Fueled (Driven, #2)(30)

I’m dying to get a moment alone with Haddie. We haven’t really had one since this whole adventure started, and I need her advice on how I should act in light of Beckett’s revelations. We had a quick moment alone in the airplane while we were freshening up, but not nearly long enough to have a real discussion about the night’s events.

Lights and sounds surround us, assaulting our senses as we exit the limo. Sammy nods discretely to Colton and takes the lead as we walk up a set of stairs into an entrance at the Venetian. Within moments we are walking into TAO. Colton’s hand is on the small of my back, and I notice conveniently that Beckett’s hand is doing the same on Haddie’s. I wonder if he’s just being a gentleman or if there’s something else possibly going on. Interesting.

I realize that people are starting to stare at us as Colton’s name is hurriedly murmured around the Friday night crowd who’ve gathered in hopes of seeing a celebrity. Camera phones flash and I look up at Colton to see his reaction. He’s all smiles with the crowd, but when he looks over at me, his eyes warm up with what’s missing from his public one. His nap has sobered him up some, but I can still sense that playful Colton is just within reach.

We skirt around the long line of people waiting for the chance to enter. As we near the hostess podium, a woman steps out from behind it and motions for us to follow her. Wow, life must be nice when you’re Colton Donavan. No lines and women at your fingertips.

Colton leads me by the hand as we walk past the giant Buddha on the way to our private table. Heads turn and flashes explode against the darkened atmosphere of the room as we pass through. I hear Colton’s name murmured a couple more times within the crowd before he stops and turns to face me.

I look at him, a puzzled expression on my face as he steps toward me and unexpectedly captures my mouth with his. At first I freeze—I mean we are in the middle of a very swanky and completely packed restaurant—but as Colton deepens the kiss, as his fingertips cup my face and hold my head still, I succumb to him. His taste is just too devouring and his pull on me too magnetic to resist.

The sounds of the restaurant’s patrons fade away. Colton kisses me like a man drawing his last breath and I am his air. It’s passionate and possessive and provocative. And holy f*ck his addictive taste drags me under and takes hold. My mind starts to come back to reality when the whistles and hollers of onlookers begin to register in my brain.

The crowd around us gets louder as they urge on our public display. Colton keeps his hands cupping my face but tears his lips from mine. His eyes register unfiltered lust, but the grin he flashes me is arrogant and mischievous. The only thought in my head is wow, but he’s left me so breathless that forming that simple word isn’t even a possibility. I give him a questioning look.

He just cocks his head to the side, a gleam lighting up his emerald eyes. “If they’re gonna stare, Ryles, we might as well put on a good show!” He wags his eyebrows at me and brushes a chaste kiss on my lips before grabbing my hand and following the hostess standing off to the left of us. The dumbfounded look on her face reflects exactly how I feel.

Playful Colton has reappeared.

Cheers follow us out of the main room into our private dining area, and it is only then that I can read the stunned thoughts dancing across Haddie’s expression. I shrug at her and she just grins back at me, eyes wide and dimples deep.

We reach our table and Colton pulls me into his arms before I have a chance to sit in the chair he’s pulled out for me. “I haven’t told you yet how absolutely stunning you look tonight.” He breathes into my ear. “And now every guy in this restaurant knows you’re mine,” he says in case the claim he’d just staked wasn’t clear enough. He presses his lips at the spot just below my ear. “You look sexy as hell in that dress, but I must confess that all I can think about is getting you out of it.” He chuckles—a seductive sound that wraps its way inside my body and causes the fingers of desire to tickle in my lower belly. “Thank you for coming tonight, Ryles.”

Dinner is delicious and seems uneventful compared to the whirlwind of the past couple of hours. The conversation among the four of us flows easily, and I can see why Colton likes Beckett. He’s funny and witty and really grounded, having no trouble putting Colton in his place when he needs to be. They banter back and forth like little old women, but their affection for one another is obvious.

Sammy sits at a table near us with eyes wary at all times. He’s prevented our meal from being interrupted a couple of times from eager ladies wanting pictures with Colton, if not something more.

I catch myself staring at him randomly during dinner. His charisma and enthusiasm are infectious, and I love watching how his face lights up when telling a story or relaying an event. He’s polite and attentive to everyone during the meal, making sure that all of our needs are met. He steals little kisses here and there coupled with the squeeze of my hand or the trace of a fingertip on my bare shoulder. I wonder if he has any clue the fire he is stoking within me with his casual affection.

I sip the last of my Tom Collins and realize I have a slight buzz going when Colton’s phone alerts an incoming text. He looks down and laughs at the message. “Gotta hot date, Ace?” I tease him with a smirk on my face. He looks up from his phone to meet my eyes at the same time Haddie snorts at my nickname. He just raises an eyebrow and flashes that mischievous grin I adore. In the midst of staring at me, I see the moment his brain registers why Haddie’s laughing.