His words leave me breathless, as a few joyful tears spill from my eyes. We sway in our peaceful embrace for who knows how long and I feel complete here with him.
Liv barks a laugh behind us, bursting our bubble, and we break apart. Sliding my hand down his arm and taking hold of his hand, I bring my mouth to his ear. “Let’s go dance, Cowboy.”
Duane’s pupils dilate in the slightest and he nods his head in agreement.
I give Liv and Aiden a wave as we pass and Liv winks at me again.
My heartbeat pounds with the rhythm of the music, faster and faster, as we descend the stairs. Steering us to the middle of the dance floor, Duane twirls me in a circle and crushes my body to his. My front to his front. He grips my hip with one hand and wraps his other arm around my side, bringing us as close together as humanly possible.
“Locked Out of Heaven” begins to blare from the speakers and cheers break out around us, showing the DJ appreciation for his choice of song.
The staccato beat starts and the bodies around me bounce and sway to the tempo.
Duane and I join them in the hypnotic movements and it becomes just us. No one else is around, I open my eyes and we’re alone. We’re not, of course, but I could have been fooled. I couldn’t care less about the other two hundred or so people here.
Locking eyes, Duane licks his lips and kisses me briefly on the mouth while his hips seductively move side to side to Bruno’s sultry voice. Easily, he steps between my legs and I find myself grinding on his leg. His hands knead and manipulate my sensitive skin and I break out in goose bumps, despite the fact sweat is forming on my back.
My heels bring me eye-level with Duane and we haven’t looked away from one another since we stepped on the dance floor. The darkness doesn’t hinder my eyesight. If anything, my senses are heightened in the entrancing atmosphere. I could be dreaming for all I know. That, or I drank some sort of radioactive amaretto and now I’m a superhero. Both options seem completely plausible at the moment.
I turn in his embrace and bring my ass to his front, and he slams me backward. Wrapping his sturdy arms around my waist, I begin to gyrate my hips against his groin and he nips at my neck. I let my head fall back on his shoulder and savor the sensations Duane’s unleashing on my body.
In the middle of a club
.
Shhh, you. I don’t give a shit.
The song ends and the crowd breaks into applause. Duane sucks on my neck one last time and lets go of my heated skin, but we don’t stop dancing. The next song begins, and we continue together without missing a beat.
I lift my hair off of my sticky neck to give my scorching skin some relief, and Duane blows his sweet, feather light breath over my exposed skin, making me shiver. His cool breath and my heated temperature make it difficult to think.
Fire. That’s the best way to describe me at this very moment. My skin. My heart. My love. All of it. It’s all on fire. Burning. Embers radiate from my being. I can’t dull the light or temperature, even if I tried. His skin, his eyes, his lips, they are the wind adding to my already burning flame. He makes me hotter, bigger, and more full of life.
Duane’s hands travel down my sides, gripping my hips again. We move and sway to the beat. Random people bump into me, and I don’t give them a second thought. An earthquake could happen and I wouldn’t bat an eyelash. My eyes see only Duane. My skin feels only Duane. My heart simply beats for him, because of him. He’s brought so much back into my life.
Happiness.
Hope.
Love.
We dance until my feet begin to throb, and I teeter a bit in place. I’m sure blisters are beginning to form.
Brilliant.
I turn in Duane’s grip. “I’m going to head to the bathroom.”
He’s started to sweat, and a bead of moisture travels down his neck, into his shirt and I watch the movement in awe. I’d love to be that droplet, exploring the contours of his ridged chest. My finger finds its way to my mouth as I envision licking my way up his body.
Duane tilts his head and I snap my eyes up, meeting his. “My sweet girl. What are you looking at? Did you hear anything I just said?” He asks.
I divert my eyes. “Uhh—.” Nope, sure as hell didn’t.
He takes my finger from my mouth and brings it to his own and gently bites the pad. I quiver in my shoes and watch him lick it before he lets go and I drop my arm to my side.
