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Chapter Five: The Dance Part 1

Constance

            I couldn’t believe it, he wasn’t here!

            I was fuming after the first fifteen minutes of class passed and Gabriel was a no show.  Was he deliberately skipping class in order to avoid me?  Due to the syllabus, we knew which days of class were strictly devoted to the project, and today was one of them.  And, in my opinion, one of the more important days because it was the first full class period we had to determine the direction and tone of our project.

            I forced myself to take a deep breath and slowly let it out.

            Give the guy a chance, C.  He might be sick.  There could have been an emergency he had to take care of.  And, most importantly, he doesn’t have your number, so how’s he supposed to get a hold of you to let you know?

            Fine!

            I hated it when my inner monologue was right.

            Pulling out my laptop, I started to look up the general information on internment camps, jotting down pertinent information or websites to go back to.

            As I was losing myself in the racial tragedy that occurred on American soil, my phone vibrated with a text.  It was a group chat with all of Jamie’s cheerleading girlfriends—the same ones who had adopted me into their group.

            “Matt and the boys are going out of town for a camping trip this weekend.  What should we do?” Jamie posed the question.

            Once every month, Jamie and I had a weekend to ourselves when Matt, Kevin and friends left to go have a “guys” weekend.  Usually, it involved something outdoorsy like camping, hunting, fishing, hiking . . . Something believable that would cover up their true motives for their weekend getaways.  That something being hunting and feasting on fresh animal’s blood.

            So, in the wake of the “all-guys” weekend, Jamie declared an “all-girls” weekend which usually involved at least one, if not more, of the following:  shopping, drinking, bar hopping, clubbing, lots of ice cream and sleepovers.

            At first, Matt wasn’t too happy about the clubbing and drinking and dancing.  He had been jealous, but Jamie had quickly put that to rest when she told him the day he allowed her to go with him on those camping adventures, she’d stop going to the clubs.  Jamie had been more than willing to go with the all-male group, knowing full well the vulgarity she’d face but, Matt had flat out told her she couldn’t.  That she was unwelcomed to these events.

            I understood why he didn’t want her there.  Being the only human—especially a female—while they hunted was dangerous for her.  However, being Matt’s mate, he should have told her the truth of his heritage when they had become serious.  The reason he kept her in the dark about being a vampire was a mystery to me, but I definitely knew it had undoubtedly created tension in their relationship.

            Shopping spree? Kiera suggested.

            Trip to Missoula? Gracie chimed in.

            Tipsy sleepover? Matty was probably one of the mellower partiers of the group.

            Drinks, definitely! Mandy, Matty’s twin sister messaged.  She was the party girl, and the complete opposite of Matty in personality.

            Let’s go to the Bleu!

            Great idea Chelsea, we haven’t been there in a while, Mandy messaged back immediately.

            It has to be tonight, I have plans on Saturday afternoon that I can’t get out of.  Bridesmaid duties, Amanda added.  I preferred Friday evening shenanigans to Saturday’s anyway.  That way, I had my whole Sunday to be productive instead of recovering from the late-night shenanigans.  Not that I was ever nursing a hangover.  I had sworn off alcohol and drugs after my stint with Keith.  Usually, it was just recovering the energy I used to stay engaged with all the girls and to keep them safe after they all drank too much.

            I’m in! Mandy, Matty and Kiera messaged.

            Can’t wait! Chelsea added.

            Amanda sent a party dancing gif.

            And I’m most definitely in! Gracie commented.

            C, what about you? Jamie asked.  I made eye contact with her from across the room and rolled my eyes at her puppy dog face.

            I really wanted a quiet evening, but I knew I would never hear the end of it.  Yeah, I’m in.  But only because I miss Max.

            He is most definitely a tall glass of water, Matty agreed.

            If only he wasn’t gay, Chelsea sent with crying emojis.

            Ya’ll are losing it over some bar tender? Mandy teased.

            Yes! Because he’s not only gorgeous, he can talk to women without sounding like a condescending ass, and he’s very well . . . endowed, Chelsea defended.

