“That’s my girl.”
Tamar began filling my drink order when the double doors swung open. Even though there’d been a constant flow of people traipsing in and out tonight, my attention immediately sought out the source. As if there was no other place in the world I could possibly look.
Expectation.
A bond absolute.
A tension only I could feel.
Sebastian stepped through the door, all strength and mystery and damaged beauty. The lamp swinging from the rafters above him amplified it, striking against the bold, powerful lines of his face. Those strange grey eyes made a pass through the room. Hunting. They were quick to lock on me.
Chills skated down my spine. A scatter of butterflies blossomed in my belly, fluttering just under the surface of my skin, lifting my flesh in a rush of goosebumps.
It made no difference how many times he had me.
He always held me.
Captive.
Ensnared and bound.
Without conscious choice, I was moving, as if my feet weren’t even touching the ground. Erasing the space between us.
Sebastian stood there in the rays of muted, hazy light, emanating that almost frightening, masculine glory. An old black T-shirt stretched tight across his solid chest. The mural of intricate ink scrawled down the entirety of his arms, the story written there jumping and twitching with the bristling muscle.
His expression was somehow both cruel and dripping with affection.
Devastating.
And I thought perhaps I’d lost a piece of my mind, a part of my soul, because my mouth watered and my body hummed with need that bordered on unhealthy.
Vivid.
Violent.
Dangerous.
I didn’t even acknowledge the rest of the guys who stepped through the door behind him.
Instead I was pushing up on my toes and wrapping my arms around his neck, and his arms were closing around my waist.
Warmth and relief.
That pretty, pretty mouth came closer and closer until it met with mine.
Heaven.
“Hi,” he mumbled at my lips, his tweaking up at the corners beneath our connection.
God, I loved when I could feel him smile under our kiss.
“Hi,” I answered. Reluctantly, I pulled away. “I thought you guys were practicing tonight?”
Not that I was going to complain.
“We finished early,” Sebastian supplied quickly. Something passed through the savage expression that stuttered my heart with a slick of apprehension.
He forced a tight smile, and I tore my gaze from him, allowing my eyes to travel to the guys.
A rowdy pile of rock star filled up Charlie’s doorway.
Almost angtsy.
Anxious.
Wild and unruly and so obviously out of place.
“Hey, guys.”
Lyrik hazarded a hand through the mess of black atop his head, tattooed fingers flashing in the light, dark eyes in a constant blaze as he lifted his chin to me in greeting.
Zee leaned in and dropped a swift kiss to my cheek. “Hey, Shea,” he murmured lightly, casting a quick glance at Sebastian.
Wary.
A short ribbon of dread unfurled in my belly.
Something was up.
Distracting me, Ash was quick to step forward and hook his arm around my neck, flashing me his dimples. “Sitting at home on a gorgeous Tuesday night with all that Charlie’s has to offer? Now that just seems ludicrous. The temptation is too great to resist. What man in his right mind would pass up good music, great drinks, and beautiful ladies? So here we are to take advantage. You should be honored by our presence.”
As always, Ash was all too keen to lay it on thick.
The guy was larger than life, more arrogant than anyone I’d ever met, but even I had to admit it was all part of his charm. Without a doubt, he’d left a trail of dropped panties all across the world.
He kissed the top of my head, grinning as he turned us out to survey the landscape of Charlie’s. “Tell me you saved our favorite booth for us.”
Ash’s favorite booth?
I glanced to the booth secreted away in the darkest corner of the bar. The place I would forever think of as Sebastian’s.