He rubs my arm and clasps my hand, intertwining our fingers. “I said, I’ll wait for you in the suite.” He slaps my ass. “Hurry back to me.”
His sultry voice sends my feet into motion and I march to the bathrooms.
The long hallway leading to the bathroom is dim and a little bit creepy. Dark red walls and black trim make it seem shadowy, and I find myself looking over my shoulder.
For it being a packed club, the bathroom is practically empty. Eight stalls line the back wall, but the first two are closed, so I head down to the last stall on the other end. The two women in the locked stalls must not have heard me come in because as soon as I lift my dress and pull down my undies, one girl huffs to the other.
“I just don’t know what he sees in her,” she confesses.
My skin prickles. I know that voice.
Lauren. Fucking blonde bitch, Duane’s ex, Lauren. My fucking luck sucks. Balls.
“She’s fat. Have you seen her? Her ass is like, the size of Texas,” she spits.
How unoriginal of her.
I know she’s talking about me. I’ve never been super confident in my curvaceous body, but hearing her say I’m fat out loud makes the wound sting.
Don’t let her get into your head.
I hate the damn word. Fat. It sounds so dirty. Why does our society need to have so many labels? Why can’t we all just be people? Simply be human beings, with feelings and emotions, and the ability to have compassion, love and understanding. Yet, here we are in the twenty-first century and we are more hypocritical and judgmental than ever.
Her friend puffs, seeming annoyed. “Can’t you just leave her alone? She seemed nice enough to me.”
Thank you.
I try not to breathe, I don’t want to give myself away. Slowly, I pull my thong up and my dress down. As quietly as possible, I inch closer to the door, my heels silently meeting the tile floor. The small slit in the door gives me just enough space to see out.
Both stall doors clang open at the same time, and Lauren and her redheaded friend Jana walk out, heading straight to the mirror and sinks.
Lauren rolls her eyes and Jana shrugs. “Really L, why can’t you just let it go?”
Lauren stomps her foot like a toddler, and puts her hands on her hips. “Because he’s mine, dammit. She took him from me. We were practically together and then she walks in and just takes him. It’s bullshit.”
Jana finishes washing her hands, and digs into her clutch. “You guys weren’t even really talking. You said yourself that you thought he was distant.” Her voice soft. “He’s moved on. Let him be.”
Sadness washes over Lauren’s features, and I almost feel bad for her. It’s quick, and before I can process actual compassion, an evil smirk appears back on her face.
“Yeah, well, I’ve got to admit letting all of his animals out the other day was genius,” she says casually.
I cover my mouth to keep my gasp in.
Jana’s eyes go wide. “You—wait. You did what?”
Thinking on my toes, I retrieve my phone from my bra, and hit record.
Lauren sneers at her reflection, and I fight the urge to sink deep into the stall. She looks downright wicked.
“Yeah, I figured if I let all the animals out, he’d have to call me and ask for help. I mean my horse did escape. It only makes sense.”
Jana’s stilettos click-clack hurriedly to Lauren’s side, and she grabs her by the elbow, causing Laruen to turn. “Please tell me you’re kidding. You really thought that was a good idea? Jesus, L, how could you do that? The horse isn’t even yours anymore!” She shouts.
Lauren yanks her arm back and glares at Jana. She takes the top off her lipstick and begins to apply the dark red stain to her lips. “Alright, I know the damn horse isn’t mine, but I did what I did. It didn’t work, obviously. I didn’t even get a call. Pisses me off that I did it and didn’t get anything out of it.”
I click my phone off, and calmly walk out of my stall.
Both women turn to look at me. Jana registers who I am quicker than Lauren.
I wash my hands and head out of the door without a word, my head held high.
I got her.
As I step out, I hear Lauren inhale and say, “was that—?” And the door closes.
Confident, I stroll toward the VIP suite. Now that I’ve got Lauren’s confession on my phone, she’ll be out of our lives forever.
My foot hits the first stair, and I hear Lauren call my name. “Ann! Wait!”
