The Date Planner

1.11. Dancing To Our Heartbeats

"Nice meeting you guys. Anyhow, care for a dance Clinton?", Liza breaks the silence amidst the frowns, glares and taut jaws set in place.

Apparently, I'm too paralyzed to react.

"Sure", Clinton very preppily replies.

He gives us a look, eyes hard yet a mocking smile on his face as he takes Liza's hand and takes her onto the dance floor.

As soon as they leave our sight, I heave out a breath I had no idea I was holding.

Jason detecting it, gives me a questioning look. Me on the other hand getting back in control of myself give him an appalled look.

"What was that?", I turn to face him, a little angry at him.

His hands still on my waist.

"What? Did you see how he was being an a*s? Especially to you. What is even his deal, huh? Girlfriend bailed on him because he was behaving like a child?", Jason says in a mocking tone.

What in the actual...

I hold in my chuckle at his comment and try to act as angry as I was feeling but unfortunately my anger was residing from Jason's stupid humor.

"You know, you're not getting away with this because all things apart, he's my client-", I start but Jason cuts me.

"And my enemy"

"-and you cannot behave with him like that", I look at him pointedly.

He looks at me for a second before letting out a breath of frustration, now looking at anyone but me.

"Jason", I warn him.

He grumbles something to himself like a child and honestly if he even stomped his leg at this point, I wouldn't be surprised.

"You know, I could buy that stupid company in which you work with a flick of my fingers-", and I cut him this time.

"But you won't because you know, how much I love my job and how much it means to me, so you respect my decisions and not interfere with it", I say in a final tone.

"Yeah. Of course, some best friend I'm", he grumbles sarcastically.

I chuckle lightly.

"Yeah, someone who's also going to dance with me now. Come on", and for the third time today I pull him along with me, which he begrudgingly accepts and follows suite.

"Look at you getting all handsy with me today. One might say you want to-", he wiggles his brows at me and chuckles.

"Oh, you never know with me", I wink at him playfully, getting that extra burst of confidence I've no idea from where.

He gives me a lustful look and my eyes widen in surprise before he lets out a laugh at it.

Definitely wasn't expecting that.

I hold in my chuckle at that.

I pull him a little deeper into the crowd of dancing couples and away from Liza and Clinton.

I can practically feel Clinton's eyes on the back of my head but I don't pay heed to it.

Apparently I just realized how much of an a*s Clinton is, despite the things I feel around him.

Anyhow, I stop by near one of the corners and Jason instantly gathers me into his arms like a natural instinct to him.

I feel his hands glide on my bare back and the very hairs of my skin stand. My breath hitches as our eyes meet and I see something in them I haven't seen before.

A longing of something you want and you've yet you don't. Or maybe I was just seeing a reflection of my own emotions in his eyes but the way he was looking at me, made me feel a thousand times better and relaxed than in anyone's stare in this whole gala.

My heart soars at his blunt smile, eyes a little hooded. I didn't even realize how much closer he drew me into him until now that I can practically count all the long lashes that touch his cheek whenever he blinks.

Oh gosh...

"You look really really beautiful today", he whispers into my ear, drawing me more closer than before.

"Well, what can I say. It's all Eleanor's magic", I giggle at the end lightly.

Trying my best to hide my blush and looking at his collar buttons instead to distract myself.

"No, not her. It's you. She can only dress you up, she can't change your face, your light, Jesse", he says breathing in my hair.

He didn't just...

To say I was happy would be an understatement.

My heart was soaring at hearing all of that. It was like seeing everything through a glass and not believing it because it wasn't actually happening.

But the thing was, this was no dream and it was really happening.

"I don't know what to-", I start breathily, at a loss of words but he cuts me off.

"Shhh", he shushes me gently.

"I know", he whispers before pulling me against him as we swayed to the music slowly.

Somehow all the tiredness and tensions of my week were relieved and I had no idea how much I needed this moment of utter peace running through my body up until now.

I closed my eyes in bliss and rested my head upon his chest.

In this moment, I want nothing more than to tell him how much he means to me and how I much I want him in every way possible.

But I can't.

Tears prick at my eyes at the thought of it and suddenly a pinch of pain flares in my chest which I push away along with my tears.

That's when my eyes fall on Clinton who's standing at a far off place from us, dancing with Liza yet his eyes fixated on me.

I hold in a gasp at it and clutch Jason a little more tightly than before which he doesn't question but goes along with.

Clinton on the other end still hasn't looked away and I've no idea what he wants at this point. But I can't deny how it's bothering with my head at the moment.

I feel Jason resting his chin on my head and sighing in bliss and I nuzzle into him more if possible.

Ignoring Clinton and his thoughts that linger in my head.

