I was fervently glad that it was, even if I felt a bit like a pervert watching her. Her eyes were closed as she moved to the music, so she didn’t know we were out here, but she was dressed—albeit in a minuscule way.
When Lucky didn’t reply, I tried again. “Since the door is open, maybe she wants us to see?” It was a mostly hopeful question.
My conscience was screaming now. I had a sister and a niece and of course a mom. I taught kids. Spying on her wasn’t kosher.
Unless she had some exhibitionistic tendencies and didn’t mind if we peeped on her. At least she wasn’t naked.
I would just keep telling myself that.
“I cracked the door open a little, wanting to see where the music was coming from,” Lucky admitted, voice low. “She hadn’t latched it though. I’m not that bad.”
“Asshole.” I jabbed the pointed corner of one of my end tables into his back.
He grunted and dropped the bookcase on his toe. His unholy bellow of pain made the gorgeous blond stop dancing, just as I set down my furniture and moved toward her door to firmly pull it shut.
Well, that had been my intention anyway. I didn’t make it all the way to closing the door, because her face fucking slayed me.
I could admit I hadn’t noticed it before, as occupied as I’d been with her fluid movements. She was seriously coordinated. Flexible. Hot as fuck. But then she just had to have
a stunning face to match, with fiery eyes—color undetermined from this distance—and full lips and enough cleavage to kill a man who’d been abstinent for, oh, close to eight months now.
The last woman I’d asked out had ended up engaged to the sheriff within weeks. So, that kind of gave a reading on the state of my love life.
“What in the goddess are you doing?” she demanded, lowering the music and marching to the door at a rate of speed sufficient to make all the dangling threads from her top flutter over her abs.
She had a twinkling jewel in her navel. I was reasonably sure the beam of light from it had rendered me cross-eyed. Possibly altered some of my bodily functions as well.
That was as good an excuse as any for my current…pants predicament.
“Eyes up here, pal.” She tapped her forehead. “Were you breaking in?”
“Hardly. The door was open. I was shutting it for you. Never know who’s around.”
“Wind did it,” Lucky muttered from behind me.
I glanced back to see him leaning against the wall, gripping his foot. His boot was lying sideways on the floor.
I probably should’ve felt guilty, but he knew better than to pull stunts like that. Nudging a door open wasn’t cool. She didn’t know us. The last thing we wanted to do was scare her or make her feel uncomfortable. And I was her new neighbor, for fuck’s sake. If he made things weird between us, I’d be the one dealing with the fallout.
“Look, we apologize.” I cleared my throat. “The music lured Lucky to your apartment, and the door wasn’t latched, so he made an ill-advised decision to open it. We apologize,” I repeated, glancing back at my best friend, who nodded with a sigh.
“Sorry, ma’am.”
“Ma’am?” She frowned and crossed her arms. “Just how old do you think I am?”
“Barely legal?”
She arched a brow at my quip. “Since I suspect that’s your attempt at flattery, I will say you’re both wrong. I’m not old enough to be called ma’am, though who is? And I’m also not young enough to remember having a fake ID to get drinks. Although I rarely imbibe to excess.” She flushed. “Well, unless bestie service calls.”
“How do I call you through that bestie service?” Lucky pulled on his boot and flashed her a winsome smile. “Truly, you won’t meet a friendlier guy in all of the Cove.”
“She’s new in town. Don’t scare her off already. At least I assume.” I gave her a smile of my own. One far less toothy than Lucky’s.
“I’m fairly new to actually living in town, but I’ve worked here since last year.” She squinted at me. “Are you sure we haven’t met before?”
“Unless I was drugged unconscious, there is literally no way I could forget meeting you.” It was probably the most sincere thing I’d ever said, but Lucky snorted out a laugh just the same.
She just kept squinting. “I’ve seen you before. Are you—” She snapped her fingers. “August.”