Luisa entered the noisy restaurant and asked the hostess about Selina's party. She was directed to a party room at the rear of the establishment. Upon entering the room, she saw that everyone turned to look at her. Selina and Megan made a beeline for her and greeted her enthusiastically.

"You look hot," Megan said with a wink. "Maybe you'll get lucky tonight."

Luisa scoffed. "That's not in my plans." Her friends giggled.

The small party stood around the room chatting in small groups that disbanded and reformed every few minutes.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Seokjin laughing at something that Hoseok or Yoongi had said. She couldn't help looking at him; he was stunning. After all this time, he still took her breath away, which was something that she would never admit to anyone. She shook her head to dispel her thoughts. When she looked up again, he was looking directly at her.

She almost gasped before she controlled herself and sent him a half-hearted wave.

He smiled and waved back. She did not make any attempt to engage him in conversation, pretending instead to be engrossed in what the people around her were saying. Oh, but he looked too good for words, and if she wasn't careful, words would be the least of her problems.

After a while, it was time to eat. The servers brought in food plates, and Luisa was ushered to her seat by her overzealous friends. She reached her chair, and Seokjin sprang to his feet.

"Hi, Lu," he said with a bright smile. They leaned slightly toward each other then quickly moved back. They stood looking at each other for a few seconds before he pulled out her chair.

Luisa nodded. "Hello again." She sat down, and he pushed her chair gently forward.

Hoseok smirked in her direction. "Oh, come on, Luisa. You don't think Jin merits a kiss greeting after all this time?"

Luisa inhaled sharply, but she heard Seokjin shush his friend before she could reply. She wondered if he was going to say anything too personal, but to her surprise, he hardly talked to her at all during dinner. She was aware of how loud everyone else was, but Seokjin just seemed to be smiling and nodding at others and rarely turned to her. Maybe he wasn't happy to have been paired up with her, especially since Hoseok kept making suggestive comments toward them.

After the dinner plates had been cleared away, and everyone ordered cocktails, Seokjin finally turned his attention to her. He leaned his elbow on the table, his hand on his cheek.

"So, Lu, I hear that you're hosting a Christmas party in a few weeks. I thought you weren't a fan of parties."

She nodded. "I've sort of been corralled into it. I moved into a new apartment two months ago, and Sel and Meg said it would be nice to throw a small housewarming party."

"New apartment," he repeated. "It must be a nice place if they want to throw a party there."

"Maybe you should go check it out, Jin," Hoseok said loudly from across the table. "New apartments need some breaking in." He began to laugh. He was probably drunk.

Luisa glanced at him and then turned back to Seokjin. Her heart started beating faster as she imagined Seokjin in her apartment. Seokjin in her bedroom... She closed her eyes for a second.

He took a sip of his drink and shook his head. "Don't listen to him. He's had too much to drink."

"And you haven't had enough," his friend retorted. "That's why you should take her to her apartment. You're not too wasted, are you?"

Seokjin's eyes narrowed as he scowled at his friend, but the other man kept laughing until another conversation caught his attention.

"He's an idiot," Luisa said softly.

"I've always thought so," Seokjin agreed in his smooth tone. "But, actually, I've been meaning to ask: are you single?"

She leaned slightly away from him. "Wh-Why do you want to know?" She hoped he was not seriously contemplating a hook-up tonight. Did he sense her weakness? Sweat prickled at her hairline.

"Well, I wouldn't want any trouble with a jealous boyfriend or anything," he replied with a smile.

"Ha! Since when has that ever stopped you?" Yoongi said loudly, and he and Hoseok guffawed again. Everyone was listening to their conversation.

Seokjin exhaled loudly. "Okay. They're both idiots." He paused. "I just wanted to know if, you know, we could...or I could call you sometime. Just to talk."

"Stop wasting her time and just get on with it," Hoseok said. He turned his gaze on Luisa. "Hey, Luisa, you still like my buddy Jin, don'tcha? Why don't you make him a happy guy and take him home?"

