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The man's dark brown eyes are intense, locking onto mine and seeming to see everything. His six-foot-something frame towers over me, and I can't help but notice the way his tousled dark hair falls slightly over his forehead. His broad shoulders and sharp jawline give him a rugged and handsome appearance, made even more striking by the tailored suit he's wearing. In his hands, he holds a bouquet of crimson roses, their velvety petals vibrant against his crisp white shirt.
“Hey,” I inhale deeply to keep myself from stuttering, it is the guy who I kissed last night and I can’t think of his name. “What are you doing here?”
His eyes crinkle as he smiles. He’s perfection in human form, I swear. “Brandon is here to take you to the concert,” he says, holding out the roses to me. “You look beautiful by the way.”
My cheeks heat as I take the flowers from him and mutter, “Thank you Brandon. The flowers are gorgeous.”
“Not as gorgeous as you are.” He twists his head to his truck, parked in the driveway, then he returns his gaze to me. “So, will you allow me to take you to the concert, or do you already have someone else to go with?”
I’m melting under his scrutiny. Last thing I remember, I was kissing this guy before I blacked out. I don’t recall telling him about the concert so it must’ve slipped out in my drunken state, and I’d be stupid to turn him down. A sheepish smile curves my lips. “I’ll go with you.”
His smile widens. “Then we better hurry or we’ll be late.”
I lock up my apartment and follow him as he leads the way to his truck. Like a gentleman, he opens the car door and holds it for me to climb in, then he rounds the car to the driver’s seat.
My ex never did that. Not even at the start of our relationship.
The engine roars to life beneath me and he rears the car forward into the busy road. I’m nervously staring out the window, admiring the streetlights, when he asks, “Did you have a bad hangover? You were pretty wasted last night.”
“Given how much I drank, I’d say I had a decent hangover.” I drag all of my attention to him now. “Thank you for driving me home last night, and for not being…a pervert.”
He glances at me briefly before returning his gaze to the road. “Taking you home and making sure you were safe was the decent thing to do. What were you expecting?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. I flirted with you and even…” Scarlet red burns my cheeks at the memory of my lips on his. I’d savored the taste of the negroni in his mouth.
A smirk tugs on his lips. “Are you ashamed because you kissed me?”
“No, not that,” I reply sharply. Such an obvious lie. “I mean, I kissed you only because I was drunk.” There is a slight quiver in my voice,
He slows down as he navigates the car through a corner. “That hurts my feelings, you know. I thought you kissed me because you were attracted to me.”
“That too.” I roll my eyes. Honesty suddenly tastes bitter at the tip of my tongue. “Did you hate that I kissed you?”
I swear I see a flicker of lust in his eyes. “I loved it. I’d be a fool to say otherwise. Do you kiss guys whenever you’re drunk?”
“That was a first,” I answer, fiddling with the chain strap of my purse between my fingers.
His tongue swipes over his lips. “I’m glad it was with me. It means we’re more than just strangers who met in a bar.”
I bite back a smile. “Don’t tell me you think we were destined to meet and fall in love at first sight. It’s cliché.”
He chuckles softly. “There are connections deeper than love. I think that is what we have. I wouldn’t call it fate or anything cliché.”
I’m trying to divert my mind from the churning in my stomach and the sudden awareness of my body from how close he is. If he moves his hand even a bit, it’ll be on my thigh.
“And your ex-boyfriend?”
I heave a deep sigh. “I don’t want to talk about him, nothing good comes from doing that. He can enjoy his life with the girl he cheated on me with for all I care.”
Brandon snaps his head to me as if in shock. “How can you get over his betrayal that easily?”
A tang of sadness tightens my throat. “I haven’t gotten over it, I just don’t want to dwell on it. The truth is that our relationship pretty much ended the first five months. The signs were there, I just chose to ignore everything.”
"Did you manage to get some anger out at least?" He asks with a smirk. "I've found that breaking something can be quite therapeutic."
My mouth falls open in surprise but I can't contain the smile spreading across my face. "You don't strike me as someone who resorts to violence."
He runs his fingers through his messy hair. "Believe me, my daily life is full of it." I narrow my eyes at him.
