Hunter nodded toward the entrance of the bar. There stood Beth. She waved, then turned on her heel and hurried away.
“She’s so sweet, but that guy scared the crap out of me.” I pressed my hands to my hot cheeks.
“Me, too.”
“Nothing scares you,” I said as we sat at the table.
“You couldn’t be more wrong about that.” Hunter gave another glance around. “I was wondering what he was up to, that’s for sure.”
“Looks like you need to recite some P!nk songs.”
He leaned back in his seat and let out a laugh. “Almost.”
We clanked our glasses together and said, “Cheers.”
Wow. I almost felt normal sitting at a table in a bar with Hunter, drinking sparkling cider. And I liked it. The bubbles slid down my throat, and I smiled.
The techno song ended, and the DJ said, “For the special couple up front here…Until The End Of Time.”
Hunter smiled. “Ready?”
I set my glass down as I drew in a deep breath, summoning my strength. I touched my ring with my thumb as I always did when I needed a courage boost and slid my hand into his. “Until The End Of Time?”
“It’s an old Foreigner song, but it’s pretty sweet.” He tugged me onto the dance floor and spun me around before drawing him close to me. “Like you.”
“I’m old?”
He laughed. “Hey, that’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
Another couple joined us on the dance floor followed by another. The women fell into their guys’ arms with an ease I was jealous of. Sure, I felt comfortable with Hunter, even wanted to be in his arms, but there was that tension across my shoulders I couldn’t get rid of. Like the memories of what happened to me were simmering below the surface ready to burst my bubble.
“Relax,” Hunter whispered, his breath warm along my ear. “It’s just you and me here, no one else. Let them fade from your awareness. Be here with me.”
I eased my hands over his chest and to his neck. Warm skin met my fingertips and absorbed all my worries. Well, maybe not all of them, but most of them. It was like a weight slid over my shoulders and crashed against the wooden floor.
Resting my cheek on his chest, I fell into his slow rhythm and listened to the words of the song and his heart drumming. The combination lulled me into a calm state I’d not been in for a while. One I’d been searching for, for more than three years.
He was like my own personal sedative.
Gentle fingers curled around the back of my neck, massaging, luring all the tension from my muscles. Another set of fingers slid around my waist and pulled me even closer to him.
The contact pushed the air right from my lungs, and I expected the normal images to start flying behind my closed eyes, but they didn’t.
“It’s okay,” he whispered. “You feel so good in my arms. You’re safe.”
I held on tighter, bringing me even closer to him that I straddled one of his legs as to not step on his feet.
He drew in a quick breath and pressed his mouth to the top of my head as I got lost in the words of the song.
They spoke of opening a door, finding your way, and reaching inside to get where you want to go. Where you want to be.
“Lina,” he said, his hand tracing up my spine.
I shifted, turning my face so I could kiss his neck, one of my new favorite things to do now. And hopefully just the beginning for tonight.
“Doing okay?” His throat vibrated against my lips.
I pushed up to my tiptoes and kissed him a little harder as my silent answer. The perfume from before was gone, and I only caught the hint of his cologne mixed with a little salt. Such an intoxicating combination, I couldn’t help but lick his skin.