"Why don't you just shut up?" Seokjin's voice sounded beyond upset, but Hoseok was already on the other side of drunk, and he did not stop.

"C'mon, Jin," the drunk man kept going. "You're telling us that you don't still have the hots for her? That you don't want to be alone with her?"

Seokjin's lips were pressed together tightly. "No. I don't have the hots for her, and I don't want to hook up with her." His voice was louder than he intended.

All talking immediately stopped as everyone at the table turned to stare at them. Luisa closed her eyes and wished she could disappear.

"Oh, my God," Selina said, clearly annoyed with what was going on. "Will you all just stop it and leave them alone? Stop acting like adolescents."

Just as suddenly, everyone started talking amongst themselves.

"Lu, I didn't mean that...well, I meant that...Damn it!" Seokjin exclaimed.

Before she could reply, her phone rang, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She grappled with her phone and saw that it was Leo, with whom she'd gone out twice in the last three weeks. She wasn't sure if she wanted anything serious with him. He was pretty much the opposite of Seokjin in every way. She mentally berated herself for her unfair comparison. No man could compare to Kim Seokjin.

She ignored the call, but a few seconds later, her phone buzzed. She glanced at his text message asking her for the third time if she'd see him tonight. With a sigh, she texted a quick reply and looked up.

"I'm sorry. I guess I'll be leaving now," she announced.

"So soon?" Selina asked with a whine.

Seokjin looked disappointed. "Already? Okay. Let me walk you out."

She scrambled to her feet. "Not necessary. I'm fine. Just stay and enjoy." She waved her hand. "Hey, it was great seeing you all. Have a great Thanksgiving. Meg, Sel, I'll call you later." She sent them a kiss.

"Lu," Seokjin said, also getting to his feet. "I'll walk you out." He grabbed her elbow and steered her out of the private room while his friends whistled at them.

Outside the restaurant, Luisa turned to face him. "It's not a big deal. You don't have to pretend to be nice just to give your friends a show." Her tone was sharp.

"Wasn't pretending." His eyes looked surprised. "I don't care what they think. Don't listen to their drunken nonsense. I don't want you to be upset. Did I do something wrong?"

"No. Well. How's your girlfriend?" she asked, one eyebrow raised.

"She's fine," Seokjin answered automatically. He shook his head. "Is that why you're upset? You think I'm going to cheat on my girlfriend? That I'm making moves on you?" He scoffed.

"Well, it's good that you don't want to hook up with me," she continued.

"Would you rather I said I did?" he asked. "I won't disrespect you." He paused. "That's never been my intention. I would just like for us to talk now and then. As friends. I worry about you sometimes." He inclined his head, indicating for her to walk to her car.

"You don't have to worry about me," she replied as they walked together.

He sighed. "I just wondered if you've found someone who's nice to you. You deserve to be happy. Your eyes sometimes look a little...sad. I hope the guys' stupidity hasn't upset you too much." They stopped next to her car.

Luisa gulped. He was more perceptive than she thought. She'd die of embarrassment if he guessed what she was thinking. Her eyes glanced at his full lips of their own accord. Her body instinctively leaned ever so slightly toward him.

"I'm fine," she said. "I actually have a date. That's why I'm leaving early.  And I don't care about anything your drunken friends have to say. It's not like anything is going on between us. I'm not upset, okay?" She looked up at him and felt pierced by his gaze.

"Okay," he said, still looking into her eyes. Without warning, he pulled her toward him and kissed her.

Luisa felt her knees go weak, and she wrapped her arms around his body. Seokjin's lips were sinfully soft yet strong. All rational thought flew out of her head. He kissed her for what seemed like an eternity. She tried not to moan when he deftly parted her lips with his tongue before letting her go.

"I don't want to hook up with you, Lu," he said huskily, his breathing rapid. He turned on his heel and went back inside the restaurant without a backward glance.

Luisa brought a hand to her rapidly swelling lips, completely dumbfounded.