Carina stepped into the busy bar. God, the music was loud and people were everywhere. Sitting in booths. Gathered around bar tables. Moving on the dance floor.
Rising to her toes, she searched for Courtney and Grace. There—standing at a high bar table, drinks in hand. Carefully, she weaved her way through the crowd, trying not to fall in her high heels.
Courtney had texted her earlier today asking if she wanted to come for drinks tonight. At first, she was going to say no, mostly because she’d been contemplating a long night of self-pity with a bottle of wine. Then she was hit with a bolt of sense. Why punish herself when she’d done nothing wrong? If she was going to drink, she might as well do it with some nice women.
When Courtney looked her way, the woman’s lips stretched into a smile.
Carina smiled back as she approached, every step she took slow and careful.
Why the heck did you wear these heels, Carina?
She glanced down and the reason came back to her. Because they matched perfectly with this figure-hugging gold dress. And the dress made her feel pretty and feminine and gave her just a bit of a lift—both physically and mentally. She really needed the latter right now.
The second she reached the table, Courtney whistled. “Look at you, woman. You look hot!”
A laugh burst from her chest. “Probably because I’m wearing something other than jeans and a T-shirt for once.”
To be honest, this was one of the few dresses she owned. One she rarely wore. But pulled at her hips and breasts in just the right way, so what the heck, maybe she should wear it more often.
Grace leaned over and kissed her cheek. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
Courtney shook her head. “That Flynn Talbot really messed up.”
Grace gave Courtney a pointed look. “Carina might not want to talk about it.”
She shrugged. “I’m guessing Logan and Jason told you guys everything, anyway.”
Grace shook her head. “Not everything. Just that something happened at the hospital and Flynn messed up.”
“Messed up big time,” Courtney said, leaning over the table.
She was pretty sure the women knew more than that, but it was nice of them to pretend they didn’t. “A nurse found some pain medication in my bag. It was the same as Patricia’s, and because I was accused of drug theft in Michigan—”
“No!” Courtney gasped. “Do not tell me Flynn thought you stole the meds from his mom?”
Okay, maybe they hadn’t known.
Courtney pushed her cocktail in front of Carina. She didn’t even hesitate. She took a large gulp, letting the sweet alcohol warm her insides.
“He did.” She lowered the glass. “I was accused of stealing from a patient in Michigan, so it wasn’t a far stretch, I guess.”
Grace tilted her head to the side. “Something tells me you didn’t do that, either.”
“Why do you say that?” Was she asking because she needed the validation that she didn’t come across as a terrible person?
Courtney laughed. “With that sweet smile, there’s no way.”
Grace nodded. “She’s right. One conversation and everyone would know it wasn’t you.”
See? This was why she’d come out tonight.
She went to push the drink back but Courtney shook her head. “Keep it, I’ll get another. You need it more than me.”
Well, she wasn’t wrong. “Thank you.” She took another sip.
“How did it happen in Michigan?” Grace asked.
“An anonymous complaint. The hospital takes all complaints seriously, so I was forced to take leave without pay and hire a lawyer until it was resolved. In the end, there wasn’t any evidence for the complaint to stick.”
Courtney shook her head. “Whoever made that complaint’s a scumbag. They should have been named and shamed.”
“I’m pretty sure it was one of the nurses. From the day I started dating Greg, they hated me.” She shook her head. The worst part was the relationship hadn’t even been worth it. “It’s actually kind of funny, really, how both times I was accused or set up by jealous women working in hospitals who like the man I’m dating. Maybe the universe is telling me I shouldn’t date at all.”
The hermit life wouldn’t be so bad, right?
“Or it’s telling you that some women are bitches,” Courtney scoffed.
“That too.”
Grace leaned forward. “Don’t let anyone make you feel like you don’t deserve someone to love you. You’re allowed to be loved and to fall in love with whoever you want.”
Carina’s eyes softened. “Thank you.” With everything the universe was throwing her way, she wasn’t sure she agreed, but maybe she would in a few days, when she wasn’t feeling so raw.
Courtney grinned. “Grace thinks everyone’s meant to find their soul mate and fall in love.”
“Is that so terrible?” Grace asked.
“Talking about falling in love, where are your guys?” Carina asked. For some reason, she couldn’t imagine them leaving their women alone in a bar crawling with men. Not because they didn’t trust Grace and Courtney, but because they didn’t trust the men around their beautiful partners.
