Feeling ridiculous, I struck a few poses, trying to remember the romance covers Emma had shown me. Knox gamely took pictures, but I didn’t think I was hitting the mark any more than the twins had.
Denver frowned. “We need to loosen you up.”
“Got any tequila?”
I was joking, but Denver snapped his fingers. “I’ve got the next best thing.” He picked up his phone. A minute later, the familiar sounds of salsa music filled the air. “Go dance with him, Emma. That’ll help him relax.”
“What?” Emma asked. I was perversely pleased that I wasn’t the only one the twins were putting through their paces tonight.
Denver looked over at me. “You can dance the salsa, right?” I nodded. The Mexican half of my family would disown anyone who couldn’t. “And I taught Emma the basic steps in one of our YouTube videos. Go on,” he urged Emma.
She stepped tentatively forward, and I smiled. Finally, something I might actually enjoy was happening. Emma had on jeans, which might inhibit the movement of her hips, but her blouse, white with ruffles, left her creamy shoulders bare. It actually reminded me of a certain type of traditional Mexican dress. Either way, it looked quite pretty on her.
She smiled up at me but seemed unsure where to start. But that was my job. I took one of her hands and held it at shoulder height. Then I put my other hand lightly on her back. She laid her arm on top of mine, her hand resting on my shoulder, and we were ready to go.
Denver turned up the music. I counted out eight beats, and we started to move. I advanced into her space and she stepped back—her footwork wasn’t bad. Then she moved forward and I yielded, watching the way her hips swayed from side to side. I spun her around, then turned myself, then twirled her again.
“You’re really good,” she said, her hazel eyes beaming up at me.
“So are you.”
“Denver’s a great teacher,” she said, a bit bashfully.
I leaned in close so that the others couldn’t hear. “The way you’re moving your hips? That’s something that can’t be taught.”
She blushed, and I took a second to glance over at the others, feeling a bit smug when I saw the way they were watching hungrily.
We danced more easily now, and Emma got bolder, making bigger movements, grinning up at me in a teasing way as she glided around me. God, this was fun. And hot. Super hot. I wanted this to go on all—
“Stop,” Denver said sharply. “Emma, over here.”
Before I could even protest, she was gone, dashing over to Denver’s side.
“Stand behind Knox where Tonio can see you,” Austin ordered, and she hastened to obey.
My chest rose and fell as I tried to catch up with what was going on. Knox was clicking away with his camera.
“Look straight ahead, Tonio. Look at Emma.”
I could barely see her with Knox in the way, but Denver seemed to realize that. He lifted Emma up, almost as if he were carrying a child on his hip, and suddenly, I could see her face over Knox’s shoulder.
“She’s right here,” Austin said to me. “The woman you share a bed with. The woman who moves so well with you on the dance floor. The woman you think about every day. She’s right here, and you know you want her.”
God, did I want her. So fucking badly.
“She’s so close,” Austin continued, “but still not close enough. Show us that you want her more than anything.”
I stared at her flushed face. Those sweet pink cheeks. Was she pink all over? I wanted to find out so badly. I wanted to take her home, lay her down on my bed, peel off her clothes, and kiss every single inch of her.
She’d been with my friends—my best friends—and that was fine because that’s what she wanted. But I wanted her to want me, and I was pretty sure she did. The way she’d moved in my arms… the way she’d looked up at me… the glint in her eyes as she pressed her hips against mine… Oh yeah, I was pretty damn sure she wanted me. And I sure as hell wanted her.
“I think we’ve got it,” Knox said quietly, and Emma cheered.
I blinked, coming back to earth with a thud, and wondered what the hell had just happened.
Denver walked over and clapped me on the back. “Now that’s how you smolder.”
20
Emma
It was quiet as Tonio drove me home from the photo shoot. It wasn’t supposed to be my night in his bed, but the twins and Knox said that he’d earned it. Austin grinned and said that I was likely eager to spend some time getting familiar with Tonio’s shaved chest. That made me blush, but it wasn’t like he was wrong.
The silence in the car wasn’t awkward. We were just tired. We’d had to lug all the equipment out to the cars. Fortunately, the twins had volunteered to take the portable spotlights back to the club, and Knox had headed home with all his camera equipment.