The music was blasting loudly, making the floor beneath my feet vibrate.

I could feel the bass in my chest with every beat, the sound reverberating in my bones.

The smell of alcohol was obvious the minute I walked into the club, mingling with the scents of perfume and cologne that would soon turn into sweat.

I was dressed in a dress for the first time in a while. Ever since the season started I had dressed in airport attire, or navy blue team-wear.

It wasn't that I never had the chance to dress up, I was usually simply too lazy to try.

Lando had been ever the kindest and invited me to go out with his team and a few other friends to celebrate his podium finish. I took this as a chance to get myself freshened up and out of the lethargic mood I'd been in since yesterday.

My hair was left down, finally without a kink in it from my tight ponytails. I had attempted to do my makeup. Later, I realized there was no way I'd get through the night without itching the shit out of my eye and ending up as a raccoon.

I wanted to wear red, but then realized I would never hear the end of it from Lando if I showed up in rival Ferrari's colours. So I had to settle for a midnight blue because there was no way in hell I was showing up in orange.

The neon strobe lights made it difficult for me to make out his figure, but I recognized George as I neared the door.

His eyes widened when he finally noticed me.

"Dakota? Is that really you?"

"Yeah, don't act so surprised," I rolled my eyes, a smile on my face.

"Damn, you didn't have to look this good. My boyfriends at this club too," Lily joked, giving me a hug.

I laughed, shaking my head as she made me spin around.

"You made it!" Alex shouted over the music, as we moved further into the building. He leaned down to give me a side hug.

"Of course I did, where's that little man?" I asked, raising my voice so he could hear.

"Oh he'll kill you if he hears you calling him little man," George joked as we all scanned the room for Lando.

I spotted him talking to someone by the bar and made my way over to him.

"Did you hear some hotshot was hosting a party here?" I asked, sliding into a seat beside him.

"Oh really?" he asked, turning to look at me. He was dressed in a white button down that desperately needed to be ironed and a pair of black trousers. His usually unruly curls were tamed and properly styled and it had me doubting if he'd done his hair himself.

I faced forward, staring at the array of alcoholic beverages lining the wall.

"Mhm, sucks for him. He's got a hefty bill to pay," I said.

"You're not wrong there," he muttered, leaning against the counter. I felt his gaze on me for a few moments before he leaned over to see my face.

"Wait a second, Kota?"

"Sorry, who's that?" I asked, playing dumb.

"You're an ass," he muttered, turning away from me.

I chuckled at his reaction. It took him more than a minute to realize it was me.

"Oh shut up, you know you love me."

"Hey, I can kick you out so you better not be telling me to shut up."

"Isn't it a little sad that you're here all alone, with no alcohol in your system while your friends are having the time of their life?" I shot back.

"You don't drink either," he pointed out, an annoyed frown on his face.

"I don't need alcohol to have a good time," I replied simply, standing up.

I held out a hand and motioned for him to follow me on to the dance floor.

"I think I'm going to hate you by the end of tonight," Lando mumbled, following after me.

The music was even louder on the dance floor, as if that was even possible.

"I can't dance!" he shouted over the music.

"Does it look like I can?" I replied, moving my feet to the beat of the song.

"Care for a shot?" George asked, suddenly appearing beside me.

"Um," I hesitated for a moment, but then decided - why not?

The liquid burned my throat, the heat escaping through my nose. My eyes watered as I tried not to cough.

"Ugh, what is that?" I asked, making a face.

"Vodka," he replied, a grin on his face. He was clearly amused by my reaction and discomfort.

Lando and I danced for a while and I slowly grew more comfortable with myself and let loose.

It had been ages since I felt this relaxed and I was having a great time with my friends. Lily and Carmen had introduced me to Charlotte, Charles' girlfriend.

"Where's Alessandro?" Alex shouted.

"What?" Lando shouted back.

"Alessandro?"

"What?"

"Where's your teammate?"

"Huh?"

"Oh for God's sake. Alessandro?" I practically screamed in his ear.

"I dunno, he said he would come. Probably somewhere in here," Lando shrugged.

Alex nodded, somehow being able to hear Lando.

I yelped when Charlotte tugged me by my arm towards her.

"If you're looking for Alessandro, he's been staring at you for the past 20 minutes," she said in my ear.

My eyes widened as I tried to scan the room without making it too obvious.

"He's by the door," Lily added, nodding her head to the right.

I ran a hand through my hair, slowly making my way through the crowd to get back to the bar.

It was suddenly really hot and I could feel myself starting to sweat. I asked the bartender for a glass of water, taking a seat on the high stool.

"You're new here," a man whistled, checking me out before sitting beside me.

I ignored him, my body stiffening at his close proximity.

"You don't seem to talk much."

"I do, I just don't waste my time talking to people I don't like."

"Damn, learn how to take a joke princess," he laughed, clearly not taking a hint.

"Learn how to make one first."

I leaned away from him as he put a hand on my exposed thigh. I opened my mouth to yell at him, but someone beat me to it.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," his voice spoke, chills running down my spine.

"Oh, sorry mate. I didn't know," they guy said, putting his hands up in surrender.

I turned to look up, only to find myself staring into a pair of dark green eyes.

"Took you long enough," I said, suddenly aware of his hand resting on my lower back.

I stood up, my heels adding to my height but still not enough to reach his eye level.

"You're insane," he said, looking me up and down.

A part of me wanted to shrink away from his burning gaze.

The other part of me wanted him to rip my clothes off.

What? I never said that.

Alessandro was dressed in a white button down as well, only his was crisp and freshly ironed. The top two buttons remained undone, revealing his toned chest.

"Hm, how so?" I asked, giving him a sly look as I leaned closer to him.

