Sipping my beer, I gave him a nod. “Do you love her?”
Conner sighed. “Yeah. I do. But marriage? Dude, how they hell do you know if you’ve found the right girl, I mean how...?” He froze in mid sentence and started laughing. “I’m an ass, look who I’m asking this question to.”
“Number one, shut up and fuck you,” I said, holding my fingers in the air counting at him. “Number two, I…uh…” I completely lost my train of thought.
Grace had walked in.
Um.
Ah.
Yeah, having trouble breathing.
The tiny little denim skirt she was barely wearing made those perfect legs that ended in a sexy pair of black stiletto heels look endless. The fringed waist of the skirt hung low on her hips, showing off the flat smoothness of her belly and the sexy as sin curves of her hips. A deep burgundy low-cut shirt draped across her chest accentuated the plump full curves of her breasts, and Conner and his problems, and the rest of the damn bar just disappeared. Damn, she was perfect.
My heart was pounding hard in my ears as my eyes slowly crawled over her body and devoured every inch of her I saw. She smiled at me and flipped her dark hair over her shoulder, making me just about blow a load in my pants.
“Oh, my God, Grace. Shane is completely eye fucking you and I’m creaming in my panties right now. How does that not affect you?” Lea laughed.
Seriously, does she think I can’t hear her?
“Uh…” Was all Grace answered her with, and then she ran her tongue along her bottom lip.
Lea’s eyes widened as she gawked at Grace and yelled, “Holy fellatio! You are standing there licking him up with your eyes! Do you freaking hear the old seventies porn music playing in your head?”
Grace turned her attention to Lea and swayed a bit, “I freaking feel drunk already. Come on; let’s go get me some liquid courage to deal with him.”
“Yeah, well, don’t let your thighs rub to close together, because you look like you’re about to have a walking orgasm,” Lea laughed.
“If only,” Grace laughed, as she walked up next to me, laying her hands down on the bar.
I stepped up close behind her, leaned my hands out on both sides of her and put them flat on the bar. Slowly, I shifted myself closer to her body until I was flush up against her back. She was breathing hard. I was well aware that she could feel just how happy I was to see her as I pressed myself up against the soft curves of her bottom. I brought my head down to her ear, and I felt her shiver beneath me. My whisper bristled against her ear, “What do you want, Grace?”
“My breath back,” she whispered.
I nuzzled my face into her hair and nipped my teeth along her ear, “You think you’re breathless now? Just wait, Grace.”
Her breath puffed out faster and she stretched her neck for me to have better access. To which I indulged, and ran my lips down. “So, for now, what would you like…to drink?” I asked.
She snapped her face to mine and turned her body to face me. “Sex on the Beach? A Screaming Orgasm? A Slippery Nipple? A Leg Spreader? A Bend Over Shirley?” Her hands had grabbed my shirt to pull me in closer.
Laughing, I dropped my hands to the warm skin of her hips and laid my forehead against hers. “What the hell is a Bend Over Shirley?”
Her hands unclenched and flattened across my chest, and then she slid them down slowly, hooking her fingers into the front pockets of my jeans. “Maybe I’ll show you later…”
“You two are making me feel like I need to wear a condom over my head so I can’t get pregnant from just listening to the both of you. Shane, it’s Raspberry vodka, lemon/lime soda, grenadine syrup and Maraschino Cherries,” Lea chimed in.
I looked at Lea, hating her at that moment for fucking up the moment, but I had no idea what the hell she was talking about. “Huh?”
Lea laughed, filled with raunchiness, “Holy sexual tension! Do you even know that we are here with you? We want Margaritas! Let’s go, Shane, snap out of heat! Conner, man up and dance with me!”
Conner laughed and shook his head, “Why don’t you and Grace start and let us men watch? I need a few beers after spending the afternoon with your father telling me what I should name our six children even though I apparently will end up eating them.” He saluted her with his beer and frowned. Shit, he was pretty upset about what was said by her parents.