            You know he’s almost twice our age?

            That’s just weird.

            No!  He couldn’t be!  He looks so young.

            He’s old enough to be your father.

            Ewww! Mandy why did you have to make that comparison!!!!????

            You’re welcome.  Especially for the images it created.

            You’re so evil!

            I muted the conversation, shaking my head and laughing quietly to myself.  Chelsea was definitely right about one thing, Max knew how to have engaging conversations, and that was why I liked him.  He’d even told me one time I was his favorite out of all his customers and if I was a little older, he would be sorely tempted to become bi.  But I knew all of this was in jest.  He was happily married to his beau and they owned and operated The Bleu together.  Max was by far the more capable of handling the crowds and running their employees while Jax, his partner, did all the finances and behind the scenes work.

            When we got home that night, Jamie shoved a dress of hers into my arms and told me to get changed, shouting orders over her shoulder as she rushed to get herself ready which stockings and heels would go best with it.  I shook my head in amusement at my reflection.  I was in a little blue-green number with fishnet stockings and my black hooker heels.  I had to hand it to the girl, she had taste.

            Jamie came in seconds later in a flurry, dressed with her hair up in curlers.  She sat me down at my sewing station and immediately set to work on my hair.  I didn’t argue with her as she fussed over me, because I knew taking care of others made her happy.  Once she had transformed me with her magical powers—make-up and hair included—I hugged her and thanked her.  She allowed me a second before running back into her room to finish up herself.

            By the time eight rolled around, we were ready.  We called an Uber and were on our way to The Bleu by eight fifteen.  Jamie could hardly keep her seat; she was bouncing around and talking a mile a minute.  This was the first tip that something was up tonight.  What that was, well, I’d find out soon enough.  I just hoped it wasn’t something too embarrassing.

            When we arrived, she practically dragged me out of the car and raced to the front door.  While we waited in the short line to get in, I couldn’t help but notice the beauty around me.  The night was gorgeous, the air crisp and clear while the dark sky stretched overhead forever as billions of stars dotted the universe.  My heart ached to roam the wilderness and marvel at the majestic beauty of mother nature and capture those rare moments with my camera.  I really missed my cousin and his crazy pack and the serenity of their little hovel in the mountains.  I missed getting into mischief with them and driving my cousin crazy.  Maybe I should have gone up there this weekend, I mused.  It would have been so much more peaceful—

            Music thumped from within the building, remnants of the bass could be heard rumbling from outside, breaking my thoughts from places far away from the city.

            After the bouncer, Ray, checked our ID’s, Jamie nearly sprinted into the club—which was truly an amazing feat considering she had on a pair of her highest heels—and towed me to our usual meeting spot.  The girls were already there and they all looked at me with wicked, Cheshire grins.  “Ok, does someone want to explain to me what I’m missing?” I asked the group, looking pointedly at Jamie.

            “You didn’t tell her?” Kiera gasped, overdoing the shocked expression.  It was hard to keep myself from rolling my eyes at her fake act.  They had deliberately left me out of whatever was about to unfold for a reason.  Shifting on my feet, I tried to quell the nervous tension building in my gut.  I hated surprises.  And, with this group of wild women, I didn’t know what to expect.

            “So C, this is how tonight is going down!” Jamie smirked enthusiastically.  I knew I should have pressed her when she’d insisted on dressing me up.  Normally, she didn’t go through all the trouble of making sure I was dolled up for these outings because I insisted on being a wallflower.  “The girls and I are going to be choosing dance partners for you tonight!  We want you to have fun and let go for a change.  It’s been such a long time since you’ve let your inhibitions go and just live for the moment.”

            Oh boy.

            I looked around at their expectant faces and I completely regretted not taking Erwin up on his offer to go up to his cabin this weekend.  Dancing and socializing wasn’t something I liked doing.  I was an introvert for heaven’s sake!  Jamie knew just coming to a place like this was agonizing for me.  And now, they wanted to pick strangers for me to dance with!?  Where I would have to strike up and hold conversations with men I would most likely detest?  It didn’t sound like fun at all.