It was fun to mess with him sometimes.

He shook his head, looking away. He stood with his hands in his pockets, not touching me at all. My hand reached out to play with the collar of his shirt, pretending to fix it.

Alessandro stiffened, his jaw clenching as he scanned the room, avoiding my gaze.

"Any ladies tonight?" I dared to ask, watching as his head whipped to look at me. A smirk tugged at his lip and I swear I felt my heart skip a beat.

His lower lip caught in his teeth and his eyes trailed down my body.

"None," he replied, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"That's a shame. They must be able to smell the shitty perfume you put on today. It's called Calvin Klein with a hint of bullshit," I said, giving him a sweet smile.

"You're mean even when you're drunk," he muttered.

"I'm not drunk," I huffed.

"Of course you are. Or else you would've castrated me by now," he said, glancing to his hand that was resting on my knee.

Right. Maybe I shouldn't have had 3 rounds of shots.

Fuck you George.

"You smell really good," I blurted, looking up at him.

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Weren't you just saying I had shitty cologne?"

"I was joking," I replied innocently, batting my lashes.

She looked up at me with her doe like eyes, batting her lashes innocently.

Fuck.

She had no idea what she was doing to me. I shifted on my feet, trying to distract my mind as the smell of her perfume clouded my senses.

She looked fucking incredible in that dress. She had been hiding that body under loose tops and team unifroms.

It had definitely been a blessing in disguise because now, it made me want her even more.

The dress was stunning on her, but in my mind, she would look better with it on the floor.

I swallowed, staring at her for a few moments.

The bartender came up to her, pouring another drink into her empty cup. My eyes widened as she quickly tipped her head back and emptied the glass.

"I thought you didn't drink."

"I don't," she replied, turning to look at me.

The rosy flush on her cheeks made her look even more beautiful.

"Then why are you drinking?" I decided to ask.

"Because you make me nervous," she replied shyly, looking down at her lap.

Jesus Christ.

I was finding it harder and harder to control myself around Dakota. She was like a fucking magnet, pulling me towards her. She was on my mind 24/7 and she had no idea.

"Let's get you home," I said, standing up.

If I spent any more time with her, I wouldn't be able to resist.

"Aww, already?" she pouted, her shoulders slumping. The strap of her dress slipped down her shoulder and I quickly slipped it back up. Both for her sake, and mine.

My hand rested on her lower back as I led her out of the club. In typical fashion, Dakota had spent a solid 15 minutes finding everyone and saying goodbye to them. I knew she did it just to annoy me.

But I didn't mind. Watching her stumble around was quite amusing. And in that blue dress, boy was she a sight for sore eyes.

I kept glancing over at her, unable to keep my eyes off of her.

"George and Carmen are heading home in an Uber, do you want to go with them?"

"No."

"Ok, then I'll drive you."

"No."

I raised a brow at her and she simply stared back at me.

"Fuck off, I want another shot," she huffed, turning on her heels.

"No you don't," I said, reaching out to grab her wrist.

"You suck," she whined, giving me a scowl.

I led her out of the club, a blast of cold air hitting us as the door shut behind us.

"Are you cold?" I asked, glancing at her.

Her shoulders had come up to her ears as she rubbed her bare arms.

"No shit Alessandro, I'm fucking overheating in this sweltering heat."

right. stupid me.

I quickly pulled off my blazer and draped it over her shoulders.

I held back a grin as she smiled, snuggling into it.

"It smells like you," she hummed, wrapping it tighter around her body.

"No shit, Dakota."

"Hey, only I can be mean to you. You can't be mean to me," she huffed, glaring at me.

"Who made that stupid rule?"

"I did. Got a problem with it?"

"No," I muttered, amused at her drunken state.

Dakota was an interesting character when she was sober, and even more interesting when she was drunk.

She glanced at the car door, standing with her arms crossed for warmth.

I blinked, staring at her in confusion.

"What happened?"

"Are you not going to open the door for me, Moreno?" she smirked.

Right.

I rounded the front of the car and reached to open the door for her.

"Thank you," she smirked victoriously, sliding into the passenger seat.

I shook my head, a small laugh escaping my lips.

She really is something else.

It only took us 15 minutes to get to the hotel where the lobby greeted us with a welcoming warmth.

"What room are you in?" I asked, pulling out my own keycard.

"Hm, I dunno? One on the seventh floor?"

"Dakota, there's like 20 rooms on the seventh floor."

"How do you expect me to remember if there's that many?" she rolled her eyes.

We kept walking down the hall until she pulled me to a stop.

"I think it's this one."

I glanced at her before placing the card on the scanner.

A moment later, the light turned green and the lock opened.

"Good job, you did something right."

"Oh fuck off."

I couldn't help but smile at the annoyance in her voice, turning to walk back to my room.

"Wait," I heard her call, making me hold the door open as she disappeared into her room.

Moments later she came back with my blazer in her hand, now 4 inches shorter without her heels.

"Thank you," she said quietly, a shy smile on her face.

"You're welcome. I have to say, I hate it when you're this civil."

I stiffened when she wrapped her arms around my neck, giving me a hug.

My hand automatically went to her waist, wrapping around it.

"Then maybe I should be like this more often. Even when I'm not drunk, just to piss you off."

I could feel her body pressing against mine, awakening the feelings I'd been fighting so hard to suppress all night.

She leaned back, her brown eyes twinkled with amusement as she looked up at me. God, I felt weak whenever she stared at me with that innocent look on her face.

I found myself staring at her lips, the pigmented lipstick that once coated them now dull.

Get your mind out of the gutter.

I quickly glanced back up to her eyes, but it seemed like she had other ideas.

My heart skipped a beat as she stood on her tippy toes, pressing her lips against mine.