“I want to sit with Summer,” Danni said as she pulled Summer to the back of the car, leaving Aiden to sit in the front with Jaleen.
“Well, this isn’t exactly how I thought your bachelor party would end,” Jaleen said with a laugh as he pulled out of the parking lot.
“Tonight with you and the guys was a lot of fun.” Aiden glanced back at Summer. “But the fact that I get to spend the rest of the night making sure that beauty in the backseat doesn’t have a hangover isn’t a bad way to end the night, either.”
The amount of love Jaleen heard in Aiden’s voice didn’t surprise him. If anything, it made him envious that he’d never get a chance to experience the type of love Aiden and Summer shared. His eyes caught Danni’s in the rearview mirror. What is it about Danni Allison? For years he’d wondered why the only woman who seemed to be immune to his charm was the same woman who was constantly on his mind.
He supposed that’s the reason they’d developed an actual friendship. Although he still teased her any chance he got, he was well aware that Danni knew entirely too much about his dating history and, for that reason alone, he couldn’t even get her to agree to go on one date.
After they arrived at the hotel and parked the cars, Aiden and Summer bid good-night to the group. The ladies all boarded the elevator a couple minutes later to head to their rooms, while the men went to the bar in the hotel lobby.
Jaleen had just sat at the bar when Luke nodded his head toward the front of the lobby. Jaleen followed his gaze.
Danni was standing near the hotel entrance with her clutch in her hand.
I could have sworn she just got on the elevator.
Jaleen turned back to Luke. “I’ll be right back.”
“Yeah, right,” Luke said with a laugh as he turned to the other men.
Jaleen caught Danni’s arm as soon as she took one step outside the door. “Where are you going?”
“To get something to eat.”
Seriously! “It’s almost three in the morning. Nothing is open.”
“Well, I’ll find a gas station, then. They never close.” She took one more step out the door.
“They have twenty-four-hour room service,” Jaleen said, stopping her again. “How about you order some food in your room?”
A sly smile crept onto her face. “On one condition.”
He was almost afraid to ask. “What’s that?”
“You come to my room and eat with me.”
Jaleen groaned. “If I do, will you eat and then get some rest before tomorrow’s rehearsal?”
“Yes,” she said a little too quickly. Before he knew it, Danni was tugging his arm and leading him toward the elevators.
The second they arrived at her hotel room, Danni tossed her clutch on the table and kicked off one heel. When she went to remove the other heel, she stumbled.
“Whoa, pretty lady,” Jaleen said as he helped her steady. “Let’s be careful.”
“I’m tired of being careful,” Danni replied, looking him in the eye before turning her back to him. “Can you unzip my dress?”
No, I can’t unzip your dress. “Sure,” he said instead. He felt like his fingers were moving in slow motion as he worked the zipper to reveal the back of a sexy, white-and-teal lace bra. It would take little effort to unclasp the sole clip, but he wouldn’t dare do that tonight.
“There you go,” he said, allowing one sole finger to run down her spine. She gasped at the touch before turning around to face him.
“Are you sure you won’t kiss me tonight?” She looked so vulnerable standing there and something in her eyes made him want to say to hell with what he’d said earlier and take a sample of what she was offering. Luckily, his brain was thinking more than the other part of his anatomy.
“Not tonight. But if you ask me tomorrow, you’ll get a different answer.”
For a minute he thought she was going to ignore what he was saying, but instead she walked to the couch to lie down.
“How about I order that room service?” He walked over to the desk. “What do you want?”
“You decide,” she said, curling onto her side. “I just need something to eat.”
The last thought he had before he ordered was that the best food they could both have right now would be if they feasted on each other.
* * *
Sunlight seeping through the curtains caused Danni to awaken. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand—8:00 a.m. She checked her iPhone, surprised that she hadn’t set her alarm. As a matter of fact, part of the night was a blur. She’d planned on waking up a little earlier to meet a couple of the bridesmaids for breakfast before rehearsal in a couple of hours.
Maybe I can still meet them, she thought as she stretched her body. It was then that she noticed she was still wearing her dress from last night. What the...? The back of her dress was unzipped and one shoulder was out of the strap. Her hands flew to her mouth as memories of the previous night came rushing back to her.
Jaleen was here. He came back to my hotel room with me. She also suspected he was responsible for the glass of water and aspirin on her nightstand because she didn’t recall getting it herself.
She got out of bed, grabbed a sundress and her toiletries and made her way to the bathroom. A shower would definitely wake her up and, hopefully, help her remember more details. Thirty minutes later she was showered, dressed and no closer to remembering all the details.
When she walked back into the bedroom, a pair of shoes in the corner of the room caught her eye. Those are Jaleen’s. Although she couldn’t recall if he was wearing them last night, she’d seen them on him before. Why exactly did I see Jaleen last night? They’d been celebrating Summer’s bachelorette party while the men had been out celebrating Aiden’s bachelor party. She didn’t know how they’d gotten together last night, but she vaguely recalled asking Jaleen if he would kiss her.
Oh, God. I did ask him to kiss me. She couldn’t think of anything more embarrassing...except if he was still in her suite somewhere. She opened the bedroom door and tiptoed around the corner to the living room area. As suspected, Jaleen was sprawled out on the couch with his long legs hanging over the side. She’d always found him attractive—although she’d never admit that to him—however, the sight before her nearly stole her breath.
He still had on his jeans, but he’d discarded his socks and unbuttoned his shirt, exposing his washboard abs and deep vee of his hip bone now causing her imagination to wander to places it never had before. That’s a lie. She’d definitely spent more time than she would ever admit wondering just how sexy Jaleen Walker would look naked. Of course, she’d never go there with a man like him... A man that seemed to trade out women as quickly as he changed underwear. However, there was no harm in admiring him while he slept.
Even in his sleep, his jawline was well-defined and she’d bet that he’d just gotten his goatee freshly cut and hair lined yesterday before the bachelor party. How many times had she wanted to run her tongue across his smooth, cinnamon-brown complexion? As cocky as he was, Danni was surprised there was anything about him she found attractive. He was not her usual type. But lately she’d been looking at him in a way that she knew she shouldn’t but couldn’t help.
She froze when he slightly adjusted himself on the couch, noticing for the first time just how close she actually was to him. She took a step back when his hand reached out and lightly grabbed her wrist.
“Not so fast,”