“Do you want to break?”sheasked.
“Ladiesfirst.”
Ari rolled her eyes and reached for the chalk.With her stick prepped, she leaned over the edge of the table, her ass jutting out and the hem of her dress riding up herthigh.
Lord ...I groaned silently.This wastorture.
Haven’t I been through enough?I tossed the question skyward and received no sign the big man hadheardme.
I tore my gaze off her ass and scanned the bar.Mistake.My fist tightened around the pool cue as a reflex, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t use it to smack every jerk in this bar back into line if they didn’t quit staring.Double standard?Sure.But Ididn’tcare.
With a step behind her, I blocked the most direct view and turned to glare at all of them.Thankfully, Heath’s interest was hooked on the waitress working our table.One by one, the gazes dropped away, and I turned back to Ari, marginally satisfied that they picked up what I was throwing down.Off-limits,assholes.
Ari cursed and stood up straight, leaning lightly on her pool cue.“Dammit.I hadthatshot.”
I scanned the green felt and found half her balls were missing.“Jesus, what were you doing?Trying to clear thetable?”
Her nose went up in the air.“Trying?If I wanted to clear the table, it would be clear.It’s justangles.”
“Brainiac asalways.”
Ari shrugged, but I caught a hint of a smile.“Didn’t you hear?It’s cool to be ageeknow.”
I had no doubt that wherever she lived in California, she was exactly what was cool.Shit, she had every man’s attention inthisbar.
“You were always cool in my book, Red.My turn.”Even though I wanted to wait for her smile, I chalked my cue and sank two shots before missing thethird.
“Not bad.”Her nonchalant tone mademegrin.
“Itry.”
Her eyes finally locked on mine.“Isucceed.”
Hell.Why was that statement so damned sexy coming fromherlips?
She pushed off her pool cue and spun around to face the table again, her dress sliding up another inch as she bent over thetable.
My dick pulsed against myjeans.
Heath is going tokillme.
6
Ariel
Icould feelhis eyes on my ass.I knew it was impossible to truly feel someone’s stare, but I didn’t care because I knew it was there, just like I knew for the first time in my entire life, Rhett Hennessy wasseeingme.I made one shot and deliberately missed the next because I didn’t want to end the game tooquickly.
Spinning on my heel with something snarky on my tongue, I slammed into Rhett’s solid chest again, just like I had when I’d grabbed my cue.I wasn’t saying I didn’t do it onpurpose.
Wham.My heart slammed against my ribs as it sped up about twenty beats perminute.
The heat and delicious woodsy citrus scent radiating from his body did good things to me.Things that made me want to do very bad things to him.I wasn’t a seventeen-year-old virgin anymore.I knew my way around a man, but I had to admit, the hipsters in Cali had nothing on a homegrown Louisiana man likeRhett.
When he spoke, he leaned in so close that I could feel his breath on my ear.“You missed that shot onpurpose.”
My gaze jumped from the sexy five o’clock shadow shading his jaw to his piercinggreeneyes.
“Wha-what are you talking about?”I smacked myself mentally when my old stammer kicked in.Of course he wouldcauseit.