Page 52 of By Your Side
I leaned against the bar, keeping my voice low. “Checking in. You okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said, but her hand lingered on the bar near mine, close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating off her skin. “You don’t have to babysit me.”
“Maybe I don’t have to,” I said, “but I kind of need to.”
Her eyes held mine for a beat longer than necessary before she reached for a glass and started filling it with ice. “You want a drink?”
“Sure. Coke?”
She slid it over, then drifted toward the other end of the bar to refill someone’s beer. I stayed where I was, watching her move—confident, quick, at ease in her space. And still, every so often, she’d glance back at me as if she wanted to make sure I was still here.
The night wound down faster than I expected. The last of the regulars shuffled out with murmured goodnights, and Paige locked the door behind them after saying goodnight to her crew, telling them she’d see them tomorrow. The tavern went still, quiet except for the jukebox.
“You could have gone home,” she said, stacking glasses. “Get some rest. Relax…”
“Could have,” I agreed, “but I didn’t want to.”
Her hands stilled for a second before she set the last glass down. “Why not? You can see that I’m okay. It was a quiet night; there’s not much left to do in here.”
I stepped closer, slow enough to give her time to stop me. She didn’t. “Because I need to be near you. Is that okay?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“It’s quiet in here. The door is locked. Just us.”
Her breath caught, just barely, and she leaned back against the bar as I closed the distance.
“You’ve been on my mind since that night. The night I kissed you.” I said quietly. “Hell, longer than that. I need you, Paige. I want more.”
She swallowed, her eyes flicking to my mouth before darting away. “Hunter…”
I rested one hand on the bar beside her hip, close enough now that the heat of her body warmed the space between us. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”
She didn’t tell me to stop.
Instead, she reached up, fingers brushing the side of my neck before sliding into my hair, pulling me down until our mouths met.
The kiss started soft—testing, tasting—but it didn’t stay that way. Her other hand gripped the front of my shirt, pulling me flush against her, and I let my arm curve around her waist, anchoring her to me.
When her back arched slightly, pressing her chest against mine, a low sound escaped my throat before I could stop it. She tasted faintly of lemon water and something sweeter, something entirely her.
I deepened the kiss, tilting my head to fit her better, my hand tracing the curve of her spine. She made a soft, involuntary sound that went straight to my chest and lower, and I felt her shiver under my touch.
“Paige,” I murmured against her mouth, “we should?—”
“I know,” she whispered, pulling back just enough to look at me. “But I don’t want to stop this time.”
The air between us thickened, charged.
I took her hand and, without breaking eye contact, led her toward the back hall. The jukebox kept playing, but the rest of the world faded, leaving only the soft thud of our steps, the faint hum of the cooler, and the pounding of my heartbeat.
Chapter 15
Paige
The pool table sat in the center under a low green lamp, casting soft light over worn felt and a couple of abandoned cue balls. The jukebox in the bar still hummed faintly through the wall, but in here it was just us. No windows. No curious eyes to see us from outside.
My butt hit the edge of the pool table as Hunter stopped in front of me, his presence filling the room in a way that made it suddenly feel smaller. Warmer.
