AllFreeNovel Stories worth discovering

Two By Two

Page 81

by M.J. Duncan

Imani laughed. “Oh, she totally will.”

Zann sniggered and shifted her attention back to the group. “Okay, so, for this last one, I want it to be you guys having fun.” She pulled her phone from her pocket, opened her music app, and handed the phone to Imani. “Can you pull up an 80s dance playlist?”

“You got it, boss,” Imani said as she immediately began searching for something good.

Zann chuckled. “So,” she said loudly, “I’m gonna play some music, we’re going to hope the speaker on my phone is loud enough to carry over the ocean and shit, and I want you to take a moment to just bop about like you would if you were in a John Hughes movie. Take turns dancing with our lovely bride”—she smiled at Eve—“and just go for it. The sillier the better. You’ll have time to fix your hair and whatever afterward if you want to. We’ll shoot for maybe a few songs and then head back up. Any questions?”

“I think we can manage that,” Lydia answered for the group.

“I dunno,” Michael drawled, his voice full of impish delight, “I think we might need you to come demo, Zee.”

Zann shook her head. “I don’t think—”

“Good point,” Imani said as she all but tore her camera from Zann’s hands. “Good point!” She shoved her forward. “Go show them what you’re looking for, Ms. Photographer.”

“I really don’t think that’s necessary,” Zann protested as she tried, and failed, to steal her camera back. Imani had ruthlessly quick reflexes. “They know what I mean.”

“Zee.” Imani shook her head. “You’ve been making heart eyes at Wikipedia the entire time we’ve been doing this. Go dance with your girl, and lemme take some pictures. And don’t worry”—she pressed play on the playlist she’d pulled up and dropped the phone, which was now absolutely blaring Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, onto the small towel they’d brought along in case they needed to brush sand off of anyone’s clothes—“the music will definitely be loud enough for them to hear.”

“But I want—”

“I know what you’re looking for,” Imani interrupted as she smacked her on the ass. “Now, go shake it for the camera.”

Zann pulled a face and held her hands up in defeat. “You know, I usually charge for that,” she sassed as she began walking backward toward where Eve and the rest of the bridal party were gathered just above the tideline.

“Yeah, well, I’m sure Wikipedia will pay whatever you’re asking,” Imani retorted.

Zann barked out a laugh and flipped her off as she spun on her heel. “You’d better get this right, Freiberg!”

“Oh, I will!” Imani yelled. “Wikipedia! Dance with your woman!”

“If you insist!” Lydia hollered back, looking absolutely adorable as she waggled her eyebrows and held out her hands.

Zann, of course, took them immediately and tugged Lydia into her arms. She was pleased to see that the rest of the group had picked up the beat and were already cutting loose. She smiled at the way Shannon and Bonnie were jumping around and swinging their arms in their best Molly Ringwald impersonation as, beside them, Michael and Eve looked like they were auditioning for a Janet Jackson music video.

“Imani! You can switch the camera to vid—”

“I KNOW! SHUT UP AND DANCE, SILVA! SHIT, YOU’RE SO CONTROLLING!”

Zann rolled her eyes as Michael absolutely lost it at that, and muttered, “I am not,” as she spun Lydia away from the pack so that she wouldn’t inadvertently show up in any of the pictures of Eve and her bridal party.

She forgot to be annoyed, though, when Lydia’s hands slid over her shoulders to loop loosely behind her neck, and perfectly painted, smiling lips drawled, “I happen to really like it when you’re controlling.”

“Yeah?” Zann arched a brow cockily and reached down to give Lydia’s ass a quick, playful squeeze before grabbing her hips and leading her into a fast, powerful spin that had Lydia throwing her head back and laughing wildly in surprise.

It was a full-on dance party after that, and while Zann kept half an eye on Imani to make sure she stayed out of the shot, she didn’t worry herself with anything else as she let herself enjoy this moment of unbridled, girlish energy. It was different from the playful jostling and comedic posturing that had marked the shoot with Aspen’s half of the party—she seriously couldn’t wait to see how the picture they’d taken of Jack on Aspen’s shoulders and Kit on hers while Alder refereed the mock chicken fight turned out—but both were so perfectly them that she wouldn’t have had it any other way.

She and Lydia danced through the entirety of Girls Just Wanna and half of I Wanna Dance With Somebody before Lydia left her to take her turn dancing with Eve.

Zann hung back to let the five friends have a moment together—their joyous faces and flailing limbs were going to make an absolutely insane shot—and then joined Michael and the rest in hooting and cheering when the song changed to What a Feeling and Lydia and Eve immediately began doing their best Flashdance.

“Oh, we’re definitely doing this one, too!” Michael declared, and Zann laughed when he whipped his head around and jabbed a commanding finger at her as he launched into the choreography. “Let’s go, girls!”

“This isn’t Shania, dude,” Zann laughed as she played along and tried to copy him.

“I don’t know if I can do that!” Bonnie protested.

“Just go with it!” Shannon told her with a smile as she took her hands and tugged her into motion.