Chapter Seven: Laina

Once dusk fell, I got ready for the club. I changed into the dress and did my hair and makeup as best I could. Truth be told, I was a little rusty on both, but any style with my newly colored locks looked cute.

I decided on wearing black gloves with the dress; they might look out of place, but it was better than brandishing a bandage everyone could see. Plus, with the glove on my left hand, it would look like I had all five fingers, as long as no one stared too closely at it.

My dad came into my room right when I was pulling on the glove over the bandage. I was wincing as I did it, out of habit, and the moment he saw me, he blinked and asked, “Going out tonight?”

“No, I decided to get dressed up to sit on the couch downstairs all night,” I deadpanned.

He ran a hand through his brown hair. “Now you’re starting to sound like Kieran.” He walked further in, stopping when he stood in the center of my room, looking quite out of place. He must’ve just gotten home from the office; he seemed to work crazy hours, or maybe he just hated being home. He still wore a suit, its main color a dark brown.

It was almost funny; he kind of looked like a gangster.

“Are you sure you should be going out?” he asked.

“Dad, I spent the last two years alone, stuck in a room. I don’t want to be stuck in this room, too.” I motioned around us. “Besides, you won. You’re the mayor. You got everything you wanted—”

He heaved a sigh as he wandered to my bed, gingerly sitting down on its edge. He patted the spot beside him, and even though it was the last thing I wanted to do, I went over to him and sat with him.

“I’m aware I used to keep you on a short leash,” he started, running a hand down the side of his face, looking quite tired. “Controlling, some would even say. I know I used to tell you it was all about the public image, but… the truth is, Laina, I was worried about you. Keeping you out of the spotlight, so to speak, wasn’t just to help me. It was to keep you safe.”

And yet I’d been kidnapped, anyway—but I kept that tidbit to myself.

“This city… it’s dangerous for everybody. I’ve done what I can, but there’s only so much a man in office can do. This city has been run by criminals for decades now. The corruption and rot run deep, deeper than I ever knew. I—” My dad sighed again. “—I know I haven’t been the best dad. I could’ve been there for you when I wasn’t. What you went through… I can’t help but think it’s because of my ambition that you were targeted in the first place.”

Well, that wasn’t what I’d thought I would hear him say. Was this his roundabout way of admitting it was all his fault? It didn’t lessen my fury towards him, though.

“I can’t force you to stay here, but please, honey, be careful,” he went on. “Don’t try to ditch your guards. They’re there to protect you. You might’ve gotten away from your kidnapper once, but if the history of this city has anything to prove, I’d bet anything he’s out there, waiting, watching.”

My dad gave me a sad smile, apologetic, almost. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and gave me a side hug. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Dad.” I had to say it. I had to. As much as I wanted to watch everything he’d worked for crumble down around him, I still loved him. He was my dad, my only family. We were all we had left… although now we had Tessa and Kieran.

When the hug ended and he pulled away, he picked at the back of my hair, which I’d curled. “Is this really your hair? It’s not some kind of wig?” He tugged at one of the strands.

“Ow,” I muttered. “Yeah, Dad, it’s very real.”

“Oh, sorry. It’s, uh… very nice?” He didn’t sound too sure of himself, but at least he stopped pulling on a piece of it. “How long do you plan on keeping it this way? Not that I’m pressuring you into changing it back, but…”

“Dad,” I hissed, and he finally got the message.

He stood, brushed his hands together as if the pink and blue in my hair had rubbed off on his skin. “Right. Well, have fun tonight. And remember what I said: don’t try to lose Kieran or Big Mike. He’s reporting to Sylvester and Lola, and the last thing I want is to get on the Luciano family’s bad side—or the Bloody Queen’s.”

The bloody what?

I didn’t ask him what he meant, mostly because as he said it, he was already on his way out. So, I let it be and finished getting ready. There wasn’t much left to do, anyway. Grab my heels, check my makeup and hair in the mirror, then head downstairs, where my bodyguards were waiting for me.

Don’t remind me about them.

Kelly had texted me the name of the club, and it looked to be in the center of downtown. I wanted to get there before her, get a feel of the place. I grabbed my heels and headed down, finding Kieran and Mike in the hall, engrossed in a conversation with Tessa.

