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“Knock it off, Kenny,” she says.
Pride swells that my girl has a backbone, but quickly turns to rage again when he leans over and hisses at her.
“Can you stop acting like a little—”
Reaching down, I haul him up by his collar, lifting until he’s dangling above the floor. “Time to go somewhere else, Kenny. Or say whatever you were going to say and then get your teeth knocked out. I’m cool with either.”
“Harley,” he sputters, hanging six inches off the ground. “Tell this guy to fuck off.”
I turn to her. “Does he make a habit out of calling you names?”
She sighs and looks around at the crowd that’s gathering and hoping for a proper fight. “Can you just lay off for a little, Kenny?” she asks. “I don’t need a babysitter.”
Kenny goes limp, and I set him back on his feet. He glares at her, muttering things he should be grateful I can’t hear, then finally stomps off into the dispersing group of onlookers. I sit down across from her and grin. Finally.
“I don’t need a guard dog, either.” She looks more amused than upset and shakes her head ruefully. “And he’s right, I don’t date jocks. Just so you don’t waste anymore of your time.”
“Not a single second of my time has been wasted,” I tell her, taking in her face. Up close she’s incandescent. Her skin glows in the dimly lit room, her green eyes shine with wit and intelligence. I’m not just enamored. She has me under her spell. “I’m Scott. And who says I’m not the right kind of guy for you?”
It slips out, not really a lie. Maybe a way to buy more time with her. I need more time with her.
“Are you even going to ask if he’s my boyfriend or not?”
I shake my head, still grinning. “It doesn’t matter if he is,” I tell her, leaning closer. “So, Harley, huh? Are you a bit of a bad girl?”
Her cheeks bloom pink, but her eyes flash with confidence. “No,” she says slowly. “Not even a little.”
It’s like she’s laying down a dare. Music blasts and a grin lights up her face at the thumping beat that takes over the room.
“You like to dance?” I guess, standing and pulling her up. She stumbles forward into my arms, and I twirl her around.
“Yes,” she answers with a laugh. Her hands slide up my chest to wrap around my neck. “I love it.”
“Then let’s do it,” I say, letting my own hands glide over the swell of her ass before yanking her even closer.
Her soft body presses into mine as we grind rhythmically to the beat. Brett dances by with his girlfriend and tosses me a warning look, but I only pull Harley toward the outskirts of the cleared dance floor. Nothing could keep me from feeling her racing heartbeat against my chest, seeing her smile as the song changes, or hearing her laughter when I twirl her. A light sheen of sweat forms on her chest that I long to trace my tongue through. The way she moves is driving me wild.
“You’re trying to tell me you’re not a bad girl?” I lean down to rumble in her ear when the next song is a slow one.
We’re wrapped up with each other tight enough I can feel her nipples through her dress and I know she can feel how excited all our grinding has made me. She presses closer and tips her head back, her eyes dreamy. Whatever she’s dreaming about, I’ll make it happen.
“Maybe a tiny bit,” she admits.
It’s getting too crowded, and every new arrival might be someone who shouts my name or wants a selfie. I need to get her out of here or risk getting caught.
“Let’s get some air,” I say, pulling her toward the sliding doors leading out into a secluded garden.
I have a pang of guilt. I know that lying by omission isn’t right. But I can’t let her go.
Chapter 2
Harley
When my dad called a few months ago, wanting to reconnect, I was completely shocked. But to be honest, I’ve always felt like something was missing in my life. A hole that only he could fill. So, I took a chance and came to New Hampshire even though I haven’t seen him since my parents’ divorce almost ten years ago. With his job coaching hockey, he couldn’t come to me, so instead I took a semester off to visit.
Hoping to forge a bond, I’m staying in his house, but so far it’s been nothing but a big fat disappointment. I never expected to run into my childhood classmate, who was now going to my dad’s college. Kenny is still smug and insufferable, maybe more so than he was back in middle school. He seems to have some sort of idea that we might get together, but that will never happen. I don’t know anyone else, though; and since my dad hadn’t been able to spend any time with me, I was happy enough to take him up on the invite to a campus party.
I really didn’t expect to meet such a gorgeous guy five minutes after we arrived. I thought my eyes might pop out when he rocked up to say hi to me, as confident as an ancient Roman emperor and twice as cocky.
