Squinting, he discerned a shadowy figure sitting on a cushioned loveseat on the other side of the room. “Jesus, you scared the hell out of me,” he grumbled.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he was better able to make out his surroundings. Small room, maybe twelve by twelve feet. A stack of dusty boxes against one wall. Metal racks.
He walked over to the little couch sandwiched between more boxes and an aluminum ladder. “What are you doing sitting alone in the dark?” he demanded, peering down at the woman.
“I’m sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I know I shouldn’t be lurking in here like a serial killer, but like I said, I’ll be gone in a minute. There’s no need to tell your manager or—”
“Relax, I don’t work here.” He expelled a sigh. “I’m hiding out too.”
“Oh. Okay then.” She awkwardly patted the cushion next to her. “You might as well sit down. Can’t promise I’ll be good company, but you’re making me nervous looming over me like that.”
After a beat of reluctance, he lowered his body onto the loveseat. Then he squinted to get a better look at his fellow hider—and realized she was beautiful. Like absolutely fucking beautiful.
Didn’t happen often, but he was stunned speechless as he let his gaze drink her in. Long waves of tousled, honey-colored hair. Big blue eyes. Delicate features and a lush mouth, pink and perfect.
Sweet Jesus.
This woman belonged on the cover of a magazine. Or maybe in a porno—one that starred the two of them and involved that sexy mouth of hers on every inch of his naked body.
His cock promptly turned to granite, voicing its approval of the dirty images that filled Cash’s head. He clenched his teeth and breathed through his nose, trying to quell the rush of hunger that flooded his groin.
“Are you done staring at me?” she asked wryly.
Done? Christ, he hadn’t even gotten started. His gaze traveled south, snagging on the full perky breasts outlined by a tight scoop-necked top, her shapely denim-covered legs, the red toenails peeking out of a pair of open-toed heels. His mental porno took a different direction, one that now featured his mouth and her naked body. Holy fuck. He’d been with his fair share of hot females, but this girl surpassed hot. She was a scorching inferno.
“You know what, Mr. Pervy Eyes? You’re not making a good first impression,” she announced.
Yup, she was right. He absolutely had a case of the Pervy Eyes. Snapping out of his lust-filled stupor, Cash wrenched his gaze off the beautiful stranger and distracted himself by glancing around the room.
“What is this place?” he asked when he noticed a pile of wooden clothes hangers cluttering the linoleum floor.
“It used to be a coatroom.”
“How do you know that?”
“I used to work here, back when this bar was a French restaurant,” she explained. “This was the coatroom.”
“Those still exist?”
“Sure. But not here obviously, since this is no longer a coatroom.”
“Stop saying coatroom.”
“Stop asking questions that require the word coatroom in their answers.”
Cash stared at her. Then he burst out laughing. Okay, he liked this chick.
“So who are you hiding from?” she asked, crossing her ankles together in a nonchalant pose.
He stifled a groan. “A potential stalker.”
“Oh, I know all about those.”
He didn’t doubt it. With those looks, she probably fended off the advances of hundreds of dudes on a daily basis.
“So you’re also dodging someone who wants to get in your pants?” he prompted.
“Other than you, you mean?”
“Funny.”
“I thought so.” She paused, as if debating whether to confide in him. “I needed to get away from my friends for a few minutes. My best friend Tessa just landed a huge promotion at the advertising agency where she works, so a group of us went out to celebrate.”
Cash raised a brow. “And you’re hiding out. Wow. You’re a really shitty friend.”
“Me? How about Tessa? She’s the one holding this let’s-gush-about-my-new-job get-together on the same day her best friend was fired.”
“You got fired?”
“Yep, but that’s the least of my problems. I also have a crazy ex to contend with.” She exhaled loudly. “Let’s just say I’ve been having a really bad month, okay?”
Cash could commiserate—his six-month sexual dry spell wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows either. “Did you like your job?” he asked, deciding not to touch the crazy ex comment.
“No. I hated it, actually. I worked as a salesgirl at a jewelry store and my boss was a total creep. He kept offering to take me to Victoria’s Secret to help me pick out lingerie. You know, in case I need a second opinion.” She blew out another frustrated breath. “But that’s not the point. The point is, I got fired. Again.”
Cash couldn’t help but laugh. “It happens to you a lot?”
“Sure does.” She slanted her head. “What line of work are you in?”