Page 24 of 40 and (Tired of) Faking It
“The wings,” they all said in chorus.
JD laughed, that sexy dimple making an appearance. “Wings it is. But please tell me there’s Guinness on tap.”
“You know it,” Erin said. She and Evan went up to the bar, where Calder, his shaggy blond head bent over the tap, and several of his employees waited for the rush to start. In minutes they had heaping baskets of wings to share, Guinness for the guys, and strawberry margaritas for the ladies. Erin was the exception, with her Jameson whisky, ginger ale, and cranberry juice cocktail. Everyone ragged her about it as they dug into the food.
“Those are good wings,” JD said later, unashamedly wiping his hands with the moist towelettes served alongside the wings. Lily couldn’t keep from eyeing the powerful forearms revealed by his rolled-up sleeves. “What’s that barbecue sauce made with?”
“It’s a golden bourbon sauce,” Lily said. “Mustard and bourbon, brown sugar… That’s as far as we’ve gotten with the recipe. Calder absolutely refuses to share.”
“We need somebody to sex it out of him,” Claire said.
Lily blushed. Sitting beside her, JD laughed.
They were debating between New York cheesecake and authentic Irish sticky toffee when Calder turned the jukebox on. “Dessert later. Time to dance!” Erin said.
Evan groaned. Alana laughed, the sound carrying a hint of evil, chucking him with her shoulder. “That’s the price you pay for Guinness.” She stood. “Take me out.”
He eyed her hand, lifting his own reluctantly. JD shook his head. “That’s definitely a small price to pay for Guinness.”
Lily leaned closer. “Evan hates dancing.”
JD turned his face toward her, putting him almost nose to nose with her. “I can tell. He’s missing out on one of the great joys in life.”
“Dancing?”
“Dancing. Music.” His gaze dropped to her lips. “Especially with a partner. Most things are better with a partner.”
The bitter smell of Guinness reached her on his breath, not at all unpleasant. Especially not when mixed with the scent of JD’s cologne. “Do you like to dance?”
“Absolutely.” His voice dropped to a whisper, barely heard over the music. “I’m good at it too.” He winked.
Lily thought her heart might burst. It was on the tip of her tongue to beg him to dance with her. Or maybe kiss her. She wasn’t sure which request would come out, so she pressed her lips together. And Erin beat her to the punch.
“Come show me what you got, hot stuff.” She reached a hand out for JD. As he stood, turning his back to Lily, Erin peeked around his shoulder, grinning. “I’ll warm him up for you.”
If only she could sink into the floor. She’d never been so embarrassed in her life, but the rest of their table didn’t seem to blink. As was their custom, she and Claire didn’t wait for male partners to join the dance floor. This was more of a free-for-all, although even in her small circle of women enjoying the music, she couldn’t help glancing at the middle of the dance floor where Erin and JD were practically dirty dancing to George Michaels’s “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.”
Holy cow, the man knew what to do with his hips.
She almost wished he’d asked her first, but fast dancing with a partner had never been her forte and Erin knew that. None of her previous boyfriends had been willing to dance. She’d done the whole shuffling-around-the-floor thing at high school dances, but other than that, her only dancing experience was when Calder started ladies’ night and they’d all decided to hell with dates, they’d enjoy themselves solo. And they did. It wasn’t long before several other women had joined in; first their close friend Scarlett. Then Alana had started dragging Evan in, and her friend Jessa from high school who worked in Gatlinburg, then Rosalyn from the daycare on 5th Street.
Even Lou had joined them tonight, her lavender head bopping along to the music. Lily assumed Snookums was still at home, although she wouldn’t put it past Miss Lou to sneak the cat in here and see if he enjoyed dancing as much as he enjoyed walking.
When that song ended, Erin and JD were laughing, looking winded, but they’d obviously enjoyed themselves. Lily pushed down a spark of jealousy. There was nothing to be jealous about, but oh, how she wished she was skillful enough to match him on the dance floor.
Maybe he gives lessons.
JD danced a fast song with Claire, then one with Alana.
Okay, she could be jealous.
After they all returned to the table to refresh themselves with drinks, the first slow song of the night came on. Savage Garden, one of her favorite bands. “I Knew I Loved You.” The song that made every woman swoon.
She closed her eyes to savor the opening chords, and when she opened them, it was to find JD standing in front of her, hand out. “May I have this dance?”
Her throat suddenly thick, all she could do was nod and put her hand in his. JD lifted her from her seat and led her to the dance floor.
She hadn’t been prepared for the feel of his arms around her. JD was tall, taller than her even in her heels, and his arms surrounding her made her feel enclosed, enveloped, despite the respectable inches he left between them. Cursing those inches, she savored the steel of his muscles and the way he guided her, somehow making it easy to follow without even thinking about it. No pressure. No stress. Sinking into the moment was never easy for her, but now, here, with JD, she sank hard.
