Page 2 of Virgin Skin

“I’ll take your word for it.” I grin. “I haven’t seen you around here before.”

He angles himself towards me a little more, giving me a better view of his smile and the hint of mischief dancing in his eyes.

“Interesting. So, you spend enough time at the local pickup bar to know all of the regulars.”

I chuckle. “Andyouspend a lot of time deflecting attempts at conversation for a guy who came over to buymea drink.”

He snorts into his next sip then uses the back of his hand to wipe his face dry.

“Okay, you’ve got me there. Trying to be coy and mysterious clearly isn’t my strong suit.” He looks away from me, letting his attention wander around the bar for a minute before returning it to me. “The answer just isn’t very sexy, so it might derail my attempt to seduce you.”

My gut flutters and I smile wider unintentionally. Obviously, there’s only one reason a guy grabs a seat next to you and offers to buy you a drink, but hearing him confirm it and in such a surprisingly guileless way makes my heart beat a little harder.

“Try me,” I say with a shrug.

He looks down at his glass, his wavy hair falling over his forehead. My fingers twitch with the urge to reach over and push it out of his face, and since I can’t think of a good reason not to, I do exactly that. His hair is as soft as his skin was, and my touch has him snapping his head up to look at me again.

“I did something crazy. I quit my job and broke the lease on my apartment, then I got in my car and drove all the way here from Colorado hoping to find my dad.” He bounces his knee and seems to get distracted for just a second by loud laughter coming from one of the tables before he keeps talking. “He doesn’t even know I exist.”

He brings his glass to his lips and gulps down nearly half his drink in a few swallows.

I put my hand on his thigh to comfort him. The bouncing stills and he twists his lips into a wry smile.

“See? Not sexy.”

I shrug again. “Real shit is more interesting than dirty talk.”

Milo barks out a laugh. “Bullshit. You’d rather hear me whine about growing up without a dad than have me lean in close and whisper in your ear that I want to choke on your cock?”

I sputter into a sip of my own drink, spraying Coke through my nose and coughing a few times to clear the carbonated burn from my windpipe. I don’t know if it’s just been too long since I’ve gotten laid or if Milo’s strange bluntness is doing it for me in a major way. Maybe a little of both.

I grab a handful of napkins to mop my face dry, then drag my hand over the rough stubble on my jaw, scrambling to grab onto something more tangible than attraction and lust for a second. I almost never do shit like this—pick up a guy at a bar and hook up. If I did that, I might end up led around by my dick like my friends are on a near daily basis. And then who would help them pull their heads out of their own asses?

One night couldn’t hurt though, could it? One silly, impulsive hookup with a guy who’s barely age appropriate but clearly interested wouldn’t be the end of the world.

Fuck it.

“Hey, do you want to get out of here?” I ask.

Milo’s lips part and his eyes widen. His knee starts bouncing again and he clicks his thumbnail and index finger against each other in a quiet sound I can only hear because we’re sitting so close.

Did I misread things? Maybe he just meant to flirt a little and not actually see things through. It’s not like I’ve never done that myself, buying a guy a drink, trading some smiles and casual touches, then dipping out before things get any further.

I’m about to tell him it’s cool if he’s not interested when he blurts out his answer.

“Yeah, let’s do it.”

“Are you sure?” I ask.

He puts his hand on my thigh and slides off his stool so he’s standing right between my legs. He’s slim but not wispy, and probably at least as tall as I am, if not an inch or so taller. Dark chest hair peeks out over the V-neck of his t-shirt, and I notice aleather necklace with a metal charm on the end hanging around his neck. He’s not fidgeting now.

“I’m sure.” His touch feels steady and sure as he slides his hand up my thigh while he holds my gaze. “Let’s go.”

The certainty in his voice drags me out of my seat. I grab my jacket off the stool next to me and pull it on as I follow him through the bar towards the door. It’s quiet outside, and too cold for crickets now that a November chill has crept in after a long summer that didn’t seem to want to let go. If I’m lucky, I’ll get another month to ride my Harley before she has to be put into the garage until spring.

“Did you drive?” I ask, catching up to Milo and running a hand up his back until I reach his neck. I wrap my hand around the nape of it gently, more resting it there than anything.

He shakes his head. “No. I walked. I’m staying at the motel right down the street.”

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