Marco’s eyes drop to our joined hands, a grin covering his face by the time we reach them. “Hey, you two.”
“Hey,” Rhodes replies, looking around. “This place is mind-blowing.”
“Yeah. We came here a few months ago and had a blast.” Renee looks between the two of us. “And what better place to come for a double date?”
Marco turns his warm gaze on his girlfriend. “Right. Let’s go. Our booking starts in ten minutes, which is enough time to get drinks and find our table.”
“We’ll follow you guys.” The other couple move ahead of us and I step forward, stopping when Rhodes turns my way. I meet his eyes with curiosity.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?”
“For a first date that hasn’t even started yet, you’ve had a lot to think about.”
I melt inside, and I let it all hang out, not hiding the fact I like his thoughtfulness, again asking myself how this man is single. “I’m good, honey.”
He lifts his brow. “Would you tell me if you weren’t?”
“Oh, yeah. Something to know about me—I’m a talker.”
“Maybe Flynn can give me some pointers,” he muses.
I struggle not to laugh as I roll my eyes. “And he’s got ex-husband jokes.”
“He’s a bigger man than I would be.”
“Oh really?
“Yep. If it was me meeting the guy wanting to date my wife—knowing what a catch she is—I’d totally be a jerk.”
My lips twitch, trying to imagine a scenario in which Rhodes Anderson would ever be an asshole. “Is that so?”
“Hell, I want to be a possessive jerk now to the three guys I’ve already caught checking out your ass.”
I lean in, tipping my face to his and smirking at him. “What I wanna know is why the guy I want to be ogling me isn’t doing that instead of watching others do it?”
His brows lift, his eyes flashing with surprise. I like keeping him on his toes. Sometimes my frank honesty can be refreshing, sometimes not so much. I’m happy in this instance, Rhodes gets me.
Rhodes quickly recovers and closes the remaining distance between us until our chests are almost touching. His spare hand is now resting on my hip, the heat of his touch making a tremble course through my body.
“How about we make a deal, just for tonight?”
“Okay . . .” I murmur. I might get into trouble here, but I find myself willing to do anything he might ask of me.
“Let’s live in the moment? No pressure. No expectations. Just you, me, Marco, and Renee, hanging out with friends and enjoying ourselves. Drinks, food, and good old-fashioned fun where I will—more than likely—beat the pants off you at whatever game we play.”
“Is that so? You think you can beat me?”
His eyes turn molten. “Depends what we’re playing . . .”
And damn if that doesn’t warm me from the inside.
“C’mon, love birds. You coming or what?” Marco calls out.
Rhodes rubs his hands together. “Oh yeah, this is gonna be fun.”
“Well, after you teased me back at my house, I say you might be right. It’s only fair.” I shoot him an amused glance and let him go before walking away with an extra spring in my step and swaying my hips knowing he’s watching.
The rumbling growl coming from the man behind me makes me smile.
A chirpy, mid-twenties, hipster-looking dude approaches the four of us with a huge grin on his face. “Hey, ladies and gents. My name is Trent, and I’ll be your trusty, talented, and sometimes funny ax coach for the next hour or so.” Trent goes over the safety precautions before launching into an explanation of how the game works. “The goal is for an individual to beat their competing player or for a team to get to a certain number of points first. There are three rounds of five throws per person, but even if a winner is declared after the second round, we’ll still go ahead with the third, because who doesn’t wanna throw axes at a bullseye for fun, am I right? Although, you two boys look like you’ve chucked more than a few axes in your time.”
We all laugh and nod our heads. Trent’s upbeat attitude is infectious, and it has me itching to give it a go.
“Right, so I’ll be off to the side observing and I won’t intrude or step in unless someone asks or I have to. But first, let me demonstrate how to hold and throw this auspicious little wood chopper.” He grabs an ax from the holder and twirls it in his hands before holding it up in front of him. “Dominant hand on top, the other one below, then all you gotta do is face the target . . .” He turns around and steps to the edge of the throwing lane, looking back over his shoulder at us. “Then you lift it over your head like this, and it’s a case of rocking your hips forward and sticking your butt out, using your body to catapult the ax forward, and hopefully lodging the blade in the target.”
God, he makes it sound and look easy. Lucky I’ve never been afraid to make a fool out of myself in the name of having fun.
Marco and Renee stand back and let us go before them.
The first ax I pitch down the lane spins end over end before hitting the target with the metal butt. It drops to the floor like a lead balloon and I huff out a frustrated breath. “This is a lot harder than it looks.”
Rhodes appears beside me, shooting me a hot-as-hell smirk. “If it helps, I did the same thing my first time?”
I roll my eyes. “Of course, you did. And let me guess—you’re about to tell me you are classed as an expert-level ax-thrower now?”
He chuckles behind me as I walk toward the target and bend over, taking my time to reach out and slowly pick up the ax. A quick check over my shoulder confirms what I’d expected to see—Rhodes’s eyes pinned to my butt. Maybe distracting him is the key to winning this damn game. And if that doesn’t work, at least we’ll have fun flirting while he kicks my ass. With a little wiggle of said derriere, I straighten and make my way back to my date, dragging my gaze up his body without shame and flattening my hand on his shoulder when I reach his side. “You're up, honey. Maybe you can show me how good you are at this game.”
His attention drops to my lips then up again and damn, just the heat in his eyes has my body sparking to life. How does he manage to do that to me with just a look? I keep wanting to grab his face and kiss the hell out of him.
“What game is this again?” he asks, his deep, hoarse tone making my knees weak.
“Why, ax-throwing, of course,” I say innocently as I flex my fingers against his shirt. “It is our first date, after all. And unlike some people, I’d never tease anyone without knowing I was prepared to follow through. That would be kinda cruel, don’t ya think?
Rhodes shakes his head slowly, his eyes dancing with amusement. “Oh, we’re playing now, sweet cheeks.”
My brows jump up and I grin. “Sweet cheeks?” I lean in, bringing my face so close that his heavy breath washes over my skin. “But how will you ever find out how sweet my cheeks can be if you don’t win . . .?” I blow him an air kiss and walk to the table where Marco and Renee are standing.
Renee is beaming, and Marco’s head is dropped, but there’s no missing his smirk. “You right there, brother?” he calls out to my date, grabbing an ax from the rack outside the throwing area.