I didn’t know what she meant, but I made an effort to drag my gaze from Luna long enough to smile at Tabitha. “Hey. Thanks for inviting me. Sorry I’m late.” I held out the bottle of rum toward Luna, who arched a brow.
“Is this your drink of choice?” She took the bottle from me, eyeing it with...not distaste exactly, but definitely not with excitement.
So, she wasn’t a rum chick. Noted.
“No, it’s a hostess gift. For your party,” I explained when she continued to examine the bottle.
“For my party?” She glanced at Tabitha before looking at the bottle again. “How kind of you. Imagine if you’d delivered it before the best by date of,” she bit her lip, “June 2015.”
I cleared my throat. “You know how liquor is. I let that age.”
“Hmm. Yeah, thanks.” She set the bottle on the floor under the table.
Defiantly, I bent to pick it up and grabbed a colorful glass from the stack of them. “I’ll have it then. This is the good stuff.”
“By all means. Start us off.” She waved her fingers at me, and I was nearly certain she was trying not to laugh. As was Tabitha.
I filled a glass and tossed it back shot-style, figuring it would hurt less if it went down fast. The sickly sweet alcohol burned when it hit my stomach, and I nearly gagged from the over-the-top, well, girlishness of it. I didn’t know any dudes who would drink this.
Hell, I didn’t know why I was drinking it.
But it didn’t stop me from exaggeratedly smacking my lips as I tipped more into my glass. “Damn, tastes even better than I remembered. Bottoms up,” I managed before I gulped down more rum.
“You are a game one.” Her smile softened around the edges as she shifted to look at Tabitha. “Did you invite anyone else?”
Her cheeks reddened. “No, just Caleb. I didn’t know I shouldn’t.”
Luna waved a hand. “It’s perfectly fine. This is the spot for neighbors to get to know each other. It’s not a huge building. We’ll be in and out of each other’s pockets whether we want to be or not.”
Well, that didn’t sound particularly promising, but I was a guy who preferred to look on the optimistic side. “Yes, and sometimes you just need a couple of pieces of bread.”
At Luna’s questioning look, Tabitha explained my visit.
Luna let out a light laugh. “If you need bakery goods, she’s the door to knock on. She owns Sugar Rush. Best Half Moon cookies you’ll ever taste. We take those cookies very seriously in the Cove.”
“Aww, thanks, Luna. And if you want incredible tarot readings, great fashion tips or creepy true crime tidbits, she’s your woman.” Tabitha shook her head. “Guess you have that in common.”
“Which one?” Luna asked curiously, her sexy blue eyes sparkling in the candlelight. “Let me guess. The fashion tips? Do you know of any hot new designers or have any tattoos in interesting places?” Her voice turned into a purr on that last part.
Not that I needed any encouragement from her direction to get harder than stone.
When I didn’t immediately reply, she shifted to toe off her sandals, angling her body just enough for me to glimpse what appeared to be a daisy tattoo high on the back of her thigh.
My mouth went dry, leaving me no choice but to gulp more rum.
“I’m not big on fashion, but I’m a fan of tattoos and especially true crime. You’d be surprised how many ways you can brutally kill your neighbor with common household items.”
As Tabitha covered her mouth, I drank more rum in the hopes of shutting myself up.
Luna, however, seemed amused. “Oh, you must be a fan of Asher’s podcast then. You have to meet Bess. She’s his—” She broke off and blinked down at my foot. “What happened to you?”
I swallowed repeatedly to try to get that hellfire taste out of my mouth. “Huh?”
Luna crouched in front of me to lift my leg. She eased my sandal off and propped my foot on a chair before touching it gently.
I swayed and it wasn’t entirely from my lack of balance. Her touch felt like heaven. “Nail.” I could barely speak.
“Oh, no. Your bandage is frayed. I can fix you up better than this.” She stroked the side of my foot and I swayed again, because now my balance was affected by the urgent weight between my damn legs. If I didn’t topple over, it would be a miracle.