Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
As we pass through the crowd, even the few men wearing green stickers don’t give me a second look. So either they’re as nervous as I am, or I’m not worth talking to. And now I feel like a failure in an experiment designed nearly perfectly for me. It might even be worse than online dating.
As if things weren’t awkward enough, Brandon approaches. At first, he looks out of place away from campus and in his black leather harness. A yellow sticker is affixed to the waistband of his pants, which seems the only place he could find to attach it. He has a nice physique, with his muscly biceps and the light dusting of hair on his pecs.
“Hey there,” he says in a flirty voice, which is so different from his straightforward one at the coffee cart. “Fancy seeing you here.”
“I…didn’t think to see you…” I sputter. “A surprise this is.”
God, there goes my mouth again.
But it doesn’t matter because he’s looking at Dex in a way I recognize from right before Dex goes off to hook up with someone.
When Brandon leans forward to whisper in Dex’s ear, I feel like a third wheel and almost head toward the exit. But then Dex shakes his head and takes a step back, confusing me.
Brandon’s eyebrows scrunch together. “Well, I just thought…because of the sticker.”
“Sorry, not tonight.” Dex glances at me. “Likely not ever.”
Brandon rolls his eyes, says something under his breath, and walks away.
Dex turns to me. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”
“I’m s-sorry.” I feel not only dejected but invisible too. Not that Brandon knows I’ve been crushing on him, but Christ, what a mess. “I don’t want to cock-block you. I’m not feeling comfortable anymore. I can leave, and you can just—”
“Hell no.” He grabs my hand and pulls me away from the wall. “Follow me.”
He heads toward the exit, which only makes me feel worse.
I’m about to protest when he approaches the woman standing by the table. “We got the wrong stickers. Can we trade these in for red ones?”
My shoulders immediately unwind, and I grip his fingers tighter. Damn, I appreciate him. Does he even know how intuitive and compassionate he can be?
He grabs the two stickers and leads me to the far wall, where he takes his time adhering them to our shirts.
“Thank you,” I say, and his mouth lifts at the corners.
“Let’s dial things back. Somehow, we lost the plot. We’re supposed to be on our second date, remember?”
God, I’m an idiot. I blow out a breath. “That sounds way more manageable.”
“Hey, you two!” We turn to find Kael and Angelica wearing red stickers. “We’re a little late. Got held up.”
Kael’s cheeks flush, and Dex throws him a knowing grin. Angelica seems nonplussed as she sways her hips to the thumping bass and pulls on his arm to head inside, no doubt to dance.
“Coming with?” she asks with a smile.
“Yep, lead the way,” Dex replies, and we follow them back inside.
“I see you’re both wearing red too,” Kael says to me. “Enjoying your date night?”
I swallow. “Yep.” Or at least now I will be.
For the first time all night, I feel safer…freer, so when Dex pulls on my hand to join them on the dance floor, I don’t exactly protest.
We find an open spot, and Dex turns to face me, Kael and Angelica already getting their groove on, oblivious to everyone but each other.
“Just follow my lead,” he says, much like he did at the bonfire, except the music in the club is more frenetic and up-tempo. Dex’s fingers tentatively grasp my hip, and when he starts to sway to the music, I shuffle my feet in an attempt to keep up.
“Don’t make fun,” I warn because I’m woefully bad at it.
“Never.” His other hand finds my waist, and after a few awkward moments of getting my feet to work, I finally find the rhythm, surprising myself.
Soon enough, I lose most of my self-consciousness as the crowd tightens around us and it feels like it’s just Dex and me in our little cocoon. We’re dancing and smiling and sweating our butts off, but I’m enjoying myself.
Dex gets more daring with his dancing, and I find his moves sexy as he shuffles closer and our bodies line up. He gives me his back but grasps my hand to stay put on his hip as we move flush together. He gets down real low, and I try to follow, but I’m afraid I’m gonna fall on my ass. Instead, I close the distance between us, hanging on for dear life, and when he rocks his ass backward against my thigh, a tingling feeling starts in my belly and moves to my groin. It feels so rousingly electric that it takes my brain a moment to register that I’m getting turned on.