1 Prologue- When We Met

It took four jaeger bombs and ten shots of tequila for Izzy to summon all the courage to do the first move at a certain dark-haired man.

She'd seen him before. Twice, to be exact.

The first time was when she and her group of friends, Jenna and the twins-- Robyn and Vanessa-- landed at the airport. Izzy had saved up some money to go to Mexico for their first girls-only-vacation and the twins' 19th birthday vacation.

She accidentally bumped into him while walking down the plane's narrow aisle.

He was courteous and apologetic though it was Izzy who was at fault as her mind was all over the place. Up close, he had a face of an adonis-- symmetrical face, arresting deep-set hazel eyes, and sculpted jaw. She didn't think much of him until she saw him at the reception of their hotel the next day.

He was already with a group of guys in the resort's hotel. She just noticed how he stood out from the rest of his friends. Even from afar, she could tell that he was refined.

"Go on and introduce yourself before it's too late! We'll never know when he'll stay," Jenna, one of her oldest friend (since middle school) commented as she jokingly nudged her side.

Izzy turned to her friend, blushing. "I... don't think that's a bright idea. I'm definitely not his type. I mean, look at me."

Jenna shook her head in disbelief at her friend. Izzy may not be a tall supermodel nor a size 0, she was certainly not lacking in the facial department-- she had a cute round face and bright eyes that disappeared when she smiled.

She patted Izzy's shoulder. "Well, I don't want to push you to say hi to that guy, but don't pass up a chance to know somebody just because you think they're out of your league. Live a little, and live on the edge sometimes."

Jenna winked at her friend at her last statement which left Izzy dumbfounded.

Izzy sometimes wished she had Jenna's wild side so she could conquer her fears of not living up to people's expectations.

Maybe I should just go and ask him, she thought to herself. When Izzy turned around, the guy was already nowhere in sight, nor was his friends.

She never saw the guy again throughout her stay at the hotel. Izzy felt like it was meant to be. And she almost forgot about him until a few days later when the girl's group decided to hit up a club near the resort called The Devil's Den.

Jenna, Izzy, and the twins danced in the middle of the dance floor as they let the music dictate the moves. They drank shot after shot. Izzy, being the lightweight drinker out of all the group, had to take a breather by ordering a glass of water while the rest had already found dance partners in the romantic rhythmic beat of the bachata.

Then, in her peripherals, a certain dark-haired guy walked over beside her and leaned over the bar, trying to grab the bartender's attention.

Izzy's face burned hot-- most probably from the gazillion shots of tequila and pre-drinks she'd that she'd taken throughout the night, and it would also be because of how close the man was beside her.

So close that her skin burned at the slight touch of his skin.

Izzy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Be confident. Channel your inner vixen, Izzy thought to herself before she opened her eyes.

He glanced to her side and she did what she never thought she'd do in her entire life.

Flirt.

She slowly trailed her fingertips up and down his brawny arm while her other hand flipped her hair back, revealing her cleavage. And for the first time, Izzy was glad that she dressed up a little more skimpy than her usual-- a body tight red mini dress and push up bra which made her mounds twice as big as they seemed-- because she got what she wanted.

His attention.

She could feel his eyes raking her entirety as he drew a saucy grin. The man leaned toward her right ear.

"Do you want to dance?" his low, deep voice was coated in anticipation as he held out his hand.

Izzy felt all the butterflies fluttering in her stomach as they glided to the beat of the music. She felt hot by the minute. Was it the crowd practically brushing up behind her? Or the fact that they were practically skin-to-skin as they moved on the dance floor.

Either way, her body moved effortlessly to his rhythm as she swayed her hips to the beat and followed his lead. Her confidence shot up as she took his hands and placed them on her backside and pressed herself even closer.

Before she knew it, her lips were drawing closer to his. He dipped his beautiful head and captured hers quickly as she tasted a hint of gin and tonic.

Somewhere in this club, Jenna must be cheering on her as she finally broke out of her goody-two-shoes cocoon and transformed into a femme fatale.

She broke off the kiss and in the corner of her eye, she saw the twins dance by who most probably saw her kiss the man as they fanned themselves and mouthed "he's hot!" Izzy shook her head internally.

Before she knew it, the DJ changed the song and the lights brightened a little. He was just at the right spot as the light accentuated his strong jaw.

He bit his low lip and smirked. "Do you wanna go somewhere quiet?"

And without hesitation, Izzy answered. "I have a room at a resort near the club."

And before she knew it, she was on her way her hotel room with the man she barely knew. Not even his name! Yet she didn't feel guilty at all. All she knew at that moment was that she wanted to hop on her bed and make him explore the places that she'd never been, and he wanted to make her feel things she'd never felt before.

And for the first time in forever, Izzy was not disappointed.