I head inside and get changed into something more casual than my office attire. I squeeze into some faded black jeans that make my backside look fabulous. I add a lacy black camisole, strappy black heels and dig out my leather biker jacket. I haven’t worn it for ages but it will keep some of the chill off from the autumn evening.

  I let my hair down from the clip I held it back with today and run my fingers through it. Bending down and hanging upside down, I shake it out to give it a bit of volume. That’ll do. Next up, I freshen up my make-up with some smoky eyeshadow and a thicker line of eyeliner and finish with a red lip.

  I bite my lip as I look at myself in the mirror. Trying too much? Or not enough? I’ve worked really hard on my confidence in the last year or so since John left, but every now and again I have a little wobble.

  He left me.

  He didn’t want me.

  Why would anyone else?

  No. I shake my head and refuse to let these thoughts consume me. I’m just heading out for the night to meet a friend, have a dance and a few drinks and I’ve dressed up for the occasion. That’s all. I don’t need to turn this into something bigger than it is.

  Chapter ten

  Mel

  Icall up the taxi app and request a lift. It’s only going to be a ten-minute wait, so I grab some dangly earrings and switch them out with the delicate studs I wore for work.

  Zack’s out with friends tonight. He told me last night not to wait up and that he might even stay over at a friend's place. I shoot him a quick text to check in and to remind him to let me know if he won’t be home. A quick one-worded ‘yes’ comes back with a thumbs up.

  An alert on my phone tells me that my ride’s nearly here, so I leave the porch light on and step outside, locking up as I go. As I get in the car and head towards The Thirst Trap, I flick a quick text to Cassidy to let her know I’m en route.

  Cassidy:

  Great, I’m already here and have bagged us some seats. See you soon!

  It’s comforting to know she’s already there and I don’t have to walk in by myself and wait for her to arrive.

  The cab pulls up outside, and I offer my thanks before climbing out.

  It’s busy as I step inside, with people eating and the band setting up in the corner. I look around, searching for Cassidy, and see her waving.

  She’s sitting at a high-top table set back from the bar. It’s a decent position—close enough to the bar that we can grab drinks, but also with a good view of where the band will be playing.

  I grin as I step closer. “Hi.”

  “It’s so good to see you.” She gives me a squeeze. “What are you drinking?”

  “Err, not sure. What are you having?”

  “I thought we could make our way through the cocktail menu. Fancy it?” She waggles her brows, and I chuckle at the obvious excitement on her face.

  “Sure, let’s have a look and see what they’ve got.” I grab the menu and see a few different cocktails I enjoy listed.

  “Wanna start with rum?” Cassidy asks as she glances at her menu.

  “Yeah, sounds good. I’ll get these.”

  “No, it’s all good. You get comfortable. I’ll go.” She weaves her way through the crowded tables to the bar. I use the footrest to lever myself up onto the tall stool and take a moment to look behind the bar. No sign of Alex. I can see Abby and Tom and another guy that I vaguely recognise from a previous visit.

  I can’t decide if I’m disappointed he’s not here or not, although it’s probably a good thing. Let’s take this as one of Cassidy’s signs from the universe. I’m clearly here to have fun with my friend and not seduce a younger man. Thank goodness for that. I wouldn’t have a clue what I was doing. Alex knew what he was doing yesterday. That kiss. It blew my mind. I run my fingers over my bottom lip, and my heart races as I replay it.

  It’s not too long before Cassidy is back with a couple of mojitos. The first sip of minty freshness sets my taste buds alight and I hum with pleasure.

  “Any word from Jack?” I ask her.

  “We’re texting all the time. He’s doing well in New York, but I miss him so much. Tom and I both do, but thankfully, Tom’s taking good care of me.”

  “Will he come back?”

  “I don’t know.” I can hear the sadness in her voice. “I hope so. But he needed to do this. Tom and I are talking about visiting him at some point. But it’s a bit tricky with the bar and everything. Hopefully, now they’ve trained Alex up and he’s an extra pair of hands, Tom might be able to get away.”

