Page 44 of Playing for Keeps

Aaron’s grip loosened slightly, enough for me to turn in his arms and look up at him. Except he wasn’t looking at me, he was glaring at the back of Rhys’s head.

“Let’s go dance!” Jordan nearly shouted, grabbing Zombie-Brad by the hand. “Woo! Best Halloween ever!”

Aaron let me go, that glare of his hardly dropping when he glanced my way. “You go ahead,” he said, grabbing ahold of Rhys’s collar and pulling him back, “Rhys and I need to have a talk.”

Kelly frowned at me as Aaron yanked Rhys away, but Kristen grabbed the two of us by the arms, pulling us after Melissa and Troy to the middle of the dance floor. The music was a hard, pulsing beat, the bodies jumping and bouncing, and though Kelly’s gaze flicked back in the direction Aaron and Rhys had gone, we soon let the press of the bodies around us tempt us into joining in.

Two songs in, and the beat of the music changed, slowing into something much more sensual and raw. The type of music that brought back memories I didn’t like to indulge in, because they always led me down the rabbit hole of what-ifs and what-could-have-beens. I turned away from my friends, intent on sitting this one out, only to find a man standing just to the right of me. He was my height, slight under his all-black costume, every inch of his body covered, from the knee-high leather boots to the black fencing-style mask hiding his face. He gripped his cape with one hand, then did a little bow, his other hand extended toward me.

My heart fluttered and froze before it rose to choke my throat. Any hopes of pushing down those memories I fought against were lost. The world around me disappeared, and all that existed was me and the masked man.

Ignoring how wrong it surely was, I slipped my hand into his. My heart took off like a hummingbird as he led me to a small empty spot on the dance floor and pulled me close. With my arms around his neck and his hands riding low on my hips, my entire body lit up.

Everything felt right.

As if my tilted world had been set back on its axis.

As if I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

The smell of leather filled my senses, a subtle note of vanilla filtering through. I clung to the man as if my life depended on it, because I wasn’t sure my heart could take it if it wasn’t true.

Those hands moved, smoothing across my hips, up my back, one hand tangling in my hair as the other dragged my body closer to his. Gathering me to him like I was the most precious thing. Holding me like he’d never let me go. Swaying to the music, his knee slid between my legs, and every nerve in my body went up in flames.

I couldn’t stop it.

Just like I couldn’t stop it the night I’d met Vinny.

The friction between my legs, the hard press of his thigh against me, it sent a wave of intense pleasure rushing through me in a way that made me want to call out in ecstasy and hide my head in shame.

I was panting.

Writhing against his body.

Coming undone in a stranger’s arms.

And I wanted to cry at the perfection of the moment, at the calm that washed through me, at the beauty of being right where I wanted to be.

He held me, guiding me through my orgasm, rocking my body against him as he tugged gently at my hair, the solid length of him hard against my stomach, his hot breath seeping through his mask and warming my skin.

And God, I wanted to rip that mask right off of him. I wanted to bury my face in his skin and plunge my tongue into his hot mouth. I wanted to tear off his clothes and press my naked body against his.

I wanted to hold him.

I wanted to be with him.

I wanted to be his.

Forever and ever.

Lifting my face to his, my eyes tried to zero in on where his should have been, wondering the whole time if maybe I was wrong. If maybe this strange man was just a stranger, and it was only my lack of sex life that was lighting me up.

His face was close, yet lowered closer, almost as if he was going in for a kiss. The hot breath I’d felt against my skin breezed over my mouth, and I lifted my hand to his cheek, to his mask, wishing I could make my dreams come true.

Was it him?

Could I take his mask off and see?

The body of a ballerina passed close beside me, her bare arm bumping mine and dragging my attention away from the masked man.