chapter 9

THE DRIVE TO THE RESTAURANT is... exhilarating. I'm in the passenger's seat in Dex's Rover, and Sebastian is riding in the back. The others rode with Jordan in her Mercedes, so it's just the three of us.

Sebastian talks the whole time, but I barely hear a thing he says; my focus is on Dex, who keeps glancing over at me, his eyes gravitating toward my bare legs and the thin line of black fabric where it hugs my upper thighs.

And I revel in it.

It's not often I get to be an object of desire, especially in the eyes of a man like Dex Reid. I'm still surprised he's even looking at me, let alone seeming drawn to gaze at me every time he can tear his eyes away from the road.

By the time we pull up at Luxe, Dex has a taut muscle in his jaw from clenching his teeth, and I'm riding a wave of joy .

Until I see all the other women lounging outside the upscale restaurant.

They're gorgeous .

And now that little voice that tells me I'm nothing compared to them slips back in.

I reach for the door handle, but a valet pulls it open for me and offers his hand.

"Thank you," I say, slipping from the Rover and giving him a surprised smile as he closes the door gently behind me.

Sebastian joins me on the sidewalk, and we wait while Dex tosses his fob to another valet. Jordan and the others pull up behind us in the Mercedes, and they're laughing and talking animatedly as they get out of the car.

"Have you ever been here?" Jordan asks, slipping her tiny black clutch under her arm as her gaze shifts to the sign illuminated over our heads.

If she were someone else, I might think her question cruel—how could I ever afford to eat at a restaurant like this?—but having known her for even a short while, I know the question is genuine.

I shake my head. "Never."

"Oh, you'll love it. They've serve the best caramel apple martinis."

"Caramel apple?" I scrunch my face up, and Jordan smiles.

"They're good, I promise."

Michael sweeps up behind her and presses a kiss to her cheek, and the others flock around us. We head toward the entrance, and two doormen hold the doors open .

Inside, warmth washes over us, chasing the cold from my bare legs. A pretty hostess greets us, and when she sees the guys, her eyes light up.

"We have a special dining room for you," she says, a hint of red touching her high cheeks as she glances at Dex. "Please follow me."

We trail after her, and heads turn in our direction. Whispers start going through the dining guests, but the others in the group either don't notice or are so used to it that they ignore it altogether.

The hostess leads us up a flight of stairs and into a private dining area at the back at the restaurant, and I have to actively strive not to let my mouth fall open.

I've never seen such an exquisite restaurant. The lights are dim, and the evening sky outside the windows casts a calming blue shade over the dark tables and chairs. Twinkling lights hang overhead, lending a sexy feel to the space.

"Please take a seat. Your waiter will be with you shortly." The hostess watches the guys as they take their seats, but her gaze lingers on Dex—as I've come to expect.

I drape my jacket over the back of my chair and take a seat between Jordan and Alisha. Lucas, Sebastian, and Michael sit across from us, with Dex at the head of the table, his back to the evening sky outside.

A waiter approaches within a minute, and he starts with our drink orders.

"Two caramel apple martinis," Jordan says, ordering for both of us.

I still think it sounds gross, but I'm willing to give it a try. I told myself on the drive over that I was going to go with the flow tonight. When else in my life will I ever have the opportunity to party with LGC? This is my one and only chance, and I'm going to enjoy it.

Easy conversation flows around the table, with Sebastian leading most of it, unsurprisingly. Dex remains silent, though I do catch his eye at one point, and his stare is so intense that it flusters me and I quickly look away.

"Martinis for the ladies," the waiter says when he returns, a tray of drinks balanced expertly upon his palm.

The alcohol looks like apple cider, though it smells like vodka and butterscotch schnapps. The glass is rimmed in caramel and topped with cinnamon sugar, and it's so pretty I almost don't want to take a drink.

The waiter passes out the rest of the drinks, and I note that Dex is having a whiskey neat. Even his drink order is sexy.

"Don't drink yet!" Sebastian says. "We're celebrating, so someone should make a toast."

Lucas groans. "Dude, not again."

"It's a tradition." Sebastian narrows his eyes, and I get the feeling he's very serious about his traditions. Then his gaze locks on me, and I wish I could shrink out of sight. "Come on, Nora. Do the honors."

Everyone looks at me, including Dex, and my first instinct is to insist that someone else do it. But I'm holding a martini, wearing a skimpy black dress, and am out at a fancy restaurant with Loaded God Complex, and I'm somehow able to scrounge up enough confidence to lift my glass.

At first, I don't know what to say, but Sebastian and Michael both give me encouraging smiles, and I swallow down my nervousness, deciding to speak from the heart .

"It's been terrifying and exciting getting to know you all. I would never have believed you if you told me I'd be sitting down to dinner with literal rock stars."

A few laughs go around the table.

"I'm grateful I had the opportunity to collaborate with you, and... I hope the song shreds."

