Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 101764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 509(@200wpm)___ 407(@250wpm)___ 339(@300wpm)
“Amen to that,” Luke said as I laughed along with Dom.
“I had a girl offer me two hundred bucks to sleep with her in college,” I said before taking a sip of Parker’s very nice whiskey.
“Shit, I’da done it for that. Just close my eyes and imagine Idris Elba,” Dom said with a snort. “Did you do it?”
“I tried.” I shrugged. “Got as far as taking off her bra before I bailed. Tits were not made for me.”
Both Dom and Luke burst out laughing, and from there, the conversation flowed like we’d been friends forever. We laughed and drank, swapping stories and trying to outdo each other for the wildest ones. I hadn’t enjoyed myself so much in ages. Even the night I hung out with Turko and Manny, I’d had an odd sensation of not fitting in. Here, with these men I was just getting to know, I didn’t feel the pressure of confessing my secret.
After I’d finished my first drink, Luke insisted I have one more. He returned from the bar with my refill just as Parker announced it was time for dinner.
“Come into the dining room,” he said, waving us through an arched doorway. “I kept it simple tonight. Just pizza and salad.”
I couldn’t keep my eyebrows from rising to save my life as I purposely held back to let Alex in first. Hopefully, we wouldn’t end up sitting near each other. But I’d scale that mountain if I got there. “I’m struggling to imagine Parker Door Dashing a bunch of pizzas.”
Luke laughed at my expression. “That’s because he didn’t. You’ll see.”
Sure enough, we trailed Parker into the dining room only to find a long table with a red and white checkered tablecloth. Five platters of pizza, two giant salad bowls, and multiple bottles of red wine were spread out along the length of the table. But not just any pizza. These pies were clearly homemade in a wood-fired pizza oven. A chef stood off to the side in his gleaming white coat and tall hat. All that was missing was the Italian tenor crooning in the corner.
“Good evening, gentlemen,” the chef said. “Tonight, we have prepared for you five different pizzas. We have margarita pizza, barbecue chicken pizza, a white pizza with garlic and spinach, sausage and pepperoni pizza, and finally, one with sundried tomatoes, chicken, and pesto. Don’t be shy. I have plenty more to serve if you finish these. Please enjoy.”
My mouth watered at the sight and smell coming from the table. “Now, this is a dinner party,” I muttered.
Dom rubbed his hands together. “Damn straight.”
“Dig in, please,” Parker said as he gestured toward the table.
Who was I to deny the host his request?
The food was excellent and the company even better. Drinks flowed easily through the meal. I don’t think my wine glass fell below a quarter full before being refilled, which meant I had no idea how much I drank.
Dangerous but fun. This was the perfect way to get to know my coworkers. The club was so busy that we rarely had time to wave as we passed each other, running back and forth with giant bottles of expensive alcohol. This dinner allowed us to bond and become friends.
I was having so much fun I’d forgotten Alex was sitting at the opposite end of the table.
Almost.
Toward the end of dinner, I made the mistake of glancing toward Trevor, who was laughing so loudly I couldn’t hear Luke next to me. The second I turned my head, my eyes locked with Alex’s. He sat beside Trevor, and to anyone else, it appeared he was listening to his friend’s story, but I could feel the intensity of his attention to the tips of my toes.
I swallowed a bite of dry crust that abraded my throat on the way down. I barely felt the discomfort. The force of Alex’s gaze had me frozen. Like when he first arrived, he wasn’t smiling or frowning. His eyes radiated a heat I’d never seen from him. It stole my ability to think or breathe.
The rest of the room faded to a fuzzy background. My dick thickened, and if I’d been in my right mind, I’d have checked to ensure the tablecloth hid my sin. But all I could do was bask in the fire of Alex’s gaze. Time slowed until I could mark its passing by the thump of my pulse in my throat.
What the hell was happening?
Did he feel it, or was I lost in my own delusion?
“Anyone up for billiards?” Parker’s sophisticated tone sliced through my trance without mercy. I jolted and blinked, only to find Alex talking to Trevor as relaxed as could be while I sat there with my insides churning.
Did I imagine it? The connection from seconds ago? Had I had some kind of wakeful fantasy where I dreamed the heat and electricity crackled across the long table?