He slid his arm behind my neck, resting it on the back of the chair. His fingers gently brushed against my skin, his delicate touch producing tiny bumps along my shoulder. It was October and still somewhat warm, but the chill running through me was from Tucker. My body was all too aware of how it responded around him, which made me even more self-conscious.
Tucker leaned over to speak against the shell of my ear, his breath sending a brush of heat to my cheeks. “We get the next round.”
“I’m not sure if I want to play.”
“Oh?” He cocked his head to look me in the eyes. “Getting cold feet?”
“I’d rather dance. Poker kinda triggers bad memories.”
He took a sip from his cup and squeezed my shoulder with his big hand. “Let’s dance then. Fair warning, it’s not my thing. I might do more drinking than dancing.”
“You sure you don’t mind leaving the game?”
“Nope. I don’t need to play a game to get you out of this sheet.” He winked, staring down at my toga.
Instead of irritation, which would have been the normal reaction considering he was a pig, I was excited. I’d thought of Tucker every time he passed me on my way to class, every time we were at the same parties.
His cocky smirk and pale blue eyes produced a yearning inside me. I pushed my thighs together, my core clenching with a need for him. Of course, he noticed my sudden movement, one that turned up the corners of his mouth even wider. Tucker was the cream of the crop of Strickland University’s elite. He was the son of a famous hockey player, rich enough to buy the school, and ruggedly handsome.
He was the typical jock, all smiles and charm and never without a girl on his arm.
“Shit,” Eden yelled, throwing her losing hand on the table. “But I don’t have anything on under this sheet.”
I shook my head, laughing. She never should have played poker with guys who knew how to fake their way to a win. I could tell the frat boy sitting next to her was bluffing when he called her bet. She folded, allowing him to win the game with a pair of fours.
When Eden began to undo the knot at her shoulder to release the sheet we cut in half to wear like a toga, I turned my head. I couldn’t bear witness to her public shame. If I were going to get naked, it wouldn’t be in front of a group of drunken frat boys.
I wanted to save her from the stupid bet, but she was thickheaded and would never listen to me. Once she committed to something, she was all in.
“How come I’ve never seen you at a party before?” Tucker asked.
“This isn’t my first time in the house.”
“Really? You have the kind of face I would remember.”
“That’s because you usually have your tongue down some girl’s throat.”
He laughed. “Sounds about right.” Then, he brought his hand to my cheek and rubbed his thumb along my jaw. “But you’re the only girl I see tonight.”
“Smooth,” I shot back, somewhat amused.
Tucker flashed an adorable smirk that creased his tanned cheek. His eyes found mine, and my chest tightened.
“Let’s go inside.” He took the cup from my hand and helped me up from the chair.
I pressed my hands to his chest when I lost my balance, the four beers I’d drank kicking in at once.
We grabbed a fresh beer from the keg in the kitchen, and then Tucker led me by the hand into the living room. The furniture was moved up against the walls to make room for the makeshift dance floor. There were so many people surrounding us, the air was hot and thick from all the bodies rubbing up against each other. The DJ in the corner of the room spun records, mixing a popular rap song with a techno beat.
I sipped from my cup, careful not to spill any of the beer, draining enough of the liquid to maintain a steady rhythm. Moving my hips back and forth to the music, I kept my eyes focused on the crowd in front of me. Slowly, I backed my ass up into Tucker, and he hooked his arm around me pulling my back flat against his chest.
He smelled of a spicy aftershave and clean linen. I leaned my head back, his scent filling my nostrils, and closed my eyes. After sliding my ass up and down a few times over the front of his toga, I felt him grow hard against my ass. We had almost nothing between us, and I became more aroused the harder he got for me.
Tucker’s hand moved from my stomach to my hip. He snapped the strap of my thong between his fingers and dipped down to lower his mouth to my ear. His heat, his touch, all of it was too much for me to stand. I wanted his hands on me, everywhere, navigating every inch of my body.