Out of the corner of my eyes, I catch Stella waving down at me from Zedd’s booth with two thumbs up. She managed to get in, then I figured. That seems to be all the encouragement I need. The music gets even louder with more Zedd fans piling onto the dance floor.

“Sure.”

Xavier smiles, and I notice the single dimple on his right cheek that somehow makes him less intimidating. I smile back and relax a little.

“Your friend approves, I see.” He motions to Stella, who is fangirling at Zedd’s booth.

I roll my eyes. “Stella would approve of me breathing on anything as long as it’s a man.”

I realize how that sounds and try to explain. “Not that she wouldn’t approve if I liked women. I don’t, though. Like women, that is. What I meant… well, I don’t get out much.”Real smooth, Brooke. I try again. “Don’t get me wrong, I do like a night out, but—actually, I don’t, the nightclub isn’t usually my scene. Although this one isn’t so bad. This is great, to be honest. But I don’t have time—” I stop my rambling.

He’s still watching me with that smile on his face. “How come you don’t have time?” he asks as if I’ve been making complete sense. He stands a little closer and starts to move in a sexy, rhythmic sway that I automatically mirror. I find myself relaxing even more.

“I teach at an elementary school in Brownsville. It’s called Regal. I also work with the arts and music club. It can be time-consuming.”

“So, arts and music,” he says, “something we have in common.”

“Do you teach as well?” I ask.

“No, I work in real estate,” he replies, “but music is one of my great passions—and weapons.”

“What do you mean ‘weapons’?”

“I mean I can get your ears to bleed by singing.”

I throw my head back and laugh. Xavier seems caught off guard for a moment and then the smoldering look returns to hiseyes. Gone is the playful guy I’d been dancing with. Up close, I see the exact moment his pupils dilate and his nostrils flare.

My laughter dies as a frisson of awareness sweeps my body. My nipples harden.Attraction is too tame a word to describe this.Just at the point I’m thinking of putting some distance between us so I can think straight, Xavier pulls me closer, resting his palm on the small of my back as if to keep me from moving away. I feel the warmth of his solid chest and the scent of his skin fills my nostrils. It’s a heady combination of expensive cologne and clean male. I love it.

The music slows and we’re not dancing so much as moving together now, and every inch of me is aware of how close he is. My breasts feel unbearably heavy and achy, so I put my arms around his neck, so they’re pushed against his hard chest. I’m unable to suppress a tiny moan at the relief and pleasure that washes through me from that full-body contact. Xavier sucks in a breath and lowers the hand at my waist to cup my derriere. He pulls my lower body closer, and I feel his bulge against my belly. He’s hard as steel.

My arousal spikes even higher and I grind against him. I’m dimly aware that we might be giving onlookers an eyeful, but I’m too far gone to care. His other hand slips into the hair at my nape, using the hold to tilt my head up as his mouth descends on mine in a hard kiss. His tongue slips in to tease in short licks, which has me craving more and straining to get even closer. The kiss turns decadent and goes on until my breathing becomes erratic, my heart pounding fast.

Xavier breaks the kiss, breathing just as hard, his pupils dark pools of lust.

I’ve never been this turned on by a man. And he hasn’t even touched me.

I realize I want his hands on me more than I want my next breath. He takes my mouth in another hard kiss, his teeth gently dragging my lower lip in a pull I feel all the way to my clit. His mouth moves to tease the sensitive spot just under my earlobe.

“Let’s get out of here.”

He doesn’t wait for me to respond but grabs my hand and leads me away from the dance floor and past the VIP section. I follow him to a dimly lit hall and then Xavier pushes a door open and pulls me inside what looks like a private lounge. The sounds from the club are muted as the door shuts behind me.

I barely have time to take in my surroundings when he pins me against the heavy door and crushes his mouth to mine in a kiss so savagely intense I can barely catch my breath. He kisses me like he’s starving for the taste of my mouth, the feel of my tongue. As if he never wants to stop. I melt in surrender, so aroused I’m not sure how long my legs will hold me up.

He slides hands down my thighs and back up, taking the hem of my dress up to my waist, then returns them to knead my ass. I love the feel of his hands on me. My own hands slide under his shirt to feel his hard muscles, and when they twitch as I run my hands over them, I know I’m having the same effect on him as he’s having on me.

He suddenly raises a hand to his back, grabs a fistful of his shirt, and pulls it off.Holy shit, he’s so beautiful. His ripped torso is a work of art. I don’t have time to admire the display of muscles as he’s turned me around. My cheek is pressed against the warm oak door as he unzips my dress and pulls it over my head. He moves my hair to press kisses on my neck.

“Okay?” He breathes into my ear, running his hands over my naked back, the curve of my ass, and back up and around to cupmy achy breasts. I can’t speak, so I nod my head yes. He turns me around, and his eyes feast on me.

His heavy-lidded stare rakes me from top to toe, taking in my tousled ash-blonde hair, rose-tipped breasts, and tiny black silk underwear. The lust I see in his eyes has me pressing my thighs together. He cups one full breast, pinching the tightly furled nipple, and I jerk, moaning. “You’re a fucking goddess Brooke Lewis.”

Swallowing my moans in a kiss, he continues to fondle my breasts while his other hand strokes down my flat, quivering belly.

He’s still kissing me when he reaches between my legs and feels me through my damp panties. My breath hitches as he moves the crotch aside and strokes my slick folds, and my back arches off the door when he presses his thumb against my clit. When he slides a long finger into me and slowly starts to fuck me, I feel my legs begin to shake. I need to come. Badly.

“Please.” I beg hoarsely, my nails digging into the unyielding muscles of his broad shoulders.