            “Oh come on C,” Mandy chided.

            “Please, C?” several of the girls echoed.

            “On one condition,” I caved.  “That each one of you only get to pick one—and only one—partner for me to dance with.  Otherwise, you’ll have me dancing with every single guy that walks through that door.”

            “Deal!” Jamie interceded before anyone from the group could try and argue.

            I didn’t have to wait long.  Gracie was the first to pick a man from the crowd.  She practically dragged him from the dance floor and introduced us.  “This is Greg!” she smiled brightly.  “Greg, Constance.”

            I smiled politely at him, accepting his proffered hand, and following him out onto the dance floor.  At first appraisal, he seemed more of the backwoods, country type come to the big city.  Come to find out, though, it was just a ruse meant to draw women in.  In my own opinion, I wasn’t much into fake appearances.  Then again, I couldn’t really say much without sounding hypocritical.

            After a few dances, I thanked Greg for his time and retreated back to my table of girls where they bombarded me with tons of questions and squeals of excitement as they stalked more unsuspecting prey.

            Surprisingly, the evening went by fast, and I was truly enjoying myself.  It had been a long time since I’d had random conversations with strangers.  Truth be told, this little foray had boosted my faith in the male population.  All—except for one of the men my crazy group of girls chose—were complete gentlemen.  The guy in question had been a little too grabby for my tastes and couldn’t take a hint.

            Finally, the last dance with the last of the chosen was done and I was able to relax.  My feet weren’t used to all the abuse and were protesting.  Loudly.  “So C,” Betty, a pretty, busty brunette pitched from across the table, “Who will you choose?”

            “What do you mean?” I asked, not sure if I liked where she was trying to go with this.

            The girls all glanced around at each other.  “You have to pick someone too!”

            “That wasn’t in the agreement.”  I wasn’t about to try and choose someone because I knew Jamie would do everything in her power to hook us up for a one night stand.  She believed I needed some kind of rebound man to be completely cleansed of my previous relationship.

            “Oh, c’mon C,” many at the table exclaimed.  “Lighten up!”

            “You could choose one of the guys we picked for you,” Jamie encouraged, leaning into the table so she could conspiratorially whisper into my ear, “And maybe you could hook up with your chosen man.”  She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and winked.

            I smirked and rolled my eyes at my call.

            “No, that won’t do,” disagreed Mandy.

            “That wouldn’t be any fun,” Matty agreed.

            “What wouldn’t?” I asked, wondering if she had over-heard Jamie’s side comment.

            “You should choose a random guy, someone different.  Like we did.  If you choose the same as one of us, then it would be pointless.”  Mandy elaborated.

            “What would be pointless?”  I was still confused over their reasoning.  None of them were making sense.  It could be they were all intoxicated.

            “We are dying to know what kind of man you would choose!” exclaimed Amanda.  “And I have five bucks saying it’s a well-dressed shmuck!”

            Well, that said a lot about how she perceived me.

            “Nope!” Kiera yelled.  “It’s gonna be a cowboy!”

            “Naw ladies, my girl likes the bad boys,” Jamie smirked, adding her bet to the growing pile.

            “Well, while you ladies debate about this, I’m going to get another drink.” I rushed away from the table, hoping to buy myself some time before being harassed into choosing a partner.

            “Hi gorgeous!” Max greeted with an infectious smile.

            “Hi handsome,” I returned, taking a seat at the bar.  Before I could say anything, he had slid a plain ol iced tea in front of me.  “Thank you!”

            “Anytime!” he winked, turning back to serve more customers.  It seemed busier tonight, and by the looks of things, they were down at least one bartender.  Most likely Max wouldn’t be able to talk tonight, which meant I didn’t have an excuse.  “So, I saw you out there shaking your tail feathers,” Max leaned over the counter conspiratorially.

            I laughed.  “Yeah, the girls decided I needed to get back in the game.  And now they are harassing me into choosing someone too.  I won’t be able to avoid them much longer.”

