Platinum (All That Glitters #3)(16)

Damon came back a minute later with a beer in each hand. He handed one to Trihn and took a long swig of his. “I don’t drink on the job,” he told her, “so it’s nice to come home and unwind.”

She tipped the bottle up and took a sip. She was still buzzing a bit from the bar. Maya had been pouring her drinks with a heavy hand tonight—on purpose, she was sure.

“Do you live here alone?” she asked.

“Yeah. It’s a one bedroom.”

“That’s nice. I live with my friends, Bryna and Stacia.”

Damon smirked. “I know who they are.”

“Oh, I’m sure. Everyone knows who they are.”

“Everyone knows you, too.”

She raised her eyebrow. “I really don’t think so.”

“Trust me. You’re hard to miss.” He flipped off his baseball hat and set it down on the table before taking the seat next to her. “I noticed you a long time ago. Yesterday was just the first time I got up the nerve to talk to you.”

“What took you so long?” she joked before taking another drink.

“Well, I thought you had a boyfriend, so I tried to steer clear. Then, when you were alone with your friends, I thought that might have changed.”

Trihn glanced up and met his dark eyes. “It did.”

His eyes dropped down to her lips and then back up. “Yeah. What happened with that?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I don’t really want to talk about it. It happened. It’s over. And I’d rather just be here with you tonight.”

“He must have been a total arse,” Damon said.

Trihn took another big gulp. “You have no idea.” She set the empty beer down on the coffee table and leaned forward toward Damon.

He raised his eyebrows at the finished drink. “That was fast.”

“Why did you come downstairs after turning me down?” she asked.

“The truth?”

She nodded her head.

“It drove me nuts, watching you dance with that other guy.”

She smiled wide. “That so?”

Damon took another swig of his beer and then placed it down on the table next to hers. “You know it did.”

“Actually, all I could think about was you turning me down,” she said with a shrug.

Maya had told her to show him what he was missing, but that hadn’t been her motivation.

“Yeah, well, I was watching,” he admitted. “Where do you dance?”

“I used to dance at the New York City Dance House back home. Mostly ballet, but some contemporary.”

He nodded with a smile. “I’m not surprised you’re technically trained. It shows in your movements.”

“And you?”

“I learned here and there. My mum put me in dance and gymnastics when I was young, but I got bored quickly. I had a knack for the piano, and she pushed me toward that instead.”

“You play piano?” she asked.

“A couple of instruments actually. I just graduated a semester early in December with a music degree. All the good it’s doing me.”

“Oh, wow. What are you going to do with that? Why aren’t you in L.A. or something, trying to become famous?”

Almost sheepishly, he looked down at his hands. “Is it crazy to say that I don’t like the spotlight?”

Trihn laughed. “A little, but I know what you mean. I modeled in high school, and it was sometimes overwhelming.”

He raised his eyebrows. “You modeled? A ballerina, model, and club dancer. What kind of idiot would break up with you?”

“The kind who wanted me to just be an artistic fashion designer and nothing else,” she admitted.

Her shoulders drooped. That had been the problem with Neal. Only half a day from the breakup, and already, she had more clarity to her thoughts than she’d had in months. It ached, knowing that he’d clouded her mind in the worst possible way.

“Hey,” Damon said, reaching out and touching her bare knee. “I didn’t mean to take you down a bad road. Just trying to figure you out.”

“No, it’s okay. Don’t worry about it.”

“So…fashion designer?” he asked. “Is there anything you’re not good at?”

“Relationships?”

Damon gave her a serious look before closing the distance between them. His hip pressed into her side, and her stomach fluttered at his nearness. His hand came up to brush her dark hair off her face. His thumb lingered on her cheek, and she lost herself in the endless depths of his eyes. Her breathing hitched. When he looked at her like that, it was as if time stood still.

“That remains to be seen,” he told her.

Then, his lips landed on hers, soft and undeniably tempting. Something awakened within her. It wasn’t just the alcohol coursing through her system. It was the desire that came with a perfect kiss. Their lips moved together, and then his tongue ran across her bottom lip, opening her up to him. As he delved into her mouth, she groaned softly. Their tongues met in harmony, exploring a new frontier.

Her hands breached the small space between them, and she dug her fingers into the soft material of his T-shirt. Suddenly, the room shifted. Everything moved with her need to have him closer.

Damon’s arm swept around her body, crushing her against him. She spread her legs and straddled him on the couch, like she had done only a few hours earlier in the DJ booth. But this time, he wasn’t standing up and walking away. Instead, he was dragging her harder against him and running his hands up her exposed legs.