Samantha laughed, her blue eyes full of playful mischief as she leaned closer to Katrina. “So, since we don’t dance with strangers, want to dance with each other?”
Considering Samantha wasn’t going to dance with any guy in the place and Katrina wanted her to have a good time, she nodded and the two of them joined the crush of people getting down to R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion.” Even though she didn’t do it often, Katrina loved to dance, loved the sensuality of her movements and the way the beat of the music made her body come alive.
The two of them danced a few songs until Katrina lost track of time. But they were having fun as they laughed and watched other couples bust out trendsetting dance moves, and Katrina found herself envious of the females who were brave enough to get up on the bar top and dance in front of everyone.
She had no idea how much time had passed, but when she saw Samantha’s gaze move to someone behind Katrina and watched her face light up like a woman in love, she wasn’t surprised to see that the person she was beaming at turned out to be Clay, who had somehow found his fiancée in the crowd. Jesus, had Clay put a tracking device on Samantha?
Katrina leaned closed to Samantha so she could speak directly in her ear and be heard over the music. “What is Clay doing here?”
When she moved back, Samantha’s expression was sheepish, and a tad apologetic. “I told him where we were and asked him and the boys to come join us.”
Which meant that Mason was here, as well. Fucking fabulous, Katrina thought, not at all happy that the boys had just crashed their girls’ night out and fun. Then again, it was hard to be upset with Samantha when all she wanted was to be with her man, but Katrina had expected it to be a Mason-free evening.
“Sorry to cut in and steal away my beautiful fiancée,” Clay said as he wrapped his arms around Samantha and pulled her close.
The sinful gleam in his eyes told Katrina he wasn’t the least bit sorry to be able to spend extra time with his bride-to-be before they went to their individual suites for the night.
“Last I saw, Levi and Mason were getting a beer and heading over to one of those tables with Tara,” Clay went on, jerking his head in the direction where the girls had been earlier. “I’m sure if you ask Mason, he’ll dance with you.”
Oh, hell no. That was one activity she’d avoided at all costs with Mason throughout the years, knowing that it would be sheer torture for her to have his hard, muscled body pressed so close, and to feel the grind of his hips against hers like a slow, sexual tease. And that’s all it ever would be, since Mason wasn’t attracted to her in the same way she was to him.
She made her way back to the area with tables and found Levi and Tara at one of them, both drinking a beer. No Mason, of course.
“Where’s Mase?” she asked, knowing it was a bad idea even before she spoke, and that she wouldn’t like the answer.
“Doing what he does best,” Levi said, his tone droll, leaving no doubt in Katrina’s mind as to what he meant. Man-whoring.
“He’s over there by the bar, trying to charm his way into that girl’s pants,” Tara added unnecessarily as she pushed her long, dark hair over her shoulder. “Let’s hope he doesn’t drag her into the bathroom and get himself arrested in Vegas,” she said with a snort.
Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look. . . you’ll just get upset over something you can’t change, Katrina’s subconscious warned her.
Like an idiot, she glanced over her shoulder and looked, her stomach in knots even before her gaze zeroed in on the one man who had way too much power over her emotions. It was a scene she’d witnessed so many times before—hot, gorgeous, tattooed Mason flirting with some random girl who had caught his eye, his devastatingly sexy smile promising the kind of pleasure most women couldn’t resist. Judging by the way the pretty girl put her hand on his arm and swayed toward him so their bodies brushed, he was close to sealing the deal.
Hurt and anger warred within Katrina, the latter of which she had no right to feel. Logically she knew Mason was free to do what he wanted, with whomever he chose, but what upset her the most was the fact that he’d managed to ruin the fun she’d been having. He’d crashed their party, and she resented him being there and forcing her to watch him most likely leave the place with another woman.
She exhaled a deep breath, trying to release the ache tightening in her chest, but the tension remained, especially when she added in the fact that he’d called her uptight earlier today and accused her of not being able to loosen up and have fun. During that plane ride, he’d suggested she find a random guy to have a fling with, and in a moment of frustration, she’d told Mason that she would.
She remembered that dumbfounded look on his face, and his shock that she’d actually agreed to do something so out of character. She’d given him that flippant reply because he’d provoked her, but now she seriously considered putting herself out there to see what would happen, and how Mason would react.
And hell, maybe she’d get lucky tonight, too.
The Coyote Ugly bartenders were urging women to dance up on the counter, and Katrina realized that it was the perfect opportunity to show Mason that she was fully capable of letting loose and having a good time without him. She was finished standing on the sidelines, waiting and pining for something that wasn’t going to happen because Mason didn’t reciprocate her feelings.
You can do this, her inner vixen coaxed, bolstering her courage and confidence. Get up on that bar and give Mason a show he’ll never forget.
And that’s exactly what she intended to do, Katrina vowed as she headed for the stairs that led up to the staged bar, just as Don Henley’s “All She Wants To Do Is Dance” started to play.
Chapter Three
One minute Mason was trying to figure out how to nicely extricate himself from the overly aggressive woman who’d seemingly staked a claim on him the moment he’d walked into Coyote Ugly, and the next he was distracted by a round of loud cheers, appreciative male whistles, and catcalling coming from the direction of one of the bars.
Mildly curious as to what had the crowd all worked up, he glanced over the woman’s shoulder toward the commotion. Every muscle in his body tensed when he saw Katrina dancing on top of the bar, looking hotter and more seductive than he’d ever seen her before. He’d also never seen her so . . . uninhibited, and especially in a public place.
What the fucking hell?
A combination of shock and awe held Mason’s gaze hostage, and his mouth went dry as dust as he watched her body move so sensually to the beat of the music. Those small hips circled and swayed with lithe grace, and her cloud of gorgeous blonde hair cascaded down her back as she tipped her head, raised her arms above her head, and drove the men around her wild with a shimmying move that nearly brought Mason to his knees right where he was standing.
Lust made his blood surge like molten lava in his veins, spilling through him in a rush of carnal hunger. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He could only stare at this bold, brazen, uninhibited woman he barely recognized as his best friend.