“Ah, I see what happened there. She’s superhot.”
It only took a second to realize his friend was talking about the brunette. She was gorgeous. No man with a dick and a heartbeat would disagree. And Blake couldn’t deny that at some point in the past few years, he probably would’ve tried to get her to go home with him.
Tonight, there wasn’t the slightest temptation. Checking her out had almost felt clinical. Somewhere, somehow, it had all gotten a little stale. Boring. Getting the hot girl had never been a novelty for him. It was a given. They were drawn to him like a magnet.
Especially when they realized his career choice. Or maybe because of it. Before he’d gotten certified to be a paramedic, he’d been strictly a firefighter.
Either way, the girls went a little nuts over it. And being a guy who didn’t like to get too serious, they always assumed they could change him. Fix him. They were always wrong.
Another husky laugh—almost bawdy now—rang out, and he felt his gaze drawn to the plainer girl again. It was usually girls like her, the one standing in the shadow of the goddess, who had enough sense to stay clear of him, seemed to realize right off the bat that he was a player and no woman would ever change him.
So, it was a little surprising when she slid another considering glance his way and then gave him a slow smile.
*
Kristen could sensethe commitment-phobe in the man from across the room. From the lazy grip on his beer to the calculating look in his gaze as it slid over the women in the room.
Oh, this guy was hot as hell, and he knew it.
He looked closer to thirty than twenty. His biceps appeared as if he spent every free minute lifting weights. He had an angular face that was sexy and rugged and dark hair just a tad longer than conventional. The kind of a hair that a girl wanted to slide her fingers into her while being kissed senseless.
While she now had his attention, those blue eyes had initially been on her friend, Tori. Pretty standard given Tori was the hot one. But she’d caught him glancing her way more than once now. Kind of cool and surprising.
Her heart quickened, and an idea she’d been playing with gained momentum.
Could he be the one?
She lifted her cup and took another sip of the lukewarm beer. It tasted like piss. Whoever had been in charge of the alcohol had definitely gone for cheap instead of quality. It wasn’t making her want to drink much for courage.
Sidling closer to her friend, Kristen nudged her in the side and whispered, “Bathroom.”
Tori glanced down at her in surprise, and understanding flickered in her eyes. She gave a nod and moved away from the group of men surrounding her.
They found a bathroom, slipped inside, and locked the door.
“I found him.” Kristen’s confession came out on a nervous rush.
Tori arched a brow in clear skepticism. “I haven’t seen you talk to anyone yet.”
“Well, I haven’t, but he’s incredibly hot.”
“And that’s a requirement?”
Kristen bit her lip and considered that question for a moment, then gave a little nod. “If I’m going to do it like this? Then yeah, absolutely it is.”
Her friend made a nearly silent harrumph. “Okay. Point him out.”
Kristen grabbed the door handle, opened it, and peeked her head out. He was exactly where he’d been a few minutes ago.
“That one.”
Tori peeked her head out, too. “Not the one in the gray T-shirt with the amazing biceps?”
“Totally that one.”
Tori ducked back in and closed the door. She placed her palms on the bathroom counter and leaned back, giving Kristen a narrow-eyed look.
“Well, you nailed picking the hottest guy here.”