Losing You (Finding You Series Book 2) (12 page)

Listening to my own words surprised me. I was actually looking forward to having some fun. Kurt’s spirits lifted too when he saw me perking up somewhat.

The cherry red Mustang idled into the nightclub parking lot where Kurt paid the security guard to keep an extra eye on it. He didn’t want his car being vandalized or stolen. It was his baby.

It was close to nine o’clock and the nightclub queue extended for half a block. We headed to the front of the line in order to let the bouncer know we had the whole top floor booked.

If the doorman had been freed from jail yesterday, I wouldn’t have been surprised. Serpent tattoos snaked up his arm and vanished under a shirt two sizes too small with bulging, vein intersected muscles from way too much steroid use that literally busted out of the elbow-length sleeves of the collared, white uniform. His greased back hair hung to his shoulders and was secured with a hair tie. This dude meant business.

He looked Kurt and I up and down before his eyes rested on me again. Something clicked in his eyes. “Hey, aren’t you Kyle Rutherford, the movie actor?” he asked in a tone of voice that was a little too loud.

I nodded, hoping to slip inside before the crowd had a chance to react but it was too late. Instantly the long queue of people closed in around me. Girls screamed.

“Oh my god! It’s him! It’s really him! He’s so cute! Hey, Kyle! Could you come over here and sign an autograph?”

Jesus! Why couldn’t prison dude just keep his big trap shut? Everything was going smoothly until his foghorn got everyone’s attention.

Always one to do the right thing, never wanting to disappoint fans, I signed a few shirts. All the while the mob of girls, kept their eyes constantly fixated on me, waiting to see if I would look up at them and smile. I let a couple of girls get a photo with me and left it at that. I quickly walked back to Kurt, who had envy written all over his face.

“You lucky son of a gun! They literally fall at your feet. Most guys would kill to be in your shoes and even though I’m getting married and love Jennifer dearly, I’d swap places with you tomorrow.”

“You can have my shoes any day. It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” I pushed my way past the bouncer and into the club, leaving at least twenty hormonal women fighting for a new place in the queue.

The nightclub pulsated to the beat of a hip-hop number that I couldn’t place. Bodies mingled in a mix of sweat, perfume and alcohol.

“Come on. We’re up in the V.I.P. lounge. I knew you’d get hassled down in the public area so we’ll be totally segregated,” said Kurt, pulling me across the floor and up the stairs.

I stopped at the top and surveyed the large room. Bright purple carpet adorned the floor in a retro sort of way with a green feature wall on one side of the dance floor and white on all the others. A private bar was stacked full of bottles with three bartenders busy behind it. There looked to be only around fifteen people scattered around so far, but the night was still young.

I eased down into one of the jumbo leather chairs.

“Want a beer?”

“Yeah, that’d be great.” A beer might help ease me into the night a little more.

Spying the dance floor in the corner, my thoughts returned to Sapphire Island. Images of Dakota trying not to stand on anyone’s feet on the crowded floor brought a smile to my lips.

She really came out of her shell that night. We spent a good part of the evening dancing together, wild and carefree. I’d give anything to be back there in her arms.

The slow dance we’d shared that had cemented my connection with her tugged at my emotions. She’d driven me wild with desire that evening. I’d been hard all night. Breathing in her hair and perfumed sweat, I’d wanted to taste her, run my mouth over those smooth curves, nibble on the hollow in her neck, feed on those full lips…The ache grew.

Kurt returned, pulling me from my memories, handing me my beer. I took a swig, enjoying the cool taste and the fact that I now had something in my hand.

“I’m just going over to say hi to a couple of guys from work. Will you be okay here, buddy?” Kurt asked.

“You go. I’ll be fine. I’m gonna sit here and just chill for a bit.”

Kurt seemed happy with that and left me to it.

The place was actually quite classy, despite the color scheme. The couches looked to be real leather and the drinks tables here and there were edged in gold. The ceiling was a labyrinth of lights, some on, some off.

