Page 27 of It Runs in the Family

I’d expected him to claim my hand possessively, for fear I’d change my mind, but he linked our fingers and gave me a slight tug away from the counter. Leading the way, he wove us through the crowd and out onto the dance floor, then turned to face me, still holding my hand. He stared down at me and ginned, sending a shiver down my spine.

What was going on? I didn’t react like this with men I didn’t know. It had to be the alcohol. And maybe the adrenaline rush over my impending death.

I decided not to question it.

For once in my life, I wanted to live in the moment.

The band was playing a Keith Urban song that had a quick beat, so Boone released my hand and began to dance. The two shots had joined the rest of the alcohol in my blood stream, so I let the music take control of my body and danced with him. We stayed through another song, then the band played a line dance. Boone started to walk off the dance floor, but I grabbed his wrist and tugged him back. “Scared?” I asked with a teasing grin.

“Of what?” he countered.

“You tell me,” I shot back, one hand on my hip. “Are you afraid of lookin’ like a fool?”

“I have no problem admittin’ I don’t know the dance.”

The music started, and it was obvious we were in people’s way.

“Come on,” I said, tugging him into a line. “You’ll learn as you go.”

It only took him about thirty seconds to pick up on the steps, and by the end of the song, he looked like he’d been doing it for years.

The song ended and a slow song came on. I stared up at him, and flutters filled my stomach. Boone was by far the sexiest guy who’d ever been interested in me. While I was attractive enough, I knew I threw out a don’t fuck with me vibe, and most men didn’t feel up to the challenge. I was pretty sure there wasn’t much Boone backed down from, and I had to admit that intrigued me just as much as it scared me.

I started to walk off the dance floor, but it was his turn to tug me back.

“Dance with me,” he said in a sultry tone that sent waves of longing under my skin.

I hesitated. I had a feeling slow dancing with Boone was akin to playing with fire.

He threw my words back at me with that damn grin. “Scared?”

“Of what?” I sassed back. “I’ve already proven I can dance.”

“Then you’ll have no problem dancing with me now.” He reached for me, giving me plenty of opportunity to back away, but I didn’t resist as his hand rested on my waist and his other hand took mine. He tugged me closer, until my chest was pressed lightly against his, sending waves of desire through my body.

I started to pull away, but his face turned serious. “I only want to dance, Spitfire. That’s all.”

I was drunk, but sober enough to recognize this was more than just a dance for me. And yet … I was too drawn in by him to pull away. I looked up into his face as we started to sway to the music. His cocky grin was gone, replaced by a seriousness I hadn’t expected.

I considered another stare-off, but my heart was racing, and my fuzzy head was struggling to process everything I was feeling.

Boone pulled me closer, and I rested my cheek on his chest as the song blasted from the speakers. It was about a man who’d fallen in love with a woman he saw across the room. It was a song I’d made fun of with Mary Ellen and Ava before, but tonight, in Boone’s arms, it took on a whole new meaning.

When the song ended, I pulled out of his arms, and said, “I need another drink.”

Boone didn’t look as cocksure as he had at the beginning of the evening, but he nodded and took my hand again, clearing a path through the crowd for us.

He stopped at the table where we’d met and said, “If I leave you here to go get our drinks, will you wait for me?”

I expected it to come out in a teasing tone, but there was a hint of desperation in his voice that took me by surprise. Maybe he figured he’d invested all this time with me, and he was worried I’d skip out on him—and he wouldn’t get his reward.

To my surprise, I was actually considering sleeping with him. But that was stupid. I was too drunk to make that decision.

“And pass up a free drink?” I teased.

His brow lifted slightly. “You’ve made it clear that you can buy your own drinks.”

“Seeing how I just lost my job, I’m reconsidering my position on that,” I said. “And besides, I need to find out where my cousins have run off to.”