Test Drive (The Bachelor #1) (12 page)

Camille had been on my mind a lot today. I don’t know if it was guilt or worry, but I knew I hadn’t heard the last from her. She would be back to ask for money or look for some sort of comfort. I hoped that she would take my advice about moving home and getting her life together. I closed my eyes and watched the highlight reel. The girl’s smiles and giggles were flashing by, as well as, my checklist of likes/dislikes.

Wants a family/good mother—Victoria

Knows the difference between wealth and happiness—Claire

Good values/work ethic—Beth

Funny and good sense of humor—Lola

It was so hard to decipher what I wanted in a woman, but I was slowly figuring it out. I opened my eyes to check the clock. Two hours had gone by. I must have fallen asleep at some point. I hopped up to get ready. The club was forty-five minutes away, and I had decided to take my suitcases with me to avoid the drive back time. I could just as easily board the plane and sleep there until it was time to go.

I hopped in my car and revved up the motor. When the garage door opened, I almost had a heart attack. Standing with arms crossed in front of the car was my father. I put the car back in park and got out of the car. He didn’t look happy, and I had about three guesses why.

"Hey, what’s up?" I said. He didn’t smile or move for that matter. I hated how he tried to stare me down or intimidate me into doing what he wanted. I tried my best not to be disrespectful, but it didn’t come out that way. "Look, Father, I am not a mind reader, so you can stare all you want, but if you aren’t planning to tell me what’s wrong I can’t fix it."

"What’s up?" he said holding his hands up in the air like a crazy person. "Is that you have a very important weekend ahead of you and here you are heading out after dark in a Grateful Dead T-shirt like you are heading to a party. Son, if you really want to be a part of this company then I need you to put your job first and your social life second." His arms resumed their crossed position. I was speechless.
Well, maybe not speechless!

"Father, when are you going to realize that I am a capable adult; capable of balancing work and fun? I have worked my butt off in the last few weeks on the mindless projects you have given me, and I am more than prepared to handle this weekend. But that does not mean that I am not allowed time to do what I want when I am off the clock. My bags are packed, and I am ready to go."

I got back in the car, and he stormed out of the garage back to the main house. I revved the engine so loud that when I pressed the gas pedal it spun out of the driveway. I was more determined than ever to have a good time tonight and to rock this trip over the weekend.

I arrived at the club a little after nine thirty. The oversized steel building was completely lit up by lime green and blue strobe lights and spotlights hitting every angle. I had worn as much black as my closet would allow so that I would fit in better.

When I entered the club I was instantly impressed. It was like a mixture of half nude, half gothic patrons. Girls wore mini plaid skirts that didn’t even cover their panties while most of the guys were shirtless with the most insane tattoos and piercings. People on swings and in cages danced and convulsed to the rhythm. If it wasn’t for the fun atmosphere and the deafening music, I might have been scared.

I was still reeling from the fight between my dad and me, so I headed straight to the bar. They didn’t serve beer, so the bartender passed me a menu with some drink names I had never heard. I felt like a freak asking for a Misty Unicorn—a mixture of Vodka, Sprite and a shot of Red Bull.

Once I had my drink, I made my way down the bar and to the DJ booth. I hung around a table near the front and took in the sights. People were grinding and biting each other while others did body shots off the model worthy girls lying on the tables. People donned every color of the rainbow in glow lights.

A voice came over the microphone. It was a female’s voice, and although I couldn’t see into the booth, I imagined it was Lola.

"Hey ladies! Look to the sky as the heavens open up and the sky is raining men."

It’s Raining Men
came on briefly to introduce the guys, but then it faded into a faster beat. I wasn’t ready for the ribbons to drop down from the ceiling and a bunch of men wearing some underwear meant for ladies, in my opinion, came sliding down the ribbon. The women in the audience went crazy and money was flying everywhere. The guys twirled and descended the ribbons repeatedly until the song was over. Then they climbed back up to the rafters and disappeared into the darkness. I was impressed; it was creepy but definitely impressive.

I CHECKED MY WATCH
at ten o’clock exactly and downed the rest of my drink. I made my way to the DJ booth, which created its own set of problems. I could feel people grabbing and grinding against me. I was pretty sure I got licked along the way somewhere.

I approached a very large man who automatically put his hand up to stop me. "Hey, I am here to see Lola."

"And who are you?" he barked. I wasn’t nearly drunk enough to take on this tank of a person. I opened my mouth to speak, but then a bleach blonde head popped around the corner.

"It’s okay, Jax. I told him he could come up."

She disappeared around the corner, and I pointed in her direction. "Yeah, what she said." He only grunted in response and opened the chain gate to let me by. I climbed the narrow set of stairs into the DJ booth. The alcohol from the drink had me feeling buzzed, and when I combined that with the rush of meeting Lola and the pumped up music, I was ready to dance.

"Hey there, I’m Drew." I reached my hand out and she held up a finger in my face. She put her headphones on and pressed a red button on her board.

"All right guys, it’s your turn to scream. Ladies . . . show them how it’s done!" Screams erupted from everywhere and swings came down from the ceiling at warp speed. Girls in lingerie riding swings, dangled from the rafters. They leaned all the way back with only their feet hanging on to the ropes. They stood on the swings and danced to the beat of
Talk Dirty to Me.

It was sultry and seductive, and I was really warming up to the idea of hanging out at this club. I turned my attention back to Miss Lola. She was wearing a black mini skirt with mismatched zippers strategically spaced out. Her shirt was a white and black plaid corset. Her bleach blonde hair was twirled in black tinged pigtails. Her black boots laced all the way up to her thighs. She was freaking hot. She was different, but incredibly sexy in her own way.