“Okay, boys. Enjoy the show then,” she winked at Conner and pulled Grace right onto the dance floor. Grace yelped, and offered me a little goodbye wave and a smile. Lea quickly spoke to the DJ and immediately the track turned into Tonight I’m Loving You. Grace and Lea whispered to each other, laughed, and gave us a shy glance. What the?
As the music started thumping through the speakers, Grace’s hands brushed the curves of Lea’s hips. She opened her hands sensually and spread her fingers, slowly sliding them up the sides of Lea’s body to just under the curve of her breasts.
“Oh my God,” Conner whispered.
The two girls kept their eyes locked on ours, and continued to dance. For us. Lea slid her hands up Grace’s neck and ran her fingers through her long hair, twisting it all into her fists. She arched Grace’s head back slowly and brought her face to the bare skin of her neck, and with open lips, slid them against her soft flesh.
“They…” he stammered.
“Ahhh…” I answered.
Grace bit her bottom lip between her teeth, eyes still fixed on mine, sparkling with silver streaked mischief. She brought her hands gently to Lea’s face and brushed the back of them over her cheek and lightly slid her thumb over her lower lip, dipping it in Lea’s mouth. Lea gave her finger a small bite.
“I…” Conner stumbled.
“Oh,” I answered.
Grace pushed Lea’s head gently down and Lea’s body slid and ground against hers. Both of them were sweaty and breathing heavily against each other.
I had to shift my weight to relieve the increasing pressure of myself against my pants. Blood rushed through my body and all I could see was her.
“That’s just,” I started.
“Shut up, Shane. Your voice is messing with my fantasy right now,” he murmured.
When the song ended, those sexy girls ran back to the bar next to us, panting for their Margaritas. We stood there frozen, tongues hanging out and stared at them. Lea grabbed both their drinks off the bar and pulled Grace to the side giggling. “Looks like they enjoyed the show, huh?” Lea walked her further away from us, winking.
Conner turned his head in my direction, but actually kept his eyes on his girl, “Yep. She’s the one. Definitely.”
Slapping him on the back, I laughed then looked back at Grace. She and Lea were sipping at their drinks as two guys sauntered up to them blocking my view of my sunshine. Oh hell no.
“Wow. You guys looked hot dancing out there. Can we buy you two your next drinks?” Douche number one asked Grace. Then he reached out and touched her elbow.
“Thanks, but we are both here with…” Before Lea could finish her Double Douche rejection, I stepped in between them and without saying a word, I put my hands on Grace’s waist and led her to the other end of the bar. I spun her around facing me and backed her up against the bar, “Finish your drink. You’re dancing with me.”
She slurped the Margarita dry and her lips lifted up into a sexy grin.
“Damn, Grace. The way you wrap those beautiful lips around that straw and look at me with those breathtaking eyes, it makes it real hard to focus on anything else.” I stepped back, grabbing her around the waist, and pulled her to the dance floor, real slow, swaying her hips against mine. Her eyes never left mine; she fucking intoxicated me. Pink’s song Try came over the speakers. That song was sexy as all fuck, but dancing to it with Grace made it sinful, and I couldn’t get enough of her.
I slid my hands down to hers, grabbing both her wrists and slowly lifted her hands up over my shoulders and around my neck. When her fingers laced together behind my head, I sighed out-f
ucking-loud and ran my fingertips back down along the bare skin of her arms, tracing little hearts and circles across her shoulders, continuing down over her sides. I skimmed across the bare skin of her waist and gently held my hands against the small of her back. Her skin was damp from dancing, which made my fingertips press themselves against her skin even harder; she held me closer.
I brought one hand up and ran my fingers along her jaw, stopping under her chin and I tilted her head back. Her midnight colored hair reflected deep blue highlights from the lights above us, and when her silver eyes flecked with lavender kisses looked up into mine, she shuddered and gave me a heart-stopping smile. Song after song, we danced against each other; sliding, slipping, floating. Touching. Teasing. Tempting each other.
But I didn’t kiss her once. No, I was saving her lips for later.
