Page 87 of Whiskey and Regret

Crackle.

Hum.

The energy between us lit up like orbs of electricity.

My eyes roamed over her full lips and bronzed slashes of cheekbones. I wanted to cup her face and bring her in for a kiss. She must have felt the energy too because she slid her hand over discreetly and hooked her pointer finger with mine on the desk. Our eyes locked and the room melted away.

“You’re doing it again,” she whispered, leaning over on her elbow.

“What am I doing?”

“Staring like a creep.” The corners of her mouth twitched.

“You’d have to be staring back to notice.”

“True. You started it,” she purred.

“You make it hard to look away with that dress on.” My eyes lapped her up.

“How hard would it be if it were off?” She wiggled in her seat and my dick jerked in my slacks. I adjusted in my chair a little. She knew exactly what she was doing to me. “Miss Lucas, you’re misbehaving. You know how I feel about that. So behave.”

“Make. Me.” She fluttered her long lashes at me and I smoothed a hand over my face.

“Um, should we leave?” Navy’s voice cut through the bubble around Xari and me.

“Oh, no…you have to excuse me, Navy. Your sister and I have a certain kind of banter that…”

“It’s like an inside joke,” Xari finished with a nervous laugh. Neither of us realized we’d completely checked out of the real world and landed in our own fantasy world where only we existed.

How the fuck was I supposed to keep my hands to myself when Xari was around if I couldn’t concentrate on anything but her? “Listen, you two are grown and I’m not going to pass judgment or make any further comments about your relationship,” Navy told us, holding her palms out.

“Relationship?” I laughed, standing to my feet. “There is no relationship between Xari and me. We’re friends.”

Friends felt clunky and wrong when it came to describing me and Xari. We were friends but we were much more.

“Friends. O…kay,” Navy said with a frown. I didn’t give her a chance to say anything else. I waited for Xari to stand by the door then I opened it for her, pressing my hand to the small of her back. My thumb rubbed the bare skin at the base of her spine while we walked and she made sure to press herself against my side.

I tried not to seek her out while I mingled with people. I tried not to notice the way her laugh left pops of color in the air. I tried not to let the way her lips moved when she spoke draw my attention away from conversations I was in the middle of.

The pull she had on me didn’t stop at the front door of my house. It leaked out into the gray world and colored it with neon and pastels. Xari was a breath of fresh air and everyone in the room noticed.

The event was being held in the center’s gym and the more people poured in, the more Xari stood out. She was bright and airy floating from person to person, making them smile then making them laugh with her unpredictable mouth.

Everyone seemed to see the same passion and beauty that I did. It was like we were all caught in the grip of a star. And if nothing else, Xari Lucas knew how to shine.

…

SEVENTEEN

Governor Shaw’s mansion was right on the lake. The sounds of insects and croaking frogs brought a charming atmosphere with it when we arrived. Xari drew in a deep lung-expanding breath and tipped her head toward the sky. The setting sun glowed on her sandy skin making her look like pure gold.

“You look beautiful,” I leaned down and whispered in her ear as Apollo moved by us and to the front door.

“Thank you.” She gave my hand a quick squeeze then walked ahead.

We were shown to the formal sitting room where my party seemed to be the only ones there. Maybe everyone else was late. Made sense since the governor was king of showing up late. I wouldn’t be shocked if everyone from the charity event went to grab something quick to eat before we sat down to dinner so they wouldn’t look like they were being too greedy.

“Wow, we’re the first ones,” Navy said, having a seat on the couch. Apollo stood guard at the entrance of the room and Xari was right at my side.