My new friend, who was dancing on the table in front of me, shimmied her hips in my face and gushed, “I can’t believe I’m dancing forSaint McClure.I’m such a huge fan.”
“Woo hoo!” Talia bellowed from a few feet away at the bar. “Shake it, girl.”
I looked up to see my other new friend, Kennedy, strutting across the bar top before doing a sexy hair flip, and I gave another loud whoop when my new BFF, Sunshine, danced behind her and did a high kick before shimmying her shoulders.
“Do you want another drink, hon?” I called up toward Heather.
“Yeah, thanks, babe,” she said gratefully. “Dancing’s thirsty work.”
I danced over to the bar where Talia was in conversation with some guy who had just approached her.
“Hey, beautiful, I’m Rockabye,” I caught him croon. “Can I get you a drink?”
She looked him up and down with interest, then sighed disappointedly. “No. I better not. Drinking’s bad for my legs.”
He looked at her, his forehead furrowing. “Why? Are you allergic? Do they swell up or something?”
“No,” she replied ruefully. “They spread.”
Kennedy, who at that moment was strutting past Tally atop the bar, stared down at her for a split second, then let out a loud cackle.
I busted out a laugh.
“Jesus,” Rockabye muttered, his face heating. “Bitches are crazy.”
Kennedy roared so hard she almost fell off the bar.
My other new friend, Sophie, wandered over with my other new friend, Tristan, who I’d been told was a hair genius. He’d already announced that he couldn’t wait to get his hands on mine and Talia’s hair.
“What’s so funny?” Sophie asked.
Kennedy wiped a tear away, doubling over at the waist, and shrieked, “They spread!” She laughed so hard that she swayed precariously.
“Whoaaa!” I exclaimed, jerking my hands up to help cushion her blow in case she fell. As I moved, I saw two more hands appear beside mine, except they weren’t small and soft. No, these hands were big and tanned, and the perfectly muscled arms they were attached to had sexy veins meandering under the skin. Plus, one of the fingers proudly displayed a black-and-silver wedding ring.
My neck twisted left, and my eyes met golden ones that danced with humor. “I’ve got this, babe,” the beautiful man who was Kennedy’s husband rumbledfrom deep within his chest. “Come on, Kitten, before you fall.”
I sighed like a schoolgirl with a crush (though to be fair, there was nolikeabout it—I definitely had a crush), and then I sighed again as I watched the beautiful man reach up to tag his woman’s waist and pull her down from the bar before tucking her safely into his arms, bridal-style.
Kitten?
Gawd!
My poet’s soul squealed in delight.
Ilovedthese men.
And Ilovedthis place.
It wasfucking awesome.
The booze flowed.
And the club girls wereso nice!
My gaze met Gopher’s (my other new friend, who’d been making us these amazing cocktails, which he’d named Ol’ Lady’s Ruin). Apparently, Ciara, the bar manager, was away visiting family, but I was sure when she returned, we’d be great friends too because everyone here was just so dangnice!
Jacob needed to get to it and look for a house or land for us because I could see myself spending a lot of time in Virginia. LA had been getting old for a while, especially with the whole stalker thing.