“Surely you’re not both needed out there,” Tessa was busy saying. “Kieran can handle it, can’t you? No offense to you, sir, but you aren’t needed here at all. We have everything covered. If, by some chance, we do find out who took Laina, we can send the information along—”

Mike stood with his arms crossed, not looking like he was even listening to her. He stood taller than her, so while she rambled, he was able to watch me come down the steps over her head. It was when my bare feet hit the ground on the first floor that he grumbled out, “I’m not here for you.”

To Tessa, he said that to Tessa, and that made her snap her back rod-straight and let out an annoyed huff. She then turned away, nearly walking into me in the process. She recoiled a bit, then eyed me up. “Well, don’t you look—” There was a long pause, as if she struggled to say the next word. “—pretty.” She said nothing else, storming up the stairs.

We all watched her go, and it was only when I was alone with Kieran and Mike that I commented, “Wow, looks like I’m not the only one unhappy about the whole bodyguard situation.” I turned a fake smile to Kieran and Mike, finding neither one of them was impressed by my stating of the obvious.

Kieran looked like he agreed with his sister—duh. He’d already told me multiple times he didn’t like or trust Mike. Mike, on the other hand, gave nothing away with his expression, his hazel eyes studying me silently, taking in the dress I wore.

His scrutiny must’ve been too intense for Kieran’s liking, because he stepped between us and muttered, “Why don’t you take a picture? It’ll last longer.” He appeared triumphant, but only for a moment, because then he quickly added, “On second thought, no pictures of Laina for you.”

Oh, my God. “Can we just go?” I asked. “Before someone else says something more stupid than that?”

Kieran asked where we were going, and I told him the name of the club. Mike said nothing, but he listened, a frown tugging at his face. Then it became time to decide whether we were taking a single car or driving separate. Surprise, surprise, Kieran didn’t want to ride with Mike, so it was decided we’d take two cars to the club.

Kieran made me ride with him. Shocking, I know. He even tried to lose Mike on the way to the club, taking turns extra fast and flooring it when we were faced with yellow streetlights.

“I thought you were supposed to protect me, not get me into a car accident?” I bit out the words, shooting him an annoyed glare.

“I am protecting you. I’m protecting you from that big freak.”

“He’s not a freak.”

“He’s fucking seven feet tall— ”

“Just because he’s tall doesn’t make him a freak,” I said, not sure why I felt like defending Mike in the first place. Mike shouldn’t even be in my life. I shouldn’t know who he was, and yet… I didn’t know. Maybe something about his quiet, gruff demeanor had endeared itself to me. “And he isn’t seven feet tall. That’s an exaggeration.”

Kieran’s jaw ground. “I don’t care how tall he is. I don’t know him and I don’t trust him. How the fuck am I supposed to trust him with you?”

“I didn’t know you cared that much about me, Uncle Kieran.”

He shot me a look. “Don’t call me that.”

Leaning over the center console, I gave him a pout. “What’s wrong, Uncle Kieran?”

“Maybe I don’t want to be your uncle.”

For a moment, all I could do was stare at him. He’d lost his usual facetious tone, sounding so serious. His serious face had started to show itself more often to me, giving me a peek at the real Kieran. “What do you want to be then?”

Outside, night had fallen. The streets were still very busy, however, and the sidewalks even busier. The nightlife in this city was definitely a world apart from its daytime self. Everybody came out of the woodworks at night.

Kieran said nothing for a while, but eventually, he told me, “I don’t think you’re ready for the answer to that question yet.” With a jerk of his arm, he pulled us off the road and into a parking spot on the side of the street that had opened up seconds before.

I wanted to ask him what that meant—because my hormone-addled brain certainly could come up with a few ideas, especially after the encounter we’d had in his room, where he’d stripped down in front of me—but Kieran’s jaw dropped and he slapped the steering wheel once we were parked. “What the hell? How’d he get here before us?”

Someone came to my door, someone very tall. Mike. He’d somehow beaten us here, even though Kieran had tried his very best to lose him on the road and leave him in the dust. Mike tried to open my door for me, but it was locked.

“I’m not doing it,” Kieran pouted. “I’m not opening the door. I won’t—”

“Play nice, please,” I whispered, leaning over the center console and giving him a peck on the cheek. I was playing with fire here, but after playing it safe for years and then being kidnapped for two… I think it high time I got burned, one way or another.

And if that firestorm ended up hurting my dad and his chance for reelection in two years? Then so be it. It was a sacrifice I was more than willing to make.

