CHAPTER 1

Sonnie

Walking into Two Dudes on my night off wasn’t my idea of a great time, but there I was. Shannon had ordered two dozen cupcakes for her daughter’s graduation and I couldn’t pass up the money. The bar was busy for a Wednesday night and I had to guard my cupcakes like a linebacker as I made my way across the room. I’d barely been able to afford the ingredients to make the cupcakes after paying the utilities and if some drunk asshole knocked them out of my hands, it was likely to end in murder. I knew I was stressed when I found myself thinking about jail and how it might’ve been a relaxing way to get away for a while.

I got closer to the bar and saw Shannon slip into the back with Jerry, our boss. Since I had no intention of talking to Jerry, I figured I’d sit and wait for her. Jerry was long-winded and I knew Shannon had a crush on him so there was no telling how long the two would be gone. Glancing around for an open seat, I instead found myself watching a woman cling to a man for dear life. His face was hidden behind her hair but his shoulders were wide enough to stretch out on either side of her. From what I could tell, he was a big man, but he was having trouble getting the woman off him.

Being behind the bar usually meant I was used to snapping out orders at drunk patrons who were getting carried away but I wasn’t working and without a bottle of tequila in my hands, there was no way that woman was going to listen to me. I tried to tell myself it wasn’t my business but the longer I watched the man gently try to push her away, the more annoyed I got. She clearly couldn’t take no for an answer and if the roles were reversed, I would’ve had my soda gun on her already.

Growling out an annoyed sigh, I straightened my back and put a smile on my face. Striding over to the two of them, I wedged myself between them to put my cupcakes on the bar top andthrew my arms around the man’s very broad shoulders. “I made it, finally! I had to grab the cupcakes for Shannon, but I’m here now, babe. Sorry for being—”

Somehow the tight squeeze between the woman’s boobs and his chest hadn’t stolen my breath, but finally looking up at the man’s face had. Oh, he was handsome. I instantly understood why the drunk woman was clinging to him. I wasn’t drunk and I wanted to rub my body all over his, too. The feeling of muscles under my hands was nice, but his eyes boring into mine had my lady bits singing.

His dark hair was a little too long and falling over his forehead, and normally I would’ve thought he should’ve shaved his stubble before coming out, but the salt and pepper in his beard was alluring. His olive skin was smooth and his intense dark brown eyes were countered by a full mouth that was a shade pinker than I would’ve expected with his coloring. He looked like a god and I was willing to bet there were abs, visible abs, hiding under his Henley.

One side of his mouth ticked up in a smirk and he easily wrapped his arms around my waist, tugging me close. Yep, abs. I could feel them against my stomach and damned if that didn’t make my panties combust.

“I never mind you being late, Cupcake. Not when you show up looking edible every time.”

The woman was still hovering at my back so I took the chance to run my fingers through his hair and feel the silky strands. His eyelids lowered enough to tell me he liked it, so I did it again and bit my lip. He had no business being so hot and I had no business touching him, but what could I say? I was a hero.

I glanced over my shoulder at her and smiled. “Who are you?”

The woman frowned and glared at where the stranger had nuzzled his face into my neck. His beard was rough on my sensitive skin but then I felt his warm, soft lips against my pulseand I wasn’t sure who was more shocked, me or the woman watching.

“Who am I? Who the hell are you?”

Brown Eyes trailed one of his hands lower until it was riding the top curve of my ass. “She’s no one I know. I was just trying to tell her I was meeting my girlfriend here. My habitually late girlfriend.”

Looking back at him was inevitable when his eyes were the exact color of my favorite chocolate when it was melted. I licked my lips and felt his fingers tighten over my ass. “I thought you didn’t mind my lateness.”

He zoned in on my mouth and moved closer. His breath caressed my lips when he exhaled and I inhaled the scent of mint. “I don’t. I was just worried you’d take one look at another woman trying to climb me like a tree and toss my sorry ass to the curb.”

The music changed to an older country song which had a sultry vibe to it and I felt my pulse rate jump even higher. I was already pressed against the stranger from crotch to shoulder but it didn’t feel like enough. Even though it was fake, my body’s reaction to him was very real and the first of its kind. I didn’t usually feel flutters. Brown Eyes was giving me full on dragon-sized wing flaps, though.

His hand skated over my ass and then up again until it was gripping the back of my neck and pulling my face closer to his. Our mouths were a breath away from connecting but he stopped and hovered there as he held my gaze. “Where’d you come from?”

“He should’ve had a sign or something if he was so in love. Whatever!” With a bump of her shoulder to mine, the woman behind me walked away, breaking the spell.

I cleared my throat and pulled away, smiling while I tried to pretend like it’d all been an act. “You’re welcome.”

He shifted his body on the stool to follow me as I leaned over the bar and looked to see if Shannon was back yet. “Thank you. I was concerned I was going to have to scrape her off of me.”

I looked back over at him and looked him up and down. His simple Henley was unbuttoned at the neck and his jeans were snug across his thick thighs. The boots he wore were lightly worn but an expensive brand. He looked somewhat familiar, but that didn’t mean anything to me. I’d been bartending at least six days a week, every week for three years straight. Faces had all started to blend.

“I wish I could say it’s not normally like that, but it’s a town with a lot of single women in the marrying age range. Any man not wearing a wedding ring becomes open game.” I looked down at his finger. “If you’re just trying to enjoy a night out without needing to bring your scraper, maybe buy a fake ring.”

He nodded and looked down at my empty ring finger. “And single women? Is it rough here for y’all, too?”

I smiled. “I’m normally on the other side of the bar with a soda gun as a weapon. No one bothers me.”

“Not sure a soda gun would be enough to make me want to keep my hands to myself.” His voice dropped an octave and the huskiness of it went straight to my core.

I tilted my head to stare at him and tapped my fingers on the bar top. He was painfully good looking. I wanted to hop onto his barstool and rub myself on his thigh. I was just too busy. “I’m pretty mean with that soda gun.”

His grin was devastating. Dimples popped out on his cheeks and his eyes lowered just enough to make me think bedroom thoughts. “And if I think you’re worth it? How’s a guy supposed to get past your soda gun?”

“Are you asking for yourself or out of curiosity?”