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“About the rumors of our affair?” he asks with a laugh in his voice. “Your secret is safe with me, scout’s honor.”
I look up to meet his eyes and see the mirth in his eyes. I wish I could feel the same amount of joy, but tension grips me.
“Actually, I meant about the attack,” I say quietly. “It would suck for that to get out. I’m so embarrassed.”
He looks at me in surprise, though I can’t decipher why. “I didn’t tell her about it,” he confirms, and I sigh in relief. “That’s your business to share. Or not share, I guess.”
“Right,” I answer awkwardly, feeling more embarrassed for assuming his conversation with Meredith would have anything todo with me. Self-obsessed or what? Suddenly, I feel the push to smooth this over. “I feel like I owe you for everything. Would you like to go out dancing with me?”
I wait anxiously as he considers my offer.
CHAPTERTEN
The bass of the music is so loud when we enter the club. I feel it pulsating in my chest. It’s not my scene, but neither is agreeing to a date with a girl like Melissa. She grabs my hand and leads me through the crowd, comfortable here. This is her scene, her show. I’m merely a participant like the rest of the patrons.
She smiles and waves at acquaintances, a regular in this place. She yells over the bass that she used to dance here on weekends to pay rent. Piece by piece, her story comes together. It occurs to me that I don’t know what my conquests do for a living. I never ask. Most of the time, I don’t want to know, not wanting to create any connection between us.
If I know where a woman works, I might think about her when I pass by that place. I might frequent it to see her. Then our interactions would go from a casual hookup to something more substantial. That’s not in the cards for me. I don’t want to give a woman the impression that it is.
Melissa is no different. She’s just a bit more complicated. To start, I already knew where she worked when we met. She happens to be employed by one of my good friends’ wives. That comes with a built-in excuse for why we can’t be more than friends and possibly have any benefits on the side. If I know women at all, she’ll get frustrated with the concept and stop talking to me after a few weeks. No matter what, this will stay casual.
We go to the bar and order drinks. She gets something frilly and girly again, while I opt for a beer. I’d go for something stronger, but my head is already pounding. The sooner we finish this portion of the night, the better. I can’t be the one to make the first move, though. She asked me here. She’s in charge. If we’re hooking up, it has to be her idea.
With a beer in me, I grab her hand and pull her onto the dance floor. After all, this is what she wanted to do. Never mind that I hate dancing. I’d rather do anything else but dance. But she’ll be doing all the work. I only have to stand there and sway to the music. Simple as that.
Sweaty bodies press against us, but I’m focused on her. The way she moves her hips and the hypnotic way she pulls me against her is electric. She’s magnetized. I’m incapable of resisting her pull. I put my hands on her hips and press myself closer against her body. She smells like cinnamon and sweat.
Her hands reach around my neck, winding into my hair. She knows what she’s doing. With her eyes closed and her body moving to the music, she’s in control of herself. She wants me as much as I want her, maybe more. After all, she told me the other night that she’s been thinking of me.
Her face is a few inches away from mine. I duck my head, closing the gap slightly. I want her to know that I’m here, that I’m ready for whatever she’s ready for. She reaches up on her tiptoes. A split second passes where she seems unsure of herself. The music changes, but I barely register it. The world around is me solely focused on her proximity. When I can’t take it anymore, I capture her lips with mine.
Her body relaxes against me, allowing me to pull her closer and feel every inch of her. She’s taller than most girls I’ve been with but short compared to me. I hold her tight so she doesn’t lose her balance as her lips crash into mine. I feel the anticipation in her touches, the feeling that she’s wanted this for a while. Something about the way she kisses me is much sweeter than any girl I’ve been with before, but I won’t dwell on it. Tonight, she’s here to fulfill my needs. That’s all this can be.
Her tongue slips into my mouth as she winds her hands through my hair. We’ve given up any pretense that we’re attempting to dance. Our bodies grind together in rhythm, but it’s a rhythm we’ve created. It doesn’t match the beat. My senses become too heightened, too sharp. The music is loud. Other patrons are too close. All I want is to get out of here and be alone with her in a quieter, more intimate space.
“Let’s get out of here,” I say, breaking away from her lips and speaking in her ear.
“Your place or mine?” she responds, again taking charge.
She leads me back through the crowd, toward door. Finally, I’m not leaving a place alone. For good measure, I reach into my pocket and turn my phone off. Seer promised not to need me tonight, but I won’t take any chances. I’m laser-focused on Melissa’s small hand in mine. I follow her confident steps as she leads me into the night air, down the street, and to the car we were in two days ago.
The difference in her is stark. She isn’t traumatized and scared. She’s sexy and sure of herself. She isn’t struggling to put words together because no words need to be said. We’ve crossed a threshold. We’ve made a decision together. I drop her hand briefly so I can walk to the passenger side of the door and get inside. The second the door is closed, though, I grab her face and pull it toward mine.
Our kiss is frantic, longing. She moves toward me, as if she’s going to climb on top of me, but this isn’t what I want with her. We’re not going to have sex in her car, parked on the street where anyone can see us. For one, I don’t need a cop busting us and taking me in. That’s not a phone call I want to make with Seer.
The other thing is that, despite what I’ve promised myself, Melissa is different. She isn’t a girl to have a cheap screw with. She’s not the girl I’d meet in a dirty bathroom or in a stock room. She’s not a back-of-the-alley and behind-the-dumpster sort of hookup. We didn’t lock eyes across a dirty bar. We came to the club together. For her sake, this will be more special.
“Your place,” I whisper, answering the question from what feels like hours ago. “I live with a bunch of guys, so definitely your place.”
She giggles as she pulls back, quickly putting on her seatbelt and starting the ignition. She carefully pulls out of her parking spot and takes off, driving to an unfamiliar part of town. I won’t question how a girl who works at a dance teacher at a youth center can afford to live in a swanky neighborhood. I won’t wonder how much her rent costs, considering she has private parking and a security entrance. It’s not my business how she manages to live alone. These are relationship questions, and we’re definitely not in one.
The second we’re inside her apartment, she launches herself at me, her hands running underneath my shirt to pull it off. She initiates contact, wasting no time at all. It’s not like I haven’t been with my share of confident women, but it’s unexpected coming from her. I expected her to be more shy, less aggressive. I’m not complaining, I’m only catching up to who this woman is.
I reach behind her back to fiddle with the zipper holding up her too tight dress. It shows off every curve on her body. I’m tired of being teased. I want to see her fully. She reaches back to help. Soon, her dress is discarded on the floor. Her perfect, smooth skin is on display. In her strapless bra and lace panties, she’s more tempting. I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder, causing her to scream and laugh.
“Put me down.” She giggles, but I stride toward a slightly ajar door where I see a half-made bed.
I push the door open and step inside. My senses are overtaken by the sheer amount of pink. She’s so ridiculously girly. If I had time to think about it, I’d roll my eyes. But I gently place her on the bed and cover her body with kisses. I only care about the color of the garment on her body. Dark red. Sexy. She planned this.
