Chapter Fourteen – Angela
Chapter Fourteen
Angela
Mark was distracted the entire drive to the Strip.
“You’re more worried about it than I am,” I said, trying to tease him.
Once again, we pulled into the circle of the Fleur de Lis Hotel.
I tried to play it casual and not gawk, but it was hard.
“You know you’re going to spoil me if you keep taking me here. ”
He flashed me a grin. “That’s kind of what I’m hoping for.” And then he went back to distant concentration.
“It’s not just Jack, is it,” I asked slowly.
“A man of my stature has a lot on his mind,” he said, his tone lightly sarcastic.
Like murdering my shitty ex in prison? “I wish I weren’t giving you other things to worry about.”
His hand reached out for mine. “It’s not you—it’s never you,” he said. He squeezed it, and I squeezed back. We both got out of the car, held hands again, and it was like we’d never let them go at all.
He led us to a back elevator, one you needed a special pass for, and let us take it up.
It had a glass front, so we could see the glory of Fleur’s casino floor in front of us, and I pressed up against him, momentarily afraid of heights.
His arm circled me, hand on my hip, and part of me wanted to squirm and twist to make it cup my ass—my wolf, there again in full force.
Where had she been hiding all day? Lying in wait to make her presence known at night?
The moon was waxing—maybe it made her more strong.
Mark, knowing none of this, looked over and down as the elevator slowed. He bowed his head to nuzzle his chin against my temple as the elevator doors opened. We were in the VIP entrance of a club and there were only two couples ahead of us, even though the dance floor past them was nearly full.
“Dancing?” I asked, looking up. “You dance?”
“Not well—but I can tell you do. And I want to watch.”
“I haven’t been dancing in years, Mark,” I protested.
“What better night to start up again then?” he said, taking my hand and pulling us to the hostess.
His name was on a list of course, and a girl wearing a very revealing outfit took us to a booth behind the dancefloor, reserved with a velvet rope.
She undid this and let us through, where we sat down into plush leather couches in front of a table full of expensive drinks, and Mark set about pouring two for us.
He handed me mine as he picked up his and made our glasses clink.
“What are we toasting to this time?”
“Beautiful women and freedom.”
I beamed, watching him take a sip. How had I gotten so marvelously lucky—I took a sip of my drink and almost sneezed.
My wolf was unaccustomed to the bitterness of alcohol.
Mark laughed melodiously. “What, you don’t believe me?
” he teased. “You’re the most beautiful woman in this club.
Any man here would kill to spend one night with you. ”
And at that, I laughed. “Mark, don’t be silly.”
“I’m not,” he growled, sounding sure, with a smug grin.
I relaxed back into the couch, crossing my legs so that my skirt hiked up, content to play his game. “Well, of course I could get a guy here, if I wanted. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but guys don’t exactly play hard to get.”
He mulled this, swirling his drink. “What would be a better test then? A woman?”
I tensed. I hadn’t been with a woman since Willa—and I hadn’t told Mark about her, it would’ve been too complicated.
I had a willow tree tattooed on my hip in her honor though—long branches from it swept down my upper thigh—I could see a centimeter of them peeking out from beneath my skirt right now.
I reached down to trace their edge without thinking.
What if being with him meant I got to reclaim that part of my life too?
“I didn’t mean to push things,” Mark said, taking my reflection for refusal.
“No, it’s okay.” I took a much more measured sip of my drink, warning my wolf to brace. “What would we do with an extra girl?”
His eyebrows rose, not sure if I was tempting or teasing. “Whatever you wanted to do with one?” he guessed, so as not to get into trouble.
“You’ve done things like that before?”
He nodded subtly. “You?”
I nodded, just as smooth. “It’s been a long time though. I could be rusty.”
His eyes studied mine, trying to lawyer-judge my intent. “I don’t want to push things Angela—I don’t want to mess anything up.”
Without thinking, I swirled my hand and made the ice in my drink spin. “What if it were me, doing the pushing?”
“If that were true, I wouldn’t mind,” he said slowly.
“Here’s the thing though,” I said, setting the glass down. “If I caught one, she’d be mine, for tonight. You wouldn’t get to touch her. You might not even get to watch, depending. If I did something like that—I’d just need to see what it was like again.”
I could almost watch him doing calculations. “Two caveats then. You don’t get her number—and you forget her name.”
He was worried he was going to lose me? After everything we’d been through, and everything he’d done—and was doing!
—for me? He truly had no idea how loyal I could be.
I stood and walked over to him, as his eyes roved up and down me.
Could he tell the way my wolf waited just underneath my skin?
He was hip height to us now, sitting down, and we looked down at him both teasing and triumphant, and stroked a hand down his cheek. “See you soon, darling.”
With my wolf on board I viewed the entire room through different eyes.
She was unsure about what I was asking of us—but she was more than willing to participate if it led to more sex.
The urges she had to chase and catch and fuck—they were intense, sometimes so strong I had to stand still and wait for them to pass.
