When she was dressed, her nervous expression had the Dom inside me salivating. “You want something else to drink?” I asked. “Rum and Coke?”
She shook her head. “Something stronger.”
I laughed, knowing her reasons. “Like a shot of Everclear?”
She strode close and leaned in to me, her voice hushed. “I just want something to take the tremble away.”
Her waist was small in my hands, where it fit so perfectly.
“But I fucking love your tremble.”
“I don’t.” Her expression was pained.
I set my hand on her cheek and brushed my thumb over her lush lips. “The things I’m going to do to you, they’re going to make you tremble no matter what.”
She inhaled. “Then some liquid courage won’t hurt.”
I gave a short laugh and abandoned my hold on her, strolling to the bar. I made another round of drinks for everyone while Payton went to the restroom, and I watched as Noemi grasped the shot glass, determination in her eyes. She tilted it back and swallowed the clear liquid, and immediately gagged.
“Shit.” She dropped the glass on the bar and it fell over, rolling until Dominic stopped it and set it upright. “Oh my God, did you give me rubbing alcohol?”
I grinned. “Watch your tone, and you did ask for it.”
Noemi’s lips rounded into an ‘O’ and she blew out a long breath, as if trying to cool the fire in her mouth. I handed her the glass of Sprite I’d had ready, and she gulped it down.
Once recovered, Noemi stood straight and turned toward the sound of Payton’s heels clicking across the floor. “Can I ask you something?”
Payton gave her a friendly smile. “Only if I can ask you something back.”
“Your tattoos.” Noemi gestured to both Payton and Dominic. “What do they mean?”
I hadn’t seen Payton’s ink before tonight. In fact, the last time I’d seen Payton naked had been more than a year ago and the last time she’d seen a client—Dominic. Before him, she’d never do anything like that. The old Payton would have looked at her tattoo and instantly thought she’d been branded.
“It means ‘real’ in Japanese,” Dominic answered.
Normally I would have said the sweet exchange of glances between them was sickening. But the way he fucking looked at her, like she was the whole world . . . If I tried to give either one of them shit about it, I would be a bigger asshole than I already was. And since Noemi, nothing for me was normal anymore.
Nothing lasts forever.
I took another long pull on the bottle of Jack, drowning the voice into silence.
“What’s your question for me?” Noemi asked.
Payton’s face was unreadable and filled me with worry. “How’d you two meet?”
“At his other club, Dune. I’d been too busy staring at him up on the balcony to get out of the way of a fistfight, and afterward Joseph wanted to make sure I was all right.”
She’d been staring up at the balcony? Unexpected warmth spread over me from her words. Noemi turned the glass of Sprite absentmindedly on the bar, displaying her adorable fidget when she was anxious. She must have felt my gaze on her, for her shoulders straightened and she turned to face me head-on. Giving me her full attention, which I very much appreciated.
“Do you want another shot of courage?” I asked.
Her eyes widened. “No, thank you. One was . . . great. More than enough.”
I smirked, then glanced at Dominic. “There are a pair of couches in the holding room backstage. I thought we could head there, unless you need anything from here first?”
Dominic ran a hand through his short, dirty blond hair. “Champagne?”
Payton laughed and a wide smile spread on her lips. “Oh my God, of course. I’ll grab the cake.” She lifted the box off the bartop and wrapped an arm around Noemi. “You bought him a fucking cake. I love it.”