His inky black hair is tapered at the sides, longer on top and disheveled like he’s run his hands through it several times. His focus is on the crowd, and I wonder if he was talking to me at all.
Then, he nods at the throng of people and leans into me. It’s not enough that I’m uncomfortable, just enough so I can hear him…and smell him.
And damn does he smell good.
Like fresh mountain air with a hint of something minty.
“All the lovey-dovey shit,” he says out of the side of his mouth, shaking his head. “It’s a bit overrated if you ask me.”
“Yet nobody did.”
He pulls back, looking down at me for the first time.
My breath is caught in my throat when his eyes meet mine.
They’re a bright, light blue. Maybe the brightest I’ve ever seen in person.
The color is striking against his long lashes, but it’s not the only thing drawing me in.
He’s looking at me like it’s only us in the room. It’s intense, and not how you should look at a stranger.
My skin prickles with goose bumps.
Finally, he flicks his eyes away.
I swallow, my mouth tacky and dry.
Oh hell. I need to get ahold of myself. Stop acting like I haven’t seen an attractive man before. Sure, it’s been a while since anyone other than Henry Cavill has given me tingles, but still. I need to get a grip.
“Ask you,” I say to him, doing my best to ignore the way his stare has my pulse racing. “Nobody asked you.”
A grin pulls at his full lips. “That’s fair.”
I smile back at him and spin around on the stool, facing the bar. The stranger copies my movements, and our elbows brush during the movement.
He doesn’t miss the contact either, glancing down at where we touched before his eyes flit to mine again.
I’m embarrassed by the heat flowing through me.
I’m ridiculous. It’s a damn elbow—but it’s been that long since I’ve had any physical contact from an attractive man.
Pity.
He lifts his hand, flagging down the bartender, and it draws my attention. His hand is big, covered in small scratches, and his forearms are corded with muscle. A dark blue short-sleeved shirt stretches across his body when he moves. It’s tight, but not in a Hey, look at how much time I spend in the gym kind of tight. Besides, I have a feeling his build isn’t from time spent in the gym, but rather from whatever it is he does for a living.
The bartender saunters our way.
My lips pinch together in annoyance because he couldn’t be bothered when I wanted a drink.
“Your usual?” he asks the stranger, never mind that I was here first.
I’m about to let him know he forgot about me when the mysterious man next to me speaks.
“Please, and whatever she’s having.”
I’m not dumb enough to argue about a free drink after the day—hell, weeks—I’ve had.
“I’ll have a whiskey sour, light on the simple syrup,” I tell the bartender. “I’d like to taste the top-shelf bourbon, please.”
He grins, then nods and whirls around to grab our drinks.
“So we’re clear,” I say to the man next to me, “just because I’m letting you buy me a drink, it doesn’t mean anything. I’m not going home with you.”
He nods, fighting a grin. “Duly noted.”
I tuck my lips together, combatting my own smile.
We sit together in silence. It’s not comfortable, but it’s not uncomfortable either.
I like having him here next to me despite not knowing him.
“I tried flagging him down twice, you know,” I say, breaking the quiet.
“Don’t hold it against him. Donny’s a good guy. He just gets distracted sometimes.” The stranger tips his head toward the other end of the bar. “Especially when his partner stops by.”
I lean forward to get a glimpse. A man who looks strikingly like Taye Diggs, so much I half expect him to start singing about my rent, sits at the other end, chin resting in his hand. He’s watching the bartender work with lustful eyes, and I’m jealous all over again.
“Is this some sort of couples bar?”
“Usually? No.” He twists his neck around, looking at the room again. “I’m not sure what’s in the air tonight.”
“Do I detect disdain in your voice?”
He chuckles. “That obvious?”
“Yes. That and your opening comment really gave it away.”
Donny pivots our way, drinks in his hands.
“A whiskey sour for the lady, top shelf.” He slides my glass toward me, then sets the other in front of the stranger. “And neat scotch for Brooks.”
Brooks.
The name fits him and doesn’t all at the same time.
“Let me know when you’re ready for refills,” Donny says.
Brooks nods, picking his glass up and taking a sip. He doesn’t grimace, doesn’t shake his head after the burn like my ex-husband always did when he tried to drink hard liquor.
I like that he doesn’t do that.
“I’m not some guy drowning his sorrows at a bar, all down on relationships because he’s been broken up with, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
It wasn’t.
“Duly noted,” I chirp back at him.
Another grin pulls at his lips. It’s not a full smile, just a soft tug at his lips that’s more mischievous than amused. Though I don’t know him, I like it when he does it.
It’s…cute.
Which isn’t a fitting word for a guy as big as him.
“So, what has you here drowning your sorrows? Get broken up with?”
I snort. “Something like that.”
I wasn’t dumped in the traditional sense, but my landlord did basically break up with me.
It was just via an eviction notice.
“That bad, huh?”
“That bad.” I gulp down a drink of my whiskey sour, grimacing as the liquor hits the back of my throat. Donny made up for ignoring me by adding extra alcohol.
Guess I can let Donny off the hook this time.
“I got an eviction notice.”
I’m not sure why I tell him.
He’s nobody to me. Has no business being privy to this embarrassing information.
But maybe that’s why I say it.
“It’s not a surprise. I’ve known about it for weeks. Just can’t seem to get my crap together. But it hit me today that I’m going to be homeless in about three weeks if I can’t find something between now and then. Saying it was a punch to the gut would be an understatement.”
“Fuck. That is bad.” He lifts his hand, signaling at Donny for a refill. He peeks back over at me. “You need another drink.”
“Gentle reminder that my statement from before stands,” I tell him, narrowing my eyes.
Those startling blue irises of his sparkle, and it’s not only the grin lining his lips that’s mischievous.
“That so?”
“That’s so.” I push my shoulders back, though I’m not sure even I believe it.
His eyes darken with a promise, and my breath is caught in my throat as he leans into me for the second time tonight. His lips are a short distance away. I’ve never had the urge to kiss a total stranger before, but right now?