Kieran melted the moment I kissed his cheek, mumbling, “Goddamn it.” He hit the button on his door, unlocking all the car’s doors and allowing Mike to finally open it. He pretended not to notice the way Mike offered his hand to me to help me out of the car.

I didn’t need help out of the car, but… why not? I slipped my right hand into Mike’s, letting him pull me out of the car. His hand was more calloused than I thought it’d be, rough against mine, but so very warm. It also completely dwarfed mine, making me feel small, especially as I stood there next to him while he closed the car door.

Mike didn’t hold my hand longer than he had to; he dropped it pretty quick. Still, I found myself grinning up at him and saying, “You have really big hands, Mike.” Again, stating the obvious must be my superpower or something.

Strange thoughts pushed their way into my head, and I wondered if Mike was any good with those hands. A man like him could squish me with his pinky. Were other parts of him equally as big?

Kieran walked around the car, locking it, when Mike turned his head and spotted something further down the street. “I see my brother’s car.”

“You have a brother?” I asked, smiling for a reason unknown to myself.

Mike nodded, while Kieran muttered, “Yes, yes, and I have a sister. Having a sibling isn’t so special. Can we go inside now?” Still sounding quite miffed that Mike had dared to beat us here, somehow.

“Yes, let’s go inside and meet your brother,” I said, skipping to the door of the club, where a large bouncer stood, arms folded over his chest. He was wearing thick sunglasses, even though it was dark.

To my surprise, he didn’t make me pull out my ID, nor did he stamp me with anything saying I was underage. He simply nodded at Mike and let us in, not charging us for entry, either. Huh. That was definitely weird, almost like Mike was known here.

The inside of the club was all neon lights and dark, crowded spaces. The music that played on the speakers in the back, near the DJ booth, was fast and upbeat, and a large crowd was on the dance floor, grinding and sweating together. A bar was on the left side of the club, while a set of metal stairs sat on the right, leading up to a balcony of sorts that overlooked the club. Another bouncer stood at the base of the stairs, just as intimidating as the guy outside.

I didn’t see Kelly here yet, which was fine. I was curious about Mike’s brother; I’d love to meet him and see if he was anything like the big man himself.

I tugged on Mike’s arm, having to shout to be heard, “Where’s your brother?” I could hear Kieran rolling his eyes at me, but whatever. I didn’t care. This brother of his I just had to meet. Mike pointed to the metal stairs, and I led us to the bouncer. He only let us pass once Mike gave him a nod.

He did not, however, let Kieran pass, blocking his way once Mike and I were halfway up the stairs. “What the hell, man?” Kieran exclaimed, pointing to me. “I’m with her. Let me up!” In the end, the bouncer refused, which meant Kieran had to wait down there for us. When he shot me an annoyed look, all I could do was shrug. He could keep an eye out for Kelly or something.

Upstairs in the club must be some VIP section or something, because it had tables with round booths lining the side opposite the balcony portion of it. All of the tables were empty, save for the furthest one, where three people sat. A blond girl who was on the lap of someone with loads of tattoos, and another guy with tattoos, sipping on a drink.

The guy sipping the drink set his glass down, elbowing the two who were all over each other. The girl pulled herself off the other, giving me and Mike a smile when she saw us. “Big guy! What are you doing here?” She licked her lips, seemingly uncaring that her dress had gotten pulled down to reveal part of her left nipple.

The man with the drink whispered something to her, and she laughed and adjusted her dress. “Oops. Nip slip. My bad.” She didn’t seem to care too much about flashing Mike and me. The man she’d been making out with gave us both glares, his eyes a pitch-black color, reminding me of Kieran’s stare.

Except Kieran never looked at me quite like that .

“Lola?” I asked, though I didn’t know why I asked, because it was her. The same one who’d visited me in the hospital, the same one who’d agreed to send Mike.

Lola did a double take. “You’re… you’re Laina, right? The mayor’s daughter? Hot damn, I didn’t recognize you with the hair. It looks great, by the way.” She elbowed the guy she’d been making out with, forcing him to get up and move around the booth to sit next to the other tattooed guy—whose tattoos, I noticed, were all snakes of some kind. She patted the spot the man had just vacated, inviting me to sit.

And so I did. Mike remained standing, looking uncomfortable.

“Nice gloves,” Lola told me, commenting on my choice of black gloves. “They hide it pretty well. So, Laina, what are you doing here?”

“I’m meeting a friend for a night out, but Mike said he saw his brother’s car, and I got curious.”

