Page 58 of Keep Your Guard Up
He held out a hand and pulled me into him and we fell straight into sync, just like old times. But somehow, for some reason, we were moving in sync and yet we feltoff. I struggled hard to ignore the fact that Beau’s body felt cold compared to Chance’s.
Chance.
Where is he? I can barely see off the dance floor with all these people moving around us.
I stalled the spin Beau twirled me into and pushed myself lightly up against him.
Light enough for Beau to know I wasn’t serious.
Heavy enough for Chance to not.
“Does this have anything to do with the angry UFL fighter looking at meverymurderously from the booths?” Beau asked in my ear.
I smirked, the asshole side of mewantinghim to notice.
Wantinghim to hate it.
WantingBeau off me.
Wantinghim to be on me.
Chance straightened, the agitated tick in his jaw flaring. His eyes had blackened to dark, flat steel. A frosty iciness in them as they bore into me and the hands gently on my upper waist.
Beau was great, and a very dear friend. We had great dance chemistry and our senses of humour gelled together wonderfully.
But he wasn’t Chance. And for whatever crazy twist of fate, I didn’t hate that. He didn’t ignite me like Chance did. His hands on my waist felt cold and allwrong.
Wrong.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.
“I’m just gonna go freshen up—back soon,” I said loudly in his ear and headed off to the back-door bathrooms. They were typically only used by staff, but I knew on a busy night like this they would have to use the patrons’ toilets.
The sexy, Latin beat still purred through the tiled walls as I leaned over the sink. I looked up, meeting glassy eyes that had a scalding storm brewing beneath them.
Beau and I always had great fun together whenever he was in town, but I’d never felt soillicitbeing close to him like that. Everything about him was so wrong, and not in thesexy, forbiddenway. It felt like trying to fill a hole that wasn’t his to fill. A gaping space inside of me that was waiting, yearning for the presence of another. Not just any other; Chance.
You didn’t want him, Mari.Except I did.
You made that clear to him.Except I shouldn’t have.
You don’t get to be mad if he moves on.Except I was.
The bathroom door opening and slamming shut made me jump, turning immediately into a defensive stance. My legs were heavy and wobbled as I faced those blue eyes behind me.
“What thefuckwas that, Sunny?” Chance growled.
His short-sleeved khaki shirt brought out the olive in his glowing skin. It tightly stretched across his pecs and at the beginning of his biceps. Those muscles, those glorious muscles, were taut with tension and fury.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I mumbled, turning back to the mirror. I brushed a slightly shaking finger under my eyelashes, pretending to check my makeup.
“Oh, you knowexactlywhat I’m talking about.” He seethed. “You tell me you don’t want to be with me, then get all green-eyed fucking monster jealous when I’m sitting in a booth surrounded by women.”
My mouth opened to respond, to fire some snarky comment back his way. But even the thought of those women on him—
I dropped my hands on the basin and squeezed. I squeezed all of the tension in my body through my fingers at thethoughtof those women around him, touching him.
Chance slowly stalked towards me, as if pursuing prey. He was the lion; I was the fawn. Difference was, it wasn’t fear my legs were beginning to tremble with.