“Hey, PORN STARS!” Lea interrupted up. “I need a bathroom break and I need my bitch with me. Shane, go keep Conner company, while I borrow your um…girl,” she giggled, dragging Grace out of my arms.
My limbs felt stark and lifeless without her in them and my stare trailed after her, wondering if she felt the same emptiness as I did.
Conner met me at the bar and handed me an icy cold beer. I gulped it down, trying to cool my body with it.
“Looks like you two are playing nice now,” Conner teased.
“You have no idea how hard it is for me not to fucking devour that girl in front of everybody.”
“Wow. Seriously? Because it looked to me like you two were completely devouring each other on that dance floor.” He shook his head at me laughing, “Lea is right; watching you guys is like watching porn and eating candy.”
I laughed while I watched the crowds of people blocking my view of the bathrooms, still lightheaded from Grace’s touch. My entire body hummed with need to feel her again, touch her smooth skin, slip myself inside her, and all reason and rational thought abandoned me. “I’m going in that fucking bathroom after her,” I said propelling myself through the crowd.
“Seriously? Holy crap!” he called after me.
Weaving through the dancing bodies, my world seemed to move in slow motion. Almost in arm’s reach of me, I saw Lea and Grace run through the crowd laughing with each other. Lea ran a few steps ahead, then instantly, Grace was gone from my view. Chills flushed through my body and my shoulders tightened. Sharp spikes of adrenaline ripped through my human flesh.
Gabriel stood before her, blocking her path to me, bearing down toward her with fists shaking. He lunged closer to her with a fevered glare. “How about a dance, Grace?”
Grace went rigid and lifted her chin to him in pure sweet defiance, “No. Get out of my way.”
I was almost there.
His head flew back in laughter, his massive shoulders shaking. He lunged towards her again with flaring nostrils, “Why not just one little dance? I can’t stop thinking of that kiss yesterday.”
Kiss yesterday? Oh, hell no.
My body tensed as I reached out and grabbed hold of his shoulder, “She said no. Now get the fuck away from her,” I growled.
Gabriel slowly turned his icy blue eyes on me and one tight corner of his lips pulled up, smirking. “I will have my turn to dance with you, Grace, mark my words,” he said.
Yeah. I was going to pummel him right there in front of everybody. What would he possibly do, yank out his wings in front of every human in the place? “Turn and leave now, before you aren’t able to leave without a fucking medical examiner to haul your dead ass out.”
Gabriel’s mouth curled into a sinister smile, “Big words, pretty boy.” Then he turned his back on me and stalked off, disappearing into the dancing crowd.
I noticed him again watching us, as he lingered by the front door.
Whirling around, I cupped her face in my hands and searched her beautiful face for the truth I knew she would never tell me, “Are you okay? Did he touch you?”
Shaking her head, she broke eye contact with me, “No he didn’t. Thank you.” Her voice was thick and her hands grabbed me, pulling me closer. “Come on, let’s just get another drink and forget that psycho.”
I led her to Conner and Lea who were by the bar watching us. Lea put her arms around Grace and I patted Conner on the back and smiled as if I wasn’t planning to go kill someone. “Hey, order this gorgeous girl another Margarita. I’ll be right back; I have to use the restroom.”
I tore out of the bar and stood alone on an unnaturally silent city street. Tremors of pure white rage ruptured uncontrollably throughout my body when I heard his gravelly voice behind me. “She’s my toy now, Shane. Not. Yours. You can’t win the war with her.”
I could feel my muscles and veins strain against the skin of this body, aching to fight him. “I’m not fighting in any make-believe war you think you’ve started, Gabriel. News-fucking-flash, I’m human. I don’t have to deal with any of this crap. I’m just a regular human in love with another regular human girl.”
“Such a stupid choice you’ve made. Humans die so easily; don’t you remember that? With a silly little snap of my fingers, I could break your pretty boy neck as we speak.”
I touched my fingertips together in front of my lips and gave him my best playful grin. “Please do. It’s been a long time since I’ve been let into paradise, brother. And how beautiful would it be, Gabriel? To enter heaven as the soul of a human and not an angel? To have free will in heaven. Isn’t that what the war in heaven was supposed to be fought over? You’ve handed me everything that you’re lusting after, asshole.”
