“He looks a little too big to need a nanny,” she commented, grinning. “If you mean wingman, say wingman.”
“Not exactly. He asked me to tag along in case his date was a no-show. Or if she showed up and decided to hightail it when she saw him. The red hair can be make or break.” Ian’s rueful expression suggested that had happened before. “At least with me here, we could have a beer and he’d feel like less of a loser.”
Sofia felt for Eric, whose attempts at dating sounded almost as messy as Karen’s. “Well, looks like things are going okay so far.”
They glanced at their friends and saw them leaning close and laughing.
“Good,” Ian said with a satisfied nod. “Eric deserves it.”
Sofia was charmed by his concern for his friend. “Please, join me.” She indicated the stool next to her and he squeezed his way in.
The bartender appeared, and Ian raked his gaze over the choice of drinks. “I’ll have one of those, too,” he ordered, pointing a thumb at Sofia’s bottle. “May I get you another Bud, Sofia?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks,” she replied.
“Sofia.” He repeated her name as if he liked saying it. She liked him saying it. “What do you do? I mean, obviously, you could be a model but—”
Sofia held up a hand, palm out. “Stop right there. Why do I think your friend told you that cheesy pickup line?”
“Guilty.” Ian held up both hands, wincing along with her. “He’s been riding me about getting out more and being so clueless. But how did you know?”
“You looked uncomfortable saying it. About as uncomfortable as I feel in this outfit,” Sofia confessed.
Ian gave her a slow once-over, her skin heating as his gaze swept over her. “Well, you look amazing in it.”
The lower, more intent note to his voice as he said it strummed her nerve endings. “To answer your original question, I’m a teacher, trying to remember how to be a human for the night.” Sofia took a gulp of her drink, wondering if it would cool her down.
Ian’s lips tilted in a wry smile. “And I’m a former SEAL, trying to figure out civilian life again.”
Sofia’s eyes opened wide. “Thank you for your service.” She wanted to ask him more about it, but the conversation swerved into the first of the hundred and one other topics that came up, such as the song that was playing, leading them to argue the merits of their favorite bands and singers, each trying to convince the other of the superiority of their choices, and the sports memorabilia hanging on the walls sparking animated discussion of their favorite teams and players. The hint of the south in his accent fascinated her—he was from Atlanta, he said.
“So you grew up with Southern belles?”
He made a face like something smelled bad. “Not my type.”
“What is?” Sofia barely recognized her own voice. Where had that sultry tone come from?
“Fun and intelligent.” He let his gaze trail around her face, taking in her features. “With dark eyes and gorgeous long dark hair.” His eyes briefly dropped lower. “A slender, delicate build, and—”
“Sorry to interrupt …”
Sofia managed to look away from Ian and turned to see Karen and Eric standing nearby, her friend’s hand tucked through Eric’s arm. No need to ask if everything was okay.
“We thought we’d…head on out,” Karen said.
Hook up, Sofia translated, and Ian’s expression said he was fluent in Tinder-speak too.
“If you’ll be okay?” Karen continued, a hopeful expression on her face.
“Sure.” Even though Karen was her ride, there was no way she was going to stand in the way of whatever was about to go down. “I’ll Uber.”
“No, I’ll see Sofia gets home.” Somehow Ian’s statement was an edict, one their friends took as permission to exit. Quickly.
“Wow. Talk about zero to sixty! They practically ran out of here.” Good for Karen, though. Tendrils of longing and daring uncurled in Sofia, and she shot a look at Ian under her lashes.
Ian laughed, but his expression turned serious. “Just to be clear, taking you home doesn’t mean I’m making a move. I’m not in a place for a relationship right now.”
“A bit presumptuous of you to assume that’s what I want.” Sofia finished her drink, and maybe the last drops fueled her courage. She slid from the stool to her feet and smoothed down her dress. “Maybe I’m just looking for a little fun?”