At least, that was what the outfit said.
Katrina practically dragged me out to the limo, and we cracked some champagne on the way to the club in Portland—Forest Grove didn’t have nightclubs, only bars.
The DJ spun music from a small stage, and flyers plastered all across the front promised she was theriotestDJ in town. Whatever that meant. Was that what young, cool people called good things now? I had been out of that loop for a while.
Neon lights danced in the dark with the writhing bodies packed everywhere. Still, it was nothing like the clubs in California—not that I’d been to many. Declan kept me in the house like a pet. We rarely went anywhere, not even to the beach. We’d been living in one of the sunniest states in the US, and I was as pale as a vampire.
I’d wasted the majority of my twenties on a man I’d thought was my charming mentor. He turned out to be the psycho monster that almost ended my life.
Never again.
I still had two good years in my twenties, and I was not planning on wasting a second of them.
The music vibrated in my bones as we sat at our booth. It had a good view of both the bar and the now-purple dance floor.
“I’ll go get us some drinks then we’re dancing till we drop.” Katrina, already swaying with the beat, left the booth. That woman was full of energy. She was ten years older than I, with two sons, and she looked even younger than I was.
It was all in the soul. Mine was tainted. Scarred. Most of the time, I felt as if it showed on my face, and everybody could see.
But nobody did. Declan was a master in his performance. He made them all believe we were happy. Perfect. I was envied for being the successful, handsome professor’s wife. Not just that. I was hated for it. Even by the faculty members who believed I only got my degree and position because of Declan.
Almost breaking a nail, I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. I should cut that. The asshole loved long black hair and forbade me to cut it. The one time I rebelled and got myself some nice bangs, he slapped me so hard I lost the hearing in my left ear for weeks. Never regained full ability since.
I’m definitely getting a haircut.
I eyed all the beautiful girls on the dance floor, studying their hairstyles. The short ones stood out, especially on girls with long necks. I had a long neck. It would be nice to be able to show that.
According toThe Devil’s Advocateanyway. That was what John Milton told Mary Ann before he seduced her. Damn, Charlize Theron rocked that hairdo, even if she killed herself at the end of the movie.
At least, she died pretty. I was dying with tangled clumps on my head.
My stare wandered around the flipping and swinging until it hit a wall. A very attractive wall, in a dress shirt that defined a ridiculous amount of muscles in one wall…I meant man, holding a drink.
His bright gaze fixed me in place as he lifted his glass to me. He didn’t walk; He glided among the bodies, approaching my booth, his eyes reflecting the current colors of the neon strobe lights.
Green. Blue. Purple. Red.
As he got closer, I realized he was even taller and broader than I thought. Huge was the best word to describe his figure.
Would I say the same about his cock?
My eyes bulged at the thought. What the hell had gotten into me?
Quickly, I looked away, my back to the dance floor, and glared at the actual wall in front of me.Please go away. Please go away!
If he speaks to me, I’ll choke. Or make a completely inappropriate comment about his penis I have yet to see because for some devilish reason that’s all I can think about right now.
“Hi, I’m Alec.”
Of course, he didn’t go away. Of course, he had a sexy name to go with the body. Of course, it would be my luck to meet a man that looked like that just days after swearing off men forever.
My fists clenched, and my eyes squeezed shut for a moment or ten before I twisted in my seat to meet my stranger again. My hair flipped dramatically with the twist as if I was in a shampoo commercial.
I took a breath and held it, now that my eyes were level with his pants, and I could see the outline of his cock even in this light.
Oh my.
He chuckled. “I’m up here.”
