Status Update (3 page)

Georgie moved closer. “Dancing these days is like sex to music.”

Laura laughed. “Well, I guess that leaves me out. I haven’t had sex since God was a baby.”

Georgie grinned, but she was undeterred. “It’s just like riding a bike. Hey, Mr. Gorgeous, come over here.” Georgie grabbed the hand of a guy from the table next to them. The groups had started to merge, socializing and doing the last round of shooters together. Laura was amazed by the camaraderie and fun a group of complete strangers could have…given enough alcohol.

“Stand behind Laura. I need a guy for a little pretend fucking.”

“Awesome,” Mr. Too Young said
too
eagerly.

“Georgie,” Laura muttered when the college guy stepped closer to her. There was trying to recapture her youth and then there was robbing the cradle. She knew the difference and had no intention of stealing anything from anybody.

“Just stand there.” Georgie pointed to her newly recruited dance partner. “I’m teaching Laura how to dance.”

“Oh. That’s easy.” The guy instantly placed his hands on Laura’s hips, pulling her ass firmly against his crotch. Laura’s mouth fell open when she felt his cock.

This was supposed to be
pretend fucking
, right?

Georgie laughed, demonstrating what she wanted Laura to do. “Bounce a little. Just move up and down in time with—” Georgie paused. “Hey, what’s your name?”

“Kevin,” he said.

Laura instantly stepped away, turning quickly.

Oh hell no.

She was not going to get dirty-dancing lessons from a guy who was not only very likely the same age as her son, but who also had the same freaking name. “Thanks, Kevin. I think I’ve got it.”

“You want to practice some more?” Kevin gestured toward the dance floor.

She shook her head. “I’m good for now.”

“I’ll go,” Georgie said, grabbing Kevin’s hand and leading him into the throng of dancers. Frank, Randy and Wade included them in their circle, the four men surrounding a laughing Georgie. Laura studied the dance floor and realized the entire crowd was dancing just as Georgie had said.

“Looks like one giant orgy.”

Kristen laughed. “You can say that again. Kevin was hot. Imagine the confusion you could cause at family occasions if you showed up with that sexy young thing on your arm.”

“Very funny. But I’m not the one on the prowl tonight. That would be you. Any promising prospects? I have to admit, I can totally see you as a cougar.”

Kristen frowned. “Ugh. Hush your mouth. I do
not
have the patience to teach some hot young stud what to do. I fully intend to find myself a ready-made man, one with the skills required to make me come at the drop of a hat.”

“Then look no further,” a deep voice said behind them.

Laura laughed when she spotted Kristen’s law partner, Jason, standing behind them. Kristen and Jason had a love-hate relationship. There was nothing the two of them loved more than to annoy the hell out of each other.

Kristen rolled her eyes. “Hell will freeze over before I have sex with you.”

Jason grinned. “No problem. I just bought a thermal hiking jacket from Patagonia. Bring on the cold, baby.”

Kristen ignored Jason, looking at the man standing with him. “I thought I told you to have Nick wait in the car. Georgie will go ballistic when she sees him here.”

Nick winked at Kristen. “That’s why I came in. Where is my ex-fiancée?”

Laura pointed toward the dance floor. “Getting it on with Mr. Gorgeous and his friends.”

Nick’s eyes narrowed when he spotted Georgie mastering the orgy-style dancing she’d been trying to teach Laura. “Those guys are kids. Are they even old enough to be in here?”

Kristen held out her hand. “Give me the damn paper to sign, Jason, and then you two need to vamoose.” Jason had texted earlier to tell Kristen she’d forgotten to sign a document he needed for a meeting out of town. He’d offered to stop by the bar tonight or her house very early in the morning as he needed to be on the road by six a.m. Kristen had opted for the bar. From the look on her friend’s face, Laura suspected Kristen was now regretting that choice.

“Fucking buzzkill,” Kristen murmured as she took the pen Jason offered and signed the paper. “Don’t know why you wouldn’t just forge my damn signature like I told you to. God knows you sign my name better than I do.”

