Page 64 of Stardusted

His gaze slid back to mine slowly, and he grinned, a lopsided one with a hint of teasing. “Well, yeah. That’s the idea.”

He extended his hand. I stared at it, then him.

Dance.Dancewith Sky? Now, while my life was falling apart?

Maybe I shouldn’t question it. Maybe this was the universe’s way of balancing things out. After all, these last few days had been less than stellar. I deserved something nice—somethingnotextraterrestrial. There was nothing alien about Sky. He was allhumanmale.

Ah, what the hell? Why not? I slipped my unmarked palm into his. I was unprepared for the light tug he gave it. A second later, I was in his arms.

And we were dancing…ish. At the very least, we were swaying in place.

My hands found his shoulders. His shirt was soft as angel wings. As the fabric of all my hazy daydreams. The contrast with his warm body and sturdy strength beneath nearly made me shiver. So did his featherlight touch at my waist as he nudged me closer. Close enough that the front of our bodies brushed. My heart galloped like it was chasing a world record.

Mouth dry, I raised my eyes to his. I couldn’t begin to imagine what he was thinking, but he was focused. Onme.His thumb brushed my ribcage. His touch felt almost hesitant, like he expected me to pull away.

Which would be insane. This was just as unreal as glowing orbs and robot monsters, as aliens being real and here on our tiny Earth rock.

The thought sobered me enough that I broke eye contact. Club music pulsed and thumped. A group of guys cheered at the bar, clinking bottles together. Spotlights splashed color inflickering patches over the walls, the floor, the dancers moving around us.

Normal. This was normal.

I’d wanted a night of normalcy, hadn’t I? Never in a million years would I have thought that included an appearance from Sky, but who was I to question fate? This was nice.

Our movements were tame, a gentle sway compared to Amelia and Emerick nearby. They were wrapped in each other. Enough so that she’d missed everything with drunk Prince Charming. Not to mention Sky’s appearance. She’d notice soon, though.

I could only imagine how this was going to go. She knew who he was from visiting me at work, but they’d neverofficiallymet.

Didn’t mean she didn’t knowall about himfrom me, of course.

I tore my attention from her and found Sky watching me. Studying me. Still moving to the beat with that light hold on my waist.

Another wave of disbelief surged—that he was here, that we were doing this—and suddenly, I couldn’t contain words.

“You don’t have to do this,” I blurted. I knew my face was red. I could feel it throbbing. I was sure I was bordering on a human glowstick. “He’s gone.”

“What was that?” Sky tilted an ear toward me.

The song shifted into something darker, blatantly sensual, with breathy, suggestive lyrics. Just the kind of song I’d have pictured Sky while listening to.

That wasn’t awkward or anything.

I cleared my throat, rising onto my tiptoes to repeat myself in his ear.

The vodka chose that exact moment to kick in. Off balance, I stumbled forward, erasing all the inches between us—and smacked face-first into the rock-hard wall that was Sky.

Chapter 18

IF YOU’RE TRYING TO GASLIGHT ME, AT LEAST BUY ME A DRINK FIRST

Theair rushed from him in a shocked huffwhen I crashed nose-first into his front. For one terrified moment, I thought I was going to bowl us both over.

But he moved fast. His arm snaked around me, pressing us together hip to chest. Catching my weight.

I froze.

Sky did, too.

Slowly, like I was surfacing from deep underwater, I lifted my face from his shirt. Whatever apology I might’ve offered zipped away into the atmosphere, taking my stomach with it.