Page 4 of The Last Thing
The dulcet voice comes from my other side, and as I spin toward it, my arm brushes hers, setting off a volcano inside me. The woman I’m determined to spend my night with. All honey-brown hair and a beautiful smile. For a moment, I almost second-guess myself. She looks young. But as long as she’s over twenty-one, that’s all I care about.
“Sure thing,” the bartender says.
The woman’s eyes land on me. “Hey.”
My full attention turns to her. “Hi.”
She tilts her head slightly, watching me with a smile. “Let me guess. You’re not from around here.”
I chuckle at that. “What gave me away?”
“This is my favorite little hole in the wall. And most everyone who comes here is either a regular or meeting up with someone. Plus, you look like you’d rather set that suit on fire than wear it.”
“Very perceptive.”
She shrugs. “I’m good at reading people…”
I offer her my hand. “Deck.”
She stares at me for a moment, then shakes my hand, a wicked smirk on her face. “Like a porch?”
I instantly groan, but she just laughs. Trouble dances in her wild eyes, and it only makes me want her more.
“It’s a real name.”
She nods dramatically. “Of course it is. I know lots of people named Terrace. I even have a close friend called Veranda.”
Behind the bar, the bartender—Ronnie, I guess—stifles a laugh.
“Fine, what’s your name, then?”
“Hm… you can call me H.B.”
“H.B.? That’s not a name.”
“So judgmental,Deck.”
The bartender gives up and walks away from us, laughing loudly.
“Plenty of people use only their initials. Or would it be better if I added a name after it? H.B. Wells?”
I give her a flat look, but can’t stop the corners of my mouth from tipping up.
“Fine, you’ve got me. It stands for Heavy Bananas.”
“Well, I believe the bananas part.”
She gasps in mock offense, running her hand down my arm and making flames erupt beneath the surface of my skin.
“Okay, really it’s Honey Badger.”
“I’m glad you’re having fun with this.”
She shrugs. “Life’s too short not to have some fun, right?”
Her voice takes on a sensual tone, and my gut heats.
“Fun was exactly what I was looking for tonight. Then I saw you…”
