Page 15 of Prelude of Love (Harmony of Hearts #6)

“Hey.” Chance’s hand moved as if he might touch mine where it rested on the bar top, but he stopped himself.

The gesture spoke volumes about his own understanding of boundaries.

“I know you’re not that kind of asshole.

I was just offering to let you assert your authority over me.

Consensually. Enthusiastically, even.” His voice carried a note of sincerity beneath the playful tone.

I snorted, unable to hide my amusement at his persistence. “As if you’d ever obey. You’re too contrarian for that.” As I spoke, I noticed how his eyes brightened at the challenge in my words. He clearly lived for mashing people’s buttons and testing limits.

“You forget, I’ve met your husband. Now, I understand you’re the type who would be bored if I was docile and gave you everything you wanted without a fight.

” He leaned closer across the bar, voice dropping lower until it was practically a caress.

“Admit it. You want to hold me down for the pleasure of feeling me push back.”

I engaged before I could stop myself. “You aren’t ready for me to pin you to this bar and make you beg until you forget your own name.”

Instead of recoiling from my intensity, Chance’s pupils dilated behind those frames, turning his eyes dark with desire. “Fuck yes,” he breathed, the words coming out as a prayer. “Do that. Do exactly that. And then do more.” His tongue darted out to wet his lips, the gesture pure temptation.

I gripped the bar until the wood creaked under my fingers, wrestling with my response.

The game, the chase, the tension, the way Chance gave as good as he got was all too fun.

His bratty attitude was specifically designed to provoke a reaction to show him what happened to teases who pushed too far, the same as with Early.

But pursuing him felt reckless and inevitable, like standing on the edge of a cliff and knowing the fall was coming whether I jumped or not.

The weight of my wedding ring pressed against me, a constant reminder of commitments and complications.

Early would laugh himself silly watching me and Chance dance around each other.

He’d already made it clear he found our chemistry entertaining.

But taking the step from hypothetical to reality was another matter entirely.

Chance waited for my response with poorly concealed eagerness. His fingers drummed against the bar top, betraying his own struggle to maintain composure. The glasses made him look innocent, but the heat in his gaze told a different story.

The silence stretched between us, charged with possibility. Each second that passed ratcheted the tension higher until the air itself felt thick with unspoken desires. We were rapidly approaching a point of no return, where playful flirtation could transform into something far more dangerous.

I should shut this down. Find some excuse to walk away before we crossed lines that couldn’t be uncrossed.

But Chance made me want to see how far he’d push, how much he could take.

The brat in him called to the dominant alpha in me, creating an explosive chemistry that threatened to burn us both, especially when my husband was eager to stoke the fire.

Melody breezed back to her seat, taking one look at Chance’s flushed face and my amused expression before breaking into a knowing grin. “What did I miss?”

“Nothing,” Chance said a little too quickly.

“Mm-hmm.” She finished her drink and stood, tugging on Chance’s sleeve. “Come on, lover boy. Let’s leave before you spontaneously combust from sexual tension. Should we head over to Brewhaha next? It’ll give you time to work on phase two of whatever scheme you’re cooking up for them.”

Chance’s composure cracked further. “No, because that looks desperate. I don’t want to come on too strong by showing up twice in one day.”

“Since when?” Melody’s eyebrow shot up as she fixed him with a look that only mothers could perfect.

Chance protested, pushing his glasses up his nose in what I recognized as a nervous gesture. “This is—I mean, they’re…”

I couldn’t help the smirk that spread across my face. It was oddly satisfying to see the smooth-talking rock star fumble for words.

“Oh, honey.” Melody patted his hand. “You’re quite smitten for someone who claims to play it cool.”

“I am not smitten ,” Chance argued, but the pink tinge to his cheeks told a different story. “I’m strategically interested.”

“Is that what we’re calling it now?” I asked, unable to resist joining in the teasing.

Chance shot me a betrayed look. “You’re supposed to side with me.”

“Sorry, your mom is more entertaining.”

Melody beamed at me as she paid for their lunch. “See? This is why you’re my favorite.”

“Mom!”

“Tell Red we said goodbye,” Melody called over her shoulder as she steered her protesting son toward the door. “And Duke? Thanks for lunch.”

I raised my hand in farewell, chuckling as they left. Through the window, I could see Melody saying something that made her son cover his face with both hands while she laughed.

“Did I miss Melody and Chance?” Red’s question pulled me out of that dangerous train of thought. He appeared behind the bar, looking disappointed as he cleared their dishes.

“Yeah, they said goodbye.” I focused on wiping down the bar, grateful for the distraction.

“Damn. I wanted to ask Chance about his new album.” Red’s grin turned ornery. “Though from what I saw before my break, he was more interested in asking you about things that aren’t on our menu.”

“Red.”

“What? All I’m saying is he’s not subtle about who he’s interested in.” Red restocked glasses. “He looks at you like he’s in a rom-com.”

“You’re as bad as his mother,” I grumbled, but I couldn’t deny the truth in his words.

The flirtation building up was a growing problem, especially when Early was enjoying the game, dropping hints about using our hall pass agreement. And for the first time since we’d established our arrangement, I found myself intrigued by the possibility.

Chance was young, but there was something interesting about him beyond the obvious physical attraction.

The way he matched Early’s wit, how he pushed my buttons with precise aim, that glimpse of vulnerability behind his confident facade.

He brought out protective instincts I typically reserved for Early alone.

Red grinned at me. “You’re doing that brooding thing again.”

I grunted, returning to my tasks. But my thoughts kept drifting to the possibilities of Chance between Early and me as we put his smart mouth to better use.

No, I needed to get it together. Chance was a complication I usually avoided. But watching him walk away had left me wanting more, and that was a dangerous place to be.