Chapter 17 #4
“ Sold!” She’s so eager to get off the stage… I don’t blame her.
Legion removes a wad of cash from his leather jacket and licks his fingers. Flipping through the bills, he counts off five grand as he comes to stand before me. Lifting the money between those demonic fingers, and I’m sure savoring the fucking moment , he holds the cash out to me.
“There’s an extra two hundred for a rain check on that second dance.” He grins. “I’m afraid I’m a bit pressed for time tonight.”
I snatch the cash from him and hand it off to one of the Jokers’ sweet-butts in charge of collecting and recording the bids, all while attempting to retain my composure. “I thought you were preoccupied ,” I growl at him.
“Oh, I wouldn’t miss out on this ,” he taunts.
“Now that you got your grand entrance bullshit out of your system.”
His evil grin broadens. “ This party’s just getting started , Keegan.”
The use of that fucking phrase is a clear indication he wants to get under my skin, and he knows Vanna can’t hear him at this distance.
I swallow my rage and remind myself, this is just a fucking dance.
It means nothing. And neither she nor I is obligated to the impromptu terms of his bid.
One dance. Tonight. That’s all he’s entitled to.
We can hash out this fucking rain check later.
“You think throwing around your reward money is going to buy you a way in?” Viking demands.
An antagonistic sneer pulls at Legion’s mouth. He doesn’t bother looking away from me to answer Viking’s question. “I don’t know what you’re talking about… But it did just buy me a time with your wife .”
“Fucker!”
Before I can swing on him, Viking blocks me with a massive arm hooked around my chest, and Legion walks off to make his arrangements with the DJ.
“Don’t let him get to you,” Viking says, releasing me. “You know he just wants to get in your head. Vanna sees right through him, too.”
“Vanna likes him for some goddamn inexplicable reason!”
“Vanna tolerates him, the same way we’re all forced to.”
“No…” I shift my burning stare from Legion’s back to look up at my brother. “There’s something else… I can feel it , Viking.”
“Dean, the dude’s been gone three years… You’re being paranoid. Not that I don’t sympathize, considering the shit you went through with Lucinda, but what you have with Vanna, it’s solid, bro. She will never do what Lucinda did to you.” He pats my shoulder.
“She’s got some kind of soft spot for him.”
Viking lets out an exasperated sigh. “Lost puppy syndrome. That’s it, bro. Vanna’s got a forgiving heart. Once she realizes this puppy is actually a rabid wolf , it’s game over for Legion. Come on, this is just a dance for charity. He had to pay for this. It isn’t like she had a say.”
“Right….” But as with everything pertaining to Legion, it’s more than this.
It’s not just a dance. It’s everything the dance represents .
I lower my voice so only Viking can hear me.
“It’s bad enough everyone sees me tolerating him…
But now they get to see him dancing with my wife ?
After referencing that fuckin’ rumor downstairs, too.
” I reach up to grip the back of my tensing neck.
“That bullshit is gonna follow me forever.”
“If it makes you feel any better, when the dance is over, let him know what you’ll be doing with Vanna later.” Viking chuckles. “You’ll always have the upper hand when it comes to your wife, bro. She ain’t no Lucinda.”
For my own sanity, I might not even wait.
“ L ooks like you’re up first,” Cherry says. “I think Legion just bribed the DJ.”
“Dean has to be livid.” I glance around for him as we descend the steps of the stage together. Dean is no longer standing where I last saw him in the crowd. Cherry tugs my arm, pulling my attention back to her. She points, and I realize Dean is waiting for me at the bottom.
“I’ll catch you later,” Cherry says, practically handing me off to Dean when we reach him.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know he’d?—”
“It’s not your fault,” Dean cuts me off mid-sentence, wrapping an arm around my waist. He pulls me off to the side of the dance floor. “Just do me a favor while you’re out there with him.”
“Of course.” I don’t know what else to say, but I want to reassure him. Staring up into his dark, heated gaze, I’m met with a mixture of rage and unease.
“Think of me.” That sorrowful look in his eyes can’t be disguised by the stern tone of his voice.
“Dean…” I sigh.
“When he’s got you in his arms, I want you to think of me.”
I reach up to touch his face and stroke his stubbled jaw. “This doesn’t mean anything. He could be anyone.”
“But he isn’t anyone … It’s Legion.”
“ Speak of the devil!” That familiar gravelly voice comes up behind me. “Mind if I cut in?”