            “Well, you know I’d go up to bat for you, right?”

            I never thought he would take one for me.  “Really?”

            “Of course!  Don’t you remember, you’re my favorite,” he leaned over and tapped my chin affectionately.

            Hmm, that would definitely work in my favor…

            “You know, if they persist, I might just take you up on that offer.”  He winked before helping out another customer.

            As I took a sip of my tea and contemplated my options, the air surrounding me suddenly shifted and electricity rolled over my skin.  The hairs on the back of my neck and arms rose at the shock.  The noise of the club dropped away as I focused on this alarming assault to my senses.  What in the world was causing this disturbing reaction?

            Slowly, deliberately, I turned, scanning the room, looking for danger, for anyone who could cause such an upset.  Before I could fully turn around, though, his deep voice reverberated through me and I instantly knew who was wreaking havoc on my senses.  “Constance?”

            My gaze crashed with alarmingly unique blue-brown eyes.  It was unsettling how my body recognized his presence and reacted even when I hadn’t been consciously aware of him.

            “Gabriel.”  My breath left my body on a whoosh of air, as if he literally stole the breath from me.  My wide eyes took him in from the tips of his black cowboy boots to the tip of his cowboy hat.  He was so ruggedly handsome, so overwhelmingly male it was causing my heart to throb.  He looked so calm, so relaxed, so confident it was nearly intimidating.  “What are you doing here?”

            What kind of a greeting was that?  I mentally slapped myself.

            “I’m meeting a friend here later,” he replied, leaning in closer to be heard, crowding my space.  He rested a forearm on the bar at my back, effectively boxing me in between the bar and his solid chest.  We were so close I could feel his inviting warmth and smell his heady masculine scent.  “I’m sorry I wasn’t in class earlier.  There was an emergency I had to take care of at work.  And, I’m also sorry for my behavior earlier this week.  I was very rude.  Forgive me?”

            It was hard to gauge his sincerity with him being so close.  Looking deep into his gaze, though, I believed him.  Nodding, I replied, “I’m sorry too.”

            He grinned widely before asking, “Would you care to join me for a dance?”  He held out one large hand invitingly.  His grin was so positively wicked, it left my tongue tied.  That drop dead, dangerous smile had to have left several women with broken hearts.

            At first glance, he didn’t seem all that daunting.  But there was something about him.  He seemed to be the kind of man mommas warned their daughters about.  The kind of man who had heaps of baggage and trouble following him.  He was the kind of man who wanted a good time—and definitely knew how to give it—but wasn’t willing to settle down.  Girls were attracted to him because they wanted the challenge of taming and owning such a man.  Yet, he was the kind of trouble women avoided because they weren’t willing to put their hearts on the line for such an unachievable risk.

            Once upon a time, I had been that naïve girl hoping to land a man like him.  In the end, though, I had been burned.  I thought I had learned my lesson; I believed I had matured into the cautious woman, but obviously, I hadn’t.  Deep down, I knew my heart and head had to be screaming at me to shut him out.  But there was something rooted even deeper, some primal instinct which had me ready and willing to accept his attentions.

            Listening to what was playing, I boldly held his gaze.  I couldn’t make this too easy on him.  “As a rule, I don’t slow dance.”

            One brow rose in intrigue.  “Well, unfortunately for you, I was always one to break the rules.”

            A bad boy through and through.

            I was in deep s**t because I had a thing for bad boys.

            Slowly, he reached out towards me, giving me ample opportunity to pull away and reject him and his offer.  But I couldn’t.

            His arm curled around my waist.  Instantly, a jolt of desire sparked through me at being in his embrace.  Slowly, he slid me off the bar stool and set me on my feet.  Taking my hand, he pulled me out onto the dance floor and drew me in close to his body.  I hadn’t realized just how tall he was until that moment.  In heels, my eyes were level with his collarbone.  I tilted my head back, my heart racing in anticipation of his hands on my waist.  Gracefully, he took one of my hands in his and then gently laid his other over my hip, pulling me in closer until our bodies almost touched.

