Page 59 of Chains
“Really?” The tip of her tongue skimmed over the top.
“Fuck, woman.” Chains pushed against her, and she jerked her head back and tried to take a step, which proved to be fruitless as a tall blonde stood plastered against her.
Autumn gripped the stem of the wineglass and brought it to those full lips. She looked at everything buthim.
Chains was hard as fuck. He couldn’t help it. She captivated him like no other woman ever had. He pushed back a bit and ignored the irritated mumbling of the person behind him. He picked up his drink and took a gulp, then watched some men at the bar hovered over girls in tight skirts and dresses, talking and slipping their arms around the women’s shoulders.
From his peripheral vision, Chains saw Autumn stealing sidelong glances at him. He cut his gaze to her and smiled inwardly when streaks of red darkened her cheeks.
“You hot?” he asked.
“What?”
“I’m asking if you’re hot ’cause your face is red.” He enjoyed the way she brought the empty wineglass to her mouth and a took a sip of nothing. Autumn was nervous as hell around him, and that was a good thing. He figured if she wasn’t interested in him, she wouldn’t be fidgeting and ripping up the cocktail napkin and acting like she wanted to jump out of her skin.
“Oh… that.” Autumn’s hand flew to her face and pressed against her cheek. “It’s so crowded in here that I feel like I can’t breathe.”
Chains threw back the rest of the whiskey. “You wanna wait outside?”
“Maybe that would—”
Suddenly she fell against him, and without thinking, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. She felt perfect in his arms, all soft and warm and damn sexy.
Autumn gripped his shoulders. “Someone fell into me.”
“Yeah.”
That sweet tongue licked those tempting lips before she looked up into his eyes.
The din of voices, clinking glasses, and music faded away as Chains stared at the full mouth just begging to be kissed. Pressing his thumb underneath Autumn’s chin, he gently tilted her face upward. As he lowered his head, she leaned in and stretched up to meet him.
Then someone crashed into them while drinks spilled and glasses shattered. Groups of people stumbled away from the bar and a swarthy, stocky man slammed down onto the shiny hardwood floor.
Chains wrapped both arms around Autumn in a protective hold and led her away from the fight. In a few seconds, two tall, beefy men started yelling, and one of them picked up the man from the floor like he was a feather and dragged him to the front door. The other bouncer grabbed the back of the neck of a thin man in his early twenties and pushed him toward the lobby.
“What was that all about?” Autumn asked as she pulled out of Chains’s arms.
He tipped his head to a stacked blonde in a tight leather dress with a plunging neckline. “She’s the prey the two dudes were fighting over.”
Autumn looked over. “Fighting is so juvenile, but I can see it. Do you think she’s pretty?”
Chains shrugged. “She’s all right, but you got her beat in the looks and curves department.”
She shook her head. “Have you always just said whatever’s on your mind?”
“Yeah—that’s the way I roll. There’s no reason to bullshit.”
The slender brunette hostess approached them with two menus and an amicable smile.
“Your table’s ready. Did you have a tab at the bar?”
“No,” he replied.
Chains stepped back and let Autumn go in front of him as they followed the woman to their table.
“Your server will be here shortly. Enjoy your dinner.” The hostess turned and walked away.
For the first ten minutes Autumn seemed to be uncomfortable, and Chains suspected it was because they’d almost kissed. If it wasn’t for that damn fight he would’ve tasted her, and he was pretty sure it would’ve been sweet.