Lola removed her headphones and her bubbly excitement spilled over. "Hi there, cutie! I wasn’t sure if you were going to make it." She wrapped her arms around me in a quick hug. She smelled like cotton candy that I assumed was the flavor of her bright blue lip-gloss smeared across her lips. The chill from the metal chain hanging around her neck seared into my arm.

"Yeah, this place is awesome!" I took a step back and gave her a once over look. "And you look amazing!" She winked and did like a half curtsy. "Can I get you a drink?"

"I have a break in a few, and we can go down together. I am anxious to see how you look on the dance floor." She was cool and confident; traits I was very much interested in meeting. Jax reached around the corner and shouted out a song request. She held one long polished finger up and I nodded, giving her space. She played the shout out and, then a man with a giant nose ring and a scull tattooed on his
actual
skull came to relieve her. I couldn’t help but lift my eyebrows at the replacement.

Whoa!

I followed her like a lovesick puppy to the bar. Her cute frilly skirt swayed with each step as she sauntered to the bar and ordered herself a vampire cocktail. I asked for the same, although I had my doubts about what the cocktail might taste like.

When they slid the yellow drink across the table with a syringe full of some sort of red goo, I reminded myself that I
was
going to have a good time tonight despite my father’s warning.

"To a good night with hot people!" she screamed above the music. We held our glasses up and clinked them together. I could barely hear her words above the music so I still had no idea how to drink this. I watched as she removed her syringe from her glass and motioned for me to do the same. Together, we downed the orange flavored drink shot, and I let the vodka burn its way down my throat, further igniting the fire in my chest. I was well on my way to being wasted. Then she took my syringe and asked me to open my mouth. I was hesitant to say the least. I twisted my lips sideways showing my hesitation.

"Come on, it’s good!" She laughed. She threw back her head, and then held her syringe up in the air and let the gooey liquid seep down her throat. I couldn't imagine anything looking sexier than she did right there swallowing down the red concoction. She swished the sauce in her mouth and gulped it down. She held my syringe back up, and I opened my mouth. It tasted like a sludgy raspberry Jell-O shot and it was a perfect end to the tangy orange flavored cocktail.

"That's good, right?" She nodded her head obviously able to tell that I was enjoying the drink.

"Actually yeah, that is really good!"

She slid our glasses across the bar and dragged me to the dance floor. "I love this song!" she said dancing and spinning around. I tried to keep up, but it really wasn't my style. I tried mimicking the guys near me, but they were out there. They reminded me of the break-dancers on TV, and I wasn't anywhere near that flexible or coordinated.

Lola was dancing circles around me. I pulled her close where she continued dancing and spinning. She put her hands on my shoulders and pulled my face closer, and I rested my forehead on hers. I enjoyed the way she rubbed up against me and kept a constant connection with my eyes. I hadn't noticed until now how incredibly dark gray her eyes were. You could almost see the stars in them the way they danced in the spotlight. I wondered briefly if they were contacts.

I could feel the sweat beading up on my forehead. It was so hot in the warehouse, and all the bodies crowded against me were suffocating. Although the music was growing on me, the electric beats and the rhythmic lights made me feel more buzzed than I should be after two drinks. I made another trip to the bar for Lola. She had insisted I get us the "Black Widow." When the bar tended gave me the drink, I could tell that it was another vodka-based cocktail. The mostly clear drink had a mystifying dark purple smear spreading through it. I waited until I got back to Lola to drink mine, and once again we toasted, this time to "meeting new people."

I liked her . . . a lot. She was so relaxed in our conversation. I couldn't imagine her meeting my parents, but they would have to get used to whomever I picked. After we downed the grape infused cocktail, she dragged me to a corner of the room. This section was gated with a line extended half way around the room, but Lola strode right past the line and simply patted the bouncer on the shoulder who immediately let us through.

We ended up in a quiet, secluded room. I could barely hear the pounding music in the pumping through the warehouse, but what I could hear was the sound her voice when she was whispering in my ear. It was hot! She was hot. She had a hint of sassiness in her voice, which grew a bit demanding as she ordered me to shut the curtains behind me.

I briefly wondered how many people she might have met in this room before now or what would happen if some brave soul brought a black light in there. I couldn’t figure out whether she had any intention of starting a relationship with me or if she was only looking for a good time. Briefly I wondered and then I realized that I didn't give a damn what she had planned. I was borderline drunk and on my way to what was about to be the best make-out session I had ever had.

Lola smashed her lips against mine for one earth shattering second. When she pulled back, I questioned whether she even meant to do it. The stunned look on her face and the way she brought her fingers to her lips made me question if that giant spark was going to be lighting any fires.

"Wow!" I said. She smiled from behind her hand.

"So how do you like your first rave?" She recovered quickly. Her pale cheeks were flushed, and she was chewing on the end of her long spider web patterned nails.

"It's awesome! This place is great, and I'm getting used to the noise level. It makes you feel like you are on fire." I leaned back on the painted black doorframe staring at the glow in the dark star stickers stuck to the roof and let the buzzing sensations in my head build up. Lola looked as if she was torn and then all of a sudden she was on me, well, I was on her. She pulled me down by my shoulders onto the red leather sofa/bench thing. I had one hand on the back of the bench and one on the metal table bolted to the floor.

She tasted like the sweet drinks we had been downing, and I finally got a taste of those plump cotton candy lips. Her lips twisted around mine. She wrapped her nails around my shoulders and squeezed down. I had never been a fan of torture, but with her, the pain felt like an accelerator to the fire ripping through me. Pulling me closer by my hair, she positioned my head next to her neck. I smelled her first; I inhaled her sweet scent and then reached in to nibble on the silky white flesh.