  I try to school my features into something calm and zen, but I can’t stop my gaze from flicking back to the bar. Still no sign. He’s clearly not here tonight.

  “It’ll be good if you can visit. I’ve always wanted to go to New York in the lead up to Christmas.”

  “Me too. I’d love to set a book there. So really, it could be a business trip.” She giggles into her glass. “So, made out with any more hot young men this week?”

  I blush. “No, still just the one and only once. Thankfully.”

  “Dammit, that’s disappointing. I really hoped you were going to turn up tonight to tell me you’d been railed.”

  “Honestly?” I lean closer, trying to keep my voice as low as I can in the busy pub. “I can’t decide if I’m disappointed or relieved that it’s not happened.”

  I jolt in my seat when a hand clasps my shoulder and squeezes. My eyes widen as I look at Cassidy who has a giant grin on her face. I turn my head, trying to work out if I need to shout at some inappropriate guy or not, only to see it’s Abby. Phew.

  “Hey, keep the juicy gossip to a time when I can join in. Cassidy filled me in. You and Alex? This is golden.” She’s not keeping her voice down, and I glance around to see if anyone is paying attention. I’m not mad that Cassidy told Abby, but I’d rather it wasn’t public knowledge.

  “What do you mean, Alex and me? There is no Alex and me,” I gasp.

  “Oh, but there’s totally gonna be,” Cassidy drops into the conversation in a sing-song tone.

  “Please don’t say anything to him,” I beg Abby, hoping she’ll see how mortified I am by the whole thing and take pity on me.

  “Mel, I saw him with his top off the other day. You seriously have to hit that. He had abs for days. And those delicious arrows down from his hip bones. I wanted to reach over and lick him.”

  I’m guessing I don’t have a poker face and my intense jealousy is showing because she backtracks suddenly. “Not that I would. As his supervisor, I couldn’t. But you Mel, you totally should.” She pats me on the back like she’s encouraging me and then disappears into the crowd.

  “What did you tell her?” I hiss at Cassidy.

  “I just told her that the hot young stud you’d been fantasising about was none other than Alex, the hot barman. She thought it was too good to be a coincidence as well.”

  I can see that I’m not going to win the ‘fate has plans for me’ argument with Cassidy, so I decide to drop it and change the subject.

  We drink our mojitos whilst mostly chatting books. I now have a list on my phone of reverse age gap books Cassidy recommended, but I need the bathroom and I can’t wait any longer. The band is about to start, so I’m hoping this is a good time to go without too much of a wait.

  “I’m going to go to the bathroom and I’ll get us more drinks on the way back. What shall I get this time?” I hop down from the stool, eager for another drink.

  “They’ve got daiquiris? At least we’d be sticking with rum that way. What do you think?”

  “Sounds good. I’ll be back as soon as I can. No running off to snog Tom while I’m gone. I don’t want to lose our table.”

  She laughs. “We’ll see. If he beckons me over, I don’t think I’ll be able to hold myself back.”

  I head towards the back corner to where the ladies' toilets are. The queue isn’t too bad and I’m out and heading across to the bar in no time. There’s a decent crowd still waiting to be served, but it’s calmed down a bit now that the band has started.

  I wait patiently and then squeeze into a gap as one guy leaves with a tray full of drinks. I rest my arms on the bar and freeze when I spot Alex. He’s wearing a tight t-shirt with the bar logo on his pec. Hmmm, Abby wasn’t lying. He might not be topless, but the top shows every ridge of his abs. I want to lift that shirt and run my fingertips over every single one before pushing him back onto my bed and straddling him.

  He pulls pints and smiles at whoever he’s serving, which means he hasn’t spotted me yet and I wonder if I should take my chances with the bartender at the other end, but something keeps me frozen in place.

  Alex leans forward and cocks his head as if he’s trying to hear an order. My eyes are fixed on him, so I know the moment he spots me. His hazel eyes pierce mine, his lips curl upwards into a smile, and he gives me a wink. A blush rises to my cheeks as butterflies flutter in my belly. He hands a half-poured pint to another member of the bar staff and heads my way.

