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“Take it easy,” he laughed. “You sound superficial. All of these women are beautiful. At least they look beautiful in their gowns. Just ask one to dance. Look, just make a good show of it and take a spin or two. That’ll keep Mama Irene and Claudette happy, and then you can go back to your cottage.”
Mike frowned at his brother, slowly walking the periphery of the dance floor. Mama Irene and the wives had done an amazing job with the ball. The colors, the music, and of course the food was prevalent everywhere.
He’d missed these parties. He bitched about attending them, but he missed them. Chuckling to himself, he shook his head. It was great to see everyone having a good time. Halo Island had turned into the perfect venue for the ball.
Locals could use the barges owned by Belle Fleur to make their way to the island or bring their own boats and dock them near the village. With a maze, gardens, a gazebo, and so much more on the island, it was like a mini-Belle Fleur.
Okay. Mission. Find a girl to dance with and leave.
Across the dance floor, he saw a smoking body, her breasts oozing from the top of her glittery, purple sequin gown. The mask made it so he could barely see her eyes, covering her nose, and cheeks, but her body was damn near perfect.
This could work out well. He’d get a dance, maybe get lucky, and be done for the night. It might take the edge off his already ill humor.
Moving slowly toward her, she turned, smiling at him. Suddenly, someone else stood in front of him, nearly tripping over him. Her tiny body slammed into him, barely making an impact at all.
“I’m s-sorry,” she said in a hurried voice.
“It’s okay. Are you alright?” he asked. She turned, staring at the crowd behind her.
“Dance with me?” she said in a frantic voice.
“Oh, uh. Yeah. Sure,” he said, taking her hand. She practically pulled him to the middle of the dance floor. Mike laughed, shaking his head. “In a hurry?”
“What? Oh, no. Sorry about that. I thought I saw someone.” She looked around her again, staring back at a crowd of people behind them.
“Someone bothering you?” he frowned, looking around the room.
“It’s nothing,” she smiled.
Mike looked down at the woman. Her long blonde hair brushed the back of his hand that was resting at the top of her beautiful ass. He’d been so enraptured by the redhead he barely looked at the drive-by that crashed into him. The gold gown hugged her tiny curves, the mid-section see-through, showing her flat, taut stomach. He could see the glitter of a belly ring and smiled inwardly.
Her eyes were a strange shade of blue and green, picking up the lights around them on the dance floor. Her neatly trimmed nails were painted a rich purple color. The mask was painted with intricate, musical notes scattered around it.
“Do you like music?” he asked, smiling down at her. She was still scanning the floor.
“What?”
“Music. Do you like it? You have musical notes on your mask.”
“Oh, yes. You might say I like music,” she smiled. “I mean, everyone likes music. Don’t they? I used to dance. A long time ago. In fact, I think the dance studio isn’t far from here.”
“We have a dance studio at the front of the property. My Aunt Lissa runs it.”
“Lissa Robicheaux? She was my instructor,” smiled the woman. Her smile quickly left her face, and Mike could feel the panic rising in her.
“What’s your name? I’m Mike,” he grinned.
“Mike. I’m…” She looked behind him, released his hand, and stepped back. “I’m sorry, Mike, I have to go.”
“Wait! Wait, don’t go!” Before he could push through the throngs of dancers, the tiny woman had slipped away. His eyes never left the direction she ran.
He noticed everything about her. Everything. Including the two men following her. Two men who were about to leave the island the hard way.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” asked Dan.
“Come with me. I think we might have a problem.”
Mike took off in a jog out of the tent, looking both ways for the tiny woman. He caught a glimpse of the gown, running toward the maze. But it was the dark figure in a cloak following her that pissed him off. He searched the grounds for the other man, noticing that someone was running toward the river. Behind him, Hex had followed.