“Oh, you wanted to meet the big guy’s brother?” Lola giggled. She pointed to the two men sitting on her other side. “Can you guess which one it is?” She leaned toward me, lowering her voice a bit, “Bet you can’t.”

My eyes drifted between the two. They both had a multitude of tattoos, though the one directly on her left was all snakes. They both seemed pretty damn intense, too. The one she’d been making out with was built like Mike, but not nearly as tall, and his eyes and hair were too dark.

I pointed at the guy with the snake tattoos. “Him.”

Lola clapped. “Yes, that’s Viper. I know, I know, they don’t look related. They’re actually twins, though, isn’t that amazing? The other one’s Maddox. That makes three, since you already met Sylvester at your house.”

“Three what?”

She flashed me a set of perfect teeth, and again it struck me then just how gorgeous this woman was. “Boyfriends, silly.”

I couldn’t hide my shock. “You have three boyfriends? I didn’t know you could do that.”

Lola giggled, twirling some of my hair around her finger. “We’re allowed to do whatever we want, Laina. If you want three boyfriends too, all you have to do is find them. Someone cute as a button like you won’t have a problem.”

I didn’t know what made me do it, but I glanced down at my left hand. I wasn’t as gorgeous as Lola, and I had the scars to prove it. No way in hell would I ever be able to juggle three boyfriends at once. No way would three separate guys even want me.

“You know,” Lola spoke, “I might have a guy that could help you out.”

My brows furrowed. “Help me out? How?”

“I don’t really consider him a friend, since I never see the guy, more like an acquaintance, but he’s made me two beautiful works of art that double for practicality. I’m sure he could make you something for your fingers, so you wouldn’t have to wear gloves to hide them.”

“That would be amazing,” I told her.

“I don’t have his information with me right now, but I can send it to you, if you want.” When I nodded eagerly, she turned to Viper, who had her phone out and ready, and handed it over to her. She unlocked the screen and handed it to me. “Give me your number, and I’ll get you Fang’s info tomorrow.”

His name was Fang? Jeez. What was with the weird nicknames?

I gave her my number and handed her the phone back, which she then set on the table before us before turning the full force of her smile back at me. “I’m glad you got out,” she told me. “Here… everyone doesn’t always get their happy ending. You’re a fighter, Laina. I like that. If you ever need anything, and I mean anything, come find me.”

It was the strangest thing. When she’d first come to me in the hospital, I’d disliked her. I hadn’t trusted a single word she’d told me that day, but tonight… tonight I wanted to believe her. Maybe having Mike following me around wouldn’t be so bad, if she was one of the people he worked for.

Lola leaned closer to me, holding my stare with a set of vividly blue eyes. “I need your kidnapper alive to ask him some questions—assuming it’s a him. Knowing nothing about the situation, I’m ninety-nine percent sure it’s a guy. It usually is. Anywho, after I’m done with him, I can let you take a crack at him, if that’s what you want. Making your own justice, giving the bad guys exactly what they deserve… there ain’t nothing like it out there.”

I forced out a smile. “Yeah, that sounds like a plan.” I didn’t tell her, of course, that her torturing my Devil wasn’t something I wanted. I… let’s just say a strange part of me missed him, even though he’d taken me and kept me for two whole years. He’d helped me see the truth about my dad, that I was just a pawn he could use to his benefit, and I owed him for it.

If I saw my Devil again, I couldn’t say that I would tell anybody.

“So,” Viper spoke, “how’s my brother working out for you? Hopefully he’s not being too chatty.” He couldn’t say it with a straight face; by the end of it, he’d broken out into a smirk, partly due to the fact that Mike had turned his glare on him.

“You can trust him,” Lola told me, nodding along. “He’s like a teddy bear. One of those big ones you can win by playing rigged games at carnivals. A teddy bear that can turn into a big grizzly when he needs to, so don’t let him fool you.” She winked at me, grinning along.

“A teddy bear,” Viper echoed, glancing at Maddox, who’d chuckled quietly at that description. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone describe my brother like that.”

I was still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that Lola had three boyfriends… and they all seemed to know about each other, and it wasn’t even a heavy topic of conversation. Like they were all fine with it. She was gorgeous, like an angel, so I shouldn’t be surprised that multiple guys would want her so badly they’d be okay with sharing.

Me? I wasn’t like her. I didn’t have the influencer, supermodel looks. She’d told me all I had to do was try, but I didn’t know about that.

