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like?”
    “Oh...um....” Those brown
eyes were focused on me like a laser. My mind completely went
blank. It was just absolutely surreal to be standing inches away
from Jason Jax. Jason freaking Jax! He needed an answer though, or
else he was going to think I was a complete moron. I blurted,
“Beer?” Ugh, I hated beer. Why did I say that?
    “Two beers and whatever our
friend is having,” he told the bartender, then melted her into a
puddle by unleashing that smile. I wondered if she even heard
Yosh’s order, since she actually got giggly and almost knocked over
some glasses. That made me feel a bit better. Jason Jax was
probably used to people acting totally star-struck when they met
him, so maybe I wasn’t coming across as stupidly as I feared. Well,
okay, I was , but
maybe he was used to idiots.
    When he handed me the beer, he said,
“I didn’t catch your name.”
    “Gianni.”
    “It’s a pleasure to meet
you, Gianni. You too, friend of Gianni,” he said to Yosh. “I’d
better get back to our host, I made a beeline for the bar as soon
as I walked in the door. Bad form, I know.” His gaze lingered on me
for a moment before he turned and left the library.
    “Holy crap,” I mumbled after he’d
gone. “Did that really just happen? And if so, on a scale of one to
Kardashian, how dumb did I seem?”
    Yosh grinned at me. “You were clearly
awe-struck, but I’m sure he’s used to that.”
    “That’s just what I was thinking, that
people must fall over themselves all the time around
him.”
    “Throwing yourself at him
wasn’t even required, he’s totally into you,” Yosh said as we left
the library. The bartender had managed to give him the right drink,
a jack and diet Coke, which was what I usually ordered when my
brain cells were functioning.
    “What are you basing that
on?”
    “The way he stared at you.
He also asked your name and made a point of finding out if you and
I were dating.”
    “That was super smooth, by
the way. ‘We’re both single and gay.’ Thank you for that,
match-dot-com.”
    “Just trying to be
helpful.”
    When we returned to the
living room, we ended up chatting with a group of guys that Yosh
knew a little. Jason Jax was all the way across the room, sitting
with Miles and a couple older men. Every ninety seconds or so,
someone would come up to Jason and introduce themselves. At least
half the time, they asked to take a selfie with him. He remained
cheerful and charming throughout all of that, even though it had to
get old.
    More than once, he looked
up and caught me staring at him. It always resulted in him smiling
at me across the room. “He’s so into you,” Yosh whispered when he
noticed that.
    “If he was, he’d come talk
to me,” I countered.
    “He can’t, he’s busy holding court.
His adoring public demands his attention.”
    Maybe an hour later, I
excused myself and went in search of the bathroom. The one in the
hall was occupied, so I moved on to one attached to a guest room.
After using the facilities and washing up, I spent a couple extra
minutes in there, staring at myself in the mirror and trying to
give my reflection a pep talk. It didn’t work.
    I wanted to slip Jason my
number, but I just couldn’t do it. He had to make the first move. I
was always like that. I figured if someone was interested in me,
they’d do something about it. I wanted a partner that would take
control, even right at the outset by showing they wanted
me.
    When I finally left the
bathroom, I almost collided with Jason. I drew in my breath,
stepping back quickly as he exclaimed, “Shit, sorry. I didn’t mean
to startle you.”
    “It’s okay,” I murmured. “I just
didn’t expect anyone to be there.”
    I noticed that the bedroom
door was closed and he said, “This must seem really creepy. Sorry.
I just wanted a moment alone with you so I could give you this.” He
handed me a business card with a number handwritten on the back.
“You’re incredibly beautiful,