but I don’t have a pun for oysters.”

“You two are like an old married couple!” Georgia declared. She was pretty drunk, and from the looks of things, Emilie was well on her way to joining her.

I was worried that my friend was drawing too much attention to Hunter and me, but then I was saved by Pieter. He came over to her and said, “I think you want to come to the club and dance with me.”

“You’ve been misinformed,” she said with a smile but then left with him anyway.

I was acutely aware of Emilie staring at me and tried very hard not to make eye contact. We still ran the risk of her going to her uncle and telling him that she suspected Hunter and I were together. I didn’t want to give her any proof.

With Georgia and Pieter leaving, it broke our little party up. Kai stood up and said, “If you’ll all excuse me, I believe I just spotted my ride home.” He went over to a tall, stunning blonde and began chatting her up.

Following his lead, Thomas said, “That bird right there, the one with the red hair? She looks like a bad decision, doesn’t she? I’m off to see if she’d like to have breakfast with me.”

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