8. Chapter 8
Dom
I get out of the car and walk past the fifty people waiting to enter the club. They're cordoned off, allowing me a clear path to the bouncers welcoming me in.
It's packed in the building tonight. A pop song blasts throughout the first floor, and a large dancing crowd moves rhythmically to the beat.
I check myself, in case I want to get lost among them, and choose someone to take up to the VIP mezzanine with me.
In the safety of the second level, with its moody purple lights and somewhat subdued music, my friends and I can let loose together.
When I have a companion, the space incites whispers and wandering hands.
For years, it was the place where I decided that evening's destiny.
A night of friendship, or a night of lust?
But nothing stirs inside. Attractive people move together to the music, and all I do is shrug and turn to the stairs.
Frustratingly, I've come to learn that it's awkward to sit in the mezzanine with someone new each time, when only Rafa remains single, and he never shows up to the club.
The rest of my friends found their person.
Tonight, I'm afraid I'll learn how awkward it is to sit with them when I'm the only one unattached.
That's why I purposely arrive a little late.
I don't want to be the first to show up, only to sit at our usual spot all by my lonesome.
Yeah, no, thanks. My only hope is that one day I'll go back to dating like I had been.
Finding companionship in short flings, and betting on my friends and I getting used to the fact there's always a new person next to me.
To force myself to date would only add stress to my life, when things keep on shifting under my feet.
Bear and Pen, and Saint and Ames greet me when I arrive.
I grin and find a place with them, sinking into the velvet bench by the wall.
We chat like we never stopped. It's one of my favorite things with my friends, the ease with which we connect.
In a world that keeps on quaking, I'll cling to what I have with them.
Even if things keep changing for them too, leaving me alone in limbo, drowning in a visceral sense of absence by my side…
Mariana appears on the mezzanine. My breath catches.
I drink in the sight of her. Dressed in a gorgeous forest green, wide-leg trouser, and a bronze, shiny top being held up by the thinnest chain I've ever seen.
Her straight, black hair moves around her shoulders and, man, I grow hot.
I still want to run my fingers down the strands.
With more force than I should. Just to see if she'll dip her head back and gaze at me with fury… or passion. I gulp.
"You don't mind, do you?" Pen asks. "She got some good news earlier today, and said she had no concrete plans to celebrate but wanted to. I couldn't let her go home alone."
I lick my bottom lip and stare at my friend. Both she and her husband gaze back at me with interest, and more than a hint of a challenge.
"I don't mind," I say.
It's a lie. Of course I mind. Mariana seems to favor stylish office attire for the day, the kind that makes her look cunning and proper at the same time.
But at night… at night she goes downright sexy.
It's all rather inconvenient. Her presence alone is putting thoughts in my head that I don't plan on accepting.
But I can't show it. We agreed to be indifferent. So I puff some air and nod hello, while my friends exclaim their welcome. The noise gets louder when Rafa, Evie, and Logan show up, with servers behind them holding several champagne glasses.
"Rafa!" Bear roars.
"I know, it's a miracle," the offensive lineman responds.
"Interrogations later. Toast now!" Evie points at the bottles while the glasses get distributed. "I heard the news."
I take a flute, but I say nothing. What are the chances the toast is for Rafa's rare attendance?
Mariana laughs. "I did not expect any of this."
"You don't get divorced every day!" Pen says.
Nat and Damián arrive. They take two glasses, but confusion wrinkles their forehead.
"Why on earth are we talking about divorce?" Nat asks.
Evie lifts her glass. "Mariana is definitely, once and for all unmarried! She said she wanted to celebrate, so Pen and I invited her and offered a chance to do so."
"Oh, if she's happy about getting divorced, then I'm happy too!" Nat raises her glass.
Mariana does the same and grins wide. Such a pretty smile. It's a real one, too, the way it reaches her twinkling eyes.
"To prenups that hurry things along," she says, "and help wrap things up tidy and with a bow on top. And to being officially single!"
My friends cheer and laugh. They lift their glasses and I do too— minimally. We all take a sip. Mine qualifies more like a swig, if I'm honest. I'm hoping the bubbles will give me strength somehow.
