“I’m afraid Stella is right on that,” Carolina said.
“Yeah? How would you know?”
“She’s a hard-core hockey fan, and follows every player on the Travelers. She probably knows your stats better than you do.”
Trick leaned back to observe Stella. “No shit. Are you some kind of mathematician?”
Stella laughed. “No. I’m a dancer. But I’m very good at math.”
“So, you’re smart and beautiful. Score two for you, Stella.”
Avery moved over and pulled up a chair next to Carolina. “And you’re some kind of . . . designer, right?”
Carolina smiled at Avery, surprised he remembered her at all from their brief meeting at the mission on Thanksgiving. “That’s right.”
“What kind of designer was it again?”
“Clothing.”
“Oh. So you’re big into fashion and stuff.”
Carolina smiled. “Yes. You could say that.”
“And you’re friends with a hockey stats geek.”
“Hey,” Stella said, giving Avery a glare.
Avery laughed. “Touchy, touchy. Sorry. A beautiful, dancing, hockey stats genius.”
Stella nodded. “Better. And now you owe me a beer for the insult.”
“Consider it done. But how good are you at pool?”
Stella slid off the stool. “I’ll kick your ass at pool. Especially after that geek comment.”
Carolina shook her head and watched Avery rack the balls. Stella shrugged off her jacket, much to the admiration of all the guys.
“Get over here, Carolina,” Stella said. “You’re going to play, too.”
“I haven’t played pool since college.”
Drew came up next to her. “So? Afraid you’ll get beat?”
“Not a chance.” She took off her jacket and went to pick out a cue. “Stella, let’s show these boys how it’s done.”
Two hours later, she had won two games and lost two. All in all, not bad. Stella, of course, was kicking major butt, not surprising considering how good she was at pool.
“Your friend is a hit with my friends,” Drew said as they stood and watched Stella line up her shot.
Carolina grinned. “Men love Stella. And she’s a natural with them, always so comfortable around guys.”
“And you’re not?”
She shrugged. “Men don’t naturally gravitate toward me.”
He laughed. “You must be blind, babe, because every set of male eyes in this place has been on you since you walked in the door.”
She looked around, and caught several gazes quickly darting away.
Huh.
“Plus the guys on my team. I’ve had to glare at all of them to keep them away from you.”
She turned back to him. “And why would you do that?”
He leaned in closer. “I think you know why.”
She warmed as he looked down at her, his gaze direct, his intent obvious.
“I don’t pay much attention to men.”
“Maybe you should. Because they sure as hell pay attention to you. I sure as hell pay attention to you.”
And then it got hotter in there and she lost herself in the beauty of his face, the way his shoulder brushed against hers. It was like they were all alone in the bar despite the shouts of his friends and Stella’s raucous laughter.
“Why did you text me tonight?”
“Because Stella wanted to come meet the guys.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“Yes. Of course.”
He cocked a brow. “You didn’t want to see me.”
“Why would I want to do that?”
He tucked her hair behind one ear. “Because you missed me.”
Her eyes held his. She should step back and go hang out with Stella, but something about him, about the way he looked at her, held her there.
“I didn’t miss you. I’ve been working.”
“And not thinking about me—at all.”
“No. Not at all.”
He leaned closer and wrapped an arm around her, tugging her closer. “I’ve been thinking about you, Carolina. A lot.”
“Don’t.”
“Don’t what? Don’t hold you like this, or don’t think about you?”
She didn’t know which way to answer. She didn’t know what to think. Right now she wasn’t thinking, because Drew’s hard body pressed against hers. She reached up and palmed his chest.
“Don’t—”
“Hey, are you two going to stare into each other’s eyes all night, or are you going to play pool?”
Thank God for Stella. Drew moved away, and Carolina took a breath.
“Definitely play pool,” Carolina said, picking up a cue and moving back to the table.
After she took her shot, she moved alongside Stella.
“So what was going on over there?” Stella asked.
“We were just talking.”
“With what? Your tongues?”
Carolina laughed. “There were no tongues involved.”
“I don’t know about that. I could feel the heat transfer all the way over here. You two have something hot going on.”
“We have nothing going on.”
“But he wants to get it on.”