  “What can I get for you?” His tone is low and suggestive as he raises a brow in question. My blush intensifies at his flirtatious tone and my pulse kicks up a notch.

  “Two daiquiris, please. And maybe some water, too.”

  “Coming right up.” Even that sounds dirty.

  The band is playing a popular song from the noughties which has got people singing along and it’s impossible to even consider starting a conversation. Instead, I’m riveted as he mixes up our cocktails. It’s crazy to think he’s fairly new. He seems so adept.

  “There you go, Mel.” He puts the drinks down far too quickly for my liking because it means I no longer have a reason to stare at him.

  I waggle my bank card at him and he holds the card reader up for me.

  “Can I add a tip there?” I ask him.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “I want to give you a tip.”

  “You don’t need to.”

  I frown, trying to stand my ground, but he leans over the bar to talk to me, ghosting my ear with his lips. “Meet me in the back corridor. Just along from the ladies. In ten minutes.”

  I rear back. “What?”

  “I can’t hear what you’re saying. Meet me there and we can chat.” He makes it sound so innocent, but the hammering of my heart and the butterflies in my stomach make me think it’s anything but.

  I give him a slight nod in agreement, pick up the drinks tray, and carry it back to Cassidy, trying to mask my emotions from my face as she will know something is going on otherwise.

  Ten minutes later, I excuse myself, telling her I need to use the bathroom.

  “Didn’t you just go before you got the drinks?” Cassidy frowns.

  “It was, uh, too busy. I figured I’d go back later. It looks quieter now.”

  As I walk past the ladies, I glance around and don’t see anyone paying me any attention, so I make my way along the back corridor passing a sign saying ‘Staff Only’.

  What the actual fuck do I think I’m doing? I lean against the wall and tilt my head back, staring up at the ceiling. Maybe he just wants to talk. Yeah, right. The little angel and devil that sit on my shoulders get into a fight about Alex’s intentions. And I just leave them to it.

  “Hey, you okay?” Alex suddenly appears out of nowhere, coming closer to me, so we’re both hidden from view.

  “What did you want?” I squeak, uncertain about what I want to happen here.

  “Just to say hi. It was impossible to talk out there.”

  I stare into his brown eyes, fascinated by the gold flecks, unable to look away as if he’s hypnotising me.

  “Are we okay after the other day?” He’s standing close enough that I have to tilt my head to look at him. He leans a hand against the wall beside my head, caging me in.

  I don’t know how to answer that. He cocks his head, assessing something I can’t figure out.

  He pushes a knee between my legs and I want to moan. His closeness skyrockets my heartbeat and that pulse echoes in my pussy.

  “Alex,” I gasp, even while I want him to wedge his knee in even tighter, creating some friction. “We mustn’t. We can’t do it again.”

  “I can’t stop thinking about you, Mel. You’re driving me crazy. I just need another taste.” He leans in but doesn’t kiss me yet, waiting for me to respond. I need it too. He towers over me at this angle, but I don’t feel unsafe. His body so close to mine leaves me breathless. Warmth spreads through my core and he‘s barely touched me.

  There’s not one cell in my body that wants to push him away right now. In fact, I think my whole body has been hoping something like this would happen tonight when I came here.

  “Just one taste…” he murmurs when I don’t reply, and then he leans the rest of the way until our lips touch.

  Our mouths crash together. He takes hold of my chin, tilting my face for the perfect angle. I tremble all over, giddy to have his lips on mine again. I moan as his tongue strokes over mine, possessively dominating our kiss as if he owns me. I have no desire to breathe, I just want his mouth on me. He pushes his knee a little firmer into the apex of my thighs and my body lights up as I grind my hips.

  I don’t know how long we stay here, devouring each other, but it’s not long enough. When the crowd in the bar starts clapping, Alex wrenches himself away from me, leaving us both breathless. He rests his forehead on mine, a longer strand of his golden brown hair tickling my face.

