“No work tonight. You have to promise me, okay?” I did my standard, dismissive nod, but he saw through it with a drunken grin. “Promise. Say it.”
I hesitated, considered, then gave in.
“I promise.”
“Yes!” His face lit up with a beaming smile, the kind that stood out even in the darkness, making everything beside it pale a little in comparison. “This is going to be great! We can—”
At that moment, a group of rowdy men rushed towards the bar behind me, pushing me unintentionally into Nick’s arms.
He caught me automatically, then looked down with a bit of surprise. We were pressed right up against each other. Nothing between us but a thin layer of clothes. For a second, he looked like he was about to release me. Then he leaned suddenly forward to speak in my ear.
“Do you want to dance?”
My eyes flickered to the dance floor—where people weren’t really dancing, but were either leaping straight up into the air, or rubbing against each other so sexually that it really shouldn’t be permitted in public. A wave of nerves flared up in my stomach, and my fingers tightened without thinking on his shirt.
Could Nick and I really do something like that? Was that remotely possible?
Perhaps more importantly, could I do that right now without falling down? The two of us already had an awful lot to drink...
“I...I’m not...”
“I’ll take that as a yes!”
His hand seized mine, and the next thing I knew, we were weaving to the center of the crowd—a place pulsating with lights, music, and people. The crowd parted like water before us, before closing back around, sealing us in with the rest of them. My fingers twisted around Nick’s, desperate not to lose him in such a dense crowd, but I needn’t have worried.
The second we were there, he turned around and pulled me suddenly into his chest.
My breath caught in my throat as we hovered there for a second. The heat of his skin seeping through my thin clothes. His heartbeat pounding against my skin.
Then, as the lights around us flickered, the two of us began to sway.
Bright flashes of neon green lit up his hair and glowed in his eyes, as he leaned down so his forehead was touching mine. His hands wound slowly around my waist, inching me closer still, and what started out as an innocent dance soon turned into something else entirely.
It was hard to say who made the first move. Things were happening so fast, and we were be
ing pressed together from all sides. All I know, is that before the end of that first minute, his hips were grinding against mine. We were so close together, it was almost painful. Close enough that our hair began to dampen with sweat.
Faster and faster we went. Moving with the music.
His lips curled up in a grin, and the next thing I knew, he flipped me around—pulling me into him once more so my back was against his chest. If it was possible, the dancing got even dirtier. A fog machine had started up from the stage, and in the haze and chaos of the crowd, his fingers slipped around my bare waist, teasing the top of my jeans. Before I knew what was happening, I arched my back and reached my hand up behind me, running it through his wavy hair. He picked up the pace then, trailing his fingers down my side as we ground together again.
A second later, he’d flipped me back around. We were facing now, staring wide into each other’s eyes. As the crowd around us screamed and surged, his lips brushed softly against my forehead. I stared up at him, and the next kiss was on my cheek. Then my other cheek.
We’d stopped moving now. In fact, it felt like the entire club had stopped moving, and the two of us were standing together—lost in time.
His face was only an inch or two from mine. I could smell sweet whiskey on his breath.
Our eyes met only for a second—frozen, like he was asking for permission. Then he took my face in both hands and leaned down once more...
“...I can’t do this!”
I was out of his arms the next second, weaving my way back through the crowd until I finally reached the exit and burst through the door. The freezing air hit me like a slap to the face.
Waking me up. Bringing me to my senses.
What the fuck are you doing, Abby?! He’s your fucking client!
He’s also my friend...