Page 101 of Meet Me at the Metro

I don’t dare move until they settle, but when I finally will my feet toward the door, I only have one thought…

For her friend’s sake, I sure as hell hope I don’t meet him anytime soon.

28

PANIC

E L L I E

Evie, Harvey, and I are bursting with laughter as we make our way out ofGullie’sfor the night. My eyes barely keep up with Evie, who’s skipping back and forth in the moonlit alleyway.

“You’re going to bust your arse,” Harvey reprimands, cackling. “Quit skipping!”

“Never! I’ll die before I let a man tell me what to do!”

“I beg your pardon?” Harvey cocks a hip and stares at her, still adorned head to toe in his drag attire. He bats his heavily coated eyelashes, purses his rosy pink lips, and smooths his hands down his cinched waist and skin-tight skirt. “I am the furthest thing from a man right now, thank you very much.”

I lean over and whisper, “She’ll die before she lets anyone tell her what to do.”

“Yeah, because she’s a walking, talking rebellion,” he chuckles.

In comedic timing, our bright-haired friend falls right onto her ass, painfully groaning the second her bottom hits the concrete.

Despite her refusal to listen to him, Harvey walks over and helps her to her feet. “What did I say?”

The jangle of keys conjures my attention back to Theo, who’s closing up the bar for the night. I sneak up behind him as he locks the door, frightening him as I snake my arms around his waist.

He spins on his heel so abruptly that my giggling—slightly inebriated—ass is nearly knocked to the ground. He quickly grabs me tightly and keeps me from falling.

“When will you learn to quit sneaking up on me, huh?”

“I like keeping you on your toes!”

“You like scaring the shit out of me.” There’s a handsome smile scrawled across his face as he shakes his head.“Fucking hell.”

We join Evie and Harvey up ahead, and as soon as we turn out of the dim alley, my eyes are met with the blinding lights of the city. The passing taxis and cars cruising along the busy road create a chilly breeze that sends goosebumps trailing up my spine. I tuck my hands into the sleeves of my rib-knit sweater, trying to find some warmth, and silently reprimand myself for forgetting to bring a jacket tonight.

Theo’s shifting out of the corner of my eye, but it isn’t until I look over that I’m aware of what he’s doing.

Without saying a word, he starts to pull off his black hoodie. I savor up the slight peek-a-boo I get of his naturally toned abdomen until he’s left with only the short-sleeve t-shirt underneath.

His inked arms are bare now, and his pale skin is already coursing with goosebumps, but he doesn’t complain. Instead, he pulls me toward him and slides the hoodie over me, adjusting it so it’s pulled over my head.

“You’re gonna freeze,” I say, already feeling my limbs and chest warm.“Now I’ve got two layers, and you barely have one.”

“Shhh.”The hoodie practically swallows me whole, but he looks me over with a satisfied grin. “It’s a shame you don’t wear my clothes more often.”

I blush, completely smitten. “Thank you.”

Theo shifts me to his side so he’s closest to the road and wraps an arm around me, drawing me close as we continue walking home.

The distant booming of drums, the warm tone of a saxophone, and the strumming of a guitar draw all four of our attentions to a crowd gathered on the sidewalk up ahead. Beyond the assembly of bodies, a three-man street band performs. Their reggae-rock music reverberates along the avenue, filling the streets with an upbeat melody thatcould convince any person’s hips to sway. As we pass, we find ourselves stopping to appreciate their mesmerizing performance and enthralling sound.

“Dance with me!” Evie exclaims, pulling Harvey through the crowd.

The two find themselves lost in the music, twirling and swaying in perfect rhythm as if nobody else in the world besides them existed. They dance their hearts out, cutting expectant glances toward Theo and me upon every spin they make—challenging us to join.

I look up to Theo, who’s biting back a smile as he watches our friends dance.

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