Page 10

Chapter 10

Show Me What You Got

Dell

“ O kay, it’s established, you can dance 1 and carry a conversation during dinner,” I say to Robyn as we stand at a high top. I leave out the part that her normal dancing would probably scare most men away. It made me smile, though. She just needed a little redirection. But once her body was pressed against mine, I regretted suggesting it. I couldn’t go another song without getting a full-on erection.

“Maybe you need to work on how you approach men,” I suggest. “Let me see you pick up a guy.”

“But,” she hesitates, “I’m not picking him up. I already know him.”

“True, but this is more about having confidence. Are you attracted to confidence?”

“Of course.”

“Everyone is. And a woman who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to ask for it? You’ll have him right where you want him.”

“Okay,” she exhales. “I can do this.”

“I’ll be right here, watching you.”

Robyn takes one more deep breath before striding over to three guys at the bar. Ballsy. I know at least one of them was watching her grind on me with hungry eyes, so her chances should be good.

Right before she gets to them, her hands flex a couple of times. She’s a little too far away for me to hear, but I don’t need to—she’s nervous as hell. She starts to hunch and hold her arms close. Her feet can’t stay planted, and her chest is caving in.

Girl, what?

Thankfully, she catches my eye, so I gesture for her to correct her shoulders and stand taller. To take up space. She’s already taller than two of them; there’s no hiding that.

That’s when shorter guy number one places a hand on her side and leans in to say something in her ear. His hand placement is… fine, I guess. I don’t love it. Robyn doesn’t seem to mind, though, because she’s brimming with energy, giving me a not-so-subtle double thumbs up as she walks by.

Just then, there’s a hand on my waist. “Hey,” a voice shouts over the music. My head snaps to find a cute guy dressed in a pink mesh crop top and matching skirt. “You wanna dance?”

“Oh, no thanks. I’m here with someone.”

His sculpted eyebrow lifts, and he tilts his chin. “That girl?”

When I turn to where he’s pointing, I find Robyn facing the stranger and grinding on him. “Yeah.”

He gives me a look that says, I don’t think you’re seeing what I’m seeing.

“Thank you for offering.”

“Find me if you change your mind,” he says and saunters off. My attention refocuses on Robyn and the man dancing with her who is now aggressively grabbing her elbows and trying to kiss her!

Fuck!

Thankfully, she backs away from the almost-kiss and shakes her head .

Good. Kind of.

Now that my body is on high alert, my surroundings completely blur. I don’t know what song is playing because my sole focus is Robyn and her safety. I don’t give a fuck about her flirting lessons. Why did I think it was a good idea to let her hit on another man?

My mind whirls as I watch Douche Canoe’s hands slide too low along her beautiful hips, and he grinds her against him. It’s more than dancing and I’m more than done with this guy. As soon as I see her tense, I’m bounding toward them—but just before I get there, a burly security dude is hauling the guy away.

Wait. I know that burly security dude.

“Isaiah?” I shout over the din of the club. Robyn’s hand is in mine in an instant, and as badly as I want to follow Isaiah, I remember what’s really important right now. “Are you okay?” I ask Robyn, hauling her into me and closing my arms around her.

Her only answer is a nod against my chest.

“Come with me,” I say. “Let’s go find somewhere quiet to talk.”

There’s a small patio out back, and as soon as we step out, the cool summer evening washes over us.

“Please tell me the truth. Are you okay?”

“Do you know Isaiah?”

“Yeah,” I say, furrowing my brow.

“How?”

“He’s my client.”

“Oh,” she drawls. “Oh!”

“How do you know him?”

“He’s literally the reason we’re here right now. He’s…he’s the guy I’m trying to get.”

No, no, no. This can’t be happening. Isaiah is my little crush. We had established a timeline for his sessions—three months—and then he’d be on his own and I could finally ask him out. That Big Rugby Daddy teddy bear is supposed to be mine.

“I’m so embarrassed,” Robyn says, pushing her hands into her face.

“Of Isaiah?”

“No, of course not. Of this whole situation. I knew he worked in security around here, but I didn’t know it was here. I’m embarrassed that I made a scene.”

“Hey, no,” I say, bending at the knees. I move her hands away from her face and look into her sad hazel eyes. “You didn’t make a scene. None of that was your fault, do you hear me?” She nods once, but the urge to comfort her doesn’t diminish. Hugging her close, her arms constrict around my middle. And maybe, selfishly, I want to use her as comfort for myself. “Let’s take you home, hun.”

The ride to her place is quiet. Normally, I’d be geeked to show off my Audi R8 to someone like Robyn, but it feels wrong here. So I hold her hand in her lap between shifting gears and hope like hell I haven’t ruined anything.

I’m gonna take the hit and back out.

Robyn wants Isaiah.

Isaiah would be crazy not to date her.

Tonight was about helping Robyn gain confidence so she could make her move, but somewhere in the evening, I lost the plot. I tried to become the main character in a love story that’s not mine.

1. Dip It Low by Ofenbach & Fabich