Breathe into Me (13 page)

“Oh.” I’d gotten lucky then, really lucky. Talk about a change of pace.

“But cheer up! Your job is way better, plus I think you get paid more. The last girl bragged about that part all the time.”

“Thank you.” That didn’t seem like nearly enough words to express my gratitude. “Thank you
so
much.”

She just grinned at me. “What are friends for?”

“Are you working tonight?”

Clare nodded. “But I have enough time to take you back to your truck.”

“What time do you get done?”

“About nine or so, why?”

“How much do you like live bands?”

McHenry’s was a relatively new bar in Oyster Cove, but very different from most of its ilk.

For one, McHenry’s was on the north end of town, out toward some of the ritzier suburbs, not far from the country club. This seemed to give it permission to sell its drinks for double the price of other area bars, and what should have run it out of business made it the star attraction for area night life. The place was always packed on weekends, and this evening was no different, with the college kids looking to party.

“I’ve never actually been here,” Clare shouted into my ear as we squeezed through to the bar along one cinderblock wall. “I’ve heard it’s one of the better bars in the area, though.”

“The best in Harrison County,” I shouted back, snagging a seat as one old boy stepped away from the bar. “It’ll be fun!”

I wished I shared my own enthusiasm, but to tell the truth I was nervous. Recognizing anybody in the sea of faces was difficult; there were people I very much didn’t want to run into tonight. I couldn’t see any of the construction boys, either, and tried to forget my anxiety by checking out Clare. “You look cute.”

Clare was wearing probably one of the more conservative outfits in the club; her shirt was buttoned up to her neck and the breezy skirt sat just above her knees, but it still looked good. “Thanks, I don’t go out much.” She didn’t seem uncomfortable, however, staring with wide eyes around the packed bar.

“Wait until the band starts, it can get wild.” I’d seen Twisted Melody, the band for tonight, play before and they were decent, but I had no idea how well Cole would lead them. The band hadn’t even started setting up on stage, but it was early yet. The DJ’s song selection was pretty good, however, and I nudged Clare with my shoulder. “Come on, show me your moves.”

She laughed nervously. “I’m a terrible dancer.”

“Hey, you gotta learn somehow.” Grabbing her free hand, I pulled her through the crowd toward an empty spot between dancers. When I hit the wooden dance floor, I realized suddenly just how much I missed this. There was a freedom in that place, lost in the crush of bodies around you. The music beat through me and I felt, if I closed my eyes, I could just dance my cares away.

For the moment, however, I pushed back the feelings, and twirled a laughing Clare in a circle. “Show me how you can’t dance.”

I found out quickly that she wasn’t lying about her dancing skills. Clare moved like a wooden doll, but by the time she hit the bottom of the first bottle she’d begun to loosen up. The DJ played decent dance music, catering to the younger crowd instead of the older rock other bars played, so we stayed on the floor through several songs.

As she loosened up, so did I, allowing myself to feel the music and move my body to the beats. My eyes were closed as I rolled my body to the sounds, but when I felt someone move up on me from behind, it pulled me out of the moment. Opening my eyes, I turned to see a younger man in a ball cap staring down my shirt. He reached forward to pull me close but Clare grabbed my hand, pulling me away.

“She’s mine,” Clare said, and I laughed at the boy’s wide eyes as Clare crushed me to her body. He looked like he’d died and gone to heaven so I gave him a little show, gyrating my backside against Clare’s pelvis. She took it in great humor, giving me a smack on the ass that had us both giggling.

When I glanced at the stage and saw the band setting up, I knew Cole had to be nearby and, hopefully, Everett. The club was more crowded now and, even in heels, I couldn’t see above the sea of faces. I turned to Clare and said, “Come on, let’s get you a drink.”

Clare cheered, obviously already feeling the effects of the alcohol, and followed me off the floor. “This is fun,” she shouted as we made our way through the crowd. “I’ve never gone out like this before.”

“Seriously?” Clare was about my age, but it occurred to me that I didn’t know much about her. For all I knew, she’d been raised in a convent. Grinning, I handed her my water bottle. “Here, drink this first.” As she took a swig, I managed to catch the eye of the bartender. “Two tequila shots.”

