Knight of Ocean Avenue (11 page)

Billy’s lips parted a little. His tongue flicked out and wet the bottom one. Shaz felt that soft, wet caress all the way to his molecules. Would that his lips were getting that attention.

Billy blinked, sucked in his breath, and stepped back, pulling his hand away. “So, I guess I’m going to see you at that bachelor thing, right? When should I pick up my clothes?”

“Uh, tomorrow will be good.” The phone in his pocket chimed.
Not now
. He pulled it out.
Damn. Giles. Should I?
He pulled the phone to his ear. “Hi.”

“Shaz, sweetheart, I’m so very sorry. Please forgive me for acting like an ass. I let some disappointments in my business life color my entire outlook. Can you overlook my idiocy and know that I care deeply about how you feel?”

Shaz glanced up at Billy, who cleared his throat and walked into his kitchen. Shaz took a breath. “Yes, I appreciate you calling. I’m in the middle of something, but I’ll call you back, okay?”

“What are you in the middle of? You weren’t at the salon. I went by.”

Shaz firmed his voice. “I’m busy and will call you back.”

“Okay. Yes, okay. Call me soon.”

“I will.” He hung up.
Giles fits all my pictures. Giles fits all my pictures
. He sighed and walked into the small kitchen. Billy sat on a kitchen chair with two cats on his lap. Shaz smiled at the domestic scene “Sorry. Giles called me to apologize.”

Billy gave his sweet smile that looked a little sad. “So everything is okay?”

Was it? “Yes. I suppose it is. I suppose it is.”

B
ILLY
GOT
out of Sissy’s Lexus and handed the keys to the valet. The girl had managed to offer her expensive car for the night without making him feel like an idiot for only having a truck. He walked around in time to see a different valet guy helping her get out of the fancy car. She looked nice. She was wearing some kind of denim suit, but really classy with tight pants and a men’s-style jacket. The jacket hung open over a white blouse with a big, high collar and a plunging neckline that showed off a bunch of those store-bought boobs. Her blonde hair flowed down on her shoulders. Not quite as beautiful as Shaz’s was when he combed it flat, but still nice. “Did I tell you that you look great?”

She smiled. “Did I tell you that you look spectacular?” With a big step back, she gave him an admiring once-over. “Shaz picked a great outfit. I love this color.” She ran a hand over the soft purple-colored fabric of his sports coat, then reached up and patted his cheek. “And you’re a total sweetie. I understand why girls like you so much.”

Just not enough
. He offered his arm, and they walked into the fancy Newport Beach club that Mitch had rented just for the party. How much did it set him back?
Man
.

The party was well underway. No stuffy wedding event, this gathering took bachelorhood very seriously. A DJ blared music through the club, and the dance floor dominated the downstairs. It was a free-for-all. Men danced with women and with other men. Everybody danced with everybody. Upstairs, there was a balcony with tables and chairs that looked down over the dancers. Tables were also scattered around the outside of the huge room.

Sissy yelled into his ear. “I see Mitch and Rhonda up there. Let’s go.”

She pulled him toward the stairs. They pushed through the crowd that was trying to go in both directions and finally got to their table.

Rhonda pointed at some empty chairs. “We saved them for you.”

Billy held one chair for Sissy, then sat next to her. “Thanks. Sorry we’re late. Sissy couldn’t get back from LA earlier.”

Mitch grinned and waved a glass of champagne. “We didn’t wait for you. Now you have to catch up.” He waggled a finger at a waiter passing with a tray of champagne and snagged three glasses. He kept one for himself and gave them the other two. Rhonda gave him a glance but kept smiling.

Billy leaned toward his sister. “Did Teresa and Austin come?”

She shook her head. “No, one of the kids was sick. As usual.” She laughed, but it was tight. “She said they are a long way from being bachelors, so they’d see us later.”

He leaned a little closer. “Do you know all these people?” There had to be hundreds.

Her eyes looked wide, and she glanced around. “A few. I don’t think even Mitch knows all of them. They’re the sons and daughters of his parents’ friends and clients and stuff.”

Mitch leaned over the railing. “Oh look. There’s Giles and Shaz.” He leaned a little farther, and Billy stood up and grabbed his shoulder to keep him from tipping over the edge. He didn’t seem to notice. He yelled, “Giles, Shaz! Up here, darlings.” He flopped back down. “They saw me. They’re coming.”