I pushed my way through the crowd of dancers until I reached the bar and ordered another drink, charging it to Mark’s table. I saw him across the room, watching me, and saluted him with my glass before looking around.
There were bachelorette parties, even here—and throngs of men with more money than sense, trying to hit on them. For once, I felt some sympathy. Willa and I had practically fallen together—I’d talked a good game in front of Mark, but hitting on strangers wasn’t really my thing.
Then again, I didn’t know another person here. Even humiliation wouldn’t be all that embarrassing—I’d still be going home with Mark. What did I have to lose? Just my pride.
I looked around for someone looking like myself, a little alone, a little lost, and then I saw her.
She was a little taller than Willa had been, and slightly heavier.
Her wavy blonde hair was asymmetrically cut and shaved up in back, in the way that I knew made me and other people want to touch.
She had big earrings and perfectly done up lips.
A guy was talking to her and she was sending out every signal in the book that said she wanted nothing to do with him but he was too drunk or too oblivious to notice.
The third time she took a step back, hunched over and gave him a ‘for the love of God, leave me alone’ grimace, I stepped in.
“Hey Christa!” I got in close, like we were friends already. “I’ve been looking for you! Mel is totally puking in the bathroom, and we’ve got to go.” I dared to put my hand on her arm and feel the softness of her skin.
She knew what I was doing instantly and turned toward me, lighting up. “Oh my God, Samantha, why didn’t you find me sooner?”
Her hand slid down my arm and grabbed my hand and pulled us both aside. The oaf tried to follow, but I gave him a stern look. “No. Just no,” I said—no wolf involved, just angry female—and set him off his game. He was pissed, but by then she was pulling me away and it was too late.
“Oh my gosh, thank you. He’s attending the same convention as I am, I couldn’t be rude, but ugh.” She shuddered lightly, like a horse.
I laughed. “I thought you were putting up the Bat Signal, but if I was wrong, I was prepared to pretend I’d thought you were someone else.”
She laughed. “I’m,” she began, putting out her hand.
I raised mine instead to cut her off. “How about I just call you Christa tonight?”
One of her eyebrows quirked up. “Do I look like an ex of yours?”
I flushed a little red, but still managed to be bold. “I, uh, made a complicated promise to a friend. I happen to have an extensive credit line here though so if you like high end vodka I could tell you all about it?”
She pushed a wave of her hair behind her ears, measuring me with her eyes. They were wide and cat-like, full of curiosity. “Sure—why not?”
“That is the most Eyes Wide Shut thing I’ve ever heard,” she said, after I explained my situation with Mark and she was holding a new glass.
“I agree. But I notice you’re not running.”
“Not yet at least. This,” she said, picking up her glass and tilting it toward me, “is excellent. I’m just hoping it’s not roophied.”
“Oh God no—that would be awful, and cheating.”
“And cheating,” she mimicked me with a snort, and looked over my shoulder. “So who’s the lucky man?”
“He’s alone in a booth behind me, wearing a dark blue suit jacket. Probably looking our way.”
I saw her eyes flicker and land. “Christ,” she muttered.
“Yeah.”
“I’m mean, I’m a gold star lesbian, and even I can see the appeal of that.”
I chuckled. “There are grades? Why did no one tell me?”
“I’m guessing you weren’t a lesbian for very long.”
“Bi, more, really.”
“Uh huh,” she said, curt. “So—you saved me from one man, only to toss me in the lap of another? That’s not very nice.” Straight, the words would’ve been rough, but her tone was teasing—and her eyes were flirting with me over the edge of her glass.
“He’s not allowed to touch you. Just me.”
“And why is that?”
I stared past her for a moment, remembering.
“Honestly? Because he sort of dared me to find a woman tonight, and I want to tease him mercilessly. But also—a long time ago a man took someone from me. I don’t want to get into it, because it’s almost resolved now but…
I kind of want to take that part of my life back. ”
“Someone steal your girl?” she practically purred the words.
Everything I’d ever done with Willa came back, and the memories made me breathless. “Something like that.”
Her head tilted to one side, making the drama of her haircut more distinct. “What if you’re no good at being with women anymore?”
“Then you tell me so and go.”
“What if we have fantastically amazing sex and you realize men are useless?” She gave me a ruthless grin.
“No name, no numbers, no attachments. And—I do love him.”
“Strange way of showing it…Samantha.”
“We’re complicated people, what can I say?” I said, giving her a smile somewhere between hopeful and helpless.
“So it seems,” she agreed.
And now, it was time to wait. There wasn’t anything else I could explain or say, nothing more she needed to hear. She was either intrigued or she wasn’t.
“I’m not used to being other people’s play thing,” she said, and I started to nod like that was a totally reasonable out. “But…it is Vegas. And it’s only one night. And I like the idea of making your man pay.”
“For what?”
“For anything. I’m sure he’s done some bad stuff,” she said, and gave me a wink. “I’m in room two-thirty-eight. How about you and your fellow give me a ten minute head start?” she suggested, and then walked away.
My heart leapt into my throat and started pounding as I watched her go.