“Are you serious?” Clare stared at the amber liquid with wide eyes for several seconds before gingerly picking up the glass and lime slice.

“All right, let me show you how it’s done first. Just remember: lick, salt, lick, drink, bite.”

She stared at me with wide eyes. “You lost me.”

Grinning, I grabbed the small saltshaker beside the drinks. I licked the back of my hand, sprinkled salt on the wet patch, licked it again, and then shot back the liquor. It burned going down, and I quickly bit into the lime slice. “Okay, your turn.”

Clare looked apprehensive as she took the saltshaker from me, but it didn’t take much encouraging before she started. When it came to the alcohol, she fumbled with the lime, coughing hard before finally getting it into her mouth. “That was terrible,” she rasped, and I just grinned.

“I’ll admit, it takes some getting used to.” Maybe I should have ordered a better tasting brand of tequila, but I laughed when she held up two fingers to the bartender. “I’m the designated driver tonight so you can do these two. C’mon, you’ve got this.”

Clare had downed the second shot, her face a mixture of pain and distaste, when someone bumped hard into my shoulder. I wobbled on my heels, stepping away from the other person, only to feel something cold run down my side. Stunned, I spun around just as Ashley poured the last of her drink on me, and then gave me a smug smile.

“Oops.”

I gaped at her, completely at a loss on what to say. The wet material stuck to my skin, and I peeled the shirt off my belly.

Ashley gave me a toothy grin, waggled her fingers, and blended in with the crowd. Beside me, Clare gasped, “That bitch!”

“What happened?” Everett’s voice cut through the noise as he approached through the crowd.

“Nothing.” I looked around to see people whispering and laughing. What fun I’d been having moments before evaporated. “I need to find some napkins,” I mumbled, wanting only to disappear.

“Let me help.”

I shook my head at Clare’s offer and made a beeline for the bathroom. The liquid was cold against my skin, and I could already tell it was going to be sticky when it dried. Fortunately, my green top didn’t show much of the stain and I hoped the evening would be salvageable.

Everett was still outside the door when I exited, still dabbing at the wet mark. “Is that the same girl from the night we met?” he asked as I leaned against the wall.

I nodded, not in the mood to talk. It felt like every eye in the room was on me and I just wanted to run. I turned to Everett, intent on making my excuses and leave, and
stared
. The deep blue shirt he wore was fitted to his torso, dark jeans slung low on his narrow hips. The memory of the body I’d seen beneath that shirt proved the perfect distraction, the words I’d intended to say flying from my mind.

Two girls exited from the bathroom beside us, heads close together to be heard in the loud din. One of them with long dark hair and too much eye makeup looked Everett up and paused for a moment, trying to capture his attention. Her friend’s eyes grew wide as they both stared, whispering excitedly.

Step off, bitches, he’s mine
.

The possessive thought startled me. Everett didn’t even seem to notice the girls, who were alternately staring at him and frowning at me. I could see them psyching themselves up for introduction, and had the sudden urge to kick some ass.

Oh boy
.

“I need to take a walk.” Not bothering to see if he heard me, I pushed my way through the crowd toward the front door. Behind me I could hear the DJ’s music die down as the band got ready to start their first number. I was only interested in getting out of that claustrophobic environment, and shoved my way through the newcomers and out the entrance.

The night sky was cloudy and the humidity had increased, but I didn’t care. Storms were common this time of the year but it hadn’t yet grown windy so I wasn’t too worried. I walked around the front building and leaned against the wall, glad for the alone time. Footsteps crunched behind me, and Everett leaned up on the wall next to me. “I thought you were going to walk,” he said, flashing me a lopsided grin.

“Oh, a funny guy.” I was antsy, but his presence helped calm me a bit. My shirt was plastered to my skin and I gave it a few good shakes trying to dry it out. “That was embarrassing.”

“I don’t know, I’ve always been a fan of wet T-shirt contests.”

His comment surprised a laugh out of me. “Down, boy.”

He leaned over and nudged me with his shoulder. “So, is this what you do for fun around here?”

“It’s not normally this dramatic,” I said, then smacked my forehead. “Oh yes it is. That’s the South for you, gossip and drama.”

