Round 31

I was buzzing with excitement for three reasons: One, it was Friday; two, it was my last day of work, and I was leaving early; and three, it was Neema’s bachelorette party.

Despite the multiple stressors banging on the inside of my cranium, it felt good to focus on celebrating my best friends’ upcoming marriage.

Shaun eyed me the entire day in a poor attempt to milk information out of me.

“We’re ending up at the same place. That’s all you need to know,” I said.

He scrunched his nose. “Fine. Then at least tell me what William has in store for me.”

“I don’t know,” I replied honestly, my heart turning at the memory of William’s pained expression.

“Then what the heck do you keep discussing on the balcony?”

Oops.

“Okay, you got me,” I said. “But I promised not to tell you.”

He blew out a long breath that almost looked like relief. I felt a tiny bit guilty for taking advantage of how trusting he was.

I turned around and packed up my things.

“This is the last time I’ll see you do this,” Shaun said.

“Oh, shush. You’ll still see more of me than you planned for.” I pinched his shoulder, and while I’d thought I might be sentimental about it all, I wasn’t.

I was nervous, yes, but more so, I was excited, and today was going to be awesome. Grabbing my bag, I yelled, “See you later, Terminator,” and left.

Once I got outside, Neema climbed out of the car and handed me the keys. “And you’re done!”

“I’m done!” I said, climbing into the driver’s seat and tossing my box of belongings into the back. We took one long glance at the building that I’d spent more time at than my own home.

Neema’s smile was wide, and she didn’t bother asking me where we were going. She knew I wouldn’t tell her anyway. After collecting Claire, our first appointment was a group massage. We needed to loosen up, and I was sold on the five-star review that consisted of no fewer than fourteen exclamation marks.

Once we were thoroughly relaxed—the poor redheaded massage therapist had to summon her inner strength to remove the knots in my body—we showered and changed our clothing before the hair and makeup appointments I’d arranged.

I slipped on my bachelorette outfit: a short red skater dress, cinched at the waist, that looked to be made of glitter and provided enough flexibility for the routine. I pulled on a pair of leggings underneath since I wasn’t prepared to flash the entire club while doing my twirls.

“You look hot,” Neema said, walking out of the changing room in a sparkly gold miniskirt and a black blouse. She let loose a whistle. “The men are not going to know where to look.”

My entire body became a live wire imagining William’s hot gaze. It was his turn to drool, and my turn to tease.

“Big time,” Claire said, straightening her tan knee-length skirt. “I’ve asked Lincoln to record your performance since I can’t be there.”

I opened my mouth but she raised a hand. “Don’t worry. Lincoln will delete it the second it’s sent to me. I think having to record it is going to have him bursting out in hives.”

This sent us into a fit of giggles.

After a light sushi dinner where we met the rest of Neema’s friends and bid farewell to Claire, we made our way to the final round, VOX, where our names were on the guest list since I’d called ahead with details about our plan.

“A group of women offering to pole dance for free?” The owner’s voice had shook with excitement.

I’d explained the situation, and he’d let out a cheer.

“It’s going to be a busy night at the club,” he’d said. “There’s another bachelorette party, bachelor’s party too, and a surprise proposal. But with pole dancing involved, you get first preference for anything!”

With his level of creepy enthusiasm, I was glad the routine wasn’t sexy at all.

The opening band, Chaotic Sweet Dreams, started warming up the crowd, and Neema pulled me onto the colorfully lit dance floor.

VOX had high ceilings and dark wood furniture. The waitstaff wore whatever they wanted, but their hair and makeup were glamorous and added to the overall vibe of the club—somewhere in the middle of tacky and luxurious.

The boys arrived as the main band took the stage. Neema launched herself into Shaun’s arms, and he swung her around.

William’s gaze took its time greeting my entire body. When his eyes locked with mine, he motioned for me to twirl.

After entertaining his whims, I walked up to him and searched his dark eyes, which matched the rest of his clothing, black jeans and a well-fitted black T-shirt with NPC printed on the front.

“Can we talk?” I asked.

He frowned but nodded. “We will. We have to.” The frown softened before he added, “But not here, and not while you’re wearing this. I won’t be able to make sense of any of my thoughts.”

His eyes settled on playfulness, and it woke up a part of me that enjoyed playing with him. Despite the chaos, I could always rely on William wanting to play.

“This dress is also against the rules,” he said.

“I’m breaking a few rules tonight, just you wait and see.” I bit down on my lip to stop myself from telling him all about it. Excitement boomed in my chest.

But my excitement was also fueled with white-hot nerves. What if I face-planted on stage in front of everyone? Granted, it wouldn’t be the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever done, but it would probably place in the top three.

William pulled me closer and grazed my ear with his lips. “Tell me more.”

His hungry eyes made everything disappear. I was the center of his attention. As if I were the only woman here.

Liam, one of Shaun’s other friends, interrupted us with a drink. “Hey, Rose. Good to see you again. I got you a rosé.” He grinned. “Get it?”

William narrowed his eyes and gave him a menacing stare. “She doesn’t drink.”

“It’s true,” I told Liam and offered him a polite laugh.

His smile faltering, Liam gave an awkward nod and made a swift escape.

I smiled up at William and bit my lip. Jealous William was sexy. It was a turn-on I hadn’t known about since Patrick had never expressed jealousy—of course.

“Where were we?” William smiled down at me, refocused, and pulled me into the space only we shared.

“Wait and see. What did you do before this?”

I leaned in to hear him over the loud music, wishing we weren’t surrounded by people so I could lean in a bit more.

“Laser tag and dinner,” he said sheepishly. “I organized a private one so I could create the challenges for each round. I based it on his favorite shooter games. It was pretty cool.” A shy smile crept onto his beautiful mouth.

I knew how much Shaun loved laser tag.

Thoughtful William was far sexier than Jealous William.

The next band stepped up to the stage and introduced themselves as Raggedy Andy, which was our cue. Neema exchanged looks with those of us who’d attended pole dancing lessons with her, and those who were still willing slipped backstage.

My gaze fell on Lincoln, who had his phone outstretched and wore a grimace if I’d ever seen one. I was so distracted by his obvious discomfort that I forgot all about my nerves. His gaze met mine, and I started laughing. His signature half smile appeared on his face while he shook his head.

Raggedy Andy opened with a silky intro, and my skin shivered with anticipation. I walked onstage and took a pole on the right side. Neema chose the pole at center front.

Finding William in the crowded room was easy. Between his height and energy, I was certain I’d sense him from across the world. He stared at me in disbelief, his mouth openly smiling. At that moment, I decided I would maintain eye contact with him throughout the entire routine. It was my turn to win this dangerous game we insisted on playing.

As music filled the room, we started moving in unison. While I had no idea what I looked like, I felt sexy even though the routine the instructor taught us mostly consisted of twirls and spins. And judging from the sounds coming from the audience, we must’ve been doing something right.

When our routine ended, we formed a line at the top of the stage, bowing together while the band cheered and the audience applauded.

Climbing off the front of the stage, I walked toward William, who stood with his arms crossed, waiting for me.

“Unfair,” he said, his breath quick and heavy.

He threw his head back and groaned, and I couldn’t stifle my giggle.

The energy in the room, combined with the heat and desire radiating off William, put me in a daze. I smiled, enjoying the upper hand for once. He leaned in and whispered something else, but I caught a glimpse over his shoulder of someone staring at me from onstage.

“Patrick,” I said out loud.

William pulled back, a look of disdain covering his face. “Excuse me?”

I pointed. “No. It’s actually Patrick. Onstage.”