Rhonda stared at him. “Dandy.”

A couple of minutes later, Shaz pushed through the crowd holding Giles’s hand.
Holy crap.
Billy just stared. Rather than his usual effeminate clothes, Shaz had put on tight blue jeans and a black motorcycle jacket. A rock and roll T-shirt peeked out from under the leather and studs. His hair was wrapped tight at his neck so all you saw was the face. Jesus, like some kind of coin or a carving in a Greek temple. Without all the flash and dash, the guy had near perfect bone structure. Only the bottom lip seemed out of balance. Too full, too sexy. But who’d ever have thought he could look so—butch?

Sissy whispered in his ear. “Psst. You’re staring.”

“Oh damn, sorry. Shaz just looks so different.” He raised his voice. “Hi, Shaz. Hi, Giles.”

Shaz struck one of his exaggerated poses. “You like?”

Billy swirled his tongue in his mouth to get a little spit. “You look nice. Yeah.” He stood up and held out his hand to Giles. “Good to see you, man.” Hell, was he trying too hard to seem as if he liked the guy?

Giles glanced at his hand like maybe it was dirty, then extended his own and shook quickly and softly. “Hello again.”

Mitch pulled out two more chairs beside him. “Sit. Join us.” That put Giles beside Mitch and Shaz beside Billy. Shaz leaned in a bit. “Hi. How’s the furniture?”

Billy grinned. “Great. I had a few minutes this evening to work with the spot remover. It’s gonna look so good.”

“You’ll have to throw a party and invite us all.”

Billy shook his head and looked at the bubbles in his glass. “Probably not.”

Shaz smiled softly. “I understand. It’s your refuge. Not for the rest of us. I’m honored I got to see it.’

Jesus, he did understand
. “You’re welcome anytime.”

“Thank you.” Those catlike green eyes glistened.

Giles stood up suddenly. “Come on, baby. Grab a champagne and let’s dance.”

“Oh yeah, I’m there.” Shaz leaped up and started boogying very gracefully in place. His narrow hips and tight butt waggled in the dark jeans while the chains on the jacket jingled.

Billy laughed. Damn, he was cute. He glanced up and found Giles staring at him levelly. So what? He didn’t own Shaz. But Billy looked away and started talking to Sissy.

Shaz danced down the stairs with Giles trying to keep up with him. Mitch snagged two more glasses of champagne from a hovering waiter and set them both in front of himself. He really was intent on getting drunk. Drunker. Rhonda didn’t look happy.

Billy leaned over to her. “You guys need a ride home? Sissy was nice enough to let me use her car.”

Rhonda glanced at Mitch, then shook her head. “We came in a limo.” She reached out and grabbed one of the glasses from Mitch and raised it to her lips. “Thanks.”

Mitch smiled blearily. “All yours. I really do love ya, baby. You know that, right?” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned in. She flinched a little at the alcohol breath that Billy could smell from his seat but still let Mitch kiss her lightly.

“Yes, I know it. And I love you too.”

“So glad.” He snuggled his head on her shoulder. “I wouldn’t want to do this whole life thing without you.”

She petted his perfectly cut hair. “I know. I know.”

“Sometimes it’s just hard.”

“I know.”

Sissy tugged on Billy’s sleeve. He looked over, and she glanced as if to say
Let’s go and leave them alone
. He nodded. “Hey, Sissy, I’m an okay dancer. Want to dance with me?”

She clapped her hands like he’d just had the world’s most original thought. “Love to.”

She jumped up, and he got up beside her. Mitch still had his head on Rhonda’s shoulder. She looked over and gave Billy a strained smile. “Enjoy the dancing.”

Mitch raised his head. “Hey, I know how to danch.”

She pulled his head back to her shoulder. “No, that’s okay. We’ll have plenty of chances to dance at the wedding. You just rest.”

Billy followed Sissy down the stairs. On the crowded dance floor, she turned and started bobbing. He smiled. He hadn’t lied. He actually was a decent dancer—a gift of his coordination that also made him good at baseball and swinging a hammer. He started to move, and her eyes widened. “Wow.” She stepped up her game as the music blared around them, and they strutted and bumped while they laughed.

Two women were dancing together near him. They split up and started dancing beside Sissy so they were strutting with him too. He widened his movements and included them in the dance. Pretty soon, another girl joined in, and they formed a semi-circle around him. Sissy seemed to be enjoying it, so he kept dancing.
Pound, pound
. The music flowed through him. Man, he forgot how much he loved to dance.

