Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

S edona

“I do not belong here.” I had to yell over the bouncing drumbeats.

“Stop it,” Mattie chastised. “You look fabulous, darling.”

“Fabulous? I look like I was wrapped in bloody Saran wrap.” The dress was bright red and hugged every curve with such ferocity I could barely breathe.

“Stop it,” Camille yelled, which was two octaves above her usual whisper.

I was shocked she’d agreed to come out tonight. She hated dance clubs with a passion. She was the true epitome of an accountant. Yes, I was stereotyping.

“More drinks, please, bartender!” Shelly was in her element, acting as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

I only hoped the hot male behind the bar reacted quickly or she’d bite his head off. The woman hated men.

Huffing, I adjusted my dress for the tenth time, but it wasn’t any more comfortable than two seconds before. The three of them were swaying to the music.

I was hiding behind my second glass of wine, wishing it was time to go home. Maybe I was a wallflower after all.

“We need to leave soon. I have a busy day tomorrow.” It was a lie and Mattie knew it.

“You have no kid tonight, no dead person waiting to be carved up, and no other responsibilities. You are staying a little longer or I’ll erase you from my phone.”

“Tempting.”

“Brat.”

“Bitch.”

We laughed together, but it didn’t change how uncomfortable I felt.

Mattie bumped me with her shoulder. “Don’t look now, but there’s a hot guy at the end of the bar staring at you.”

“He’s likely staring at you since your big tits are hanging out.”

“Would you stop it!”

I gave her a funny look, but couldn’t help glancing toward the end of the bar. Yes, the man was hot, even as disco lights pulsed all around him. There were some men you sensed reeked of sensual passion by the way they carried themselves or by the expression they wore. The dark-haired man with penetrating eyes had that in spades.

“See. He’s staring right at you, girlfriend,” Mattie said, her grin far too mischievous.

And I wanted to wipe it off her face.

I shook my head, taking a big sip of wine and almost choking on it. From what I could see, he was dressed impeccably in a dark suit, which went nicely with his ebony-hued wavy hair. When he lifted his glass, a flash of something caught my eye. A ring. I could see the diamonds from here.

Maybe he was wealthy, a man about town.

Maybe I was kidding myself that some hot guy like that would be interested in me. When I turned away purposely, Shelly glared at me.

“Stop being Debbie Downer. It’s your birthday. Live a little.”

Her words stung, since she was going through such a horrible divorce. Her ex was worse than mine. And that was saying a lot.

“I’m not Debbie Downer. I’m just… cautious. If I hear that phrase again, I’m going to scream.”

“At least that would mean you’re alive. Just flirt with him.” Mattie did her best to spin me around.

I was determined to do that of my own accord. So I waited and counted to ten before doing so.

He was still staring at me, only this time, he wore an amused look on his face. When he lifted his glass in either appreciation or disgust, I lifted my head higher.

Maybe I was the object of his affection. But he would remain where he was and so would I. I wasn’t a one-night stand kind of gal.

“Flirt. Flirt. Flirt.” Camille’s chant would normally piss me off, but it was my birthday. Right?

I took another gulp of my drink then a second, trying my best not to make a fool of myself when I returned the glass to the bar. At least one of my favorite songs was on. Even I was swaying my hips, which delighted the girls.

“You go, hot chick.” Mattie joined me in making some moves.

Suddenly, the four of us were dancing and we weren’t close to the dance floor. At that moment, it didn’t matter. For the first time in months, I was having a good time. Maybe a light had gone off inside my hard head. I deserved to live and enjoy what I could, even if I still felt gutted inside.

One song turned into three and when I reached for my glass, waving my other hand across my face to try to cool off, I realized I had a fresh drink. At least I wasn’t driving. After taking another sip for courage, I casually glanced in the hot man’s direction.

Damn it. He’d disappeared. I should have known it was too good to be true.

“Don’t look now, but Mr. Hottie is coming this way.”

“What?” I stiffened and my mouth suddenly went dry. Admiring a beautiful man from afar was one thing, but being faced with his advance was something else altogether. I didn’t move, couldn’t breathe, and that truly wasn’t my personality.

Although I had lost some self-confidence in the last few months. Who wouldn’t question everything about themselves after being insulted dozens if not hundreds of times?