            Instinctively, I rested my free hand on his chest.  Under my palm I felt the rapid beating of his heart.  Was he feeling the effects of this insane attraction too?

            At this point, my senses were all on overdrive, my body nearly vibrating with the overwhelming overload of senses.  For the first time I was hyper aware of my sexuality.  Keith, even at the peak of our relationship, never achieved such a state with me.  But with Gabriel, it was different.

            “Breathe.”

            The simple command had a whoosh of air exploding from my lungs.  Hell, he affected me so much I forgot how to breathe!

            “You’re tense, and your heart’s racing,” he commented casually, as if he were commenting on the weather.  His breath washed over my face as he leaned in close.  His hand left my waist and trailed a fiery path along my exposed neck and down the slope of my shoulder.  I shivered in delight, my eyes closing in bliss at the unexpectedly sensual caress.  “If you don’t want to dance with me, sunshine—

            My eyes snapped open.  The expression on my face must have been pretty severe because he stopped mid-sentence.  “If I didn’t want to dance with you, I would have said so.”

            After a moment of silent deliberation, in which he was trying to figure out what my reaction to him could mean, he leaned in and whispered against my ear, “Close your eyes.”

            It was a strange request, but what could he do in a room full of people?  After searching his gaze and finding nothing more than a challenge and mild curiosity, I obliged.  His hand moved back to my waist, once again pulling us close.  The warmth of his body seeped into mine.  I barely felt the brush of his hair against my face right before he made the first move.

            The first teasing brush of our bodies was nearly enough to drive me insane.  But, as Gabriel continued to lead us in a series of sensual dance moves, I realized just how fluently we moved together.  Regardless if we were immortal or not, we shouldn’t have been able to move together as if we were one being.  Only years of practice together could result in our anticipation of the other’s moves.

            Unless . . .

            My eyes flew open and they searched the inexplicable depths of his gaze, desperately looking for any evidence to uphold my theory.  I didn’t have to search hard, though, because he was nearly speaking his emotions through his gaze.

            I shook my head in disbelief.  This was all too much too fast . . . Too intense!  How could we ever survive this attraction?  It was all so overwhelming, it couldn’t be real!  Even if we were mates, this strong of a connection could only be achieved if we had performed the bonding ritual.  And, as far as I knew, we had only just met this week.

            My mind was in such a jumbled mess, I hadn’t realized we had stopped until I felt Gabriel’s hands against the bare skin of my arms.  My gaze sharpened on him, but I didn’t fail to notice the suddenly empty dance floor and the spectators staring in awe at our flawless performance.

            “Constance,” Gabriel breathed emotionally, his hands sliding up my shoulders and neck to cradle my face.  My body was engulfed in flames and so far lost in him, so lost in confusion I didn’t know what to do.  All rational thought was seized by the overwhelming possibilities swirling around in my head; mixed with all the emotions and things he made me feel, I was surprised I was able to see anything—or anyone—else but Gabriel.  I shouldn’t have noticed the familiar figure moving in my peripheral, making his way towards the bar, but I zeroed in on him over Gabriel’s shoulder and my heart nearly stopped in terror.

            I turned my face away as the man looked towards us with curiosity. 

            I knew Gabriel was troubled by my sudden rejection but I couldn’t answer the questions I could feel burning into my skin as I backed away from him.  I wasn’t only running away in fear of the man at the bar, I was running away from Gabriel.  I couldn’t let him kiss me.  Not yet.

            I hated to admit it, but I was afraid of what Gabriel was bringing out in me.  What he was making me feel was so powerful I was afraid it would destroy me.  “I have to go,” I whispered weakly, turning out of his embrace before he could stop me.  My body instantly felt cold, and grew more forlorn with every step I took away from him.

            But it was the right thing to do, especially when the enemy was so close

            I scampered to the table where I grabbed Jamie’s arm, leveling her with a panicked expression.  “We need to leave.  Now!”