***

After the whole dancing thing Jason and I got split up. He met some business partners, I met a few old clients of my own who started thanking me for their success story which I was grateful for until one of them actually spilled their drink on my dress.

Which I'm currently dragging by the way.

Eleanor is going to be so pissed once she finds out about this. I don't even want to imagine her face considering I remember what happened the last time I got into a situation like this.

"f**k", I curse loudly in the silent marbled hallway.

Apparently the washrooms in this place are somewhere at the behind and secluded area which seems to be a thousand miles away considering I'm not able to find it.

Or maybe I'm lost.

That makes a whole lot of sense because these dark hallways are a dead giveaway.

I stop and catch my breath for a moment when I hear a rustle of clothes and footsteps behind me. My shoulders instantly tense up as a weird feeling of being watched falls on me and I whip around to see a sight for anything but find nothing instead.

Could this place get any more creepier?

I rake my hands nervously over the dress as if to make that spilled wine stain go away.

Then huff out a breath.

God, this is exhausting.

I put my hands on my waist and look at the large floor to ceiling windows; the moonlight glides in through them as the marble shines in its light and I tap my feet against it impatiently.

What to do now?

Before I've the time to do something, an arm grabs me by the waist as the other hand flings itself in front of my mouth and before I know it, I'm being muffled and dragged by an unknown person who I still can't see because they're behind me.

The panic immediately sets in as I thrash in a desperate attempt to get out of their hold.

Oh my God, what the heck is the security in this place doing at this moment when I'm getting f*****g abdicated in the middle of nowhere?!

They squeeze my wrist a little too hard and I whimper involuntarily at the pain that shoots through me.

Cold air hits my back as I'm swung and released into a huge balcony that overlooks the city below, shining in lights.

I whip around from the landscape and come face to face with my kidnapper, who is none other than...

Clinton?

"What the hell?", I exclaim but it comes out like a question.

"I'm so sorry, are you okay?", he asks, his hands in front of him as if he would grab me again if I tried to make a run for it.

"What? Were you following me?", I ask him thinking out loud and angry at his previous as well as present behavior.

"Answer my question first", he demands, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at me as if I were a child he was scolding.

"Are you serious right now?"

"Answer me first"

"Fine! I'm fine", I huff out aggravating, rubbing my wrist which he squeezed too hard.

"Good. Now, I didn't mean to freak you out okay? I just want to talk", he says before looking apologetically towards my rubbing wrist motion.

"That's what any abdicator would say before killing the victim!", I point out.

"What? Why would I-Are f*****g with me?", he exclaims, irritated.

"Oh you bet", I scoff.

"No, I'm sorry, I don't. Desperation doesn't look good on you, you know? Especially when everyone could see how you were all over Jason. How do you even know him?", he says in bewilderment.

"He's my best friend which is none of your business by the way and I wasn't all over him, okay? And what is it to you anyway?! You got your own date and what did you do to her? The poor girl is literally dying for your attention while your busy eyeing others", I mock laugh while putting a hand to my chest.

"You don't say. Anyone could mistake you guys for lovers considering how you were acting on the dance floor. And what is it to you? I would do whatever I want and whenever I want with my date. It doesn't concern you. I paid you for it and that is it"

He takes a step after each sentence towards me as I back away to maintain the distance considering I was able to see that crazy eyed look in his eyes that says he's officially angry as f**k.

Oh lord, save me.

And before I know it, I'm backed up against the railing of the balcony. My breaths come out sharp and heavy as I try to look down and mentally try to calculate the number of feet high this balcony might be to try and escape if possible.

But nah, I would be dead by the time I reachedown.

So I look forward, bracing myself on the railing behind me.

"What? Scared of me now Justine?", Clinton chuckles darkly and I feel the need to practically chuck a shoe at his head.

"You-you're an incorrigible man", I jab my finger in his chest and meet his stare head on because I'm not dying like this at all.

"You're a really infuriating woman", he shouts in my face.

And that's when I realize our situation or rather position.

His body is literally inclined over me and we're so close; so freaking close I can literally smell his enticing perfume of minty apples.

My breaths come out short as I break out of my trance of anger. And I find him blinking the trance away too; like having had realized the same thing that I did.

His eyes flicker to mine and I see them darken that ignites something from the very core of me, sending a delightful tingling sensation through my whole body as we both breath heavily.

Our breaths mingle and I don't know how but everything just feels like it got a whole lot quieter than his presence which I cannot ignore at all. I'm so near him to actually think clearly especially with these sensations that are taking over my body.

For a second I think I see him eyeing my lips but when I blink he's looking at my eyes.

So I erase the thought away.

Only for it to realize being true because before I know it, his lips crash into mine.