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She grinned. “I’ll be right here.” She backed up that proclamation by jumping into the line dance without missing a beat.
Xander laughed, then gave her two thumbs-up, saying something that sounded like “mad skills,” though it had gotten lost in the noise of the music.
Gia, Alison, and a large group of women—most of whom had been at the bachelorette party—remained on the dance floor through the next three songs. Gia cried uncle, even though she loved “Love Shack,” declaring she needed a drink of water before she passed out.
Returning to her table, she sat down, kicking off her heels to rub and stretch her weary feet. She wasn’t used to heels, spending most days in tennis shoes—practical footwear for waitresses everywhere.
Maybe she could convince Xander to give her a foot massage tonight. Glancing around, she couldn’t see him. When she realized Gus and Mr. Carter weren’t in the room either, she figured they were still enjoying their cigars. Reaching for her drink, she chugged the entire glass of water before begrudgingly putting her heels back on.
She’d just risen, intent on returning to the dance floor, when Mark stopped next to her table.
“Hey, Gee.”
“Hi, Mark,” she said.
Mark looked positively miserable. “Darlene and I broke up.”
Gia nodded and tried to give him a sympathetic smile, even though she knew he was better off. “I’m sorry.”
He sighed heavily. “I’m not. She wasn’t…” Mark stopped and gave her a look that told Gia exactly who Darlene wasn’t. “It wasn’t like it was with you and me. Easy, fun.”
Gia would give Mark the easy part, but their relationship had stopped being fun long before it ended. However, she didn’t want to pour salt in his wounds because the guy was obviously down, so she said nothing.
“I miss you, Gee.”
She held up her hand, unwilling to pick up the conversation he’d started at the bachelorette party. “Mark, our relationship was easy because neither one of us was as fully invested as we should have been. Breaking up was the right thing to do.”
He looked crestfallen. “I don’t think—” he began to counter, but she refused to listen.
“I don’t want to date you again, Mark. I’m sorry, but I just don’t. I’m not going to change my mind about that, and I wish you wouldn’t make me keep saying it because I also don’t want to hurt you.”
This time, his response wasn’t laced with sadness…but with anger. “Is this because of Xander? Jesus Christ, Gia. Open your eyes and grow up. He’s just using you. The guy is gonna go back to Dallas tomorrow and by this time next week, there will be some other woman warming his bed. Stop being so fucking stupid!”
Wow. She’d never seen one drop of jealousy in Mark when they’d dated, and faced with it now, she was glad she hadn’t. Because it wasn’t a good look on him. “This conversation is over.”
“Fine,” Mark huffed. “But don’t come crying to me when you find out I was right.”
Mark stormed off as Gia fought to calm down. That asshole was not going to ruin her night.
“Everything okay?”
Gia spun around at the sound of Xander’s voice, very nearly throwing herself into his arms. She needed one of his big bear hugs right now.
Two things stopped her. The first was the way Xander was looking over her shoulder, shooting daggers at Mark’s retreating back. She tried to understand why Mark’s jealousy was ugly, while Xander’s warmed her from the inside out. She’d have to spend some time with that question later…because the second thing keeping her from clinging to Xander was the huge swipe of lipstick on the collar of his dress shirt.
It wasn’t her shade.
“Everything is…” She couldn’t make herself say the word fine because apparently jealousy was a contagious disease, and her vision was suddenly tinged with green.
Xander frowned as he studied her face. “What’s wrong, Princess? What did Mark say?” Xander’s body went stiff, and she got the impression he’d chase the man down if she asked.
“Why is there lipstick on your collar?” she asked, her tone wooden and sounding somewhat distant to her own ears. She wished Mark’s shitty comments about Xander returning to Dallas and other women hadn’t landed, but…well…now it had.
Xander pulled his collar as loose as he could, glancing down and scowling. “While you were dealing with Mark, I was fending off his girlfriend.”
“Darlene came on to you?” Gia didn’t know why that should surprise her. After all, the woman had made a lifetime hobby of trying to steal Gia’s things—from fashion styles to boyfriends. “I thought she left.”
“Nope. After the cigars with Dad and Gus, they came back in here and I detoured to the restroom. Darlene was waiting for me when I came out.”