Instantly, he closed the distance between us, manically clenching his jaw and his fists, “You know nothing of what we fight for! You’ve been tucked away safely for thousands of years, dishonored, humiliated, FALLEN!”
Yeah, so I pulled back my arm and punched him square in the face with all my weight. He fell back onto the ground and I stumbled after him. I lowered myself to level my gaze at him. “That’s where you’re wrong, Gabe. I never FELL. I was PUSHED, and now I’m a HUMAN, not a fallen angel. I’m not dishonored, I was betrayed. I wasn’t humiliated, I was humbled. I’m not fallen, because I was forgiven.”
I stood up over him. “Your stupid war is between angels. Thanks to you, I’m no longer one. So if you want a war with me, it won’t be one you can win. Leave Grace alone. She’s innocent and I love her.”
Leaving him on the street, eyes wide, I strolled back into the bar.
Grace was sitting on a barstool with some guy talking to her. Her eyes were set on the bathroom doors waiting for me and as soon as she saw me, she shook her head, sagged against the bar, closed her eyes tight and smiled. I walked right up to her, slid my hands around her waist, and nestled my face in her hair.
“Excuse me, but this pretty little lady is taken for the rest of the night,” the guy standing next to her said.
Keeping my hands on her waist, I leaned back to look at her. Smiling at each other, we both turned to stare at the guy. “What the hell did you just say?” we both growled simultaneously.
The guy repeated his outrageous statement and Grace blatantly laughed in his face. She ignored the strange look he gave her and she went to walk away towards Lea.
Then he grabbed her. He grabbed her by the elbow and spun her around. And before I could kill the guy, Grace’s fist spun with the momentum and she cold-cocked him right in the nose. Blood spurted out of his nose and dripped down his face. “Touch me again and the next thing you’ll feel is six feet of dirt over you.”
She turned, looking at me, and my God, she gave me the sexiest smile, which made my knees weak. Behind her, the jerk moved forward again, but I held out my hand, smushed him in the face, and shoved him back hard. The guy went flying into a crowd of dancing bodies and got lost in their movements.
I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her body flush against mine. She melted right into me. “You have some messed up friends around here.”
“None of them are friends,” she whispered through lips close eno
ugh to kiss. “Come on, let’s get out of here,” she said pulling us all to the door.
Holding hands, we walked back to the Rossi’s house in silence with only the swooshing sounds of the waves lapping against the sand filling our ears.
Mrs. Rossi had the two couches in the living room made up with pillows and blankets for Conner and me to sleep on. She came out of the kitchen when we walked in, explaining to us that premarital sex will send you straight to hell if it happens under her roof without at least a ring and wedding date set. Lea rolled her eyes and stomped up the stairs. Conner huffed and puffed the same way. Grace just glanced at me, smiled and nodded her head goodnight as she bounced her perfect bottom up the stairs. Yeah. I was sneaking up there later.
The girls thumped and giggled loudly above us as Conner and I tried to get comfortable on our makeshift beds.
“Crap, I feel like I’m fifteen. I’m a grown-ass man, so I should be able to sleep with my woman,” Conner grumbled. I listened to him whine and complain until his voice was only low mumbles, his breathing grew into light snores and sleep overtook him.
I stayed on the couch for a while, just listening to the silence as I watched the dance of car headlights through the window and across the ceiling, each time someone drove down the street.
My thoughts were on Gabriel and what needed to be done to protect Grace, when I heard a small movement at the top of the staircase. Soft padded footsteps landed on each stair and tiptoed slowly behind the couch I was on, stopping right above me. I could hear her breath and feel her eyes on me in the darkness of the room.
With only a small chuckle escaping from the back of my throat, I sprang up from the couch, grabbed her around the waist and dragged her over the back of the couch and into my arms. Grace let out a small yelp and I pressed the palm of my hand gently over her lips. Our eyes focused on each other’s in the dim light, each waiting to see the other’s next move.