Page 21 of Oblivion

“So, Dante, are you going to introduce me to your friends?”

“What was that? I didn’t quite catch it,” he yelled, tapping his ear and leaning into my space.

I laughed and playfully shoved his bicep—which had exactly zero effect. He didn’t budge a damn inch.

“I know what you’re playing at with the ‘I can’t hear you’ trick.”

My heart gave a flutter when Dante’s stunning smile appeared. “You’re onto me there. I just want to kiss you again.”

That flicker in my chest turned into an erratic rhythm which left me breathless. I took a quick sip of cocktail to calm the heightened beat, then looked up at him from under my lashes.

“When in Vegas, right?”

I anticipated his mouth claiming mine, but I didn’t expect him to take my face in his hands and leisurely swipe his tongue across mine. He sensually sucked my lower lip before renewing the kiss, over and over again until heat pulsed between my legs and I moaned against his mouth.

Our heightened attraction could have been blamed on the drinks, but alcohol or not, there was no denying how electrified our chemistry was. If Dante was going to be the one that got away, I was going to make the most of having him for the single night.

I reached low, ignoring the pumping club as if we’d already made it back to a hotel room. Dante grunted and snagged my wrist, not tugging it away but stilling my movements.

“Easy there, Lemon Drop. There’s a lot my boys and I share, but you won’t be one of them.”

Heat flooded my cheeks. He winked to put me at ease, then pointed around the table, listing names as he went.

“Forrest, Jenny, Tuck, Pittsy, and Doughboy.”

I giggled and eyed him curiously. “So, what’s your cute nickname?”

Dante’s brows pulled low and his lips pressed into a firm line. “If you knew why we call Shane ‘Forrest’, you wouldn’t be calling itcute.”It appeared as if he added a chuckle, but the sound was lost to the music.

“As for mine, take a guess,” he offered.

“Uhh.” I glanced around the guys, unable to work out their system for gifting nicknames. “Rambo?”

Dante threw his head back and released a deep laugh that hit me square in the chest. The melody was as captivating as his eyes.

“Well off the mark, babe. It’s Lotus.”

I balked mid-sip and hastily swallowed.“Lotus?As in, the flower?”

He grinned and cocked his head to the side. “Unfortunately, we don’t get to choose.”

“How’d you get named that?” The potential story had me inching closer, and I didn’t imagine his hand creeping higher on my thigh, either.

“Story for later, beautiful.”

“What do you guys do?” I asked, glancing around the various bodies all stacked with hard muscle and defined edges.

He lifted the beer to his lips and seemed to have some kind of silent conversation across the table with the guy who’d cozied up to Vivi. Forrest, Dante called him.

“We’re in the Army,” he said after the pause.

“Like, missions and shit?”

He snorted. “Yeah, you could say that. We’re Green Berets.”

Oh, my… fuck. I didn’t know if it was from shock or awe, but either way my belly bottomed out and left me giddy. I looked around the table with fresh eyes. Green Berets. All of them. That explained their build, sharp attention and overall air of cocky-confidence. And while I assumed them all to be single, I was surprised to see two of them wearing wedding bands.

“So, you’re all single aside from those two?” I asked, pointing at the tall Chinese man and the guy who didn’t seem to say much.

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