Courtney nodded her head toward the corner. Sure enough, when Carina looked that way, she saw them. Logan, Jason, and Tyler, sitting in a booth. “We told them they needed to stay home tonight. They refused, so we compromised and here they are.”
Grace shook her head. “I was very clear on this being a girls’ night, and Logan said that was fine, he’d sit in the corner.”
Carina’s heart clenched. Some women probably found that suffocating, but by the looks on their faces, both women loved it. Because they loved their guys.
Grace looked back to Carina. “Both Courtney and I have found ourselves in a bit of danger over the last year. It’s the only reason they’re so protective.”
Courtney rolled her eyes. “That’s a lie if ever I heard one. Each one of them have ‘protective’ programmed into their DNA.”
“I love that,” Carina said quietly. “Having someone around to make sure you’re okay. To watch your back. Everyone should have that.” Even though she hadn’t known Flynn for long, she’d kind of hoped he would be that person for her.
Grace’s smile slipped. “I’m sorry about Flynn. I think sometimes it can be hard for the guys to trust after what happened to them.”
Carina nodded. “Flynn told me that. So did Patricia, actually.”
She fiddled with the rim of the glass, yet again questioning her decision to keep him at a distance. Was it supposed to be this hard?
Courtney opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Jason was there, sliding his arms around her waist and tucking his face into her neck.
Logan also popped up, standing beside Grace and slinging an arm around her hip.
“Disgustingly cute, aren’t they?” Tyler said, setting his elbow on the table beside her. “They can’t go five minutes without touching.”
Carina chuckled. “I think it’s adorable.”
Logan punched Tyler in the shoulder. “Jealousy doesn’t suit you, my friend.”
Tyler scoffed. “Yeah, okay. We’ll pretend that’s what I’m feeling.”
Carina was just taking another sip of her cocktail when she saw him—Flynn—stepping into the bar, Aidan by his side. His gaze went straight to her. It was like a beam drilling into her.
For a moment, he remained still, watching her through the crowd, his eyes boring into her own.
It took everything in her to look away. Holy hell. Maybe she should have been a hermit and stayed home tonight.
A second later, he and Aidan were at the table. Flynn didn’t stand beside her, but she was sure that was only because there was no room. She said a silent thank you to Tyler and Courtney for standing so close.
“Didn’t know you guys were stopping in tonight,” Tyler said.
Aidan lifted a shoulder. “A drink and some music never hurt.”
Carina’s eyes remained firmly on the cocktail for far too long. She would not look up under any—
“Good company never hurt either.”
Her gaze whipped up at Flynn’s words. Her heart crashed into her chest.
Yep. He was looking straight at her with eyes that were too dark and an expression that was too intense.
Time to escape.
“I’m just going to grab my own drink.” She pushed the half-finished cocktail back in front of Courtney before leaving the table.
She skirted through the clusters of people, twitching with the need to look over her shoulder and check if he was still there, still watching her, but refused to allow herself to do so.
God, she should have known he’d be here. Where Courtney and Grace were, the guys were never far behind.
When she reached the bar, she sagged in relief. Maybe she should give herself a pat on the back for making the distance and not succumbing to the urge to look.
Suddenly, body heat flared on her side. Her breath stuttered. But when she looked up, it wasn’t Flynn. It was a guy she’d never seen before, who had dirty-blond hair and a piercing in his left brow.
“Hey there. Can I buy you a drink?”
Her brows rose. “Ah, no, thank you. I can buy my own.”
She turned back to the bar, but the guy nudged her shoulder. The contact had her jerking and felt far too intrusive on her personal space.
“Come on. One drink. Doesn’t mean I’m going to demand you go home with me or anything. Although, a dance wouldn’t go astray.”
Argh. A man who couldn’t take a hint. Just what she needed.
She opened her mouth to tell the guy no a second time, but suddenly, Flynn was there, towering over the man and looking far from happy.
“The woman said no.”
The guy turned, opened his mouth, and looked like he was on the verge of telling Flynn to get lost, but the second he saw him, he paused. His mouth snapped shut.
Carina didn’t blame the guy. Flynn was tall, standing at six four, at least. And he wore a black shirt that stretched across his wide chest and pulled against his bulging biceps.
Massive. That was the only way to describe him. Definitely not sexy though. No. Carina would not be admitting that to herself right now. Not even in her head.
“Whatever.” The guy straightened before walking away.