I swallowed the rest of my beer and relaxed into the oversized chair.

Before long more guys ambled in. There were a few familiar faces, some of which I hadn’t been too involved with at school. Jim McDonald and Ben Davidson were the only ones I could really call friends that had traveled in our circle. The rest of the men were associates of Kurt’s from the publishing company.

Ben and Jim caught my eye as they scanned the room and approached to say hello. “Hey, Kyle! It’s been a long time. How’s the movie industry treating you? It must be extremely exciting.”

“Yeah,” added Jim. “Heaps of women falling at your feet. Hey, I saw your last movie. It was cool. When is the next one due out?”

Between them both, I could hardly get a word in.

“In another couple of weeks, so make sure you give me a call and I’ll get you both a couple of tickets to the premiere.”

“Great, thanks a lot.”

They sat on the adjacent couch and we caught up. Ben had aged well but Jim looked far older. Gray streaks highlighted his hair and beard, early wrinkles creasing his brow and eyes. He’d always been on the thin side but now he just looked gaunt and sickly.

Three beers later, I loosened up and settled into the night. At the stroke of midnight, Jim stood up and made an announcement.

“Quiet, everyone. Quiet, please! Could I have your attention please? Tonight is Kurt’s stag night. As you all know, he’s getting married soon and we wish him and Jennifer a happy life together. Before you embark on married life, Kurt, we’d like to give you a little token of our friendship. No stag night would be complete without a little entertainment. So without further ado, here she is! The one and only…Jodie!”

From across the room, through multicolored smoke, paraded a scantily clad stripper. Her hair was bleached blonde and tied into a bun at the back. Large hoop earrings dangled down to toned shoulders. She was clad in a pair of G-string panties that left nothing to the imagination and a flimsy matching bikini top that looked like it might come off at any second. Her eyes had a cat-like appearance with mascara and eye shadow swept up at the corners to join her eyebrows. Ruby red lips pouted to the boys.

She flounced across the floor towards a room filled with testosterone, moving in time to the music, hips swaying. Whistles bounced off the walls. Her breasts recoiled like her earrings with every step she took.

Kurt was egged on by his half-tanked buddies, who encouraged him to accept her onto his lap. He kindly obliged, spurred on by the madding crowd. Jodie got Kurt to undo her bikini top, which she then tossed into the crowd. It was caught by some young hopeful who stuffed them into the pocket of his pants as a souvenir. I couldn’t help but smirk at his thrilled reaction. I’d been there many times. Strip joints. High school parties. Women throwing themselves at me, along with certain items of clothing.

The stripper pressed Kurt’s face into her enlarged chest, giving him a close-up of her assets. The room exploded with cheers, revelry, and male ego. She twisted and turned to face the crowd as Kurt grabbed her breasts from behind, unable to close his hands around them fully.

Jodie didn’t seem bothered by having Kurt’s hands maul her, and I guess, why should she? She chose her profession.

When the song was over, with a G-string filled with twenties and fifties, Jodie put a robe on and came back to join the boys, who were only too eager to offer her a drink.

I wasn’t interested in making a fuss over the blonde woman. She seemed happy to lap up all the attention. It all felt a bit contrived now. Instead I looked at my watch and saw it was one o’clock in the morning. I was getting tired and was starting to think about returning to my apartment when the stripper walked over to me and sat down.

“Hey there. How’s it going? What are you doing sitting over here all by yourself? Are you not having a good time?”

“Yeah sure,” I countered, hoping she couldn’t see that I was starting to get bored. “I’m just happy to sit here and watch everyone else have fun. Your routine was very good. Have you been doing this long?”

“Only about three months actually, so I’m not a professional yet. I’m studying to be a lawyer and this work is paying my university costs. I only see it as a way to make money so I don’t take it too seriously.”

“I’m glad to hear that. You must be very smart to be going to law school.”