“I’ll leave you guys alone.” I slipped off the booth, getting to my feet and fixing my dress. “I’m sure my friend is here, anyway.” The forced smile I gave them fell off my face when I turned around and started walking away.

Mike lifted a single brow at me, but he said nothing, following me down the stairs. For once, I was thankful he didn’t like to talk, because I wasn’t sure what the hell I’d say. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I was jealous that Lola had three boyfriends, but…

No one cared that much about me, not ever. Not my dad, not my new stepmom, not Kieran or Mike. No one. I had no one.

Maybe that was why, when I closed my eyes at night, I dreamed about my Devil.

Kieran wasn’t waiting for us, which I thought odd. “Where the hell did he go?” I asked no one in particular, glancing all around once Mike and I reached the ground floor of the club. He wasn’t standing at the bar.

I was just starting to wonder if he’d left because we’d taken too long up there, but right when those thoughts crept into my brain, Mike gently touched my shoulder to get my attention. He pointed to the dance floor, to a pair of people dancing together.

Well, the girl was dancing. The guy, Kieran, was mostly just standing there, but that didn’t make it any better. Why? Oh, no reason… except the girl was Kelly.

Kelly was wearing a very short dress that rode up her thighs as she swayed her body to the beat. Her light brown hair was curled in gentle waves, her face plastered with makeup to the point where she looked like a whole different person. She’d probably spent hours on her makeup, while I’d spent fifteen minutes struggling to do eyeliner. Blending and layering weren’t things I’d ever mastered.

She dipped low, grinding her ass against Kieran, a smile on her face. She looked like she was having fun, like she didn’t even need me.

And of course she didn’t. She spent the last two years living her life, unlike me.

My first instinct was to storm over there and pull Kieran off her—I sure as hell didn’t like seeing her ass grind against him like that—but what would be the point? It was like I was pretending. Getting my hair done had made me feel better, but only for a little while.

Fighting the rising tide inside, I turned away from them and started to leave the club. I pushed out the door and emerged into the cool night air, tilting my head up and taking in a lungful of air to try to calm myself down. I moved away from the doors, stopping only when I could lean my back against the stone wall of the building.

My head leaned back, my eyes closed. I focused on my breathing. For just the quickest of moments, I wished I was back in that room, by myself, alone. Alone and waiting for my Devil to show his face again.

Technically his mask, but whatever.

But I wasn’t alone. A deep voice spoke, “Are you all right?”

I opened my eyes, turning my head to see Mike standing beside me, his light eyes studying me hard, like I was a puzzle he was hired to put together as quickly as possible. His head had angled down, his face wearing only concern, and yet it was an intense look all the same.

I wanted to tell him the same thing I’d told everyone: the doctors, the nurses, my dad, Tessa and Kieran. I wanted to tell him that I was fine, that this was just some kind of weird episode that made my lungs ache and my heart hurt, that I’d be fine in a minute.

That wasn’t what came out of my mouth, though. For some reason, I told him the truth, “No.” I guess seeing how everyone either used my disappearance to their advantage or moved on without me hurt more than I wanted to admit, even to myself.

Mike was quiet for a moment, and then he asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”

I shook my head. There was nothing to say. I had to get over these feelings if I ever hoped to actually have a life. Still, so far it had proved to be harder than I’d thought. I found myself taking a step toward him, doing something I probably shouldn’t, but I couldn’t stop myself.

I leaned into him, closing my eyes again, leaned my head against his lower chest. He wore a t-shirt, nothing fancy, but the fabric was soft. I exhaled, then breathed in deep, inhaling his scent as I hugged myself to him.

He was a stranger to me, yes. I’d wanted to hate him, because I didn’t want to have another bodyguard, but that had proved impossible. As much as it didn’t make sense, I felt safe with him.

It took him a while, but eventually he lifted a single arm, curling it around my shoulders. He didn’t squeeze me, didn’t pull me in closer; he simply held me, letting me use him as support, which was what I needed right then.

Neither one of us spoke, which was actually kind of nice. Nothing but the sounds of cars driving by on the street and other people on the sidewalk filled the air, people coming and going from the club. I couldn’t say how long we stood there, but God, it was nice. Lola’s description of him being a teddy bear had been spot-on… except she’d neglected to say how good his wide body could feel when it surrounded yours.

