Page 78 of Dream (Fighting Fate)

Before I knew what I was doing, I was moving forward. I vaguely heard Troy laugh behind me, but I was too lost in shock to care. I had to be seeing things. There was no way Liv could be here, like this.

My gaze didn’t stray from her face as I made my way across the dance floor. It was her. It had to be. She looked the same, but so very different. Her body turned, facing away from me again, her hips swaying side to side. My throat tightened.

As I moved behind her, her friend looked up, her eyes widening when she saw who I was. Placing a hand softly on her hip, I extended my glass of water around her until it was where she could see it. As expected, she leaned away from my touch, turning to face me, her mouth opened, I presumed ready to tell me to fuck off.

My throat tightened as I took her in. Fuck me, she was stunning. I was actually having trouble getting my brain to communicate with my mouth.

Surprise flashed through her eyes before her lips parted with a breath. “Josh?”

I tried to get my shit together. Think, goddamn it.

Holding the glass out toward her, I gave her an easy smile. “You look like you could use some water.”

Her gaze flickered down to the glass in my hand before meeting mine again with a slight grin. “My parents told me I shouldn’t accept drinks off strange men.”

I conceded with a nod. “I may be strange, but I’m no stranger.”

She assessed me for a few heartbeats before carefully taking the glass out of my hand, her fingers gently sliding over mine. “You promise this isn’t some ploy to take advantage of me?”

I swallowed. I was having a hard time accepting how fucking gorgeous she looked right now. Slowly, I tilted my head to the side. “I don’t think I can promise that.”

Her gaze darkened, sending all the right wrong signals to my cock, then slowly, she brought the glass to her lips. My gaze followed her movements, watching the way her lips touched the glass, her throat moved as she swallowed, and her tongue slid over her lower lip as she caught the little drop of water left behind.

Taking the glass as she offered it back to me, I tried to cool myself down with a sip of my own. I had no idea where to go from here. I hadn’t thought about anything other than my need to go to her. Now, as I stood staring into her darkened eyes, I was caught between doing the right thing and leaving her alone, or throwing caution to the wind and taking her up to my room.

Liv tilted her head to the side, her body leaning forward a fraction. “I missed you,” she said quietly.

Her words were enough for me to know I had no chance of walking away right now. Taking her hand, I drew her toward me. “Let’s get out of the spotlight a little so we can talk.”

As soon as she nodded, I started leading her toward the back of the room, away from prying eyes, trying to convince myself that I only wanted to talk to her. I was so full of shit.

Chapter 47

Olivia

As Josh led me away from the dance floor, his steps quick and sure, worry tightened my chest. Pulling on his hand, I forced him to slow down. Giving me a confused look, he came to a complete stop, making sure I was almost touching his side.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

I sighed. “You need to go slower if you don’t want me to fall over, Josh. This is the first time I’ve worn heels of any height, and these are killers.”

He glanced down at my feet before slowly bringing his gaze back up my body. Heat flared in his eyes, and his jaw tightened, but he didn’t say anything. He simply gave me one slight nod, and then he started moving again, this time holding my hand a little firmer and moving a little more cautiously.

When we reached the back of the room, he moved us around a corner, into a darkened section behind a row of plants. As soon as we stopped, he dropped my hand and put a little distance between us. Much to my disappointment. “What are you doing here, Liv?” he said, his gaze raking over me yet again.

I tried to ignore the hurt that flared from his question. “I was a part of the decorating committee,” I said with a shrug. “Aunt Jenny said I could stay for the party if I wanted to. I didn’t know you were going to be here,” I added, just to let him know I wasn’t stalking him.

He frowned. “Your aunt? Is she with Abstract Games? Is she here?”

Things suddenly started to fall into place. I thought it had been weird for Aunt Jenny to ask for my help setting up. Of course, it’d been a big job, but she had more than enough helpers, really. She would’ve known Josh was going to be here.

Exhaling, I let my shoulders drop. “She is. And I’m just starting to understand why she asked me to help. I’m sorry, Josh.”

His gaze burned into mine for a long time before he replied. “You look incredible, Liv.” He swallowed. “I mean, you know I think you look beautiful on a normal day, but this—”

My heart skipped a few beats.

His head moved slowly from side to side. “This, I don’t know what to do with.”

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