Dean pulls me tighter against him, bowing his head to press his lips to mine. I’d laugh at this entire territorial display if I didn’t know Dean’s past and the very real fears that still haunt him, even despite our happy marriage.
For my husband, I wrap my arms around his neck, arching up on my toes to mold my body and lips to his, giving all who care to notice a real show of just who I belong to.
As we deepen the kiss, our tongues moving together in a slow dance of our own, one of his strong hands moves to firmly grip my ass, pulling me harder against him still.
Even through my leather jeans, I can feel his length hardening between us.
A couple of guys in the crowd whistle, egging him on with shouts of encouragement.
After a few moments, Dean presses his forehead to mine and breathlessly whispers against my now kiss-swollen lips, “Come to me when this is over… If I stay …” his words trail off, but he doesn’t have to finish the statement for me to understand.
It’s best if he doesn’t watch, probably for more reasons than I can even fathom right now.
My mind is spinning from the few shots I’ve already consumed, and his searing hot kiss that always makes the world around us fade away.
“Come on, let’s grab a beer,” Viking says, suddenly appearing beside my husband.
Dean releases me and we part, but he doesn’t take his eyes from me, willing me to remember his request.
“I will .” I smile up at him.
His gaze turns cold upon shifting his attention to Legion. Dean drops his hand, unabashedly adjusting himself.
“I’m sure you’ll enjoy your fucking dance,” Dean growls. “Guess what I’ll be enjoying the rest of the night while you’re off doing grunt work. I’ll always get the last dance.”
Viking chuckles, slinging an arm around Dean’s shoulder, then drags him off toward one of the outdoor bar areas before anything can escalate.
Taking a deep breath, I gather myself and turn around to face a seemingly unfazed, patiently waiting Legion.
“Turning me down last time seems to have come back to cost you,” Legion says, a teasing reminder of rejecting him on the dancefloor at the Halloween party.
“Seems like it cost you . Both times,” I barely get the quip of sarcasm out before my nerves get the better of me. “What song did you choose for three grand? Did you know about this little auction? Or is it a common practice of yours to carry around that much bribery cash?”
He cocks his head to the side. “You seem nervous, sweet one. Don’t be . It’s all for a good cause!”
“Which one? We all know everything you say, everything you do, has more behind it than the obvious.”
“I assure you, my motives are above reproach. The fact your husband is displeased is simply a bonus .”
I try not to groan, “I should have stayed home with Ace.”
“ Nonsense! Mothers need to escape their children from time to time, don’t they?” He seems to study me a little harder upon asking that question.
I shake my head, trying to clear my racing thoughts while my anxiety continues to climb. “I’m really not the best dancer.”
“Well, I’m a really strong lead .” Legion grins.
I reluctantly accept his offered hand and allow him to pull me onto the dance floor.
“I hope you like the song,” he goes on as we walk together.
“The Rock genre fits the event, and it’s a power ballad known for its grandiose arrangements, emotive vocals, and enigmatic lyrics.
Though some of the lyrics are left open to interpretation.
In my opinion, it only adds to the song’s mystique and emotional depth. ”
Legion stops abruptly once we reach the center, practically yanking me off balance as he faces me and pulls me to him, and I stumble into his chest. The faint aroma of whatever aftershave or cologne he’s got on takes me by surprise as I right myself.
It smells like chrysanthemum or sage, a honey-sweet and somewhat soapy scent, with a hint of smokiness, though I’d expect a note of smoke on him.
“I don’t appreciate the man-handling .” I glare at him while he arranges us into a very purposeful position.
“Apologies.” Legion’s smile is undeterred as he slips one hand around my waist. He plants it firmly at the small of my back and pulls me a bit closer.
I get another whiff of his scent, and this time I recognize it. We sold smudge bundles of the herb at the Ametrine Cauldron. It’s mugwort.. .
Straightening almost pridefully, like a damn peacock, Legion lifts our joined hands a bit higher.
“This is hardly the environment for a waltz , Legion!” I already feel my face flushing with the borderline-painful heat of embarrassment.
When the first rapid notes of a piano begin to play, and an electric guitar joins in, I immediately recognize the song.
“Could you have chosen anything worse?” I nearly shriek as he takes the lead.
“Had I more time to consider my options…but this one suits, don’t you think?” Legion grins, whirling me around the dancefloor while the late Meatloaf belts out his famous Rock N’ Roll ballad. The lyrics of I Would Do Anything For Love speak volumes for all to hear.