His warmth. His strength. Every ounce of raw masculinity radiating from him at any given moment, and still, he could be so gentle. I found it surprising, but in the best way. A part of me never wanted to move from this spot, never wanted to tear myself away from him. If we could remain there, forever, I think I would. At least then I wouldn’t have to worry about the world and anyone else in it.

But we couldn’t stay that way forever, so when I felt strong enough to pull away from him—when I knew I wouldn’t cry or make a fool of myself—I did just that, letting out an awkward sigh as I opened my eyes and glanced up at him.

“Sorry about that.” A small, weak laugh left me. “Time to get back in the club, I guess.” I couldn’t let the mere sight of Kelly dancing with Kieran get to me. The emotions the sight had unlocked within me were once again buried deep, where I didn’t have to face them.

Healthy, right? But it was the only way I’d be able to keep going.

Mike said nothing to me, but he did continue to watch me, like he knew, deep down, I wasn’t fine.

Holding my head high, I marched around him. He followed after me, and together, we went back into the club. This time, thankfully, Kelly wasn’t dancing with Kieran front and center on the dance floor. Kelly was nowhere to be found, while Kieran spotted us walking into the club. We joined him near the bar.

“What the hell? You guys were outside?” He didn’t sound too happy.

“Yeah, well, you’d know we stepped out for some air if you weren’t too busy dancing with Kelly,” I shot back, letting him know I’d seen it and wasn’t too happy about it. “Mike’s actually a really good listener.” Granted, I didn’t talk much, but I mainly said that to try to get a rise out of Kieran.

He shot Mike a glare. “Is he?” His jaw ground, and then his gaze was back on me, the fury in its black depths losing its power the longer it remained on me. “Look, she came in when you two were up there.” He pointed to where Lola and her guys were. “She didn’t really give me a choice in the matter.”

I wasn’t sure I wanted to believe him.

Kieran took a step closer to me, a mere six inches between us as he told me, “Trust me, Laina, if I had the choice of who to dance with, I’d choose you, every damn time.” He stepped away, nodding once. “And you can take that to the bank.”

Even though I still wasn’t too happy with him, I smiled. “Take what to the bank? That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Sure, it does. Just ask him.” Kieran gestured to Mike, who in turn, said not a single word. “See? Lots of sense, even he agrees.”

I was seconds from telling him it made absolutely no sense when I felt a tap on my back. Turning around, I saw Kelly standing there, rolling her eyes and complaining, “The line in the bathroom is fucking ridiculous.” She grinned at me. “Thought you’d never get here. I had to entertain myself with Kieran for a while—by the way, the dude’s shit at dancing.” She spotted the gloves on my hands but chose not to address them.

Kieran lifted a finger in the air, as if he was answering a question a teacher had asked. “Offended,” he said. “I’m offended. Carry on.”

Kelly took my hand, my right hand, and led me to the dance floor, where she taught me how to move with the beat. School dances were one thing, but clubs were a whole different story. There were no chaperones, no supervisors there to tell you to dance further apart. Here, if you weren’t feeling a guy’s dick getting harder by the second, you weren’t dancing close enough.

Or so Kelly told me.

It was impossible to hold a conversation while you danced. The music was simply too loud. It pounded so hard and so loudly I felt the beat echo in my bones. Eventually guys we didn’t know slipped behind us, setting their hands on our waists and grinding their midsections against our asses. Kelly got into it, even though it was a stranger behind her, dipping low much like I’d seen her doing to Kieran before.

Me? I… I wasn’t as happy to have a stranger behind me. I wasn’t too thrilled when I felt his dick growing hard against my ass, but I didn’t quite understand why until I happened to flick my eyes to Kieran and Mike standing fifteen feet away.

Kieran’s mouth had formed a frown, making it blatantly obvious he wasn’t happy watching me dance with a stranger. Mike, on the other hand, watched me with what I could only call concern.

And then it hit me, the reason why I wasn’t getting into it like Kelly. I didn’t want to dance with strangers.

Kelly played the field. She didn’t let herself get nailed down. She never had boyfriends, not even when we were younger. She only hooked up, no strings attached. The moment she nailed a guy, she was pretty much done with him. Rinse and repeat.

I never wanted that. I… if I had the choice between how Kelly went about it and, say, Lola, I’d definitely pick the latter. I didn’t want to dance with strangers because there was someone I’d much rather dance with.

Kieran.

And I only said Kieran because I doubted someone like Mike ever threw it down to the beat—although, not going to lie, I’d love to see him try.