Even Lucas smiles this time. I raise my glass higher, and everyone joins me. We clink them together, spilling a few drops of alcohol on the crisp white tablecloth, and then I take a sip of the caramel apple martini.

It puckers my lips at first, and I'm not sure if I love it or hate it. But after another sip, it starts to warm my insides, and I decide Jordan's right: it's delicious .

"Told ya," Jordan says, jostling me lightly with her elbow. Under the dim lights, her hair looks white blond, and her silver earrings wink when she tosses her hair over her shoulder. "All right, food ."

I peruse the menu, and my stomach starts to sink.

It's almost all meat based, and there's hardly anything that doesn't have an animal on the ingredients list. Maybe I should've told them I'm a vegetarian, but that never comes up naturally in conversation, and I didn't want to inconvenience anyone. I'd assumed a fancy place like this would have plenty of plant-based options, but now I'm almost wishing we'd opted for Chipotle; at least they have sofritas.

My concern must be apparent on my face, because Sebastian leans forward, a furrow in his brow. "What's wrong? Don't see anything you want?"

"Um..." I let out an awkward chuckle and push a strand of hair behind my ear. "It's not that, I just... don't eat meat. "

Lucas scoffs, and I try not to let heat rise into my cheeks.

This is why I don't like going out to eat with people. There's almost always someone who thinks my diet is silly or stupid or just plain wrong , and they usually let me know. Loudly.

"Why not?" Sebastian asks, though he seems more interested than disgusted.

With my gaze down at my menu, I say quietly, "I like animals. I don't want someone to hurt them just so I can eat them."

"That's stupid," Lucas says, and across the table, Alisha shoots him a scathing glare.

"No, it just means Nora has principles." Dex's voice is hard, and when I look over at him in surprise, his sharp gaze is leveled on Lucas. "But you wouldn't know anything about that." Lucas opens his mouth, but Dex holds up a hand. "Just shut the fuck up, dude."

A beat of tense silence goes around the table, and then Sebastian launches right back in.

"I think it's cool," he says, and he reaches across the table to bump my fist. "I'll have whatever you're having."

I laugh. "Well, I guess we're both having salad, then."

Once the moment has passed, I risk a glance at Dex, but he's not looking at me. He's focused on his menu, his blue eyes narrowed and a subtle furrow in his brow.

Why did he come to my defense like that? Does he actually mean what he said, or is he just so fed up with Lucas today that he's looking for any excuse to lay into him?

His eyes flick up to mine, and a thrill goes through me. I hold his gaze for one, two, three seconds, then offer him a small grateful smile. He doesn't quite smile back—not fully— but the tiny upward twist of his lips is enough to send my heart racing again, so I tear my gaze away and take another drink of my caramel apple martini.

I didn't really want a salad for dinner, but as far as salads go, it was delicious; even Sebastian seemed to enjoy his. I ordered sweet potato fries on the side, and I'm especially grateful I did, because the martini is already hitting me hard, and I'm hoping the carbs will soak up some of the alcohol.

When we've all finished our meals and the waiter comes back around, I quickly dive into my purse and pull out my wallet, determined not to make the others think I just want to mooch off them. Sure, this dinner alone might make it impossible to put any money in my savings account this month, but it's not like I eat out with rock stars every night.

Dex notices me pulling out my credit card, and a weird look crosses over his face. He looks... confused, maybe? But as soon as he notices me staring, he wipes the expression clean away.

Reaching into his back pocket, he pulls out a slim gray wallet and removes a thick black credit card. Without a word, the waiter sweeps by to take it from him, and Dex tips his head at me.

"I'm happy to pay for my dinner," I say, but Dex just shakes his head.

"You're our guest. It's my treat. Except for you." His gaze cuts to Lucas. "You're paying next time for being a dick."

"All right, all right." Lucas runs a hand over his buzzed blond hair and gives me a shy glance. "Sorry, Nora."

"It's all right. I get that a lot."

"Really?" Jordan says beside me. "That's fucked-up."

I give a little shrug. Talking about this is always a bummer, so I'd rather just avoid the topic and drink another martini.

"Okay, what's next?" Sebastian asks, rubbing his hands together like he's about to do a magic trick.

Next? I didn't expect there to be a next .

Jordan and Alisha glance at each other, then say in tandem, "Velvet!"

I've heard of it, but I've never been there; Velvet's a sexy nightclub where the who's who of LA like to hang out, or so the tabloids have led me to believe.

"What do you say, Nora?" Alisha looks at me with gleaming brown eyes. "You wanna go dance?"

Over her shoulder, Dex meets my eyes and flicks his lip ring, and looking at the sharp cut of his cheeks under the dim restaurant lighting, there's no way I can say no, no way I can walk away from this, from him , without finding out what's waiting on the other side.

This is bad.

"Let's do it," I say.

The girls squeal with excitement as I drain the rest of my martini.

I have a feeling this is going to be a night I won't soon forget.