She had to swallow hard as Hunter slowly pulled her onto the dance floor and into his arms. The soft strains of “As Time Goes By” floated on the breeze, the piano and saxophone playing off of each other in flirtation.
“Are you having fun?” he asked as they slowly moved to the music.
She nodded, smiling at him. “The music is amazing. Honestly, this is the best I’ve felt all week.”
Her answer pleased him, she could tell, and he pulled her closer. “I’m glad.”
“You know everyone here,” she commented softly, smiling as Arlo led his cute wife onto the dance floor.
Hunter nodded, humming in agreement. “I make it a point to. Grandpa did that, Dad did that, and it’s become the trademark. But I like doing it. People trust a place with owners and managers they can put a face to.” He turned his head so his mouth was close to her ear. “But then you get guys like Arlo and Richie thinking they can make moves on my girl, and I have to remind them who’s boss.”
Mal half giggled while goosebumps raced across her skin. “Yeah,” she murmured low. “I was this close to running off with them.”
Hunter chuckled. “I knew it.” His hand on her back tightened, and he touched his head to hers, slowly dancing with her in this perfect place, with this perfect feeling between them.
And then, very softly, so low she wasn’t sure she heard it at first, she heard him sing, “Moonlight and love song, never out of date… Hearts full of passion, jealousy and hate…”
“You don’t sing,” she whispered, her words as shaky as her breath.
“I never said that,” he replied and continued to sing along in her ear.
Mal swallowed hard and slid her hand to the back of his neck, resting her face against his shoulder. He serenaded her softly, just for her ears, and his voice was velvety smooth and sensual, not to mention perfect. He could sing, however unexpected and impossible it seemed, and she might be the only person who knew it.
There were no words for that, either.
But here, dancing in his arms, his lips at her ear, words weren’t important.
Hunter couldn’t take his eyes off of Mal, and it was obvious. He’d been getting teased about it all night, residents and visitors alike seeing just how taken in he was. He didn’t mind. He could shrug it off and laugh about it, because he knew very well it was true.
She was an absolute vision tonight, and he would always remember the way she looked here, the way she felt in his arms, and how right it felt. He was going to have to tell her at some point. Tonight. There was no possible way he could hide it anymore, especially not when it should have been fairly obvious.
They took a breather after “As Time Goes By,” and he drifted to collect his bearings again, speaking with the bartender and the manager, making sure things would be cleaned up and ready for the wedding reception tomorrow—anything to take his mind off the breathtaking woman who had stolen his heart.
It was productive, but it didn’t exactly work. Mostly because he never stopped looking at her, and she looked at him just as much.
A peppy number ended to applause, and the lead vocalist took the microphone again. “Ladies and gents, we’re going to slow it down again. This is one of our last numbers of the night and one of our favorites: ‘It Never Entered My Mind.’”
The piano started in slowly, and then the cymbals, and when the trumpet began its soulful notes, Hunter found himself moving in Mal’s direction, unable to do anything else.
She saw him coming, and he saw her throat work, then she came to him on her own. Without a word, she put her hand in his, wrapped the other around him, and laid her head on his shoulder. Slowly, they began to sway, and Hunter would have sworn they were the only people in the world, let alone on this dance floor.
All he could feel was Mal’s hand in his, her arm around his neck, her body brushing against his. It was enough to drive a man insane, but despite that, somehow, he was comfortable. It felt natural to hold her like this, to move like this with her in his arms. He leaned his head on hers, eyes closed, and moved with the music, unaware of anyone or anything else.
Their bodies moved together as one. He was leading, he supposed, but only in the loosest sense of the word. He could dance, had learned years ago, but this was something else—something entirely beyond comprehension or skill. Dancing with Mal wasn’t like dancing had ever been. It went beyond anything physical and wasn’t something he could even describe.
His heart pounded frantically in his chest as sensations flooded him. With the music drawing on his emotions and his heart in his arms, it was all too much.
But it was all so right.
Suddenly, he wanted to be away from here. He wanted Mal to himself, without any distractions. Just the two of them together.
“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered.
Almost sleepily, Mal nodded against him, and she let him lead her out of the pavilion, fingers entwined. They walked down the stone steps to the beach, pausing only for Mal to remove her shoes, which she held in her other hand. They didn’t speak for a while, just walking and letting what was passing between them flow on by some unspoken agreement. He didn’t care; he just wanted to be with her.
“I want to put my feet in the water,” Mal suddenly said, her tone playful.
Hunter reluctantly let her fingers slide from his, but he grinned as she waded out ankle-deep. “That’s what you did the morning of the first sunrise shoot,” he reflected softly.