arrived, cutting off my train of thought in the middle. The waiter—thankfully not James—set the plates down with a flourish, and then I was too busy admiring it to ask Dante what he’d meant.
Dinner was comfortable and fun—Dante let me steal bites from his plate with a smile. He listened to me ramble about school for way too long, letting me detail the frustrations with my less than stellar professors and preparing for exams and how ready I was to finally be done. And, as an added bonus, he kept his foot hooked around my ankle the entire time.
I took a sip of my margarita. Dante smiled, and then leaned across the table and dragged his thumb gently across my lower lip. “Salt,” he explained, with heat in his eyes.
I met his gaze. His touch left a tingle in its wake. I couldn’t help but draw my lip in between my teeth, wishing it was his thumb instead.
“This is what I meant,” Dante said, low. “You don’t realize how pretty you are. Of course that guy was flirting with you. Who wouldn’t?”
Under the table, his foot moved up from my ankle to my calf, and then back down, a gentle but extremely distracting touch.
Pretty. From anyone else that descriptor would’ve pissed me off, or sent me spiraling into insecurity. But when Dante said it, it made me flush hot with desire. It didn’t sound condescending or demeaning—it sounded almost awed. Like he liked it. Liked that I was pretty.
Before I could dive deeper, dessert arrived: simple lime and mango sorbet. I took a small bite, savoring the icy sweetness of the lime with the delicious tangy edge.
“Wish we didn’t have to go back tonight,” I said as it melted in my mouth.
“I know,” Dante said with a sigh. “Hard to get away as the VP sometimes, especially with our numbers so diminished.”
“I didn’t think about that,” I admitted, thinking about how odd it would be for Priest to disappear on an overnight trip. It made me realize why Dante had been so hesitate to throw an extra complication into the mix, too. “The club relies on you a lot, don’t they?”
Dante nods. “Yeah, they do. And I rely on them, too. It’s not a burden.” He took a bite of the sorbet. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, honestly.”
“It suits you,” I said, almost without thinking. It was just true. Dante was so naturally responsible, and reliable—the Liberty Crew was lucky to have a man like him as a leader. And I could see how he thrived in the role. I couldn’t imagine him in any role other than leader, honestly.
“Yeah?” Dante asked with a smile. “You think so?”
I nodded. “You’re easy to trust. And to follow.”
Dante smiled, pleased with that. He dipped his spoon into the mango sorbet, and then leaned across the table, holding it out for me.
I wrapped my fingers gently around his wrist, steadying his hand as I closed my mouth around the spoon. The sorbet was shockingly cold, and richly sweet—even sweeter with Dante feeding it to me like this. His icy blue eyes burned into mine. Suddenly the rest of the restaurant seemed to melt away, nothing quite so overwhelming and magnetic as the man in front of me.
I dragged my fingers across the tendons in his wrist as he withdrew his hand. He looked just as affected as I did, his gaze intent on my lips as I licked the traces of sorbet there.
“Let’s get out of here,” Dante said.
I’d never heard a better idea. I nodded, letting a grin spread across my face as Dante flagged the waiter.
23
Dante
Never had I been more grateful for this big-ass truck. We’d left Fishhead’s in a bit of a hurry, and I’d driven us to the far end of the beach, where I could drive the truck directly onto the sand. It was late, and the beach was empty except for the gulls doing their late-night picking around in the surf. I rolled the windows down a little, enough so that we still had privacy, but letting the roar of the waves and the cool air filter into the cab of the truck.
Heath sighed and leaned across the console, reaching for me with his sparkling eyes wide. And how was I supposed to resist that? I met him halfway, sliding my hand across his nape to slot my mouth against his and kiss him deeply, licking the faint sweet taste of sorbet from his tongue.