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“It’s good to see you again, Sadie,” Nicholas added. “How have things been?”
“Well, the good news is that Kirk has been nowhere to be found. And in even better news, I think someone new has already caught my eye…”
“Ooh, tell us all about him,” I said, getting settled into my seat at the bar.
“Well, he’s super handsome. A little skittish. Very sure of himself, though, once he’s comfortable. We might need to work on his grooming. His claws need to be filed down a bit?—”
“Sadie.”
“Yeah?”
“Are you talking about a cat?”
“I am.” She chuckled again. “Best decision I’ve made in a long time. Kirk never let me get one so I figured I should take a shot.”
“I’m happy for you, Sadie.” Nicholas offered her a warm smile. “Sounds like you’re in a really good place.”
“I am.” Sadie let out a peaceful sigh. “So? What can I get you two gentlemen to drink tonight?”
“Can we start with a Moscow Mule and a Sidecar?” I suggested.
“You got it,” Sadie said as she went to work behind the bar, casually mixing our drinks.
As we waited to be served, I openly eyed Nicholas up and down.
“What? What is it?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow in my direction. “Something in my teeth?”
“You look like a honky-tonk guy tonight,” I replied with a grin. “Like this is something you’ve done before. This a place you like to bring girls?”
“Not if I have anything to say about it, no.”
“Why not? It seems like a good time.”
Nicholas nodded toward the dance floor, currently filled to the brim with bodies, people line-dancing in neat row after row. They all stepped and clapped in time to an old country classic, laughter and smiles on their faces as boots quite literally scooted in perfect rhythm. At one point, a couple broke from the scheduled dance moves, as a woman pretended to lasso her boyfriend close to her before pulling him in for a passionate kiss.
“I’m… not much of a dancer,” he murmured. “Never have been, really.”
“Because you just don’t like it?”
“Because it’s not for me.” He shrugged. “I feel like everyone’s just watching me when I try. Like they know I’m too big to be out there. Too tall.”
“Forget about them, Nicholas. Haven’t you ever heard the phrase ‘dance like no one is watching’?”
“Yeah, that’s easy for you to say.” Nicholas half-laughed, half-scoffed. “I’m sure you look amazing on the dancefloor.”
“Oh? And why is that?”
“Because you look like you’re built for it,” Nicholas confessed as he tore his eyes away from mine. “You, um, look like you’d be a really good dancer.”
You look like you’d be a really good dancer.
Wait. What?
Had Nicholas been checking me out?
Before I had a chance to respond, there was someone tapping me on the shoulder. I slowly turned toward them, terrified that somehow one of the guys had found me and was about to ask a million questions. But by the time my eyes met the stranger’s, I knew he wasn’t anyone I’d ever seen before.
“Hey,” he started, his lips already twisted into a bright smile. “You want to dance?”