One
Molly
Joe, my co-worker, had invited me to this party, which was not to be missed. It was being thrown by one of the wealthiest men in town, so I dragged my best friend Chloe along after getting approval from the host. The house was expansive and after giving it a quick once-over, I was glad Chloe had agreed to come out tonight. The mostly naked waiters dressed up in thongs were worth the trip alone. But the other hot men I’d spied so far—gah! I had to monitor my chin to make sure it remained drool-free. Thank God I’d overheard Joe discussing this party and wheedled an invitation out of him.
“Are you sure it’s okay?” I’d asked.
“The more the merrier,” he’d said. “Besides, wait till you see the place. You’ll flip.”
He’d been right. And speak of the devil…
“Molly! You made it.”
I turned to see Joe standing there with a drink in his hand. “Yeah, and I’m glad I did.”
“Right?”
“Yes, but you failed to mention all the hot men.”
“That’s because I don’t look for them,” he said with a huge grin on his face.
Chloe elbowed me about that time. “Oh, Joe, this is my friend, Chloe,” I said.
“It’s great to meet you. Molly talks about you a lot.”
“I hope it’s not all bad,” Chloe said.
“Nope. All good. Well, you ladies enjoy yourselves tonight.” He waggled his brows and sauntered off.
“Dang, this house is amazing,” Chloe said. “Check that out.” She pointed to a man who was surrounded by women, each of them taking turns kissing him. “Who do you suppose that is?”
“Must be the owner. Hmm. I’m going to check out that scene. Want to come?”
“Nah, I’m gonna wander around and hunt down a bar. I’ll catch you in a few.”
As I strolled over, I checked out the amazing artwork that hung on the walls and bumped into what I thought was another wall. Only it wasn’t. It was the chest of a very tall and gorgeous man.
I lifted my head and looked up and up until my gaze landed upon a beautiful set of steel-gray eyes. They were stunning, so much so I could barely tear my gaze away from his.
“Uh, sorry about that. I wasn’t watching where I was going,” I said.
“It’s perfectly fine. I do that a lot.” His voice was deep and smooth, like velvet. No, not velvet. That was too girly. And he definitely wasn’t girly.
“I can’t imagine you doing that. You look more like the kind of guy who knows exactly where he’s going every minute of the day.”
He was dressed in tailored pants that hugged his hips and a fine shirt that he’d probably worn with a tie earlier in the day. I wouldn’t have minded unbuttoning the thing to get a glimpse of what his chest looked like underneath.
“I wish,” he muttered.
“What do you wish?” I was thinking maybe I could help in that department.
“Never mind. Can I get you a drink?”
“Sure.”
He escorted me over to the closest bar and we both ordered a drink.
“I’m Molly, and you are?”
“Hugh. It’s a pleasure meeting you, Molly.”
“Likewise.” I clinked his glass with mine and eyed him as I sipped my fruity concoction. “What is this?” I asked.
“It’s their party cocktail.”
“Any idea of what’s in it?”
“Not at all, so I’d go easy on it if I were you,” he suggested, sporting a sexy smirk.
“Good idea.”
“Tell me about yourself, Molly.”
“Molly is a bit on the boring side,” I said, speaking in the third person.
He chuckled and the rich sound of his voice made my lady bits tingle. Jeez, it was only a laugh, I reminded myself.
“I’m sure you are anything but boring. Someone as beautiful as you has to lead an exciting life.” He ran a finger down my arm. Not only were my lady bits tingling, my nipples were trying to shoot out of my bra too.
“Not really.” Did I sound breathy, or was it just me?
“What kind of work do you do?” he asked.
“I work for a large group of attorneys. They do all kinds of legal work.”
“I imagine they do, since they’re attorneys.” His tongue poked the inside of his cheek.
I had to laugh. “Duh. That was a giveaway, wasn’t it?” What a dumbass. I wanted to palm my face.
“Yeah, I admit it was. Do you enjoy it?”
“Some days. Others, not so much. It’s like anything, I suppose. It has its ups and downs.”
“Are you here with anyone?” he asked.
“Actually, I am. I should probably go and catch up with her for a bit. Are you going to be around for a while?”
His eyes raked me over and a heated spark raced up and down my spine. What was it about this guy? “I will. I’m planning on making this a night to remember.” His voice hummed. Was there a hidden meaning in there just for me?
“Great. Then let me go find my friend and I’ll try to hook up with you in a little bit.”
His eyes sparkled. Had I really just said ‘hook up’ with him? “Don’t try, Molly. Make it happen.”
Damn, that sounded like a proposition I didn’t want to miss. I left Hugh, smiling, realizing my panties were wet already and he hadn’t even kissed me yet. I moved through the crowd hunting for Chloe. Across the room, I spied her at another bar with a mutual friend, Jeremy. I headed over to check out what was happening between the two of them. Maybe Chloe and Jeremy were hooking up. I giggled. That would make an interesting twist. Chloe and I had joked about having a threesome with him because he was so hot.
“Hi, guys,” I called out when I reached them.
“Hey, we were catching up,” she said.
Jeremy leaned over and kissed my cheek. As he did, a really hot guy approached Chloe and they started chatting. If anyone deserved attention, it was Chloe.
Jeremy excused himself as some other woman caught his eye, leaving me the third wheel as the hot guy stared at Chloe like she was a prized filly.
I headed back in the direction of where I’d left Hugh, and luckily, I found him still seated at the bar where I’d left him. He stared into his drink like he was shouldering the problems of the world.
“A penny for your thoughts,” I said.
“I’m pretty sure you’d want a lot more than a penny for what’s in here after listening.” He tapped his temple.
“Ah, it can’t be that bad.”
He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “It’s worse, believe me. But you didn’t come to this party to hear some guy complain about his issues. So let’s toast to better times, shall we?” He picked up his glass and touched it to mine.
“To better times.”
Our eyes connected and my stomach tightened. He was hot, there was no denying it. But it was more than that. This man had depth to him, which was weird I felt it so quickly.
I took a seat next to him, wanting to explore who this man was. “Where are you from, Hugh?”
“Here. I was born and raised in this town. What about you?”