“I don’t know you,” she said, throwing out another, more substantial roadblock.
Even he would understand that after the crap Mike had pulled, not even the security of club membership assured her anyone here was safe. He couldn’t expect her to leave with him.
As much as she wanted to.
She shivered, suddenly cold, wishing she were wearing day wear and not this stupid corset and short leather skirt.
“I can vouch for him,” Max Savage said. He was a nice guy she’d done a scene with awhile back. He’d relaxed her and taken her close to subspace. Not over. No one took her there. And at the time she’d been with Max, she’d had no interest in sleeping with him.
This guy was another story.
She glanced at Max and tried not to grin. One friend trying to help another get laid. “Nice try, but I don’t know you all that well either.”
She rubbed her hands up and down the goose bumps on her bare arms.
“What if I told you he was a cop?” Max asked.
“Really?”
He extended his arm, and someone handed him a blanket, which he proceeded to wrap around her shoulders.
“Thank you,” she said, immediately feeling better.
“You know me.” John, the club monitor who’d hauled Mike away, reappeared by her side. “You can trust Decklan to take care of you. Mike’s been warned before. His membership has been revoked.”
She blinked in surprise. “I’m glad.” The ass**le didn’t deserve to be in a position of trust.
“Decklan’s a decent guy. Don’t leave with him if you don’t want to, but at least let him get you something cold to drink. You’ll feel better, and then you can get changed and leave. I’ll walk you out myself,” John promised.
Decklan. She tested the name in her head, liking the sound. “A soda sounds good.”
The crowd around them had already dispersed, and even Max had walked away, giving his friend a shot on his own.
Good luck, she silently told him. To her way of thinking, they might have passed I’m interested looks with their eyes over the last six months, but he hadn’t stepped up, which Amanda took personally. Decklan whatever-his-last-name-was would have to bring his A game if he expected her to do any more than drink a soda with him before heading home.
TWO
At work and in his personal life, Decklan laid out the facts and the truth. He didn’t tolerate BS or lies. With this woman, who eyed him with an intense amount of distrust coupled with a healthy dose of desire, at least when she thought he wasn’t looking, he intended to do the same.
They sat together at the bar. He ordered two club sodas and let her drink in silence, waiting until she was definitely over whatever had happened with Mike. She was. The tense quiet between them now had everything to do with them. She didn’t trust him, and his gut said the reasons went deep.
When she put down her drink and met his gaze, he decided it was time.
“I’m Decklan Dare.” He held out his hand.
“Amanda Collins.” She accepted the gesture, placing her smaller palm against his.
He immediately slid a thumb over the pulse point in her wrist, pleased with the rapid beat that told him she wasn’t immune. Just wary.
Wary he could deal with. Now that he was here, he was in for the night.
She attempted to tug her hand back, but he held on tightly, keeping his thumb pressed against her skin. It was his human lie detector, and with this one, he felt sure he’d need it.
“Thank you again for stepping in. Mike was an ass.” She bit down on her plump lower lip.
Fuck, he’d like to do the same. He merely nodded in agreement. “I’ve seen Mike in action before. At least he’s gone for good now.” He smiled. “So tell me, Amanda, what were you looking for—before your night was so rudely interrupted?”
A rapid increase in her pulse beat in her wrist. He did his best not to grin wider. In the wake of her silence, he decided to cut her some slack. “How about I tell you what I’m looking for instead?”