Page 23 of Dance for Me

His eyes shot up and met hers, as if he knew she was watching him. Hopefully he didn’t think it was creepy. Like she stalked him or something.

He took his chin from his fist and sat back in his chair. “Morning Vanessa.”

The way he said her name made her mouth go dry. He smiled and closed his laptop.

Was this his new favorite spot, because this was her favorite spot and she would never be able to get any work done if he sat here?

“Isn’t it considered a sin to work on the Lord’s day?” she playfully joked. Even though that’s exactly why she was there.

The man sure can wear a pair of jeans, she thought. Jeans, clothes. Oh, God. Her outfit.

She just remembered that she had on yoga pants and a sweatshirt. Not to mention her unwashed hair was tied up in a messy bun, which was planted on the top of her head. She was one step away from looking like a grown, homeless Cindy Lou Who. She never wanted to crawl into a whole and bury herself more than she did now. Especially considering he can make a casual Henley shirt look that hot.

“The Lord stopped keeping tabs on me a long time ago.” He gestured with his hand, “You wanna join me?”

He must have a hidden magnet attached to him because she always felt drawn to him somehow. Besides, it would be awkward not to sit with him. Vanessa threw her bag around the back of the chair across from him and sat down with her café mocha.

“So, you must come here a lot,” he casually said.

“They have my order memorized. If I miss a day, they wanna send a search party out for me.”

He smirked, “And let me guess, you’re drinking a skinny, non-fat white mocha?”

She snorted. Which only after she did, did she realize it was an unattractive thing to do. “Partly correct, although there is nothing skinny about mine.”

He nodded his head with approval, as if he was satisfied with her answer. Vanessa tried her hand at his coffee of choice. “And let me guess… chai latte with only a dash of sugar?”

Flashing his dimple at her, he raised his cup. “Spot on. How did you know?”

She lifted a shoulder, “You just look like a spice kind of guy.” Or maybe it was really because the first time he ever stood close to her, that’s what she remembered. She had his scent drilled into her brain. Her smile faded into a serious look.

She fiddled with the cardboard holder wrapped around her cup. “Look Jack. I know everything happened kind of fast and I don’t care what your reason for hiring me was. I just want to say, thank you.” She regretted looking away from her cup at him because he was staring at her like no other man looked at her before. Like he held her on this pedestal and it made her feel warm inside.

“You don’t have to thank me Vanessa.” There it was again. The way he said her name. “I’m just glad I was the one who could help you.” The possessiveness sent a shiver down her back.

“I’m sure you’ve seen the video by now huh.” She let out an uncomfortable laugh and she saw his expression change. He no longer wore the playful, kind look he was giving her. His jaw ticked and he looked more intense with a hint of anger.

“I did.”

That was all he said as he took a sip of his coffee. Weird, she wondered why he got so bothered by that?

After a silent and awkward minute or so, Vanessa decided she should talk about something else besides her social media debut.

“So, tell me Jack. Why did you want to open your own gentleman’s club?” She remembered how he corrected her before. “Is it because you have this secret creepy obsession with women’s breasts?” He let out a small laugh, which she was happy she was able to get him back to a happier state.

“No, it’s not. Although, like any man, I could appreciate the beauty of a woman’s…” he paused and slid a glance to her chest. Even though she wore a bulky sweatshirt, he seemed still very much intrigued by her. “Assets,” he finished. She held his gaze before looking down at her coffee again.

“You look pretty young for owning your own club.”

“I’m thirty-two,” he said without hesitation.

“Okay, young but not too young. What is the real reason then?” She asked

“It was my Uncle’s club actually. When he died, he left it to me and I guess I didn’t have the heart to sell it.” She saw a flash of hurt in his eyes.

Giving him a sympathetic look, Vanessa said, “I’m so sorry Jack. Were you close with him?”

“Something like that,” he let out a subtle cough, shifted in his chair, and then quickly changed the subject. Sounded like a topic that he would rather not discuss, so she didn’t push it.