“I remember texting on these.” Xan grimaced. “It was painful.”
“I’d rather talk than text.”
“That’s very…” Xan scratched the scruff of his beard. “Refreshing,” he said finally.
“You were about to say something else,” I said with a laugh.
“Maybe,” he admitted. He toyed with my phone another moment. “Is it okay if I put my number in your contacts? Maybe we could go out dancing some time?”
I laughed, picturing us tearing up the dance floor. “I don’t really date much,” I said, trying to let him down easy.
He nodded, taking the rejection like a champ. “Friends, then?”
“Sure.”
He smiled and entered his information. No questions. No protests. No pressure. Xan was easy. Our conversation flowed, and I wasn’t on edge with him. When he handed me my phone, our fingers brushed, lingering for a moment too long. My eyes dropped to his mouth. He had nice lips. For a moment I allowed myself to think about kissing him.
My heart didn’t race. My belly didn’t flutter. There was nary a tingle anywhere on my body. I thought of Beckett’s sensual mouth and a shiver of desire surged through me.
That was it. I was officially obsessed with Beckett. I needed to get him off my mind. I looked up from Xan’s mouth to his eyes, and an idea popped into my head. I chewed my lip, deliberating.
“What?” Xan asked, raising his beer to his mouth. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Do you think you could kiss me?” I blurted.
Xan’s eyes went round. “I thought we just agreed to be friends.”
“We did. I’m kind of obsessing over someone, and I need to get him off my mind. This would be a friendly gesture.”
He sipped his beer, then eyed me as he put it on the counter. He wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, not quite hiding his grin.
“What are friends for?” he asked.
It was like a moment in a novel—every element of romance in place. The handsome hero, the charming setting, the sexy slow music… This moment was so chock-full of tropes, it could fill a bookshelf.
We both leaned forward and our lips met. I closed my eyes as his mouth moved softly against mine. It was the merest brush of a kiss, a teaser of something more to come. It was sweet and sexy and almost shy.
Xan leaned back, his eyes searching mine. Even though the kiss had been nice, I had been thinking of another man the whole time. The experiment had backfired.
I took in a deep breath and then reached for my beer. “Thanks,” I said and drank deeply.
“Anytime,” he said, giving me a wink.
After a moment, the ease we’d had earlier returned, and Xan told me a little more about his traveling with his team.
The band broke into a popular song that everyone knew. “Friends dance, right?” he asked.
I grabbed his hand and slid off the stool. “You bet.”
Chapter 11
“What was that?” Gabi asked.
Every eye was on me as I approached my table of friends.
“That was some kiss,” Sloane said wistfully.
“Not really.” I grabbed my lukewarm beer and drank.
