Overture (Rain Dance, Book 1) (Rain Dance Series) (28 page)

     
She switched
characters in an instant, her body moving a little more suggestively. Very
subtly, she looked back over her shoulder to glance in the direction I was
staring. When she looked back to me, her mouth spread into an almost cheshire
cat-like grin. "Score!" She winked and slowly began sashaying her way
towards the bar.

     
It felt a bit
weird being completely on my own now, but I wanted to give Dale some more time,
so I kept on dancing. I was relieved to hear the next song that had begun to
play. Some pieces were just easier to move to. For fun, while in the privacy of
my own home, I had spent the last few years practicing belly dance, and I'm
sure that effected my overall style of movement. Songs with more ethnic tones
that allowed me to sway, twist my body, do hip rolls and maybe even some subtle
snake arms to were my preferred choice over songs that were limited to simply
jumping up and down to. Then again, bobbing up and down made sense for the club
scene. Still, I tried to mesh the two together without going full-on
oriental
dance
in the middle of the crowded floor. Nothing would dare keep me from
doing a twirl or two, though. Yeah, I ended up enjoying myself so much that I
even sang along.

     
When it was
over, I became somewhat aware of my surroundings again. I tried to get into the
next song, but ended up feeling awkward as I began to take notice of the
increasing number of couples. People seemed to be pairing up with random
strangers - a natural phenomenon, Jillian had told me. I couldn't stand the
thought of being that close to someone I didn't know, and I didn't want anyone
sneaking up on me just because I was free. It was probably unlikely to happen,
but I thought it better to just avoid the chances altogether.

     
Turning, I
headed back to our table. I didn't plan to stay there, though. Two songs were
hardly enough for Coops and Samantha to get to know each other. On the way back
I spotted Connie, who was clearly hitting it off with Mr. Amused.

     
"Hey
there, Babydoll," Dale called when I reached the table.

     
I threw him a
small frown. Ethan had been pissed when he heard the nickname, thinking it
meant something more than it did. I didn't want Samantha to get the wrong
impression. She didn't seem to notice, though.
Maybe he told her about it?

     
"I thought
you said you didn't dance! That was amazing." She spoke earnestly, causing
me to blush and fidget awkwardly.

     
"She's
shy," Dale smiled warmly. "She won't admit it out loud, but she's
actually rather talented when it comes to multiple forms of art."

     
I didn't even
bother hiding my scowl this time. Samantha continued to grin at me.

     
"Just
telling it like it is. You aren't done yet, are you?"

     
I shook my head
and went to dig into my bag. "Bathroom break. Need my phone," I
replied to him. I would hide in the stall and play some games for a few
minutes.
Ugh, public restrooms. Hopefully these ones aren't too bad.

     
When I pulled
it out I saw that I had one unread text. I stood up, checking my messages.

     
"I was
gonna order another round of drinks. Did you want something?"

     
"No,
thanks. I'm good for now." I only took one step before I froze. "…Oh
God."

     
"What?" Dale asked with an arched brow.

     
I quickly
searched through the crowd before returning my eyes to my phone.

    
 
Enjoying yourself?

     
As I was
rereading it, another text came in. Its sudden buzz made me jump in surprise.

    
 
You look scared, Kitten.

     
"He's
here." I looked up again, examining the club once more with squinted eyes.

     
"Who?"

     
"Ethan."

     
"Where?"

     
"Mr.
Desmond is here?" Samantha asked, sounding somewhat confused.

     
"Yes," I answered.

     
Dale started
looking around, too. "Did you tell him you'd be coming here?"

     
"No…"
Ah
. Finally, I spotted him. He was casually leaning back against the bar
where Connie and that guy had just been. His eyes bore into mine and I could
see a slight trace of amusement on his face. Before I could stop it, a wide
smile spread across my own face. I dropped my phone back into my bag, never
taking my eyes off his, and made my way towards him.

     
It was the
first time I'd seen him wearing something other than one of his suits or his
loungewear. And though he was dressed casually, he still looked every bit
professional in his dark jeans, black jacket and fitted white T-shirt.
Yes…every bit professional and every bit edible.

     
It wasn't until
I reached him that Coop's words finally registered. My jaw-hurting smile turned
into a frown.
What the hell is he doing here?

     
"Don't be
mad at me," he said quickly. "I was only going to watch you, but
after that little performance you pulled, I thought it would be safer to stay
by your side. You seem to have attracted the attention of a few prowling
wolves."

     
"You being
one of them?"

     
The corner of
his mouth curved into a smirk. I wanted to kiss it, but I held back. "Most
definitely," he answered, tracing the back of his finger along my cheek.

     
"How did
you know I was here?"

     
"Word gets
around quickly depending on who you know. Samantha talked to Antonia. Antonia
talked to Beth. Beth talked to Henry. Henry mentioned it during this evening's
emergency meeting. He's here, too. He and two others," he finished with a
slight frown, looking almost weary now, though I couldn't imagine why.

     
"Who is Henry?"

     
"You've
seen him before. He has an extra office on the top floor. Brown hair."

     
"Oh."
I did recall trading smiles with someone other than Patricia on the top floor
once or twice. But how did Ethan know that? "And do the other two also work
for you?"

