Page 5

Hunter was a shoo-in member. Being the owner of the Neon, everyone knew him around here. He had the network and ability to bring in more rich, single men. But after he admitted he wanted to spend our time talking, followed by watching me dance, I had a feeling there was something different about him. I couldn’t peg what it was just yet, but maybe this talk would give me some insight.

Standing just a few feet in front of him, I spent a moment studying his features, reading him the best I could. Dancing would be a piece of cake. Talking was an entirely different request.

With my hand placed firmly on my hip, I looked him dead in the eye. “Three thousand dollars.”

He coughed on his liquor. Clearly, it was my turn to catch him off guard.

“You said to name my price. So, if you want to talk to me, you’re going to have to cough up a chunk of change. Take it or leave it.” I shrugged.

His eyes met mine in a challenging glare. “I would have paid more, but three thousand it is.”

I hadn’t actually planned to charge him for a conversation. But with sarcasm being my first language, I couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to bust his balls.

Guess I’d be walking out of here a few zeros richer.

Shifting my body toward his, I sat just a few feet away on the same loveseat, allowing a respectable amount of room between us. “Well then, what do you want to know about me, Hunter?”

When his eyes lifted from his drink, I didn’t miss the specks of green, blue, and brown. It was clear he had the kind of hazel eyes that played tricks on you. Depending on the lighting, they’d change colors, and paired with his blond hair, I’d never seen more attractive features on a man before.

“I know just moments ago we were making jokes about my dick, but usually, before I spend my time talking dirty to a woman, I ask her how she’s doing first.” His lips tightened, doing his best job at fighting a smile.

“You want to know how I’m doing?” I blinked, feeling dumbfounded.

“I do.” His nod demanded an answer.

Consider me caught off guard because what was this man even doing in a place like this? He asked me how I was doing, and here I was feeling flutters in my stomach over it.

It wasn’t a question I received all that often—I actually couldn’t tell you the last time someone outside of my two closest friends asked about me at all. I lived life in the background of everyone else. I was a shadow. A shoulder to cry on. An amazing friend. The strong one. But I kept everyone in my life at arm’s length.

Eventually, they would leave. They always did.

So, was it crazy of me to feel warm inside over a man I hardly knew, simply because he asked me how I was doing? There was a lingering thought in the back of my head, a thought I couldn’t quite shake. Did he need something from me? How could I benefit him right now? There was no way he just wanted to sit down and have a conversation.

“What’s the catch, Hunter?”

I didn’t want to be defensive over a simple question. But fuck if I didn’t feel triggered.

“I’m sorry … I don’t understand?” His eyebrows furrowed together.

“You don’t have to play coy with me. Tell me why you’re really here. You want to watch me dance. There has to be something else.” I stood up, suddenly feeling too anxious to sit comfortably next to him.

“Andi, please sit back down. I truly just want to talk.” After tipping the rest of his drink back, he set the glass aside. “I don’t entertain the company of a lot of women. I haven’t for a very long time. When I met you in Denver, and we got to talking, I couldn’t stop thinking about our interaction. I had this itch inside me to get to know you better, and I don’t know what that means, but I’m fucking acting on it, okay?”

His voice cracked as if he’d been holding something back. Hunter had seemed like a genuine guy from the moment I met him, and I was probably in my own head, but the least I could do was entertain this one simple conversation with him and see where it ended up.

Inching back toward the couch, I took a seat with my body turned toward his.

“Forgive me. Apparently, my trust issues were having a moment.” I faked a laugh.

“To be fair, I haven’t given you a reason not to trust me yet.” Hunter crossed his ankle over his knee, getting more comfortable and looking a lot less like a threat with his charming smile.

“Maybe not, but how do I know you’re not just here to persuade me into being your date to your next fancy gala like you did with my best friend last summer?”

Hunter smirked before tipping his head back to laugh.

In the early months of summer, my best friend, Avery, was still working as an escort and linked up with Hunter one night. He needed a date to impress some of the higher ups, but nothing happened between the two of them. It turned out to just be a funny story when we all ran into each other in Denver a couple months later.

“To be honest, the invite is always open. I’d be more than honored to have you as my date. But in no way was that my intention for wanting to talk to you.”