HeroRising (8 page)

The dance floor beckoned and the JWB helped her float on a
cloud of mellowness and heightened her excitement for this unexpected pleasure.
She loved to dance, but the only establishments back in her hometown were for
Texas two-step or line dancing. The techno clubs were in the city and she never
had the opportunity to spend the night sweating to the latest beat.

“Well, girl, you wanted new and exciting. Here’s your
chance,” she murmured and rubbed her hands together as if she were taking a
running start off a diving board and prepared to step onto the dance floor.

She bobbed back and forth, matching the sway of the crowd
then slipped between the backs of two dancers and then shimmed around another
pair. A few steps later she reached the middle of the floor and felt the press
of bodies all against her and the thump of the bass beating inside her chest.

Yes. This was exactly what she needed. Complete mindlessness
as she rode the wave of humanity, gyrating in syncopated beats as flesh rubbed
against flesh and her heart beat in an accelerated rhythm. Her head tipped back
and she lifted her arms in the air and closed her eyes. Hands came from nowhere
and everywhere to brush across her shoulder, the small of her back or the curve
of her ass in touches that ranged from gentle caresses to full-on groping. If a
hand strayed too close to her breast or her crotch she gently moved it away and
was delighted when her silent request was obeyed. This moment was only about
her and dancing.

After a few songs went by someone became bold enough to
snake a hand around her waist and pull her close against a leanly muscled body.

“Need a partner?” a husky voice asked in her ear to be heard
over the music.

She opened her eyes and saw a cute cowboy-type guiding her
hips into a bump and grind. “A partner for what?”

“Whatever you want, sweetness.”

“I just want to dance.”

He pulled her in tighter. “I can oblige. I like how you
move.”

“Thanks.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and fell into
the rhythm of his hips. “Keep your hands above the waist.”

“How about this?” His fingers curved around her ass.

“I will walk away.”

“Okay, okay. How about one hand? To keep us synchronized.”

Oh, the man was smooth. But his dimples were so cute she
couldn’t resist. Plus, if he became too fresh her scream in this crowd would
end his advances immediately. “One hand only. If you squeeze, I will take you
out at the balls.”

“Understood.” He laughed with a wink.

Another song went by and her partner stayed true to his word
and kept his hands in the authorized areas. But it wasn’t much longer until she
felt the ridge of his arousal pressing into her belly and his lips began to
travel in gentle brushes along her cheek.

She really should stop him and end the tease immediately,
but it felt so good to be held, to feel the heartbeat of another against her
sternum. To be wanted.

The entire altercation with Anthony had battered her psyche.
He made her afraid to enjoy something as simple as flirting. To always be on
her guard was exhausting. Would she forevermore be anxious and wary to trust
another, to love again? For how long would she meet a potential partner and
count the minutes until he broke her heart? She didn’t want to approach every
relationship with a filter over her emotions. She wanted to be free to live for
the day and say to hell with the rest.

Maybe the need to dance was about more than burning off
steam. Maybe it was a tiny step toward reconnecting to another human being. Was
it wrong to allude that she might be willing for more? Absolutely. Did she have
the strength to walk away? Nope. In this she was a complete wuss. A weakling
who was a slave to the desire to matter to someone, anyone, even if for the
three and a half minutes it took to play the latest dance track.

Geez, she was such a—such a girl. And a needy teenage girl
at that. She needed to run away from this stranger’s arms, especially when she
kept wishing the one holding her was a certain giant with stunted emotions and
not the cute cowboy with the killer dimples.

As she tightened her fingers in preparation for pulling
away, her partner stepped back as if she had kicked him in the nuts.

“What…” she began to ask and the words died on her lips as
she noticed the terror in his wide eyes.

His chin rose up and up as he stared over her shoulder.
Actually, all the dancers in the nearby vicinity had taken several steps
backward and were looking behind her as if being stared down by the Terminator.

