“That guy over there,” Delise said in Remi’s ear. Remi dragged her gaze away from the dancers to a group of three men standing at the bar. All three of them were good-looking, clean cut, nicely dressed. She shrugged.

“I’ll go invite them over,” Delise said and rose from her chair. Remi grabbed her arm.

“No! Don’t be crazy!”

“Why not?” Delise shook her hand off and smiled down at her. “Relax, Remi. It’s okay to talk to men.”

Remi rolled her eyes. It wasn’t as if she was a twenty-eight-year-old virgin, for god’s sake. She’d had boyfriends, relationships…but picking up guys in bars was not her style.

“Fine,” she sighed. “Go ahead.”

She tapped her foot to the music while she awaited her drink, studiously avoiding watching Delise approach the men. Sure enough, all three followed her back to the table and a search for extra chairs ensued. Soon Remi sat sandwiched between two men.

She pulled her shoulders in and reached for the drink the waitress set in front of her. Lord.

“Hi,” the guy on her right said. “I’m Elton.”

“Remi.” She smiled at him. His gaze dipped to her chest. Her lips tightened.

“Nice to meet you, Remi,” he said, still looking at her cleavage. She sighed.

“I’m Dave,” the man on her left said. “This is Tiger.”

Remi blinked. Tiger?

The girls all introduced themselves and Remi sucked back her tangy cocktail. The lime puckered the inside of her mouth, but it was cold and wet and she was feeling very warm, despite the scant fabric of her new top.

“We’re celebrating tonight,” Delise announced to the men.

“Oh, yeah? What?”

“Remi’s new life.”

Remi wanted to slide under the table. She forced a tight laugh. “It’s not really a new life,” she explained. “My sister moved out recently and now I live alone.”

That didn’t even begin to explain the huge change that had just occurred in her life, but whatever. She didn’t need to share every detail with strangers.

“Cool,” Elton said. He leered at her. “Party at your place tonight, huh?”

She rolled her bottom lip in and seared Delise with a look. She was so dead after this. Delise grinned.

Remi tried to make conversation with Elton and Dave. She really did. But all Dave wanted to talk about was the stock market, which she knew next to nothing about, and all Elton was interested in was staring at her boobs.

Remi ordered another drink along with everyone else. The music grew louder, the dancing more frenzied.

“Wanna dance?” Elton invited.

“No thanks.” She smiled politely.

“Aw, come on.” He stood and tugged her hand. She tried to resist, but his grip was tight and rather than make a scene, she let him lead her onto the dance floor.

Oh dear lord, what a mistake. Elton danced like he was doing the funky chicken, elbows up and out, flapping like wings, feet shifting erratically. Her face burned as she cast glances at the other patrons on the dance floor. Nobody paid any attention to them, wrapped up in their own dancing or wrapped up in their partners’ arms.

Remi smiled brightly at Elton, waiting for the song to end. When it did, she stood on tiptoes. “I’m going to the ladies’ room!” she said into his ear. He nodded and she quickly exited the dance floor.

She passed the catwalk where the go-go dancers shook their booties. A group of men at the end of the catwalk watched them with smiles on their faces. Remi spared a glance and then a second glance at the group of big, good-looking and uh…big men. The five of them created quite a sight, with their massive shoulders, expensive-looking suits and neat haircuts.

She returned to the table moments later to find only Elton sitting there.

“The others are dancing,” he said. “Wanna go dance again?”

“No thanks.” She smiled and picked up her drink.

They sat there for a moment, Remi trying to think of something to say, and then Elton stood and said, “Excuse me. I see someone I know.”

He disappeared into the crowd around the bar and Remi sighed. She didn’t know what was worse, sitting there with a man she had absolutely no interest in—or sitting there alone. Painfully alone.

Ah well.

She dipped her straw in and out of the cocktail, studying the people. In her sexy new clothes, she definitely wasn’t out of place. Many girls wore similar outfits. Rouge was the hottest bar in Chicago, an upscale place to see and be seen.

When the others returned to the table, breathless and laughing, Delise said, “Where’s Elton?”

“He went to talk to someone,” Remi said. A frown creased Delise’s forehead.

“Well,” she said, head swiveling one way, then the other. “We’ll have to find someone else for you.”

“It’s okay, Delise!”

“No, it’s not.” Delise pouted. “We’re finding a hot guy for you tonight if it’s the last thing we do.”

