Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 66518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 333(@200wpm)___ 266(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 333(@200wpm)___ 266(@250wpm)___ 222(@300wpm)
I couldn’t help but grin. “From what?”
He gestured at his friends without taking his eyes off of me. “That group of chuckleheads. They sent me a photo, and it looked like this was the very last place in the world you wanted to be.”
He wasn’t wrong, but I told him, “Your teammates are very nice.”
“They are. They told me your name is Hal. Is that right?” When I nodded, he asked, “Would you like to go somewhere much quieter than this and get a cup of coffee with me, Hal?”
“Absolutely.”
He took the sweater from my hands and held it up for me. After I slipped it on and turned back to him, he said, “You must get tired of hearing this, but you really are extraordinarily beautiful.”
“I like hearing that when the right guy says it.”
“Am I the right guy?”
“You just might be.”
There was that wide, genuine smile again. He offered me his arm, and after I linked mine with his, he called to his friends, “See ya, boys.”
They seemed surprised. “You’re leaving already?”
His tone was light and playful as he told them, “I got what I came for.”
Before heading to the door, I led us on a detour and found Embry on the dance floor. When I asked him if he was doing okay, he assured me, “I’m fine. I stopped drinking about two hours ago. Bryson’s pretty tipsy though, so I’m going to call a cab in a few minutes and get us back to the hotel.” He glanced at my companion and asked me, “Who’s your friend?”
“Embry and Bryson, meet Ryder. He’s the captain of the rugby team. We’re going to head out, but first I wanted to make sure you didn’t need anything.”
Bryson’s dark hair was disheveled, and he seemed confused. He patted his pockets and mumbled, “I can’t find my glasses.” Embry grinned as he plucked them off Bryson’s face and handed them to him. His fake fiancé put the glasses back on and slurred, “You’re so awesome. For real. Like, so awesome.”
I asked Embry, “You sure you’ve got this?”
“Definitely. If I need help loading him into a cab, I have Vee and the rugby team to lend a hand.” He gestured off to the right, and I spotted Vee doing the Electric Slide with two of his new friends. It didn’t even sort of go with the music that was playing.
I caught Vee’s attention, and he flashed me two thumbs up when he saw Ryder. I pointed to myself and then the door to let him know I was leaving, and he nodded enthusiastically and made a few hand gestures. I didn’t get most of them, except for the one where he made a circle with his hand and repeatedly jabbed his index finger into it. Good lord.
I turned back to Embry and said, “Okay then, call me if you need anything.”
Embry glanced at Ryder and shifted his gaze back to me with a huge smile. “I’m definitely not going to call you. Go have fun.”
We made our way through the crowd, and once we got outside, Ryder led me to an enormous SUV. “I passed a twenty-four-hour coffee shop on the way here. It’s just a few blocks away,” he said. “Should we head over there, or would you prefer to go somewhere else?” Now that it was quiet and I could hear him better, I noticed he spoke with a subtle drawl.
I decided to cut right to the chase. “I’m guessing there’s coffee back at your hotel, too. Maybe we can have some after.”
It took him a moment to catch my meaning, and then he grinned and said, “I’m definitely down for messin’ around first, but my team’s vacation rental is on the outskirts of Vegas. I don’t know if you’d feel comfortable with that.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because we just met, and I sincerely hope you don’t make a habit of letting total strangers drive you to remote locations. It’d be like you were trying to get axe-murdered.”
“You’re not really a total stranger. I just spent the last few hours with your teammates, and they think the world of you.”
“Still, you might feel more comfortable at your hotel.”
“I’m sharing a room with two other guys, and one of them just told me he’s heading back there soon. So, unless you think you only need about fifteen minutes to—”
Ryder held up a key fob and pressed a button, and the SUV unlocked with a beep. “My place it is.” He then proceeded to open the door for me and close it after I climbed into the passenger seat. I thought that was very gentlemanly.
To make conversation on our way across town, I asked, “What were you doing before you came to the club?”
“I was shooting pool with a few of my teammates at a low-key dive bar. Some of the guys call us the old fogeys, because we don’t like to party all night in loud nightclubs.”