That came out more bitter than I meant, and I let out a shaky breath. Leaning my head back, I stared up at the sky. The nearby grove of pine trees was outlined in the sky above, the moon’s rays trying to penetrate the cloud layer. “Lately, the drama seems to always happen to me,” I said after a moment. “I’m like a magnet for this kind of thing.”

“What’s that over there?”

I looked over to see him pointing toward the nearby trees. Following his finger I couldn’t see anything moving. Just as I was getting ready to ask what he saw, a spark of light flickered then died, followed close behind by another. Understanding dawned. “They’re fireflies.”

He was squinting into the darkness, mouth slightly ajar, and looked cute enough to eat. I grinned widely, amused by his response. I had a similar reaction the first time I ever saw the insects; it was fun to watch someone else’s first glimpse. “Want to see them up close?”

Not waiting for an answer, I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the tiny lights. The bar butted up against a large pine grove not taken over by housing developments, and in no time we were tramping over needles and a few pinecones. The insects weren’t normally easy to catch, but the cooler air had them lethargic enough for me to trap one against a tree.

“Here,” I said, extending my cupped hands to Everett. “They don’t bite, promise.”

His hands slid over mine, and the heat from his palms was like an electric shock. My body stiffened and I bit my lip in the darkness, not wanting him to let go. But I gently pried my hands apart and deposited the small bug into his hands, watching it blink dimly between his fingers.

“It’s smaller than I thought,” Everett said, voice low as if worried he’d scare the bug. He brought his hands up to eye level, opening them slowly to see inside. The lightning bug stayed on his hand, calmly soaking up the warmth of his skin, before taking flight once more. It hovered around his head for a moment, flashing several times, before disappearing in the brush.

“Neat, aren’t they?” I said as he stared after it. “They were one of the cooler things I found when I first moved here. I remember my mom gave me a Mason jar and told me I could …”

I trailed off as Everett loomed above me suddenly. Swallowing, I backed up against a tree as his hands spanned the thick trunk above me. Dipping his head low, he brushed his cheek against mine. “You’re definitely one of the cooler things around here to me.”

Words were impossible; even swallowing took all my remaining brain cells. He wasn’t touching me, but his proximity was doing funny things to my body. My nipples ached, and a burning started low in my gut. I licked my suddenly dry lips and looked up at him through my lashes, at the full lips only inches from my face. My hands itched to touch his torso, to see if his body was as hard as I’d seen on the construction site.

“You smell good,” he murmured, brushing his nose along the side of my head. I sucked in a breath as he moved to the other side, taking a deep breath. “What perfume are you wearing?”

As a matter of fact, I wasn’t wearing any, which made his question even sexier. I clenched my hands then, unable to stop myself, I reached out and laid them on either side of his torso. He clenched beneath my palms, all muscle and silk, as I traced the dips and curves with my fingertips.

He let out a ragged breath, and then nipped the top of my ear, playing with the skin between his teeth. It was my turn to gasp, my hand tightening against his belly. I curled my fingers in that silky shirt, desperate to pull him close and feel his body against mine. A small moan escaped me as he ran his teeth down my ear, flicking slightly at the skin with a hot tongue.

Headlights flashed from the parking lot, briefly illuminating our location before switching off. The light distracted me, enough to realize that we were essentially out in the open, even in the darkness. I crumpled the shirt in my fists, my numb brain trying to figure out what I was supposed to do, and then reluctantly pressed him back. Disappointment coursed through me as he moved away, and I took a deep breath. “This isn’t the sexiest place to make out, you know.”

“I don’t know, I think having you back against a tree would be pretty fucking hot.”

Whatever vocabulary I still had flew from my mind at the images that statement produced. I cleared my throat, but getting my mind on track was difficult. “There are ticks around here,” I said, and then winced.
Way to be sexy, Lacey
.

He lifted me against him suddenly, and I squealed in surprise as he spun us around until he was the one leaning his back against the pine tree. I grabbed his arms for support, and he grinned down at me in the low light. “Is that better?”

I was straddling one of his legs, my breasts plastered against his hard belly. His biceps strained beneath my hands, and I let out a shaky breath. “Not really,” I replied, my voice a bit higher than normal. “Now they’ll just get on you.”