Everyone in the group smiles, and you can practically hear the pounding hearts as Nathan walks around my couch to join us. When he reaches the center of the semi-circle, he glances at Keisha, who starts to get up from the recliner for him, but Nathan waves her off and looks down directly at me. I freeze as his eyes increase the gravity in the room and pin me to the couch. It’s only Juliana and me on this particular couch, leaving plenty of room for him between us, but there’s no way the universe would grant me such a blessing, right? I look at Juliana, whose eyes are just as wide as mine, as Nathan clears his throat to speak.

“Do you mind if I sit right here?” he asks, and although Juliana is on the couch too, his eyes only find me. They lock on, momentarily turning me to stone as I realize my favorite author is speaking directly to me. The man who wrote my favorite books. The man who has written the hottest scenes I’ve ever read and made me question my entire sex life just spoke to me and is awaiting an answer that I can’t seem to speak. My throat clenches as the words get stuck on their way up, and all I can do is stare at him like a lost puppy. Nathan makes the lock on the cage confining my darkness feel loose and weak, and I don't know what to do with myself.

“No, we definitely don’t mind,” Juliana answers, leaning over so she can be in Nathan’s line of sight. His eyes shift to her and he flashes a grateful smile.

“Thank you,” he says, before lowering himself between the two of us.

When he sits, his cologne wafts into the air and fills my nostrils. He smells just as sexy as he looks, and I breathe deeply. How does a man such as this even exist? Once he’s settled on the couch, he looks over at me again with an amused smile, and I look into his eyes. I know they’re brown, but his pupils are so dark they almost look black, and I can see the reflection of the lights in them.

“You okay?” he asks me, still grinning, and this time Juliana can’t save me.