Throttle Me (Men of Inked, #1)(34)

“Sounds great.”

I stared out the window watching the trees pass by as Derek chattered about work. I looked forward to my weekends and escaping the stress and my job, but that’s all Derek wanted to talk about. I listened to his words and answered when asked a question, but he already bored me. Thankful that the drive to the restaurant wasn’t long I climbed out of the car as Derek jogged to me and grabbed my arm, hooking them together.

The conversation during dinner was stagnant. We didn’t have much in common besides work. It became evident as he talked about video games. My idea of a great night did not involve playing a mindless game on the television. When the food finally arrived I found myself thankful for the silence as he shoveled the food in his mouth without care. He ate like a pig, with sauce from his pasta dribbling on his chin and resting at the corners of his mouth. I moved the food around on my plate trying not to stare.

“You want to go for some drinks after here or you want to go to mini-golf?” He asked with a full mouth, a small piece of pasta falling in his lap.

Why the hell did I think this was a good idea? “Drinks sound great.” I prayed that a few drinks would make him interesting and have the evening end on a high note.

We skipped dessert and headed to Club Karma for drinks. The club opened a couple months ago but I hadn’t stepped foot inside. It had a big city feel and not like the typical small town hangouts. The walls were blood red decorated with black and white photos of couples in various sexual positions and undress. Colorful lights bounced off the shiny black tile floor as dancers moved their body against each other. There were small seating areas with couches filled with couples laughing and touching and a large bar on the opposite side of the entrance.

“Drink first?” Derek asked. I shook my head and looked around as he guided me through the overcrowded space. Derek rested his body against the bar, his arm touching my skin. “You want to dance?” he shouted in my ear above the music.

I shook my head and waited for the bartender to come in our direction. A large mirror hung above the liquor bottles on the wall behind the serving area. Watching people dance with such erotic and methodical moves made me think of City and our dance last weekend. I never felt sexy on the dance floor, but with him I had been able to feel the music instead of thinking of my next move.

I ordered a martini, wanting the alcohol over a virgin daiquiri, needing to forget City and find a way to make Derek more palatable. His arm brushed against my back, as he rested his hand on the bar, effectively trapping me. I ignored him, staring into the mirror as the bartender placed my drink on the bar.

I took a sip, testing the sweetness of the raspberry martini. This whole night had been a bad idea. I knew it from the moment I accepted his invitation to dinner. I wouldn’t have said yes to him if I weren’t trying to forget the tall, muscular Italian man.

“Suzy,” Derek whispered in my ear further invading my personal space.

“What?” I said into the glass still pressed against my lips.

“Drink up, babe, because I can’t wait to get you out there.” Derek bobbed his head like a character in a skit from Saturday Night Live. I could see his reflection in the mirror and my cheeks felt heated at the thought of someone seeing me with him.

“Uh huh.” I didn’t turn to look at him but kept my eyes on the scene in the mirror like I was watching a television show. I’d find a way to stall. I couldn’t go on to the dance floor with him. No way in hell would that happen. He didn’t have the ability to make me dance like City had, but his awkward movements would only draw more awareness to us when all I wanted to do was blend in.

His fingers touched the skin of my arms and hand as I fought every urge to kick him in the balls. He rambled on about his clubbing days in college and how he mastered the dance floor and people would stop to watch him ‘bust a move’. Almost spitting my drink out, I broke out into laughter with tears forming in my eyes. I could imagine the scene. Derek thought people stopped to admire his ability when in actuality they were stunned or entertained beyond belief.

“What’s so funny?” His lips were turned into a frown as he moved his head away from mine and stared at me.

“Oh, nothing Derek. Just something I remembered from college.” God, I had always been a shitty liar, but I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. The man had confidence and who am I to kill it.

“Ah, okay. I thought you were laughing at me.” He shrugged before sipping his beer and wiping his lips on his shoulder. “Come on, just one dance,” he begged and released me from my human cage.

I sloshed the pink liquid in my glass, now half drained, and lifted it to my lips. I owed him at least one dance for his efforts. I swallowed the last mouthful and placed it on the bar. “Just one.”

His eyes lit up as he grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the writhing bodies in the middle of the room. The beat of the music made me unable to feel my pulse even though I knew it had to be hammering. I wanted to throw up at the thought of anyone watching me make an ass out of myself. Just as we reached the spot that Derek wanted, dead center, the DJ switched songs. Fuck, why me? A sad, slow melody filled the air as Derek pulled me into an embrace. I’d rather make a complete * out of myself with a wicked beat that didn’t require touching.

“Perfect,” he said, wrapping his arms around me with his hands resting a little too close to my ass.