This could not be further from my typical night, and part of me has no idea how and why I’m here. Well, no, I know why I’m here. He’s attractive, totally unavailable emotionally, and he lives halfway across the country.
He’s ideal for a night of no-strings-attached fun, and for getting my mind off of David.
Except I’m hesitating. Maybe because sleeping with strangers isn’t really my move.
“I’d say Ruby Tuesday was a tremendous hit.”
I snicker. “Did no one seriously get the reference? I think everyone but us in that room was like twenty when the Rolling Stones came out.”
“Oh, they were, but they were twenty and living in a boardroom or a corner office, not listening to popular music and having fun.”
“Booooor-ring.”
“I second that.”
I grin at him, my hand coming up to toy with the silver chain against my neck. “Look, I hope I didn’t embarrass you in there. No, seriously. I might have taken the character thing a little far.”
He chuckles. “Do you mean the part where you’re the heiress to Lord Racington, the famous horse racing baron?”
I almost snort champagne out through my nose.
“I mean, Lord Racington?”
“What, I thought it was pretty clever spur of the moment.”
He grins. “Or did you mean the part where you told that group we were talking to that you’d lived in Kyoto for a year.”
“Okay, that could have gone better, I’ll admit.”
“You mean if that one guy hadn’t started speaking in Japanese to you?”
“Right, that.”
Landon laughs again. “Nah, I think it was all perfect. And no, Serena, you didn’t embarrass me.” He shrugs. “Also, I don’t actually care what anyone back there thinks.”
“So why go at all?”
He grins. “To show off the gorgeous woman I somehow managed to pull from the bar tonight.”
My face tingles with the blush, my teeth raking over my lip. My eyes dart to him, seeing the mix of playful smirk and burning seriousness etched across his face.
I take a quick drink from the bottle in my hands, the bubbles teasing and tickling over my lips and tongue. I pass the bottle back to him, watching as he brings it to his perfect, sculpted lips and takes a sip. He watches me as he swallows, saying nothing as he passes the bottle back.
“I’m not, like, looking for anything,” I find myself saying.
He smiles, those perfect teeth flashing in the light from the city spread out before us. “And neither am I, but I don’t think that should stop us from enjoying our evening.”
“I could not agree more,” I say quietly.
I swallow quickly as he steps closer. His hand moves to my hip, teasing its way to the small of my back and pulling me against him.
“Of course, you are the enemy.” I drag my teeth over my lip as I look up at him.
“Yeah but doesn’t that just make this more interesting?”
“Only if no one I work for finds out.”
“Our little secret?”
I nod, swallowing quickly. “I can work with that.”
“I leave in a few hours, you know,” he husks against my lips.
“Perfect,” I murmur back, feeling my pulse pounding in my chest as I find myself molding my body to his.
“You’ve got green eyes,” he says quietly.
“So do you, what are the odd-”
His lips crush against mine, stealing the words from them and the breath from my chest. I moan into his mouth as I fall into him, my hands pulling him closer as our tongues slip together.
He spins us around, my back pressing into the balcony railing behind me, sending a shiver of danger teasing through me. He kisses me hard, and I’m melting for him. I’m on fire, wanting him and wanting this commitment-free release more than anything. I can feel the thick bulge in his pants pressing into my thigh, only heightening my need for him.
His lips move to my neck, making me gasp as his hand slides between us. It teases over my belly, down over a thigh, and hooks at the hem of my dress.
“Should we go inside?” I breath, gasping as he starts to pull my dress higher and higher.
“We could,” he growls into my ear, his teeth nipping at the tender skin there. “Or we could just stay out here.”
I whimper at what he’s suggesting - at doing what the pooling heat between my legs wants me to do with him out here.
His hand moves to my back, fingers finding the zipper to my dress.
“Wait, out-”
I gasp as he pulls it down, the dress coming away from my body and the warm night air teasing over my bare back.
“Take your dress off for me.”
It’s a command.
It’s an order.