All of a sudden, Shaz leaped into the middle of their circle. “May I cut in, ladies?” His red hair had come loose from its knot and flew around his shoulders. He’d lost the jacket somewhere so the tight black T-shirt proclaiming the virtues of Vampire Weekend stretched across his slim but surprisingly buff chest. Man, could that guy dance. He twirled and twerked. His hips gyrated so fast you needed slow motion photography to keep up. Like a damned hummingbird’s wings.

For a second, Billy paused. Did Shaz want to dance with the girls? Where was Giles? But he’d told the women he was cutting in. Billy glanced around. Everyone was watching Shaz. The girls were drooling. Hell, so were half the guys. Shaz spun and stopped in front of Billy. One big bump of his butt sent Billy back two steps.
No way, man
. Billy bumped him back. And just like that they were dancing. The girls shrieked and clapped.

“Take it off!”

“Show him watcha got, handsome!”

Billy laughed and twirled. Shaz stepped in front of him and rotated his butt. If he were a girl, maybe Billy would have pressed his hips against that gyrating ass, but as it was he turned and bumped his own butt against Shaz. Hellfire, even that was damned far. But fun. Really fun.

Shaz laughed and tossed his head so the flame hair flashed in Billy’s face. No thought. Billy’s hand flew out, grabbed the hair and, wrapping it around his wrist, he hauled Shaz in like a fish on a line. Face to face. Eye to eye.
Oh shit
. The watchers got quieter, like everyone was holding their breath.

Shaz grinned. “Now that you have me, big guy, what, pray tell, do you plan to do with me?”

Billy’s mouth opened. Who was the fish now?

Suddenly, Shaz leaped up, kissed Billy’s cheek, then flung his head so the hair slipped from Billy’s hand, and he danced away. Billy touched the wet spot below his cheekbone as the girls applauded.

Two really pretty guys flanked Shaz, and he stopped dancing. Billy heard one of the men say, “Are you ready to go?”

Shaz looked over at Billy, gave him a soft smile, nodded, then turned and walked off with the two men. No Giles.
Wonder where he is?

Billy’s breath still came in pants. He didn’t dance much. Not like that! Sissy grabbed his arm. “That was so great! Both of you are super dancers. I just loved watching.”

He tried to catch his breath. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to abandon you.”

“Are you kidding? You two are hot!”

His breath caught. He glanced around. What had people thought? Nobody seemed to be looking. He smiled at Sissy. “What do you want to do next?”

“You know, to tell the truth, the best thing about this party was you and Shaz dancing. I don’t think Rhonda and Mitch need us, do you?”

He glanced up toward the table. They were gone. Who knew where? “I don’t think we’ll be missed.”

“Good. How about you buy me a taco and drive me home?”

“Don’t you want to get a nice dinner?”

“No. I love tacos, and I’m kind of tired.”

He really did like this girl.

An hour and a half later, after smelling up the Lexus with greasy, delicious tacos that they ate in the parking lot of the takeout place, Billy waved at Sissy from his truck as she carried her leftovers up the walkway to her townhouse. What a weird evening. He’d never seen Mitch drunk before, he’d been crowded by people he didn’t know at a party supposedly for his sister, and he’d danced with a man.

His foot hit the accelerator, and he pulled out onto the residential street.
What a dance
. He hadn’t rocked out like that for years. Truth? Ever. Since he’d certainly never had a partner like Shaz. That butt should have landing lights. He smiled and shifted in his driver’s seat. Sissy had said they were hot. At least Shaz was. Shit, he had shuffled, twerked, and Dougied his way across that floor until the girls were panting. Guys too.

Billy adjusted his junk and shifted to the other cheek. He should go home.

Didn’t really want to.

What would it hurt? Last time was amazing.

His foot pressed down and his cock popped up. No doubt where it wanted to go. He could stop in there looking really good tonight. That would be kind of fun. Maybe Perry would be there again. That guy had sent him into outer space last time. Jesus, that should make him blush, but it had felt too good.

The light ahead turned red. He stopped.

He shouldn’t spend the money. Between the clothes and the furniture, his outlay was pushing his budget. Maybe he could get some extra work? But he didn’t want to give up the Little League team.