“I’ll find my own guy!”

Delise rolled her eyes. “No, you won’t.”

“I will, I promise. I’ll…go for a walk. Right now.” She stood. “After I get another drink.”

Delise shook her head, but subsided back into her seat. “Fine.”

Remi could tell Delise didn’t believe she would try to pick up a guy. She knew her too well. She grinned as she squeezed between some bodies at the bar to order another mojito.

Drink in hand, she twisted and turned through the crowd, surrounded by warm bodies and mingled scents of Armani, Chanel and Prada. She glanced back at the table and saw Delise watching her with narrowed eyes and raised chin. She couldn’t help but be amused by her friend’s determination, even though she wanted to shake her head. She waved a hand at Delise and moved on through the crowd.

Near the catwalk she paused again to watch the dancers, admiring their defined abs, long lean thighs and sexy moves. Then she spotted Delise coming toward her. Remi’s eyes flicked around and she saw that group of stunningly gorgeous guys still there, laughing, each of them holding a beer. She moved toward them.

What was she going to say? This was crazy.

She paused beside the men, and put a hand on the forearm of the one closest to her. He looked down at her—waaaay down. He had to be six foot three at least, and considering she was five foot three—okay, a few inches taller than that in her new heels, but still—he was in another layer of the atmosphere. He lifted a brow.

“Excuse me,” Remi said, heat sweeping from her collarbones up over her throat and into her face. “Can you do me a really big favor?”

Jason looked down at the tiny, little blonde standing there with her hand on his arm. Was she even old enough to be in the bar? Amusement tickled inside him. He was used to girls hitting on him, went with the territory, but this little pipsqueak teeny-bopper blonde was hands-off material. Not even close to his type, anyway.

“Favor?” he said.

She nodded, smiled with pretty white teeth and tipped her head. “My friend is determined to fix me up with someone. If you’d just talk to me for a few minutes, maybe she’ll leave me alone.”

“Talk?” His lips quirked. “You want to talk?”

“Well.” She licked her lips and blinked rapidly. “Whatever. Just fake it. You know.” Her eyes darted to the side, then back. She gave him a bright smile.

She was kinda cute, in a Reese Witherspoon sort of way. Heart-shaped face, small mouth, big eyes. Her chin-length blonde hair flipped out at the ends and long bangs grazed her eyelashes.

She pressed her lips together and gazed up at him and those big eyes were like turquoise pools, liquid and shiny. He couldn’t help but smile. It was a new pick-up line, one he hadn’t heard, but he didn’t have it in him to tell her to take a hike. He turned toward her and bent his head. She was so little, he’d have to crouch to talk to her. “Sure,” he said. “Let’s talk.”

He shifted his body so they stood apart from the other guys, who were giving them amused glances. They could think he was hooking up with blondie here, it didn’t bother him. He was a free and single man again as of this weekend, free to do whatever he wanted, including pick up little blonde pixies in bars if he wanted to.

Which he didn’t. He almost laughed at the thought. But those big blue-green eyes made it kinda hard to say no to her.

Relief shone in her eyes and her smile beamed. “Thanks,” she said. She rolled her eyes. “My friend gets an idea in her head and there’s no stopping her.”

“Why is she so determined to find you a man?”

She gave her head a little shake, then lifted her drink, closing her mouth on the straw in a tiny pursed-lip suck that shot heat straight to his dick. Jesus.

“She’s crazy.” She laughed. “My little sister moved out…well, it’s a long story.”

“Go ahead,” he said, taking a swallow of his beer. Hell, it was almost done. “Wait. I need another drink. How about you?”

“Sure.”

He caught the eye of a pretty waitress dressed in a low cut, skin-tight black dress. She was more his type—tall, athletic build, long dark hair. She hurried over with an inviting smile. “Another of these,” he lifted his bottle. “And another…” He looked at uh…hell, he didn’t even know her name.

“Mojito,” she said.

“I’m Jason,” he said, not bothering to watch the waitress leave, even though he knew the tight dress showed off a very fine ass.

“I’m Remi. Nice to meet you, Jason.” Her sweet smile pulled at something unexpected inside him.

“Where were we? Oh, yeah, your little sister.”

“Oh. Well, my parents died about five years ago. My brother and sister were both teenagers, so I’ve looked after them since then. My brother started college this year and my sister recently moved in with her boyfriend. My friends think I need to start having more fun now that I’m on my own.”