"Who?"
I broke our connection to look at my best friend. "I can't point-she's watching-but the girl at three o'clock in a tight emerald-colored dress with endless fucking curves. There's a tall blonde next to her, who doesn't compete at all."
"I've never seen either of them before, but you're right; the brunette is hot as hell."
With my eyes on her again, I brought the glass up to my mouth, not feeling the burn as I swallowed.
Because there was only one fire in my body.
One that sparked an aching need to be inside her.
"Whoever she is"-I licked the wet booze off my lips-"I'm tasting her before this night is over."
"Is that right?"
A smile grew across my face as I started at her heels and worked my way higher. "Hell yes." When I reached the top of her head, I glanced at Brett. "You do remember what it's like to have a one-night stand, don't you?"
He laughed. "It's been an eternity, but I'll leave those nights to you, bro. James is more than enough for me."
"I won't hold that against you," I bantered.
The space between us got busier, filling with people, causing my view of her to disappear. My brothers happened to be part of that congestion and were making their way over to us.
I clasped Jenner's arm the moment he was within range, pulling him in for a hug. "You've outdone yourself, my man. A hell of a hotel your team has built here, and this party is off the charts. Whoever put together the guest list deserves a fucking raise. Some of the women here tonight-mmm-mmm."
As I looked over his shoulder, there was sexiness everywhere. Outfits that revealed bare, toned backs, lean arms, legs for fucking centuries.
And then there was the girl in the green dress, the queen of them all.
Through the smallest opening, a crack between two men, her eyes met mine again.
"Speaking of women …" Jenner said, pulling back to reach inside his sports coat. He placed something in my hand and then Ford's, skipping right over Brett. "No reason to bring one home when I got you a room downstairs."
A key card was now tucked under my fingers, the room number written on its paper sleeve.
I put it in my pocket, punching Jenner's shoulder with just a little strength. "Always looking out for us single men."
"I've got your back," he replied, including Ford. "Always."
The four of us raised our glasses, carefully tapping them together, before we went our separate ways, kicking off several hours of small talk with the industry professionals in attendance tonight. I gave out my card to a few up-and-coming musicians, their popularity rising enough to where they were ready for representation, and to some influencers whose following was gaining them endorsements, contracts they couldn't negotiate on their own.
Many more drinks later, I was coming out of the restroom when I spotted her.
The girl in the emerald dress.
She was standing at the mouth of the hallway that led to the ladies' and men's rooms, her back against the wall, her arm wrapped across her narrow waist as she spoke on her phone.
I assumed she'd come in here to get away from the noise, to have some privacy since there was none to be had on the rooftop.
Her focus elsewhere gave me the opportunity to appreciate the view, and I took my time to observe every goddamn inch of her.
Hair I wanted to twist around my wrist and pull.
Lips I wanted sucking on my crown.
Legs I wanted to spread wide.
An ass I wanted pulsing around my cock.
Perfection came in many forms. Hers was unique and breathtaking.
I walked until I was in front of her, and her eyes instantly locked with mine, widening the longer she looked at me.
"It's you … the guy from across the bar."
Her whispered admission made me grin.
"I have to go," she said into the phone. "I'll get it all done, I promise."
She slipped her cell inside her purse, and I reached for her hand the second it was free.
"Dominick."
Her gentle fingers fell into my grip. Ones that would soon be wrapped around the base of my dick while she sucked my crown down her throat. "I'm Kendall."
"I want to tell you something, Kendall."
Her cheeks reddened, and her breathing sped up, her chest rising faster with each inhale.
"Since the moment I saw you, there's only been one thought in my head."
She pushed herself further against the wall, her knee bending so she could place her heel there as well. "And that is?"
"That I would do anything to taste you."
Her lips stayed parted, like my tip was already between them, her voice getting lost in her breathing.
"Do you know what happens when I want something?" The top of her head came to the center of my chest, and I placed my palm on the wall just above her. There was plenty of room for her to leave, but it was a tight-enough cage that positioned her right where I wanted her. "I do everything in my power to make it mine." I leaned in close, my lips hovering inches away from hers. Her eyes told me she was preparing for me to kiss her, but after a few exhales, I moved my mouth to her ear. "You're all I can think about."
"I"-the syllable sounded like a gasp-"don't know what to say."
My finger ran across her cheek and down her collarbone, goose bumps meeting me. "Say I can have you." I pointed toward an escape route. "Or walk away. You have ten seconds to decide."
While my hand circled the back of her neck, the key in my pocket was like a thirty-pound weight, conjuring up all the surfaces in that room that I could potentially fuck her on.
"Nine," I breathed the number against her mouth. "Eight, seven." I counted in my head until I reached, "Five."
She shifted her weight, her foot dropping to the ground, her gaze changing every time I voiced a lower number.
"Four, three."
Her chest stilled, telling me she was holding air in her lungs.
"Two."
"Dominick …" My name came out like a moan.
"One."