But, regardless of me not having as much of a blast as Kelly, I didn’t say anything. I kept it all bundled inside. I laughed when Kelly laughed, smiled when she smiled, basically mimicking her actions all night. From the outside, it had to look like I was having fun, but on the inside, it was turmoil.

Hours passed. My feet started to ache from the heels, my calves hurting just as badly. Turned out, dancing in heels was tough to do, especially when you had no muscle tone at all and spent the last two years of your life stationary. I guess I was weaker than I should be at this point in my life.

Maybe Mike was right. Maybe I did need to put some weight on.

I had to call it a night before Kelly was done, and she followed me away from the dance floor as we abandoned our dance partners. The nameless guys didn’t seem to care; they immediately looked for someone else to grind on.

“I need to go home,” I had to shout to Kelly. “I’m tired.”

“Awe, are you sure?”

“Yeah, yeah. You stay, have fun. I’ll message you later.” I gave her a smile that I hoped backed up my words. Just because I was leaving the club didn’t mean she had to leave it with me. If she wanted to stay and party it up until the club closed, then she was more than welcome to. I doubted I’d ever be on that level of partying.

The concern on Kelly’s face gave way to a smile, and she nodded once. “It was fun. We need to do this again!”

I agreed, and then I gave her a wave. I watched as she turned to rejoin the dancing mass of people, heaving a sigh as I wiped the sweat off my forehead. The air felt like it was boiling. It certainly was a workout, dancing like that amongst all those people.

“Ready to go?” Kieran’s voice spoke over the music.

Giving him a nod, I started to walk toward the exit, but something in my right calf twinged, a muscle pulling or something. I immediately lost my balance in the heels—and I would’ve fallen to the floor if it wasn’t for a set of strong, calloused hands that grabbed me after that. Mike had caught me, and he helped steady me.

“Thanks,” I told him. “I guess my legs are weaker than I thought they were.” I tried to take another step, but again my leg hurt too much. If it wasn’t for Mike’s hand still on my arm, I wouldn’t be upright.

“This was too much, too soon,” Kieran said, sounding annoyed. His gaze had zeroed in on the hand on my arm.

I was seconds from telling him off—mostly because he had no right to get all prickly and jealous when Mike was just helping me, not after I’d seen him dancing with Kelly—but any response I might’ve said died in the back of my throat when Mike picked me up.

Yeah. The dude legit picked me up. He picked me up like I weighed nothing, like my body was light as a feather, the opposite of a burden. His strong arms curled around my back and my legs, cradling me against his wide chest. My heels slipped off in the process, falling to the ground, and I was too stunned to speak.

The people around us had noticed Mike picking me up, just as Kieran had. Although, the bystanders were more in awe of Mike’s stature than Kieran was.

As Mike started toward the club’s doors, Kieran bent to pick up my shoes, the frown deeper on his face.

I thought about telling Mike I didn’t need him to carry me to the car, but my legs did hurt, and I’d probably only limp my way there. So, really, him carrying me was the quickest and easiest option.

Plus, as I’d discovered earlier when I had my mini freak out, I liked the feeling of Mike’s arms around me. He was impossibly strong, but he could be so remarkably tender.

It was only when we emerged from the club, only when the cool night air hit us that Kieran mumbled, “You didn’t have to carry her out of there like a baby.” He held onto my heels like he wanted to use them as murder weapons, my guess against Mike.

“She’s been locked in a room for two years,” Mike spoke. “Her legs will probably hurt for days after tonight.” His head turned toward me, the moon hanging high in the sky shining its silver light into his hazel eyes as he looked at me. “You should take it easy for a while. I don’t want you hurting yourself.”

I was stunned. Really. That was the most Mike had ever said at once to me. If anyone else had said it, I’d argue. I’d tell them off. I’d convince them that I was fine and this was just a momentary weakness on the part of my legs… but I couldn’t argue with him.

Kieran grunted. “As much as it pains me to admit, he’s right. You should work on getting your stamina back up. I can see about getting some things for a home gym for you. A treadmill, yoga mats, some small weights.”

“Will you work out with me?” I asked Mike.

It took Mike a few moments to say, “If that’s what you want.”

I pretended not to notice the way Kieran stared at Mike after that, almost as if he was imagining stabbing him in the eye with one of my heels. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know Kieran was jealous.

Jealousy was an ugly color… but on my step-uncle, I thought it was beautiful.