Everyone finds their place on the velvet bench, sofa, and armchairs we've claimed as ours. Of course, Mariana ends up at my side, because the universe is cruel like that.
I can be detached. Bored even. As much as it sucks to ruin my night like that.
"What's your plan now?" Nat asks her.
"I'm going to enjoy my singledom," Mariana says. "I'll do what every single person dreams of, and date a lot and keep things casual."
I sip more champagne. A tiny bit extra to keep my mouth occupied, so I don't say a thing.
"Is that what every single person does?" Ames asks. "I know Saint did, but I didn't really date-date much."
"I only did that because you were out of reach, Divina," he says.
"I didn't date often," Bear said. "Too busy waiting."
He gives a complicit look to Pen, who smirks his way.
"And I didn't date at all," she says.
"I didn't date," Evie says. "Nor did Logan."
"The only person in this group who dates a lot is Dom." Logan stares at me with his playful frown. "Current break notwithstanding."
I glare at him and hope he recognizes it as a threatening look. It's a good way to ignore the way Mariana studies me with suspicion in her eyes.
"I'm focused on the game this season," I say. "You know I'm trying to step up more."
"Since when does dating get in the way of you playing well?" Damián asks.
Good thing I was prepared for this kind of question. I offer an explanation they will understand. Hopefully.
"It didn't," I reply. "It doesn't. But this is our chance at a second championship in two years. Getting there isn't as easy as pressing rewind and doing everything the same way again. So I'm going to focus on that for a short while, that's all."
"There's no such thing as a replay in real life," Mariana says. "No rewind, only moving forward."
She's right, but I don't respond to her.
"I want the season to start on a strong foot." I add. "I'll make sure I'm settled into my playing goals before I add more to my plate. There's nothing wrong with being single for a while."
We all look at Rafa. He's a widower whose late wife passed several years ago. As far as we know, he doesn't date.
He lifts a hand like he wants to stop all our trains of thought. "Maybe. I don't know yet if that's what I want. For now, I'm happy to be out tonight. That's a start."
"Take your time, man," I say. "As soon as you're ready, let me know. I'll be happy to be your wingman. Two single men going out in the city. It’ll be fun."
"Are you waiting for anything before going out on dates, Mariana?" Evie asks. "Or are you ready to go for that single life dream you were talking about?"
She raises a single shoulder. "I went out on a couple of fun dates once the official separation agreement with the intention of divorce was signed. You know, to make it really official. It was amazing."
"So you're dating right away," Saint says.
Mariana shakes her head in an unconvinced way. "I mostly need to get a good grip on the gala plans. Priorities, you know? But I'm on the lookout for opportunities. If I have to wait, hey, there's always London. At least I know my way there."
Logan raises an eyebrow. "So you're focused on your career first. Like some of us."
I glare at him, in case he means that as an indirect tease at me and my excuse. Logan doesn't reciprocate.
"Whenever you're ready," Evie says, "There's always the club. You can meet new people right here, if you feel like it."
I'm not jealous. I don't care if she goes down to the dance floor and dances all sexy with someone she ends up in bed with.
It wouldn't bother me if she flirts with a random person here on the mezzanine and she leaves with them at the end of the night.
She can do whatever she wants. Whenever she wants.
I just hope I don't have to see it.
"At some point I might do just that," Mariana replies. "But that's not why I'm here tonight."
"Enlighten us," I say in the most neutral way I can. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"
She doesn't buy my apathy and glances at me, but otherwise doesn't address me directly.
If her arm rubs on mine, and her thigh presses against mine, it's only because eight people can only fit snugly in this area of the VIP section.
The fact my body wakes up is a natural consequence, and should be easy to disregard.
"I'm out here with you all tonight," she says. "I accepted your invitation and I plan to have fun with everyone. I didn't join you to peace out and go in search of di— in search of some fun. Other kinds of fun. You know what I mean."
Everyone responds in different ways, mostly with laughter.
Except me. I just raise my eyebrow at her.
"We are fun," Bear says. "For sure. And you may prove to fit in just fine."
Mariana sighs. "I didn't mean to be crude. I apologize. I've been trying to filter myself less and I'm struggling to find the right balance."
"No need to censor yourself." Nat waves her hand reassuringly. "You'll learn we welcome genuine people."