Ignoring her, I keep walking. Just as I hit the last step on the second floor, Lauren catches up and taps my shoulder, eyes full of disdain when they meet mine.
“What?” I snap. She is a complete psycho.
Then, she looks scared.
She should be.
“Please,” she pleads, “don’t tell Duane. He’ll hate me forever.”
Her puppy dog eyes don’t mean shit to me.
I step behind the usher and give her a superior smile. “One can only hope.”
Her jaw drops and she begins to step toward me, but the usher puts his hands up, stopping her in her tracks. “Just let me through really quick,” Lauren begs with fake, sad eyes.
Big, bad usher man shakes his head, totally unaffected. “Do you have a pass?”
Lauren sulks. “No, but see? That’s my friend.” She points to me. “I just need to talk to her for a quick minute.” She tries again to push through him, but to no avail. He doesn’t budge.
Good man.
I step up to the usher, and say, “She’s no friend of mine.”
Lauren stomps her foot and shrieks.
Without acknowledging her temper tantrum, I turn and head back to the suite where I find Duane looking through the door, watching the whole exchange with raised eyebrows and stiff crossed arms.
“What was that about?” He points, spotting Lauren. “Is—is that Lauren? What the hell is she doing here?” He panics. “What did she say?”
I take his hand and lead us into the suite. Liv and Aiden aren’t around and, in this moment, it wouldn’t have mattered.
I guide him to the couch, and smooth my hands down his arms. “Listen to me, okay? I’m going to tell you something I know you won’t want to hear.” His eyebrows scrunch up in worry and I shake my head. “No, no, I know what you’re thinking. I’m fine.”
He breathes a sigh of relief and visibly softens. Taking a deep breath, he asks, “What happened, then?”
I stand up and begin to pace. I need to walk. Apparently it’s my new thing. My insides are twisted in knots, and I know what I’m about to say will hurt Duane. It’s making me uneasy.
“So, I went to the bathroom as you already know,” I start.
God, why am I telling him something he doesn’t care about? I need to get on topic.
“I went into the stall and heard someone talking, but as soon as I heard the voice, I knew it was…Lauren. She wasn’t saying very nice things.” I pause, getting my bearings, and Duane hisses angrily. He knows the things Lauren can spit at people. They aren’t pretty. The things she said still echo in my brain.
I continue, “I’m fine, really. This isn’t about me, Cowboy.” I give him a sad look. “I’m so sorry, but it was Lauren who let out all of your animals. She sabotaged you to get your attention.”
Duane falls silent, letting my words sink in. I wait, still pacing. My heels begin to hurt again, so I quickly step out of them and resume my pacing.
I pass by him for the hundredth time, and look at his face. He confused, or he’s thinking. I can’t tell in this light, but I do know he looks pissed.
“Mother fucker,” he mutters. “She drives a fucking black SUV. How could I not have figured this out on my own?”
I sit down next to him and grab his hand. “How could you have known? You had no idea she was capable of this type of crazy.”
He drags his hands down his face. “So, you heard her say this?”
I reach into my bra and retrieve my phone. “Yeah,” I sift through my apps and press play on the correct one, “and I recorded it.”
His face changes at least three different shades of anger and rage by the time the recording has stopped.
“What am I going to do, Red?” He asks, looking disheveled.
“We’ll figure it out together. Thankfully, nothing horrible happened. Belle is doing better, and her foal is healthy. If anything, she knows you know, and that’ll drive her mad with worry.”
“I don’t give a shit about her!” He yells. “She can’t do something like this again.”
I soothingly rub his back. “I know baby, I know. Want to go home?”
He nods his head. I don’t specifically know which home I’m supposed to go to, mine or his, but I see Liv on my way out downstairs and give her the down low of what happened. Her fists tighten at the mention of Lauren, but she agrees to take a cab home with Aiden later. I give her a swift, tight hug and Duane and I head to my truck. I start for the driver’s seat when Duane stops me.