“And miss all this fun?” Jason took the paper and stashed it away in a file. “Blue Moon is hopping tonight. Nick and I were going to get a couple beers at McMillan’s, but maybe we should stay here. What do you think, Nick?”

Nick was still scowling at Georgie and her dance partners. “Here is good.”

Kristen put her hands on her hips. Uh oh. She was about to erupt. Laura had witnessed enough scenes between Jason and Kristen to know it was always better to escape early.

“I’m going to go to the ladies’ room.” Laura excused herself from the table. No one acknowledged her departure. Kristen was telling Jason to get out, while Nick was inching closer to Georgie.

“Hey, Laura.” Kevin was back, grasping her hand and pulling her toward the dance floor. “Dance with me.”

She tried to retrieve her hand, shaking her head, but Kevin was tenacious. She glanced behind him, hoping to signal Georgie for help dissuading the man, but her friend had spotted Nick.

Cue yet another World War. Tonight was about to implode. Quickly.

Kevin spun her, resuming his earlier dancing position. This time there was no mistaking what he was packing in his pants as he tightened his arm around her waist, grinding closer.

She tried to push his hand away, struggling to break free of his grip. While she knew he didn’t mean her any harm, she was more than uncomfortable with his inappropriate rubbing and touching.

“I really need to—”

“Laura? Laura Riley?”

Laura looked up at the sound of her maiden name and spotted salvation in blue jeans, a button-down shirt, and a beloved, familiar face she’d never dreamed of seeing again. “Bryan? Oh my God. What the hell are you doing here?”

Bryan Sinclair had been Laura’s best friend for four years. An Army brat, Bryan and his family had been stationed at the base near Harrisburg when she and Bryan were in seventh grade. One of the saddest days of Laura’s life had been the day Bryan told her his dad was being transferred. They were halfway through their junior year in high school and Laura had felt his absence in her life profoundly. They’d tried to stay in touch, writing letters and calling occasionally, but eventually, they simply lost touch.

“I was going to ask you the same thing.” Bryan smiled at Kevin. “Mind if I cut in?”

Kevin loosened his grip, but didn’t move away. Laura suspected the alcohol was dimming his senses and slowing his response time. “Uh…”

Laura used Kevin’s distraction to step away from the young man. “Thanks for the dance, Kevin.” She grabbed Bryan’s hand, leading him away from the dance floor and toward the bar.

As soon as they found a quiet corner, Bryan hugged her tightly. Laura returned the embrace. “You saved me, stranger.”

Bryan chuckled. “Yeah. It didn’t look like you were enjoying the mauling. Damn, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

She laughed. “I’m so glad to see you. I have to admit you’re probably the last person on earth I expected to run into tonight.”

“I’m here for the band.”

She laughed. “Wow. Really? How many years has it been?”

Bryan shrugged. “I haven’t seen you since we were sixteen, so what’s that make it? Twenty-seven years?”

Laura winced. “Talk about making me feel old. I was just thinking about you the other day.”

“Oh yeah?”

She nodded. “One of my girlfriends talked me into joining Facebook. I wound up getting out an old yearbook and started plugging in names trying to find people from school. Your name was the first one I typed in.”

“I’m not on Facebook.”

She grinned. “I noticed.”

“I’ll correct that oversight as soon as I get home tonight.”

Laura marveled at how at ease she was with Bryan even after the years apart. Despite all the time that had passed, she could still see the boy he’d been in his face and hear it in his voice. While they’d never been anything more than friends, Laura had felt closer to Bryan than anyone at school. There was nothing they hadn’t talked about when they were younger, nothing they wouldn’t try together. Shortly after Bryan moved, Laura’s ex-husband, Mason, asked her out for a date. Sometimes Laura wondered what Bryan would have thought about Mason’s invitation. Would he have encouraged her to go out with Mason or told her to steer clear?

