Page 31 of Hello Forever
“No dance floor. Bummer,” Axel said, pushing two beers in my direction. Then he laughed. “You should have seen the look on your face when I said ‘dancefloor.’”
“I don’tdance.”
He grinned. “We’ll work uptoit.”
We wouldn’t, though. There weren’t going to be more nights like this. I didn’t get to walk away from my life very often, and even now I worried that my phone would vibrate in my pocket with some new disaster, and the gig would be up. So I took a long pull of the excellent ale that Axel had chosen and let my eyes drift around the room. “Let me ask you aquestion.”
“Shoot.”
“If I didn’t come here with you tonight, what’s your usual play? Would you just find somebody to hook up with?” I’d never had the chance to indulge in the life I wanted. But even if nobody cared what I did, I wasn’t sure how I’d fit in with the hookup scene. The idea of getting naked with a stranger I’d met in a bar wasintimidating.
The smile slid off his face. “Well, I like coming to these places, and there’s always somebody on theprowl.”
I didn’t doubt it. Anyone would take one look at Axel and buy him a drink. He was the whole package—gorgeous body, cute face. Clever. Fun. Exactly the guy I’d want if I could dateaman.
“But I don’t do many bar hookups. It’s risky.” His eyes did a quick scan of the room. “In college… I’ve been in situations before where I felt unsafe. It’s not the kind of thing you want torepeat.”
“I’llbet.”
He returned his gaze to me. “So if I came here alone tonight, I’d probably play some pool.” He tipped his head toward the tables in the corner. “But at the end of the night, I’d probably leave alone. Unless there was some super chill, charming guy who made me feel both safe and excited.Andhe looked like a cross between Zac Efron and ChanningTatum.”
I laughed. “Good luckwiththat.”
He leaned one of his gorgeous cheekbones into his palm and smiled at me. “That’s how I think of you,though.”
I swallowed my surprise behind a gulp of beer. “That’s a bit of a stretch, my friend. I think the ref is going to arguethatcall.”
He didn’t say anything more. There was only his smile, which I felt in my groin, and the heat in his eyes.Christ. I hadn’t let myself think about how this night might end. My plan was to stay sober enough to drive back to Henning. But I knew that Axel had different ideas about tonight. And I’d packed a bag, justincase…
“What are you thinking about?” heasked.
“Nothing. Want to shootsomepool?”
His smile was teasing. “Sure. But don’t be too upset if I crush you likeabug.”
“We’ll just seeaboutthat.”
* * *
Ibeathim the first two games. But then my attention wavered, because every time I leaned across the table, I felt Axel’s dark eyes on me. And every time he brushed past me to line up his next shot, my body heated everywhere. He knew it, too, that fucker. He began putting a hand on my back from time to time. His touch was casual, but my body didn’t care. I wanted more, and concentrating on the game became all butimpossible.
Every sensation tonight was so new. The music pulsed through my limbs and hips, feeding the electric charge I felt in my veins. I was having fun, and I was turned on and kind of nervous. My body hummed with an unfamiliarelectricity.
So this was what living your lifefeltlike.
“You want to get out of here?” Axel said after he sank the 8-ball on our third game. He leaned against the table’s edge, and his pecs flexed while my mouthwatered.
“Sure.” More nerves sizzled through my chest. We hadn’t discussed what wouldhappennow.
Axel’s eyes flashed. He set down his cue, then removed mine from my hand. Then? He put his hand on my ass. “Let’s go.” His voice wasrough.
I was tongue-tied as I followed him outside. We got into my car, and I actually dropped my keys on the floor because my hands weresweating.
“Hey,” Axel said, lifting a hand to my arm. “Youokay?”
“Yeah.” I shoved the key in the ignition, but his hand didn’t move. Even though I knew my nerves would show on my face, I turned slowly to lookathim.
Axel licked his lips. “Are you coming back to the hotel with me tonight? I asked the hotel for a room with two beds, because I would never pressure you. But I don’t think you should drive all the way back to Henning now.It’slate.”
