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“Oooh spare!” she giggles happily. “But not as good as me.”
“Did it ever occur to you that I might be letting you win?” I ask with a smirk.
She pretend-frowns. “Oh no you aren’t, are you?”
I grin devilishly. “No, I’m not. You just suck at bowling,” I confess while heading back to the plastic seats.
“Well, why did you want to do this then, you crazy man?” Marcy asks while throwing her curls back for another giggle.
I run a hand through my dark hair and chuckle in turn. Why did I, come to think of it?
“Well, I wanted to show you that I can be a good sport but more importantly, if we aren’t careful, all we’d do is fuck and sleep and then fuck some more. You wouldn’t be able to walk if we didn’t get out of the house once in a while.”
Marcy’s pretty eyes widen. “That doesn’t sound so bad,” she says in a coy tone. “You could push me around in a wheelchair. I wouldn’t mind.”
“No, you wouldn’t want that,” I growl before leaning in for a kiss. “Because I wouldn’t even let you use a wheelchair. Instead, I’d just keep you in bed. God, the things I want to do to you,” I whisper against her neck.
Marcy leans into my touch, mewling as she speaks. “Again, that doesn’t sound so bad, Jared. But you’re right, it’s nice to spend some time getting to know one another. Plus, I’m winning so there’s always that,” she adds in a coo. “But how did you end up at Sanctum in the first place, may I ask? Don’t get me wrong,” she says, holding up her hands in a defensive gesture. “I’m happy you showed up, but the belly dancing event was the first time I saw you.”
I nod slowly. “It’s kind of a weird story actually.”
She squeals.
“Oh now you have to tell me!” she giggles before cupping her ears and flipping her palms forward. “I’m all ears,” she jokes.
I roll my eyes, but secretly, I love her corny lines.
“Well, I’m part of a Facebook group for single dads,” I admit sheepishly. “I know, I know. Facebook is for geezers and millennials use TikTok now, so make fun of me all you want, but honestly, that group has been a life saver ever since my divorce.”
“Oh, I would never make fun of you for that,” Marcy says immediately. “But that doesn’t explain how you ended up here,” she gestures around the room, “at the club.”
I nod.
“Through the group. I become friends with a couple of the guys in real life, and we bonded. It wasn’t hard because we were all single dads with young children in Manhattan, and a couple of them had been divorced for a while, so they knew what I was going through. Anyways, they eventually told me about the club and convinced Sanctum to extend a membership invitation.” I glance up at the screen, which has begun to flash a warning. “You better go bowl before it times out,” I say gruffly.
Marcy hops up and sashays her way toward the lane. “No staring at my ass, mister,” she sasses at me over her shoulder.
“I make no promises,” I growl. Marcy bends over far lower than she needs to and looks back at me before winking suggestively. Then, with a heave-ho, she chucks the ball down the lane and it bounces immediately into the gutter.
“Drat,” she says with a mock-pout before coming back to sit once again. “So you joined Sanctum… when?” she asks, continuing our conversation.
I think for a moment. “About a year ago? At first, I mostly just used the gym as way to get out of my house. I wasn’t into the parties yet. But after a couple months, I started going to a few of the special events, and it was good. It was a way to jump back into living life once more.”
Marcy nods before looking back up at me with those big brown eyes. “You mean, you started meeting lots of women through the club, right?” Her tone is carefully neutral, but there’s something in it that almost sounds… jealous? Is that possible, coming from a hostess?
I want to lie but there’s no point in doing that because it would be too obvious.
“Yes, I met a lot of women,” I agree in a careful tone. “It was helpful because my divorce threw me for a loop. You don’t get married expecting it to end one day, so when it all came crashing down, I was lonely and well, kind of desperate actually.”
Marcy shakes her head, a small laugh escaping her lips.
“Jared, please. I honestly can’t even imagine a guy like you being desperate. There must have been ladies breaking down your door!”
I shrug.
“Maybe, but I wasn’t into it,” I say in a light tone. “You can have the Queen of Sheba wanting to date you, but if you’re not ready on the inside, then it really doesn’t matter. Yeah sure, I’m rich and powerful and whatever alpha adjective you want to add in, and it would be true. But trust me, I was lost back then and the dads’ group helped. Frankly, being able to let go here has helped too because it made me feel human again. At first, I thought it was just the adrenaline rush of the parties, but then I realized that I actually like them. I enjoy myself at Sanctum events, and it’s become a significant part of my life.”
