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Dante tries to lighten the mood. “Tessa, maybe we can have a dance or ten?”
“Since it’s for the job, I guess I can shake my groove thang.”
“You don’t have agroove thang,” Kurtis argues. “I would have felt it when I body-slammed you.”
“If you mean a penis, then no, I do not have dangly bits, but I was talking about my ass, you dork.” I look down at my ample breasts, which are practically on display. “I suppose my boobs can shake, so quit limiting me by my gender. It’s sexist.”
Both Dante and Evan suppress a snicker, but Kurtis’s face reddens.
For a second, I’m not sure if he’s embarrassed or angry, but then he says, “Sorry. Shake whatever you groove with.”
“I will.” I turn back to look out the front window.
“Now that’s settled,” Evan grouses, “this is mostly a free-for-all tonight. Improvise, but promote hashtag instant karma as much as you can.”
“Ugh.” I roll my eyes. “So vain.”
“I don’t know what it’s about, but she’s the boss,” Kurtis says with resignation.
“It’s about modern world worship,” I reply, surmising this from my studies.
Evan nods his agreement. “We only have one designated target at the club Top Shelf at one o’clock.”
“Long night.” I glance down, happy that I’m wearing my comfortable dressy boots and not high heels.
“Pace yourself with the booze,” Evan adds.
“Is that directed at me?” I ask defensively. “I bet I can hold my liquor better than you punks.”
“It’s for all of us,includingme,” Evan says, his words loaded. I sense that there have been incidents in the past.
* * *
We pull up to the valet at the first destination, a club called Marco Polo. We hop out and bypass the long line of people waiting to get in. The bouncer smiles at Evan as Evan slips the man something. I assume it’s a bribe to get us in immediately.
“They just let us in?” I whisper to Dante.
“Yeah, have youseenus?” He points to his stupidly handsome face.
“I have, but they don’t usually let guys like you in, even if they throw cash.”
“They do when we have connections, money, and… it’s a gay bar.”
I glance around and yes, it’s a total sausage fest full of mostly young gorgeous men from the most masculine to the most feminine. Most of them eye my teammates with interest. At least I won’t have to worry about guys hitting on me here. I see a few other women besties with their gay friends, so I’m not completely out of place.
“Let’s get a drink.” Dante points to the bar, and we follow. The hot barman instantly rushes over to take Dante’s order. He proceeds to obnoxiously flirt with Dante, who takes the compliments with a winning grin, paying the bartender with a generous tip.
“What do I do?” I glance around. I’m not going to lie, the view of all these sexy men is arousing, even if they wouldn’t spare me a glance. The air is electric.
Dante looks down at me and smiles. “Want to dance?”
Why the hell not?I might as well enjoy my short karma life with an innocent dance.
I follow him to the dance floor, downing my drink in one go, not wanting to spill it everywhere. I leave it on an empty table, and Dante does the same.
We move in time with the thumping beat, and the watered-down drink settles in. The music is so loud it rattles my teeth, but I do my best and bounce to it and rock my hips. Dante tries to follow my lead, but he has a hard time with my punk rock moves. I use my frantic movements to keep him at a distance. Besides, it’s burning off a nice chunk of my nerves and angst.
The music shifts to a more sultry beat, and Dante takes full advantage of the slower song. He pulls me close by my waist, our hips press together, and we move like it’s a mating dance. My arms come up to rest on his shoulders, and his hands slide down to my hips.
