He positioned me to straddle him. My dress rode up dangerously high, and I squirmed, wondering if I was letting this go too far. But he kept his lips on mine, and that energy was burning its way through me.

Both his hands were on my legs now, and I could feel his calloused fingertips trailing up my thigh. They were featherlight touches at first, making my whole body hum, as he traveled higher and higher. His hand slipped under my short dress, and I let out a soft gasp against his mouth. He grinned at my response as he slowly traced the line of my underwear. My body quivered at the touch, and I seriously contemplated letting him do whatever he wanted with me. How did he get me this flustered?

He distracted me with his mouth, but this time, he pressed his luck, tugging lightly at my underwear. His finger slid under the material, and he swiped it down my core. That brought me back to my senses. I jumped out of his lap faster than I’d thought I could move in these heels and yanked my dress back down.

Jesus, I was about to become a groupie if I couldn’t get a hold of myself. Gripping the table, I took a few deep breaths. I didn’t care if he saw how worked up he’d gotten me. I just had to stop.

Grant casually leaned back, looking completely unperturbed that I’d run away. Well, aside from the large bulge in his jeans.

I averted my gaze quickly. “I should probably get back to my friends.”

He stood and moved so that he was in front of me again. He tucked a loose strand of blonde hair behind my ear and planted another kiss on my lips. “Are you sure?” he asked, his hands finding the hem of my dress again.

“Sure, um…yes,” I said.

“Your body disagrees.”

He started to slide my dress back up over my hips, but I stilled his hands.

“My friends,” I said more confidently.

He sighed. I guessed he was realizing he wasn’t going to get anywhere else with me right now.

He checked his watch. “Ten minutes.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

I didn’t wait to figure it out as I walked toward the door.

“Hey, Ari,” he said, catching up to me.

“Yeah?”

His hand reached out for mine, and he threaded our fingers together. My heart skipped a beat, but I tried not to get caught up in him.

“I’m really glad you showed up.”

A smile broke out on my face. “Me, too,” I admitted shyly.

He gave me that heart-wrenching smile that had started it all. “And I’m going to see you again?”

His brown eyes stared deep into mine, and I couldn’t think of a reason to deny him, so I just nodded. His broadening smile was worth it.

We walked back down the darkened hallway and out the door to the bar. The band was standing with a cluster of girls, my friends among them. The guys looked at us with various forms of surprise.

“You done already, bro?” Vin asked with a cackle. “Quickest quickie ever.”

As the other guys cracked up, I glared at Vin.

“Seriously?” I asked in frustration.

I was ready to contradict them when Grant bent down and whispered in my ear, “Ignore them.”

“Ignore them?” I hissed. “Are you kidding me right now? They think we just had sex, and you’re just going to—”

“They wouldn’t believe me even if I told them that we hadn’t,” he told me plainly.

“Oh, how your reputation precedes you.”

“You and I both know what happened. Why does it matter what anyone else thinks?”

“Because I have a reputation, too, and I don’t want you to make me look like one of your sluts.”

Grant laughed at my comment, but I didn’t think it was very funny.

“Sorry, babe, but it’s a hazard of being around me.”

I opened my mouth to say something smart back, but he wasn’t finished.

“And you’ve already promised to see me again. I’m not letting you back out now.”

“You’re going to make me regret this, aren’t you?”

He winked at me. “Not a chance.”

Two guys I didn’t recognize walked up to us. “Grant,” one of the guys said, “Hurst said tonight was the biggest crowd we’ve had.”

“Epic,” Grant said.

I glanced between them and wondered why I was left standing here awkwardly. So, I thrust out my hand and introduced myself. “Hi, I’m Aribel.”

Both guys looked at me in surprise and then back at Grant.

After a second, one of them took my hand slowly, like he had never been introduced to anyone before. “Miller.”

“Nice to meet you.”

He quirked a smile at me. “You, too. This is McAvoy.”

McAvoy’s eyes were bloodshot, and he looked really out of it, but he still managed to nod at me.

“Hi,” I peeped. “Who is Hurst?”

Both guys’ eyes bugged, and they turned to Grant. What the hell is wrong with them?

“He owns the bar,” Grant informed me without glancing at his friends.

“Oh, well, that’s great for you guys, right?”

“It is,” Miller said. “Bigger the shows, the better the business is for him.”

“Bro!” Vin called, barging in between them.

I was thrown back into Grant and grunted as I slipped on my high heel. He put his arm around me to help me regain my balance.

“Bro, where is Sydney? I thought she was going to come to the show.”

I raised my eyes to Grant, who still had his arm around me. Who is Sydney?

“She couldn’t make it,” Grant said.

“Dude, you spend all week with her and can’t even bring her back to share with me?” Vin asked.

He was clearly cracking himself up, but Grant looked like he was about to pummel him.

I moved away and crossed my arms. So, that is why he had been gone. He had been away, visiting someone else. If I had to wager from Vin’s comments, she was probably someone who was a lot easier than I was.

“What the f**k have I told you about talking about her like that?” Grant growled.

“I’m an ass man. You can’t fault me.”

“Um…who is Sydney?” I managed to get out.

Grant took his eyes off Vin for a second to look at me, and his anger dissipated. “Oh, no. She’s not…” he said, fumbling for the right words.