  “I have to go back. They’ll be swamped with the band taking a break.” He caresses my face with his hand, his thumb reaching across to draw a line over my lips which are swollen again from a kiss we shouldn’t have had. “Can I see you later when I get back from work?”

  My heart beats hard and my quickened pulse echoes through my whole body. I should say no.

  I give a shaky nod.

  “What’s Mel short for?” he asks, taking me by surprise.

  “Melody. But no one calls me that.” I reply.

  He lets out a hum and then repeats my name out loud like he’s tasting the sound of it. He holds my gaze for a moment longer before he goes back out to the bar, leaving me there with my thoughts, which are screaming one thing again and again.

  What the fuck have I just agreed to?

  Chapter eleven

  Alex

  Iuse the spare key that Mel lent me to let myself in. It’s late. The bar was busy right up until closing, when Tom had to bellow to get people out of the door. We were fully staffed, so luckily, the tidy-up went smoothly and we were all out of there pretty quickly.

  The ride home gave me a chance to centre myself. I tried hard not to think about what was waiting for me when I got back to the house, not wanting to get distracted while driving. But now the bike is parked and I’m stepping inside, I let my mind wander.

  Kissing Mel earlier wasn’t enough; I need more. I think I’m obsessed with this woman. I’ve thought of no one else for days.

  I pull off my boots and jacket and put them away in the hall cupboard along with my bike helmet. Then I grab a quick drink of water and peer into the lounge, but there’s no sign of her.

  She’d not left the pub until closing herself and I half expected her to be waiting up for me as we’d not had time to do more than glance at each other all night.

  I tread quietly up the stairs, trying to regulate my breathing that’s sped up with the idea that she’s in her room waiting for me.

  Her room is closest to the top of the stairs and my brows raise with curiosity when I see her door ajar.

  I take a deep breath before knocking.

  “Come in.” Her voice is breathy, and as I step inside, I find her sitting at the end of her bed, facing me. She’s still wearing the outfit she wore to the pub, but her jacket is gone and her feet are bare.

  “Zack’s staying over at Rich’s.” She speaks quietly. My cock thickens in my jeans now I know we have the house to ourselves and I anticipate what’s to come.

  “I’m not quite sure what I’m playing at here.” She waves her hand between us.

  “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to enjoy each other, Mel.”

  She sighs as she closes her eyes for a moment, but seems to shore herself up when her shoulders ease back.

  Her eyes open, her usually pale blue irises appearing darker. “I want you, Alex. I don’t think anything can come of this apart from what happens here tonight, but I don’t want to deny myself anymore.”

  I’m already wondering if one night will be enough to burn through this chemistry we clearly have, but I’m going to take what I can get.

  “One night only, got it.” I keep my distance for a moment longer, needing to be certain that she’s sure.

  “What are you waiting for?” She quirks a brow and leans back on her hands.

  I drink in the sight of her. Her nipples are stiff against her lacy camisole and the skin on her neck is flushed a delicate pink. I have no idea what to do next. I’m like a virgin all over again. I’m experienced, but it’s like this is all new. I stuff my hands in my jean pockets to hide their slight tremble.

  She rises from the bed and takes a step towards me. It gives me the confidence that she’s into this as much as I am.

  Her hands come up to my chest and I let out a shaky breath as she runs them down my pecs and over my abs. “You’ve been teasing everyone all night with this tight top. Are you going to let me see what’s underneath?” Her confidence as she touches me heightens my arousal, my cock growing even harder, desperate for her. She tugs at the hem, easing it away from my body. I take my hands from my pockets and grab it, pulling it over my head before dropping it on the floor.

  My skin heats under her gaze.

  I curl my hands into fists for a moment, trying to lessen my need to fling her on the bed and fuck her. I want to take my time here, not rush. I reach out and caress her face with my fingertips. Her skin is so soft and I’m dying to know if she’s that soft all over.