It's been eight months since my last drunken public outing and tonight, I've been made over, dressed to the hilt, poked and prodded until I plastered an acceptable smile on my face. I think I've finally gotten past my not so ridiculous fears of public encounters and I'm being thrown into the lion's den, all for the sake of my newest collections of stories. This shindig was being held in the ultra-swanky Palisades Room of the Hilton, complete with the white coats wandering in and out of patrons, fans and friends.
Keelan stood beside me in the doorway, a pillar of strength in my life. She gave me a nudge and followed me into the heart of the crowd. I shook hands, got hugged, thanked and basically mauled as I wound my way to the stage. A few brief sentences, a plethora of questions and answers and a quick, grateful speech got me down from the blazing podium. I stood at the bar, finally, waiting for a stout shot of tequila when he sidled up beside me.
"You just get more beautiful every time I see you." His honeyed whiskey voice purred beside my ear. I looked up into Kian's face, remembering almost every second we spent together. We've mended fences, sort of, patched up our issues and have tentatively been friends for the last eight months. I still wanted him. He still wanted me, I knew.
"Kian, what are you doing here?" I grinned.
"I've got a couple of concerts here the next two days. I saw in the paper that you'd be here and decided to come see..." he trailed off as my shot came. "...nerves still bothering you, huh?"
"Not as bad." I said before taking my shot, biting the lime. "Now it's just after the speech part. And I usually limit myself to two."
The music had just started, fast and happy. The dinner service was being removed, white coats prowling everywhere with their balanced trays.
"Well, that's a blessing, I guess."
"Where's Darla...Darlene..."
"Daniece. Long gone."
"Sorry to hear that."
"Care to join me this round?" I asked as the bartender brought the bottle.
"Sure, for a little bit." I held his gaze as we both lifted filled shot glasses and drank. As I bit into my lime, he whispered in my ear, "Watching you do shots is still as enthralling as watching you come."
"Kian, please." I mumbled, feeling all those familiar pulls and tugs. His lips pressed a faint kiss under my ear, making my insides turn to goo. I stepped back from him, meeting his eyes. "You've always known how to make me melt. It's not fair."
"I know but Dari..." he trailed off, gazing into his empty shot glass. I'd kept track of his failed relationships since we ended ours, nothing lasted more than a few weeks. I knew the shitstorms he'd been through. I laid my hand on his forearm in commiseration, in friendship.
"Come dance with this old bag." I asked him softly, hearing a slow song just start. He smiled and nodded, took my hand and led me onto the dance floor.
Being in his arms again was like...calorie free chocolate...heavenly. He held me close, swaying to the beat. Our bodies knew the moves and I let him lead me along. I couldn't help but grin foolishly when he dipped me, holding me easily, his mouth a breath away from mine.
Impulsive and feeling the tequila buzz, I kissed him. I heard the bells and whistles and warnings my brain was shouting, and dismissed them all. In his arms, I knew I was home. His arms brought me back up to vertical; his mouth continued sipping at mine as his hands slid over my bared back.
With all the familiarity of old lovers, we touched and caressed, whispered and kissed. When the music changed back to the faster, younger songs, we returned to the bar for more shots.
I watched him, remembering how he'd take one shot to three or four of mine, noticing he was keeping up with me, shot for shot. After two more, I found myself on the dance floor, in his arms again, with his mouth travelling down along my throat. "Kian...Kian..."
"Yes, Sweetness?"
"Take me home, Kian." I was lost. I was a burning, throbbing ache. I let Keelan know what was going on and he took me outside. I never could keep my hands off of him. At the valet's station, I was sliding both hands into his unbuttoned shirt. His car, a brand new Mustang, pulled up, separating us for a few moments. I leaned back against the door, gazing steadily, hungrily at him as he drove, shifting easily.
"How is it we always manage to meet up like this?"
"I'm not sure, but you're the one that I never should have left." He turned from the road to gaze at me, letting his huge hand rest on my bared thigh. "You never left my mind....or my heart." He finished softly.
"Neither did you." I began, turning to look at the passing scenery. "Phelan knew, no matter how much I denied it, that I still felt something for you. It ate at him until he did what he did. And it was then I decided to go it alone."
"Alone? For the rest of your life? Sounds depressing."
"Beats getting hurt like that again."
"Hurting makes it real." He said softly, glancing over at me. "So, are
we
at a new beginning?"
"Maybe, maybe it's the tequila..."
"Bullshit, tequila. No more excuses. I still love you."
I watched the scenery, letting my stupid heart do its flips and spins, while my mind brought up the reasons why we split. I felt his warm hand on my thigh, a single squeeze.
"Look at me." I turned to him, seeing that face I'd loved for oh so long, the lips I'd dreamed about. "Don't go back. I want you more now than I ever did. I want so much more with you at my side, in my heart."
