As we entered, the loud blaring music and the dim blue lights, he had to lean in close and still yell so I could hear him. Every pop song seemed to be on at the same time.
“He modeled with me for this shoot last month. Swimsuits.” Denton winked and we headed right for the bar.
I got a martini to start and could barely sip it down before Denton dragged me to the dance floor. I was laughing before something caught my eye, something that made me turn my head and stare. Private lounges lined the perimeter of the club and in one of them, I saw Maverick and Jude. I knew I wasn’t imagining it—they were there in their black suits and firm expressions but they weren’t alone. They sat opposite two busty blondes—I could literally see their implants from where I stood.
It wasn’t just a conversation, they were leaning in, giving their sly smiles. I didn’t know why I was so hurt—they weren’t mine. Yet I was fuming. I was so mad, because…. Because why?
“Denton, let’s dance.” I tugged him with me instead and found a tight spot on the dance floor close enough to those… assholes.
They wanted to break the contract, then so would I. Erm, in theory of course, since Denton was gay and I wasn’t actually trying to hook up with him. But they didn’t know that and if they saw me, I wanted them to be as pissed as I was.
“You trying to get a man?” Denton shouted in my ear as I turned and grinded against him. It wasn’t anything we hadn’t done before.
“Yeah!” I shouted back.
I felt him laugh as he grabbed my hips. “Not like that you won’t.” He turned and groped me in turn, flashing his sexy smile. Hell, it was sexy to anyone.
We danced for a while and I almost forgot what I was even doing because Denton and I really started to mess around. He was grinding all over me, against me, feeling me up, and I was doing the same. He didn’t even know the whole story and he was just along for the ride. A good friend.
I started having fun until I heard a familiar growl. Everything stopped, I stepped away from Denton only to turn and find Jude standing there like a man truly scorned.
His furious expression hid under the dim lights, all to be seen was his sharp jaw and sneering mouth.
“Who the fuck is this?”
16
Jude
Maverick and I planned to lick our wounds by visiting another successful investment. We had our money in a lot of places, and always wanted to expand our reach in any way we could. Years ago we went in on the nightlife market, after realizing how lucrative it was. One strain in particular started a whole string of night clubs in other major cities and one in particular just opened up in ours, so we had to go check it out. But we also needed a major chill pill after what happened at the office.
I respected Martha a lot, but I was pissed she was so crass with us. at the same time, I understood where she was coming from. We screwed up a little, maybe a lot… but I refused to believe the whole company was in jeopardy. Yeah, it was a bad move making that investment, but it couldn’t have been that bad. At least it shouldn’t have been.
“Now you’re thinking about it.” Maverick poured from the bottle of scotch we bought.
“Nah, just bored.” I traced the condensation off the glass and took it down in one gulp.
Maverick and I got comfortable in the private booth. It overlooked the dance floor, and it was packed full with a long line outside.
“Right. You’re never bored.” He shook his head and took his own drink.
I had a few more until I started to feel the buzz. I needed something stronger if I really wanted to drown things out. I never got drunk, barely even buzzed. But Maverick always stayed sober in public and I could do whatever I wanted as long as he was there to watch my back.
“We’ll figure something out, eventually.” Maverick had to shout over the music and I still had to read his lips to even understand him.
I nodded in agreement. The night was posed to be a shitty one, not even the show waitresses could make it better. They didn’t actually do any work, they just walked around looking pretty. The club did a lot of bookings and was mostly for the night life career type, the kind that made appearances and was advertised to get other people to come. The two women came over, busty and blonde, smelling like cheap perfume.
Nothing like how Henley would smell. But neither of us wanted to think about that right now. We knew we were supposed to make plans but the weekend got away from us, because the week was so jam-packed we couldn’t get through much else but work.
“You two look like you need to relax.” One of the blondes between us both tugged at the lapel of my jacket. Her eyes were blue and glassy, definitely been drinking all night probably mixed with other shit. I feigned a smile as I moved her hand from my three-thousand-dollar jacket.
The other woman was all over Maverick too and I bet they thought they would be getting lucky. If we were any other men they might have been. Our agreement stated none of us could have outside relations, but that wouldn’t be what stopped us from having sex with them. I just didn’t want to do that to Henley, and neither did Maverick.
I was leaning away from the one grasping at me when I saw a flash of red on the dance floor. I would recognize it anywhere, but I tried to convince myself it wasn’t her. But she only had to turn her head and I knew it was her—my Henley. I nudged Maverick and pointed until he saw too—our Henley. Out there on the dance floor grinding with some blond douchebag, who looked like he pumped weights and had his hair colored for a living.
“Excuse me.” I nearly tossed the blonde woman off me as I got up, staggering a little from the rush of alcohol to my brain.
But I reached Henley with laser focused eyes and pulled her from the asshole.