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"Please don’t let him be a loser.”
Sofia Popov laughed as her friend Karen muttered the phrase over and over, nervously scanning the crowded bar.
“I’ve got a good feeling about this one,” Sofia said, knowing that it wouldn’t help. After a string of failed Tinder dates Karen was jaded enough to need pre-date back-up in the form of her work bestie. “And you look hot tonight, so if he’s a dud we’ll just stay out and see if we can find any other options.”
Speaking of options…
Sofia’s eyes darted to the man she’d noticed the second she walked into the popular Gaslamp Quarter bar. It was hard not to notice him, given the way he towered over the crowd. He seemed to command the space around him and made the other men look like middle school boys dressed up for a school dance. She fought the urge to stare at him from her perch at the bar. But it wasn’t like she was in the market for a real relationship, like Karen. She preferred to keep things simple. Friends-with-benefits arrangements were what worked for her.
“Talk about hot,” Karen said, forcing Sofia to look away from the handsome stranger. She gestured up and down Sofia’s body. “That dress looks painted on. Why do you hide all of…” Her hand paused near Sofia’s breasts. “That.”
Sofia laughed, though she felt her cheeks get warm at the compliment. “I suppose this dress is a little inappropriate for a high school chem teacher. Our boss would probably have a problem with it.”
Karen shrugged. “I don’t know about that. My office shares a paper-thin wall with Principal Davidson’s, so I know all of his secrets. He’s a dirty old man.”
They laughed but Karen’s expression quickly slid back to stressed.
“Hey,” Sofia said, giving her friend’s hand a squeeze. “I’m here for you. If he’s weird, just give me the signal, and I’ll come over and fake an emergency, okay? Now go grab that high top over there, where I can see you.” She pointed to a table where a couple was collecting their things to leave.
Karen nodded and took a deep breath. She pulled out her compact to check her make-up and slid her hand down the back of her blonde curls. “Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need it—you’ve got this.”
Sofia watched Karen thread her way to the table then turned her attention to the bartender, trying to ignore the fact that he looked nearly young enough to be one of her students.
“What can I get you?” he asked. “I make a mean Cosmo.”
Sofia shook her head. “Nope, I’m easy. Just a Bud, please.”
The bartender chuckled and disappeared to fetch it.
She wasn’t much of a drinker and just wanted something she could sip while waiting…for Karen to be joined by a muscular guy with wild red hair! A man not only punctual but cute, too. Good for Karen.
Her friend’s quick wave and nod at her told Sofia that yes, this was her date and she wasn’t creeped out by him yet. Great. Now all she had to do was wait for Karen’s permission to leave, and she’d be off for the night. She waved back a “message received” signal.
Sofia hoped she’d be dismissed soon. Her feet were already killing her in the stilettoes she’d dug out from the back of her closet. She slid her fingernail along the edge of the label on the bottle, blotting out the noise and crowd until she sensed someone standing behind her.
“Hi there.”
The voice was deep enough to resonate over the pulsing bassline. She turned, a polite dismissal on her lips, but froze when she realized who it was.
It was him. The guy she couldn’t stop noticing, giving her a look that suggested that the feeling was mutual.
He was even taller and broader standing in front of her, taking up enough space that all she could see was him. All she wanted to see was him, with his rough-hewn good looks—strong shoulders, long legs, big hands, and a neatly trimmed brown beard that she couldn’t help imagining scratching against her inner thighs.
He reached up a hand to brush at his beard, and her eye followed the movement, then traced along the swirl of black ink trailing his forearm. How far did his tattoo go? Under the rolled-up sleeve of his button-down? She’d tilted her head to see when she caught herself and blushed, forcing her gaze up to his face again. He was smiling at her.
“Hi,” she managed to say.
“I’m Ian, and we’re both on friend-watching duty tonight, I guess.” He half-turned and she didn’t stare at the way he filled out his shirt and certainly not at how the fit of his pants showed off his firm ass. She did take a look at his other hand and forearm as he pointed over at the booths and noticed the tattoos on that arm, too. “The guy who just joined your friend is my friend, Eric.”
“Oh!” Sofia understood. “I’m Sofia.” She stretched out her hand, and Ian took it to shake. His palm was callused, his grip firm, and his hand fit in some indescribable way. She almost shivered when he left go.
“You caught me—I’m my friend’s bodyguard tonight,” Sofia continued, and Ian laughed, the sound deep and sexy.
“Yeah, I get it. I’m babysitting,” he said, and Sofia almost spluttered on the sip of beer she’d taken.