Despite the heat caused by the collective mass of bodies, a
cold chill brushed over the exposed skin of her back and the tiny hairs on her
neck raised in alarm. Something big and scary was behind her, she just knew it.
She didn’t want to look. Really, she didn’t.

“Fuck,” she sighed and turned around.

Uh-huh. Why wasn’t she surprised?

Bale stood like an avenging angel with his feet spaced apart
and his hands fisted at his sides. The fringe of his hair hung in his eyes, but
the blaze of fury burned from between the strands and matched the intensity in
the firm set of his jaw. His nostrils flared and for half a second she thought
he was going to barrel toward her like a bull seeing red.

“You will leave with me now,” he commanded in a low growl.

Ah, hell no. She struck her own Wonder Woman pose with her
hands on her hips and straightened her shoulders. He dared to get bossy with
her?

Taking a cue from his book, she kept her reply simple. “No.”

His nostrils flared again. “You do not belong here. Leave
now.”

“No.”

He took a step forward and the crowd gasped. “I will not
coddle you like a child.”

“Then stop treating me like one.”

“We go.” He dropped low, pitching his shoulder into her
middle and carried her like a sack of potatoes off the dance floor.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she screeched. “Put me down.
Bale, put me down, you domineering asshole.”

His brisk strides never faltered, so she reached between his
legs and pinched at the soft underside of his testicles.

He barked in surprise and his knees buckled, pitching her to
the side and dropping her to the ground.

“Why did you do that?” he shouted as he rounded on her.

“You have to ask? What the fuck are you doing?”

“You do not need to use such language with me.”

“Oh, I’ll use whatever language I want. I’m an adult and I
am having adult fun. Who do you think you are, demanding I jump at your
command?”

His nostrils flared again as his chest heaved. “It is for
your protection that you do not remain here.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Or maybe it’s because you didn’t want me to stumble upon
your supply of booty calls.”

His head snapped back. “I do not know what that means.”

“Right. Whatever. Look, your business is your business, and
mine is mine. I’ll stay out of your way, you’ll stay out of mine, and right now
my way is back on that dance floor where I was having a good time.”

“By letting men touch you in inappropriate places?” He grabbed
her elbow as she turned. “Never. No man here shall touch you.”

“Why do you care what I do? If I wanted to fuck every guy in
this joint, that is my right and my choice. You have no say.”

“I have every say.”

“Why?”

The fingers of his left hand bit into her hips as he hauled
her up against his chest. “Because you are—”

Mine.

The unsaid word hung between them as thick and elusive as
smoke. The anger in his eyes had deepened, turning the irises dark and decadent
with a fire she felt lick her cheeks. His jaw was clenched so tight she swore
she could hear his teeth grinding over the music. His body vibrated, his entire
being shuddered as his hands clenched and unclenched and all the thoughts he
refused to give voice to played out in his amazingly haunting eyes.

Hungered. He hungered for her. Here in the middle of this
vibrant crowd the intensity of his need blinded her to their surroundings,
stroking her from neck to clit and everywhere in between. They might as well
have been naked, pressed breast-to-chest for he was already on her, in her,
driving deep with a desperation that bordered insanity.

Her lungs burned as she gasped for air and clutched his
biceps, struggling to remain upright. Had she lost her mind? What was this
happening between them? “Bale?”

“Ari.” He groaned and lowered his forehead to hers.
“Please.” His voice cracked and his breath shuttled in and out over her lips in
a light kiss. “Please come with me. You do not need to go back to your room,
but please leave. There are people here who will use you, hurt you. I cannot
allow that. Please.”

As he begged he curled around her, protecting her from all
the dangers he imagined were out to harm her, and at that moment she would do
anything to soothe the anxiety creasing his handsome face. There was a time for
every battle, and this moment was not it.

“Okay.”

He deflated in her arms and hugged her tight for a brief
second before releasing her and turning them toward the main staircase. He kept
his arm around her waist as they walked. The touch of his palm on the bare
expanse of skin tightened her nipples and made her thighs clench. As they
passed the playrooms on the second floor his arm tensed and his entire posture
went ramrod stiff. He hurried them in the direction of the elevator and drew up
short when Jax stepped from the shadows and blocked the doorway.

