Thea was right. I’d needed this. A reminder of why I fought so hard. So I could trulylive. I hadn’t been doing enough of that.
The music slowed, and a figure in a cowboy hat moved into my space, holding out his hand. “Can I have this dance?”
The man was tall and more than a little good-looking, but I couldn’t help comparing him to Cope in my mind. His shoulders weren’t quite as broad. There was no scar on his lip that somehow made him more gorgeous. No adorable crook in his nose.
I’m an idiot.
Cope wasn’t here. He hadn’t made any sort of moves that let me know he was interested in any more than a flirty friendship, and nothing in those fewalmostmoments showed he was serious about us beingmore. But here was a handsome man asking me to dance, being clear about his intentions.
I took the proffered palm. “I’d love to.”
The man swung me into his arms with ease. It was clear he knew what he was doing on the dance floor, and I let him sweep me away as the band slipped into a ballad. But the man’s hold wasn’t comfortable and heated the way Cope’s was. It didn’t have me fighting the urge to lean in closer.
He swung me into a spin and then back, and I knew I should be enjoying the dance more than I was. The man pulled me a bit closer, his face not far from mine. And then a hand landed on his shoulder.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask to cut in.”
That voice. The smoky heat and grit had my body responding instantly. I sucked in a breath as my gaze locked with dark-blue eyes. But I could only get out his name.
“Cope.”
27
COPE
I wanted to kill him.And I didn’t want to make it an easy death either. The urge to rip his limbs from his body was so strong it stole the damn air from my lungs.
But murder was wrong. And I didn’t especially want to do twenty to life for beating a man to death with his own arms. But when I’d seen his hand dip lower on Sutton’s back, I thought it might be worth it.
She blinked up at me, shock evident in those hypnotic, turquoise eyes—eyes I could lose myself in for eternity and never get bored. “W-what are you doing here?” she stammered.
The man who still had his damn hands on her looked between us. “You know him?”
Sutton nodded quickly. “He’s my, um, friend.”
Jesus.Her friend? Sutton saying it out loud made me realize just how wrong that was. I wanted to be so much more than that. Tonight, all the reasons I’d been holding myself back seemed to evaporate in a single breath. Sutton had been slowly chipping away at my defenses, but seeing her in this dress? It had sent my remaining walls crumbling to dust.
“You want to talk to him?” the man asked.
My temper flared, but it was mixed with a grudging respect for his ensuring Sutton was comfortable. The dude had no idea who I was with my ballcap hiding half my face. And even if he had, checking with her was the right thing to do.
She nodded quickly. “I’m good. Thank you for the, um, dance.”
The man tipped his cowboy hat to her. “Thankyou. Enjoy your night, ma’am.”
“Ma’am?” I scoffed the second he was out of earshot.
Sutton’s confused expression morphed into one of anger. “It was polite. Which is saying something since you rudely interrupted.”
Heat crept up my neck. “You wanted to keep dancing with him?” I hated the jealousy that flared hot and bright, making my pulse thrum in my neck.
“It was nice,” Sutton bit out.
“Nice?” I growled, pulling her into my arms as the band shifted into another song. It wasn’t fast or slow, somewhere in the middle.
“Yes,” she clipped. “And this was supposed to be a girls’ night. No boys allowed.”
“Good thing I’m not a boy, then.” I moved her closer to me, my thigh shifting to between her legs. Sutton’s eyes sparked with blue heat, the kind that scalded. But I’d wear her burn scars with pride.