     
"Yes." He took a few strands of my hair between his fingers.
"Pierre is with Henry over in the VIP section. And Tyler…Well, you may
have already noticed him. He took quite an interest in the woman you were
dancing with."

     
I followed his
gaze, only to find Connie's wild hair brushing against Mr. Amused's chest.
There was some heavy grinding going on.

     
"So you
decided to jump at the opportunity to play stalker?" I asked, turning my
head back to Ethan.

     
He shrugged.
"It was Henry's idea to come here, it being a Saturday and all. I had no
way of knowing whether you'd actually show up or not, but if hoping makes me a
stalker, then so be it."

     
"Hm."
I thought about it for a few moments. "So what if I hadn't come? Would you
be sitting with the other two still, talking about whatever it is you men talk
about? Would you be picking up girls like your friend over there?" I
motioned my heads toward Tyler and Connie. "It wouldn't be a problem,
right? I mean, this doesn't really seem like the kind of place where women go
to find loaded men. They probably wouldn't give you much trouble."

     
"You're
right. It's usually not until
after
the fucking is over with that they
realize who I am. That's when they become troublesome." He spoke with a
straight face, but his eyes were hard. Angry, even.
Had I just offended him?
Perhaps my words had come off as accusing. But I hadn't meant them to…

     
Oh.

 
    
I realized then that my insecurities were
showing.
Look at me…trying to find fault in the poor man.
Anything that
would make me feel like I was the only one worthy of his attention. Looking
down, I sighed.

     
Then his words
hit me again, only this time I felt a sharp sting. His answer had come from
actual experience. Before I had a chance to think about the life he had before
me, I returned my attention to us. Bringing a hand to his face, I brushed my
thumb across his skin.

     
"I'm
sorry," I said quietly. "I missed you. It was a stupid idea, I
suppose. Of course I can survive a few days without you."

     
"It's not
stupid." He took my hand from his face and kissed it. "You were
right. It would be healthier for us to take things slow, especially as it's
quite obvious now that both you and I have issues with intimacy. Now that we've
finally found someone we can get close to, we don't want to let go."

     
Close. He
feels like he can be close with me.

     
"It's
dangerous," he continued. "Early stages or not…if things end badly,
it's very possible that it could do some damage to us both. However, I don't
consider that an option. But I don't want to scare you, so I'll leave it at
that."

     
Huh.
"Again with those heavy words…"

     
He nodded.
"Remember, I won't ever force you into anything serious. I'm a patient man
and have always been willing to wait for what I want. But I
do
always
get what I want...in the end."

     
"...I have
no doubt about that."

     
"From the
moment we met, you were already mine. Nothing will change that, so whatever
pace you want to set for us…it's irrelevant to me."

     
I leaned my
head against his chest and breathed into it, trying to keep yesterday morning's
shower incident as far away from my mind as possible.
Don't think. Just
breathe.
The heavens must've been checking in on me then, because the next
song began and the sudden need to move my body returned.

     
"Oh wow, I
thought they stopped playing this song years ago." I glanced up at Ethan.
"Dance with me?"

  
   
He chuckled lightly and gave me an uneven smile.
"I'm not sure I can keep up with you."

     
"You only
need to hold on." I dragged him to an empty spot on the dance floor and
turned to face him, only to find myself faltering for a moment. "Actually,
I've never danced just one-on-one with a guy before. At least, not like
this..."

     
"Not even
Dale?"

     
When I shook my
head, his eyes softened and his mouth twitched slightly. Clearly, he was
pleased with this news. "Well…" He put his hands on my waist, pulling
me towards him before lowering his head to mine. "We should be a little
closer."

     
I covered his
hands with my own and closed my eyes. Leaning my head to the side, I began
swaying, making a figure eight with my hips. With all previous thoughts fading
away, I allowed my body to move on its own. The only things that registered
were the music, my own heartbeat, and his hands on me. After a minute, I slowly
opened my eyes to look up at him. He was staring back down at me, his eyes
brimming with a hunger that made my insides feel as though they were about to
combust. I wouldn't be able to continue moving when he looked at me like that,
so I twisted my body around so I was no longer facing him. He pulled me even
closer so my back was up against his chest. Eventually, I found myself raising
my arms to wrap around his neck. My height was such that, from that angle, even
in heels it was hard to hook them around him completely, but that didn't stop
me from trying to reach them as far as they would go.

 
    
As we moved together, my body heated to a
boiling point, yet on the surface I was freezing. The friction of moving
against him sent shivers up my spine while a static haze began to hum over every
other part of my skin. I bit my lip when I felt my nipples harden, unsure of
whether the cause was because of Ethan or due to an actual temperature-drop in
the club. Whatever the reason, I tried to focus on the song again before I
could get any more turned on. It was extremely nostalgic and, oddly enough, had
me imagining random sparkles of silver glittering in the dark all around us.
Open
your eyes completely, silly. It's the lights.

     
At some point,
I felt Ethan's hands moving upwards, sliding up my arms and linking my fingers
between his. Spreading them out, he spun me around so I was facing him again.
At least now I was so lost in the moment that I would be able to handle
whatever kind of look he gave me. And thank fuck for that, because holy hell
was his stare intense. The hunger within him had risen to carnivorous. My
breath hitched, my body beginning to sweat a heady mixture of fear, excitement,
and curiosity. I tried to close the distance between us entirely, drawn in by
his hypnotizing gaze.