“Ari. Done so soon? I thought you were just getting
started.”

“I guess I was more tired than I thought. But thank you for
showing me around.”

“Believe me, doll face, it was my pleasure.”

Bale’s giant hand slid around to her front in an attempt to
cover as much exposed flesh as possible. The motion drew Jax’s gaze, which
narrowed with calculation.

The security man’s smile broadened. “Let me know if you ever
want another tour. I’ll show you
anything
your little heart desires.”

She scowled and stuck her tongue out at him as Bale issued a
warning growl deep in his throat. Was the man insane baiting the beast?

“I’ll keep that in mind. Good night, Jax.”

“Good night. Sweet dreams, pretty lady. Bale,” he acknowledged
the other man with an icy nod.

Bale grunted in response and whisked her into the waiting
elevator.

When they were ensconced within the little car, the silence
was just as oppressive as the pounding dance tracks in the club. Of course,
that might have been due to Bale’s harsh breathing and the overwhelming
presence of his restrained emotions.

Damn, he was a volcano ready to blow. On the outside his
expression was blank and he stood rock-still, but she could feel him, sense the
tight leash he had coiled around his mental well-being. Was this why he was the
way he was? Silent. Observant. Always watching with a quiet intensity because
when he allowed himself to feel it overwhelmed his ability to remain in
control?

She had the insane urge to push him as one would a bear with
a sharp stick, just to see what would happen when the lid popped. Lucky for
them all she wasn’t drunk enough to perform that little science experiment.

“So.” She licked her lips. “Where are we going?”

“Are you certain you do not wish to return to your room?”

“Ah, no. I don’t think Amaryllis and Lucian are aware that
the walls of their home are rather thin, and it didn’t sound like they were
finishing any time soon. Let’s leave it at that.”

His eyes widened, then he nodded. A red flush stole across
his cheeks. “Then we shall go up.”

He pressed the button for the top floor. When the doors
opened, he led her to the emergency exit and a short flight of stairs up to the
roof. Amongst the ventilation shafts were several garden boxes growing a
profusion of flowers and vegetables in an abundance of variety. An outdoor
kitchen took up the center, complete with a pizza oven and a grill. Normally
she would have found such luxury fascinating, but her entire focus was on Bale,
who had come to a stop at the balcony’s edge. He gripped the iron railing with
his eyes closed and took long, drawn-out breaths as he visibly struggled with
whatever held him in its choking grasp.

“Bale, are you okay?” she asked from a respectful distance.

He shuddered and glanced at her from over his shoulder. “I
apologize. I am sensitive to the emotions of others. I don’t—I have difficulty
amongst large groups of people. Especially those whose sole purpose is to act
contrary to how they would behave otherwise.”

“Then why were you inside the club?”

His eyes darted around. “Why was I inside?”

“Yes.” She planted her hands on her hips. “And don’t stall
by repeating the question.”

“I…had to retrieve something from my motorcycle. I was
exiting the elevator as you entered the club and I was surprised to see you out
and awake. I followed to make certain you didn’t fall into any trouble.”

Really? It sure took him a long time to reveal his presence
if he had been following on her heels. The tingle in her gut told her he was
hiding something, but for now she’d let his secrets lie. She had more pressing
questions she wanted answers to. “Why is everyone afraid of you?”

That snapped his spine straight. “They do not know me.
Because they do not know me, they fear me.”

So he wasn’t oblivious to the others’ impressions of him.
Interesting. “Why do I get the feeling you haven’t done much to make friends?”

“My mission is not to make friends.”

“Your mission? What is your mission? Protect Amaryllis and
nothing else?”

“I…I also watch out for those who cannot protect
themselves.”

“What does that mean?”

He sighed and looked around as if the line of questioning
were uncomfortable. “I keep my eyes and ears open. For anyone. Who may have
need. Of. My strength,” he answered in halting sentences.