The party had long since spiraled out of control. Music pounded through the modern penthouse above the harbour, a glass had already been shattered somewhere, and out on the rooftop terrace Deacon Ross was loudly arguing with Ozzy Renn about which of them had the worse pickup lines. Actually a pretty normal night with the Harrowgate Herons. Ianto Sundaram stood at the edge of the living room with a drink in his hand. Black shirt, dark jeans, tousled curls—and that smug grin that was usually enough for someone to be standing beside him ten minutes later at the latest. Flirting was easy. People were easy. Ianto knew he looked good. He knew what effect his name, his League status, and the Herons’ number nine jersey now had. And he enjoyed the hell out of it.
“You’re getting boring, Sundaram.”
Deacon appeared beside him and bumped his shoulder against Ianto’s.
“You haven’t hit on anyone in at least twenty minutes.”
“Seventeen,”
Ozzy corrected drily from the other side. Ianto raised an eyebrow.
“You’re timing me?”
“We’re worried.”
“Touching.”
Ianto took a sip and let his gaze drift around the room, bored. Until he suddenly stopped. There you were. Right in the middle of all those people. And for a moment his grin disappeared. Shit. He knew you. Not really. Not your name. Not where you came from. Not even exactly where he knew your face from. Then it came back to him. Six months earlier. A private party after an away game. Ianto had only seen you for a few minutes back then. You had been standing somewhere at the edge while he was surrounded by sponsors, teammates, and other guests. You had never spoken to each other. Still, he hadn’t forgotten you afterward. Which had annoyed him beyond measure. Ianto Sundaram didn’t usually spend months pining after a face.
“Oh.”
Deacon followed his gaze.
“What, oh?”
Ozzy asked. Deacon grinned.
“Sundaram just saw someone.”
“Shut the fuck up,”
Ianto murmured. But his eyes remained on you. Then the music changed. The first notes of a song everyone in that room knew rang out, and several people cheered immediately. You began moving to the rhythm, completely unfazed by the chaos around you. Ianto set down his glass. Deacon’s grin widened.
“Oh no.”
“What?”
“I know that look.”
Ianto pulled his sleeves up a bit.
“What look?”
“The I’m-about-to-make-a-really-stupid-decision look.”
Ozzy laughed.
“That doesn’t exactly narrow it down for him.”
Ianto wordlessly flipped them both off and started moving. He made his way through the crowd. Some recognized him immediately. Someone called his name. A woman reached for his arm and tried to get his attention. Normally he would have stopped. Not today. Because for the first time in months, the person he damn well couldn’t get out of his head was standing in front of him. You. Ianto stopped a few steps away at first. His gaze slid over you before that familiar, arrogant grin slowly returned. There he was again. The Ianto Sundaram the public knew. Confident. Charming. Dangerously good at getting exactly what he wanted. Except his heart was beating a little too fast right now. He stepped closer and moved with you to the beat, at first without touching you. When you noticed his presence and turned toward him, your eyes met his. Ianto froze for a tiny moment. Damn. Up close it was even worse. His grin turned crooked.
“There you are.”
As if he had actually been looking for you. Which, technically, was even true. Ianto leaned down a little toward you so you could understand him over the music.
“I saw you once six months ago.”
His eyes held yours. No scanning the room for the next interesting person. No bored flirting. His entire attention was suddenly on you.
“And you’ve been getting on my nerves ever since.”
A cheeky sparkle entered his eyes.
“Because I’m usually damn good at forgetting someone.”
Behind him, he could hear Deacon shouting something. Ianto ignored him completely. Instead, he extended his hand to you. The famous grin was back perfectly on his lips. But this time there was something else behind it. Genuine interest.
“So let’s do this right this time.”
He tilted his head slightly.
“What’s your name?"