Lee: You’re a good dancer.

I gasped as I read it, swiftly typing a response.

Karla: Where are you?

My heart pounded, and my skin grew clammy with nerves as I contemplated the idea that he was here. There was something about the fact that we’d been communicating but hadn’t actually seen each other for weeks that heightened my anticipation. I felt surrounded, too hot, and my fingers shook as I waited for him to reply. The screen of my phone remained dark, and I felt Reya nudge me. Glancing up, I saw her frowning as she sent me a look that asked, What’s wrong?

Shaking my head to let her know I was fine, I slid my phone back in my pocket and tried to focus on dancing again. It was no use, though, and I found myself frantically scanning the club. After a minute I spotted him over by the bar. He was with some other guy, knocking back shots. The guy turned, and I recognised Trevor, the second-youngest Cross brother. His pretty blue eyes flashed in the darkness as he smiled at something Lee said, showing off a pair of handsome dimples.

I guessed Trevor to be about two years younger than Lee, which put him at around twenty-three. He had a very laid-back, sort of skater-boy style, and every girl who passed him by gave him a second glance. Lee had the same good looks, but despite the grin that was perennially plastered across his face, there was something harder about him, something a little bit more intimidating and unapproachable.

Almost as though he sensed me watching him, his eyes flashed to mine and held me captive. I shot him a look of irritation and pulled out my phone.

Karla: I hope you didn’t come here for me.

From across the club, I saw him looking down at his screen, reading my text before his fingers began tapping. A second later he glanced in my direction and grinned. My phone lit up in my hand.

Lee: I have no idea what you’re talking about.

Ugh, he was such a smart-arse. My attention was drawn away from my phone when Reya nudged me again. Cupping her hands around her mouth, she shouted in my ear, “I just saw the guy from our gym. Did you invite him here?”

I shook my head in response.

“Who’s that with him?”

“His brother,” I answered, adopting her hands-around-the-mouth approach. I wasn’t sure why people did that when trying to be heard over music, because it didn’t seem to make much of a difference.

We continued dancing, but now I was noticing Reya’s eyes return to Trevor, clearly checking him out. I wasn’t surprised. He was too pretty not to look at. Lee’s back was turned from the bar, his elbows resting along the counter as he drank a bottle of beer. My hips swayed to the music and he took a swig, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

The music changed from rock to a more techno song. There was something about the rhythmic beat, combined with Lee’s attention, that got my blood pumping. Crazy lust built within me, and I had to turn away before I did something stupid. My pores tingled with barely restrained energy, and I was suddenly aware of how tight my dress was, how it moulded itself to my form.

Losing myself in the music, I danced. Strobe lights flashed, stark white, red, and blue, causing my vision to blur and the movement of the people around me to seem choppy and staccato. Reya and the girls had caught the attention of a group of guys, but I stayed just outside their circle, trying my hardest to forget Lee’s presence.

He shouldn’t have been there.

This was going to end in disaster.

We lived in two different worlds.

And yet....

No. This couldn’t happen. We weren’t supposed to see each other. It was supposed to be only texts, nothing as close as this. The fact that I wasn’t in uniform added an extra tension. I was well aware that I wore my profession like a shield with him, something to keep his advances at bay. But the fact of the matter was, it scared me how much I wanted him, how needy he made me feel. With just one touch, he could lure me into jeopardising years of hard work and dedication.

I heard a shout above the music right before it cut off and the club went dark. My heart pounded. The weather must have been picking up again, resulting in another power outage. I wondered if there was a generator and how long it’d take to kick in. Now that I was unable to see a thing, the voices that surrounded me were almost louder than the music had been. People were either complaining about the blackout or yelling like maniacs, excited by the fact that we’d been plunged into darkness.

Within seconds everybody had their phones out, using the dim light from the screens to find their way. I looked around for Reya, but it was still too dark to see. All of a sudden my skin prickled with awareness, like my body sensed him. Strong arms slid around my middle and pulled me into an even stronger body. He didn’t have to say a word for me to know it was him, because I’d memorised his touch, his smell. His mouth went to my exposed neck, licking just below my earlobe.

“Snap,” Lee whispered.

I shivered at the sound of his voice. There was something about the darkness, about the fact that no one could see us that made me feel reckless. I turned in his hold, threw my arms around his neck, and rose up on my toes. Tentatively, I drew his lower lip into my mouth and he pulled me close, capturing my lips with his fiercely. His hands travelled from my waist, all the way up my spine, before sinking into my hair. When his tongue dipped inside and fluttered along mine, I moaned, the sound of it reverberating up my throat.

Lee pulled my body so tightly to his that I could feel the sharp outline of his erection in his jeans. It nudged into my stomach, filling me with a deep, all-consuming lust.

Right in that moment, I wanted him, and I didn’t want to think about the repercussions. There, in the dark of the blacked-out nightclub, we waged a war with our tongues and lips. It was almost like I was fighting him with how hard I kissed him. He drew away, breathless, and pressed his mouth to my forehead as he laced his fingers with mine.

“Come with me,” he purred, tugging on my hand.

Helpless to do anything else, I followed.

I wasn’t sure where Lee was taking me, but before long we’d left the main area of the club and entered someplace quieter. Lee had his phone out, holding it up with the screen illuminated to try to light the way. I had a vague idea of being in a hallway before Lee pulled a door open, swiftly dragging me inside. The door closed with a quiet snick, and then he was on me, backing me into a wall as his hands sank into my hair again, his crotch pushing against me with need.

“I want you.”

My breath caught at the roughness in his voice.

His fingers trailed down my body and found the hem of my dress, frantically pushing it up so he could gain more access. Effortlessly, he lifted and held me, my legs wrapping around his waist. His mouth was everywhere, tasting every inch of me, from my chin to my jawline to my neck.

“You smell amazing,” he growled as his hands gripped my thigh muscles. “And fuck, you’re fit.”

“Touch me,” I begged him, my underwear exposed now that my dress had been pulled up around my hips. All that separated us was two layers of fabric, his hard cock in his jeans creating a delicious source of friction. I fumbled for his belt as he held me, attacking my lips with the most mind-melting kiss I’d ever experienced.

“What do you want, beautiful?” Lee asked in a husky whisper as I pulled his belt buckle free, unsnapped his jeans, and slid my hand inside. His entire body shuddered when my palm met his cock, and I savoured the hot, silky feel of it against my skin. I moved slowly up and down, pleasantly surprised by his size.

“I want this,” I said, nipping at his lips with my teeth and squeezing him in my palm.