I gave myself a pep talk, steeling my nerves and turning around to take a better look when he passed. Whew… The man was at least six foot four, his broad shoulders filling out his suit jacket nicely. It was as if he was wearing shoulder pads from a football uniform. I could only imagine what his abs looked like. Lickable.

I was such a bad girl when I allowed myself to be.

“Wow,” Camille whispered. She was suddenly very close to me.

Too close.

I was suddenly a tigress fending off her prey. Which was ridiculous, of course. He also had a chiseled jaw. In my mind his carved features set him apart from any other male in the room. I wasn’t certain I’d seen anyone so gloriously attractive in my life. He oozed sexual appeal, his long legs carrying him through the crowd with all the self-confidence I was lacking.

As he came closer, I realized I was holding my breath.

In the movies, all time seemed to slow with the hero and heroine saw each other from afar, basking in the moment just before they met.

As he stood in front of me, it was as if the entire world around us had faded.

Christ. This wasn’t some movie where I ran away with the hero.

The mysterious stranger gave me a hard onceover and I did the same to him. I could detect that he thought his shit didn’t stink. That was a big turn-off.

“You need to dance with me,” he stated. I should say he commanded.

“Why?”

Mattie was already giving me the side-eye.

“Because I deem it so.”

A laugh bubbled to the surface before I could stop it. “You deem it so? I don’t think so, buddy.”

“And why not?”

Was that a smirk on his face? Oh, hell, no. I got closer, so much so his aftershave danced across my nose, filling my system. I was lightheaded and thought for certain my body swayed. Not the best look.

“Because you’re perhaps the most arrogant prick I’ve ever come across. I suggest you get lost.”

“Sedona,” Mattie hissed.

“Oh, no. I don’t dance with jerks with tiny cocks.” My other side suddenly appeared, the one that didn’t take shit, especially from a man. It didn’t matter how sexy he was.

He appeared almost… amused but slightly annoyed. Maybe? It was tough to tell.

“Go on. Be gone,” I added, flicking my fingers toward the door.

He didn’t respond and fortunately, I was saved by the shrill ringing of his phone. “Until we meet again.”

“I don’t think that’s going to happen. In fact, I know better.”

When he issued one word, I could hear the other three girls sucked in their breaths.

“Beautiful.” His voice was deep, seductive, and easily heard over the tribal beat. After brushing his knuckles lightly down my cheek, he backed away, returning to his phone call.

“Now, that man is hot,” Shelly said with more gusto than I’d heard from her in weeks. “I’d do him.”

“I thought you hated men,” Mattie told her. “Although he is one sexy dude.”

Shelly laughed. “Not to fuck. I could fuck one all night long if some asshole could keep up with me.”

“He’s a jerk,” I added in. But I knew I’d been a teensy tiny bit harsh on him. He looked back once and I purposely looked away.

“You are a brat. He was just trying to be friendly,” Mattie huffed as she pushed me by the shoulder.

“Tough.”

I don’t think I moved for another fifteen seconds, frozen to the spot, not by the actual word he’d whispered, but by just how penetrating his eyes had been. In the strange lighting of the club, they seemed to be glowing, an iridescent flickering of color.

The wine was definitely getting to me.

There was also a strange kinetic chemistry coursing through my veins that caught me way off guard. I wasn’t nauseous yet my body was tingling all over from the closeness. It was overwhelming in a way I couldn’t comprehend or appreciate.

But the connection was real.

“I think I need to go,” I told the group.

“Are you really going to be a party pooper?” Mattie was huffing and puffing again with her level of frustration.

“I’m not ready to leave yet,” Camille said.

“Me neither.” Shelly shook her head. She had a way of furrowing her eyebrows that made you feel so small.

“I really do have a dead body waiting for me for an eight a.m. autopsy that came out of the blue.”

Mattie got in my face. “It’s eleven o’clock. The last time I checked, you were a big girl.”

“It’s also way past my bedtime for an early wakeup. A murder victim. Would you like me to describe how he died? He was nearly gutted by?—”

“Alright. Don’t say it!” Mattie snapped. “I’ll take you home. You are a party pooper and much older than twenty-seven. Next birthday? Granny panties.”

There was no reason my hot flash was followed by a cold shiver, but the handsome man had the strongest effect on me of any man to date.

Who was he?