Page 12 of Love at First Bite
“Hi.” His voice was deep and smooth.
“Hello.” I smiled, and we stared at one another. Time stopped. I wasn’t sure just how long I stood there. Staring. Letting myself fall and float in his emerald gaze.
“Truth or dare?” I found myself asking, breaking the silence that had fallen between us. A manly brow rose behind his mask, but I didn’t squirm. I had no idea where I found the confidence not to look away, but it was like I couldn’t.
“Truth,” he answered, his voice rich with curiosity.
“Do you think vampires and witches go well together?” The words slipped out, and I had no idea where they’d come from.
“I sure as fuck hope so,” he rasped, and I felt my lips quirk upward. “Please, take my seat.”
“Oh,” I breathed. My heart started to pick up speed. He hopped off his barstool and extended his hand for me. “Thankyou,” I whispered, loving the roughness of his palm against mine.
I didn’t need to look behind me to hear the girls cheer and whoop for me. Not when it cut through the music and he looked behind me.
“Friends of yours?” he asked, leaning in close enough that his lips brushed the shell of my ear. I pulled away, not because I was uncomfortable with how close he was, but because I wanted to get a better look at him.
“Something like that.” I made a face, and he chuckled. “Can I buy you a drink?” I offered, still unsure where this confidence stemmed from but thankful for it.
“A drink?” He pointed at himself.
“Yeah.” I smiled. My eyes dropped to his lips.
With the mask on, they highlighted his features. My mind drifted into dangerous territory. I wondered what it would be like to kiss a man with lips like those. Full and plump. What they’d feel on my skin. My bare shoulder. My breast. Lower. I tried to shake the naughty thoughts away and realized he was staring at me in a way I wasn’t sure how to translate.
Amused?
Taken aback?
“I mean, unless you’re not drinking,” I nervously added.Oh god! I am making a fool of myself!
“Only if you order for me,” he replied easily, and something inside of me, this weight, was taken away.
“You want me to order for you?” I blinked. I’d never offered to buy a man a drink, but I was pretty sure they didn’t usually ask you to order for them.What if this is a test?
“Yeah.” He nodded. My hands itched to touch his jaw, to see what that scruff would feel like against my palm.
“What if you have an allergy?” I mumbled softly and felt myself swaying closer to him.Is he moving towards me, too?
“I don’t.” His green eyes sparkled with humor.
“What if I order something that doesn’t sit well with what you’ve been drinking?”
“You’re the kindest witch I’ve ever met, gorgeous.” I bit down on my lip. “If it gives me a headache tomorrow, I would be more than happy to pay the consequences because it means I get to spend more time with you.”
“You’re smooth.”
“And you’re beautiful,” he said just as a bartender approached us.
“What can I get you two?” he asked. All the bartenders at the brewery were hot, but at that moment, it could have been Brad Pitt back there, and I wouldn’t have noticed. Not when I was staring at the man I was ready to say I’d marry one day.
Marry one day?I shook the thought away. I was getting way too ahead of myself. But who could blame me? The energy between us flowed easily. The air felt electric. Like it could literally start to snap, crackle, and pop at any moment.
“Two vampire kisses, please.” My voice sounded raspy in my ears, my attention on my tall dark and handsome stranger. His green eyes darkened with a heat that penetrated throughout me when his hand settled on the small of my back. I couldn’t make out the sensation of the rough, calloused palm against my skin, but I still gasped softly.
“Good choice,” he praised, and I felt myself blush.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