They say hindsight is twenty-twenty. That was certainly true for Laura. Mason had come along at a time when she was lonely, missing her best friend, and she’d hopped at the chance to go out with the hottest, richest guy in high school. She wasn’t so sure her answer would have been the same if Bryan had still been around.

“Are you seriously here for the band?”

Bryan nodded, pointing to the stage. “The blonde on the keyboard is my daughter, Trina. She’s a sophomore at the Conservatory.”

“That’s your daughter? She’s incredible. My girlfriends and I were talking earlier about how talented she is.”

Bryan lit up. It was clear he adored his daughter. “She’s pretty amazing.”

“Are you just in town visiting her?”

Bryan shook his head. “No. My company offered me a transfer here a few months ago. Trina had already done her freshman year at the Conservatory and I’d missed the hell out of her. I asked her what she would think of her old man moving closer. She told me to go for it.”

“What’s your wife do?”

“My wife passed away five years ago.”

Laura reached out to touch his hand. “Oh Bryan. I’m so sorry. That must’ve been terrible for you.”

Bryan nodded. “For a while there, I was pretty much living day to day. But it’s true what they say. Time heals all wounds. I miss her, but I’ve accepted she’s gone and I’ve figured out a way to move forward. So now it’s just Trina and me. I’m renting an apartment in town and she’s living in a dorm on campus. That was the deal. I could follow her to college, but I had to keep my distance.”

Laura admired Bryan’s strength, his courage. There was a sadness in his eyes when he spoke about his wife that told her he hadn’t had an easy go of it these last few years. “My kids wouldn’t have let me move to their college towns, period, but considering they were twins and they attended universities on opposite sides of the state, it’s pretty safe to say that set-up wouldn’t have worked anyway.”

“Attended?”

“They graduated a year ago. I’m very pleased to say my children are both presently employed in their chosen professions and have started paying their debt to society. Kevin is a medical technician at a hospital near Roslyn and Katie teaches kindergarten here in town.”

Bryan gestured toward the bar. “The band is finishing up this set and then they’re going to take a break. I promised to bring Trina a glass of water. You have a few minutes to hang out? I’d love to introduce you to her.”

“Sure.” Laura followed Bryan to the bar, waiting as the bartender made Bryan a gin and tonic and poured Trina a glass of water.

“You sure you don’t want something?” he asked.

She shook her head. “Better not. I’ve already overindulged on lemon shooters.”

Bryan feigned a wince. “Ouch. Tomorrow could be painful.”

“Sadly, I’m aware of that. I’m hoping to curtail some of the agony with Advil and water tonight before bed.”

“So what about you?” Bryan asked as they dodged dancers, working their way toward the stage. “What are you up to these days?”

“I’m a secretary in a high school.”

“And your husband?”

Laura paused. That question still took her unaware as she wondered if people would judge her harshly for giving up on a twenty-three-year marriage. “I’m divorced.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

Laura shrugged. “It’s okay. I initiated the split.”

“I see. Are you happy?”

Laura didn’t know how to reply. When she’d finally gotten up the nerve to ask Mason for a divorce, happiness had been her goal. She’d spent years in a relationship with a man who had no capacity for joy. Laura suspected he was bipolar—or perhaps suffering from depression—but Mason insisted he was fine, refused to go to the doctor and blamed her for his inherent unhappiness. For years, his misery took its toll. She’d left Mason because she wanted to be happy again. But was she?

Bryan interrupted her thoughts. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that was a hard question.”

“Let’s just say I’m searching for my happiness.”

“Is that why you’re here tonight? Forgive me for saying it, but this doesn’t seem like it would be your normal environment.”

Laura laughed. “It’s not. At all. My friends dragged me along. And yeah, I think this is part of my quest to rediscover the Laura I used to be. The one who laughed and danced and enjoyed life.”

Bryan studied her face. “Is it working?”

Laura’s face hurt from smiling. She was tipsy, relaxed and she’d laughed more tonight than in the entire previous year. Running into Bryan after so many years apart was the cherry on top of an excellent evening. “Yeah. It is.”