Carina quickly turned back to the bar, already knowing Flynn wasn’t about to leave her side. The hairs on the back of her neck rose as he leaned against the bar. He stood closer than the other guy had, his entire side touching hers. But where the stranger’s closeness had made her feel uncomfortable, almost claustrophobic, Flynn’s made her heart race and her skin go tingly and hot.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, her eyes never leaving the bottles on the shelves at the back wall.
“I wanted to see you.”
Her stomach dipped at his honesty.
The bartender stopped in front of her. “What can I get you?”
“Red wine, please. Whichever you recommend.”
The bartender nodded before turning to Flynn. “Nothing for me, thank you.”
“You’re not going to have a drink?” she asked.
“No. I like a clear head.”
When she finally turned to look beside her, her heart thundered. He was right there, his lips so close to her own it would only take the smallest shift to touch.
No. She could not think about kissing right now.
Swallowing, she dragged her eyes away as the bartender pushed the drink in front of her. She was reaching for her card when Flynn held his phone out, paying before she could.
Carina frowned. “You don’t need to buy my drink.”
“I know.”
He turned to angle his body toward her, making her breath catch. His hard stomach and chest now touched her side, and when he placed a hand on the small of her back, it felt like he was touching her everywhere.
“You look beautiful tonight,” he said quietly.
“Flynn…”
His head lowered, his breath brushing against her ear. “Dance with me.”
“No.” The word was out faster than was polite. But she couldn’t dance with him. Not when he looked and smelled as good as he did. And definitely not when she was on the verge of tugging down those walls and giving herself to him.
The man didn’t trust her. She needed to keep her distance. It was the only way she could protect herself.
“Please.” Again, his breath brushed her ear, and it sent a wave of desire straight to her core. “Let me hold you for one dance. That’s all I ask.”
She closed her eyes against the desire to be held by him. It was strong. Too strong. Even the thought of it had ice thawing in her chest.
The hand on her back curved around to her hip. His mouth brushed her ear as he pushed into her hair. “Please, honey.”
It was the endearment that had her head dipping and the soft word finally releasing from her chest. “Okay.”
She could have sworn she heard a sigh of relief. Then his hand took hers and led her through the crowd. They stopped for a second at the table so she could set her drink down. She got a smile from Grace and a wink from Courtney, then she was tugged the rest of the way to the dance floor.
She wanted to keep some distance. Her brain damn well screamed at her to do so. But the second his arms skirted around her waist, she leaned into him.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
Her eyes closed, and she allowed herself to be held by the man. “You’ve said that already.” Multiple times.
“I’ll repeat it as many times as I need to, to make sure you know it’s the truth.”
Do not give in, Carina. “You didn’t trust me until you learned the truth.”
“Not true. I had this pit in my stomach the entire time. Like I was making the wrong choice. That’s what those unanswered calls were about. But I didn’t go to you and beg for your forgiveness, because I’m a stubborn asshole.” He dipped his head, and his breath brushed against her neck. “I’ll never let you down like that again.”
A shiver traced down her spine. She expected him to lift his head. Instead, he pressed a light kiss to her neck.
His kiss… It was everything she’d been craving. She should push him away, but in this moment, swaying to the music, with the lights dimmed, she just…couldn’t. It was like a spell had been cast.
“God, I miss you,” he whispered.
“We’ve hardly been broken up. And before that, we’d hardly been together.”
“I know. It’s crazy. I’ve never felt anything like this before.” Another swipe of his lips, accompanied by the tightening of his arms around her. “This all-consuming need to touch you. Hold you. Hear your voice. It’s destroying me.”
She sucked in a shaky breath at his words, having none of her own to return.
He lifted his head, and his gaze bore into her. “Have dinner with me tomorrow night. Come to my place. Let me cook for you. Let me prove to you I can be better.”
She wanted to say yes. Her heart pleaded for her to say yes. But there was so much fear. Fear that he’d let her down again. Fear that her feelings would grow while his would stall because of his trust issues.
“I know you’re scared,” he said, as if reading her mind. “But I promise you, Carina, you and me—we’re real. And if you let me, I can be everything you need.”
His head lowered again, and this time it wasn’t one kiss pressed to her neck, it was a series of them. All light. All burning and trilling across her skin.
Her breathing became labored, her skin singing.
She dipped her head to his chest, causing his lips to leave her. She took a moment to breathe. To collect herself. Then she looked up. His eyes were pleading just as strongly as his voice. So she let the weak part of her soul win.
“Okay. But just dinner.”
His arms tucked her closer. “Thank you.”
