“I’m here now.”
“We are.” He raised his glass, and she joined in.
“Can I be honest with you?” she asked, feeling the awkwardness of the moment.
“Sure.”
“This is my first date. I’ve not really been on a date before.”
His eyes widened as he looked at her.
“No, I’m not a virgin, but the guy I was with, he’s not really into dating or anything apart from the obvious.” She groaned, mortified by what she was revealing. “Why don’t you tell me to shut up?” she said.
Dale laughed. “It’s refreshing being with a girl who speaks her mind. I’m relieved you’re not a virgin.”
“Good, that’s good.”
Looking down at her glass, she waited for the conversation to pick up.
“You’ve never been on a date at all, have you?”
“I just said I hadn’t.”
Again, he laughed. “Okay, I’ll start everything off. Do you have any family?”
“I have family. I’ve not been in contact with them in a long time. We’re not close.” She stared at her glass.
“Any siblings?”
“No, just me.” She was silent again. “Erm, what about you? Do you have any family or siblings?”
Sipping from her drink she waited for him to speak.
“I’ve got a Mom and Dad and a step-dad. Also, I’ve got two older brothers and three sisters. It was mad growing up.”
“Did you always want to be a lawyer?” she asked, focusing all the attention on him.
“No, I wanted to be a doctor, but then I couldn’t stand the sight of blood.”
Amber listened to him talk. She drowned out the rest of the room, but when Elijah entered the club, she felt it. It was the strangest feeling in the world. Tingles went up and down her arms. Glancing past Dale’s shoulder, she saw him stood, watching her. His gaze reminded her of a hawk stalking its prey.
She excused herself to go to the bathroom. Her date was not going great. They had nothing in common, and the few bits they were talking about didn’t give her a thrill.
Elijah followed her into the toilet. It was empty, which was a surprise. Was fate or destiny trying to tell them something?
“You’re bored, and you’ve got nothing to talk with him about.”
“My date is none of your business.”
He took a step toward her. “Does he make your pussy wet? Do you ache for him to touch you?”
She bit on her lip, stopping herself from attacking him. The instant she’d sensed Elijah, she’d grown warm from the inside out.
“I bet if I was to feel your pussy you’d be soaking wet for me and me alone.”
Amber backed up against the wall. Elijah followed her path until she was trapped against the wall and his hard body. There was nowhere else for her to go and staring up into his large brown eyes, she didn’t want to.
****
Seeing her date had set him on edge. He needed to stake his claim before he lost control. She shouldn’t be out with anyone but him. For the last couple of days he’d kept his distance, giving her time to get over the pain he’d caused her.
“Why are you doing this to me?” she asked.
“I told you I wasn’t backing away.” He pressed his palms to either side of her head, surrounding her. “If you tell me to back off and you want the dude in the suit, then tell me, Amber.”
She stayed silent as she looked at him.
“Will you back away?” She gazed over his shoulder.
“No.”
“No matter what I say?”
“I’m not going anywhere. From the night of Heather’s eighteenth, you’ve been mine. You’ll continue to be mine.” He cupped her cheek, tilting her head back to look at him.
The door to the bathroom opened. He turned to see Ashley stood, glaring at him.
“Amber, your date is waiting. This is your chance to experience something new. Go, now.”
His woman ducked under his arm and left the bathroom. Elijah turned to Ashley. The other woman was glaring at him.
“She told you about us?” he asked.
Ashley entered the room, letting the door swing closed. She folded her arms and stared at him. “She told me everything.”
“I doubt that.”
“Then you’re a jerk, Sir.”
He gasped, staring at Ashley.
“We may not share everything, but we get there in the end. There are parts of ourselves we keep silent about. Not everyone needs to know the sordid truth of our past.”
She stepped closer. The anger radiated off her, startling him.
“She loves me, and I love her.”
“I have no doubt, but what you’ve done to Amber is not acceptable to me. When she was supposed to be dating, she wasn’t. My girl has been hung up on you.”