one corner. “We haven’t done much talking yet.”
True. She’d been too busy bumping and grinding against him on the dance floor. What must he think of her? She supposed she could blame Jake for her improper behavior. He always brought out the brazen hussy in her. But she’d been hot for Devlin even before Jake had arrived and she was still hot for him now even though Jake was halfway across the room. So she supposed she couldn’t really blame her vagina’s enthusiasm for Devlin on another man.
“Not that I minded,” Devlin added, his voice low and seductive as his eyes met hers and held her gaze.
Her heart rate kicked up as he inched closer. She licked her lips in anticipation.
Damn, the man was sexy. When had that transpired exactly? Her body shifted closer to his as if she had no control over her muscles.
Apparently, Jake wasn’t the only one she responded to on a purely instinctual level. She hadn’t had much time for romance in the past ten years. Perhaps her cooter had decided its dry spell was over and it wasn’t taking no for an answer. Or maybe because the last few men she’d slept with had been total bores in the sack, she was looking for something a bit more exciting and her body knew a good time when it brushed up against one.
“Have a seat,” he said, indicating the chair he’d pulled out for her.
She collapsed into it as if her bones had gone soft. Devlin took the seat beside her, shifting his chair close. So close their knees were touching. Michelle spotted her drink on the table and grabbed it, taking a huge gulp. The bourbon burned going down and she winced.
“Easy,” Devlin said, his breath stirring loose strands of her hair, tickling her neck, making her throb in places she’d almost forgotten could throb. Dear lord. He took the plastic cup from her hand and set it on the table. “I want you in full command of your senses when I take you to bed.”
Michelle choked. Not on her doctored beverage. On her own saliva.
Not if he took her to bed, but when. She liked his newfound self-confidence even if it did make her cough.
Devlin rubbed her back not so soothingly.
“You, okay?”
She nodded, eyes watering as she tried to hack up a lung. Keep it together, Michelle. It wasn’t as if she’d never had a gorgeous, considerate man who’d been featured in Time-freaking-Magazine hit on her. Okay, so she hadn’t, but this wasn’t just any gorgeous guy, this was Devlin McAllister. She had no reason to be so unsettled around him. Except that he was very good at unsettling her.
Michelle glanced up when Jake stopped at the table between herself and Jessica—who might as well have turned invisible for all the attention Michelle had minded her. Where in the hell where her manners?
Jake set a cup of punch and a small plate of finger foods in front of Jessica before he patted her back. “There you go, beautiful,” he said.
Jessica smiled up at Jake in gratitude which apparently set off territorial alarms in Sedric’s head, because the linebacker-turned-vocalist immediately plowed through the crowd surrounding him—sending bodies scattering in all directions—as he made his way directly to his wife’s side.
“I’m sorry, baby, I got sidetracked,” Sed said to Jessica.
“It’s fine,” she said, and took a nonchalant sip of her punch. “That’s what roadies are for, right? Retrieving beverages?”
She winked at Jake, who grabbed a chair, turned it around, and set it between Michelle and Jessica. He then sat facing the chair back and helped himself to several of Jessica’s carrot sticks and pretzels. “I thought our job was to entertain the band’s wives while they guys are busy entertaining the fans,” he said as he crunched into a carrot stick.
“Yeah, that too.” Jessica patted his knee.
Sed wrapped a large hand around Jake’s throat and squeezed. “Don’t make me kill you,” he said, before planting a kiss on the smooth skin just to the side of Jake’s mohawk.
Jake grinned, so apparently Michelle didn’t quite understand the dynamic between the two men. She wouldn’t have been grinning if the large, muscular, highly tattooed metal vocalist had threatened her life.
“So how did you end up a roadie, anyway?” she asked Jake. “I remember you being a very accomplished guitarist.” And it had definitely done something to her panties’ elastic. The waistband had never been able to keep the garment up when he’d played those six strings.
Sed released Jake’s throat and pounded him in the center of his chest. “Yeah, Jake. How did you end up a roadie?” he said with a laugh and took the unoccupied chair on the opposite side of Jessica.
“Long story,” Jake said. “I’m more interested in knowing how Devlin became filthy rich.” He craned his neck so he could see around Michelle and look at the quietest member of their little group.
“I’m not filthy rich,” Devlin said and winked at Jake. “I shower daily.”
“I’m more interested in knowing how he got this hot body,” Dee Peterson said as she made her uninvited appearance at the table known. Dee ran both hands along Devlin’s shoulders, down his biceps and over his chest. The cut of the man’s muscles was apparent even under his well-tailored clothes, and Michelle suddenly wanted to kick Dee’s feet from under her for getting to examine his hard body before Michelle did.
Devlin caught Dee’s hands before they reached his flat stomach. “I discovered my most innovative ideas come to me when I’m hot and sweaty. So I work out. A lot.”
“There’s more than one way to get hot and sweaty,” Jake said, elbowing Michelle in the ribs. “Isn’t that right, Michelle?”
Michelle stiffened and glanced at Devlin out of the corner of her eye, hoping to gauge his reaction. His brows drew together in an unpleasant scowl. “I… uh… wouldn’t know,” she said, suddenly wanting to take a page out of Sedric’s book and strangle Jake.
Dee’s twenty-member entourage surrounded the table like a bunch of hyenas—cackling at everything and looking for prey. Their prey happened to be the two world-renowned men at the table. Sedric handled the expanding crowd like a pro, but Devlin shifted uncomfortably in his seat and avoided rapid fire questions by producing noncommittal grunts and the occasional shake of his head. Michelle was glad that some of the boy she remembered remained in the man and that he was still shy. He had plenty of self-confidence when interacting one-on-one, but by the way he clutched at the fabric of his black pants, he wasn’t comfortable in a crowd. Or maybe it was just this crowd that unsettled him. It just annoyed her.
Michelle leaned close to Devlin’s ear. “It’s a little warm in here, don’t you think?”
He caught her eye and his arm circled her back. “I only came to see you,” he said. “Do you want to get out of here?”
She was too busy reeling over his admission of interest to answer his question.
Chapter Five
Devlin didn’t wait for Michelle’s response. He stood from his chair, took her hand and helped her rise gracefully to her feet. When she continued to hold his hand, his pulse rate skyrocketed. He couldn’t remember the last time holding hands had addled his thoughts.
“Excuse us,” he said to the nearest barricading body. He had a pathological need to get out of this place. These people brought back so many memories of being bullied in high school. He’d thought he was over it, but those old feelings of terror had resurfaced as soon as their table had been surrounded. He must have been surrounded one too many times in the boy’s locker room. His gaze kept wandering to the door of that locker room, which didn’t help his oscillation between anger and fear. He didn’t come here to relive high school. He’d come to see Michelle. And he had not anticipated this visceral reaction to his past at all. He hadn’t even thought much about his experiences in high school until he’d opened the lurid purple envelope containing the silver foiled invitation to this reunion.
“That’s my girl you’ve got there, Devzits,” a deep voice said.
Devlin looked up into the sneering face of Wayne Bridges. He cringed, but not out
of fear. Wayne had gotten a bit doughy around the middle and Devlin would very much like to punch the smirk off of his blotchy face.
“Hello, Wayne,” Michelle said. She gave him the once over and shook her head. “Good-bye, Wayne.” She pushed through the crowd, tugging Devlin after her.