“I guess. It’s something I’ve always been interested in. I’m merely following the dream. You have to do what you have to do to make that happen.” When she smiled at me her face lit up. She was pretty.

It was clear that this girl was not a blonde bimbo. I shouldn’t have been so quick to judge. She was a very intelligent young woman trying to pay her way through college.

Holding out her hand, I took it as she introduced herself. “I’m Jodie, as you probably already know.”

“Kyle.”

“Well, nice to meet you, Kyle. I’m officially off duty now, so can I buy you a drink?”

I really needed to get going but didn’t want to come across as rude. She seemed like a nice girl. Easy to talk to and easy on the eyes. Not that I was looking, but the way she was dressed it was hard not to notice the oozing cleavage and long legs. Shit, what the hell was I doing?

“Yeah, sure. That would be great.” One for the road, I guess. It wouldn’t hurt, and besides, it’s not like I had to work the next day.

“What are you drinking?”

“Coors. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll be back in a minute.”

I watched her go, trying to arrange my feelings about letting her buy me a drink. There was nothing wrong with it, was there? I wasn’t cheating. Part of me felt like I was, but at the end of the day I couldn’t be cheating when the person I loved most in the world was dead. God. I used to tell Dakota to stop overthinking things. I needed to take my own advice.

Jodie returned with my beer and a glass of white wine for herself. She settled in next to me, angling herself to face me, our knees touching.

“How long have you and Kurt been friends?” she asked.

“Pretty much all our lives. We grew up in the same neighborhood and went to the same school. Our moms are still friendly. I’ve been away filming so I lost touch with Kurt. He surprised me earlier in the week with a visit, asking if I wanted to come to his stag night. So here I am.”

“Wow! That’s great that you’ve been friends for so long. You don’t hear of it much now because LA is very transient.”

She was moving her hand up and down the wine glass unconsciously as she spoke and something low in my belly stirred that I knew shouldn’t be.

I darted my eyes away, watching the crowd mingle around me, hating myself for my reaction. What the effing hell was wrong with me?

Taking a swig of beer, I let my eyes meet Jodie’s. She was watching me. Had she seen my reaction to her hand movement? Her eyes were dark chocolate in color and with her smoky eye-shadow accentuating their shape, I couldn’t help but stare for a moment. Her bleached-blonde hair didn’t go with the rest of her face. I pictured her as a brunette and decided that if she returned to what I imagined was her natural color, she’d be quite stunning.

Feeling myself drowning, I pulled back. “So. Tell me more about yourself,” I blurted out in a rush, moving my eyes to my glass of beer.

“There’s not much to know. I’m 26. Have lived in LA my whole life. My mom and dad separated when I was ten. I’ve lived with my mom ever since and haven’t heard from my dad at all. I have two sisters and a brother, all of which are older than me, so I’m the baby of the family.”

“Your mom had her hands full, especially with your dad gone when you were so young.”

“My mom is great. She’s always worked two jobs to support us and still somehow managed to find time to be at important events throughout our lives. She’s my hero.”

I could see the admiration in her eyes as she spoke of her mother and found myself warming to this woman even more. I was enjoying being out and talking to someone other than my folks.

I’m glad I came. Tonight had broken the ice on my grieving spell and allowed me to see that things were going to get better. I was feeling it already.

Jodie and I chatted a bit longer before I decided to leave. It was now 1.45 a.m. and the combination of beer and fatigue was starting to show.

“I hate to be a party-pooper but I’m going to head out. It’s getting late.”

Jodie looked at her watch and agreed. “I should go too. I have an exam coming up and need to spend the day tomorrow studying. I’ll be wrecked if I don’t leave soon.”

I stood up. “It was nice meeting you. Good luck with your studies.” We shook hands again. I held onto hers a little longer than I should have, enjoying the softness and warmth.

“You too. If you get lonely, here’s my phone number. Give me a call sometime and maybe we could go out and have a coffee somewhere. That’s not a come on or anything. You seem like a nice guy and I’d genuinely like to get to know you.”