by Luxie Ryder
Scrambling to move the sheet out of the way, she managed to slip a finger inside her pussy just before she quivered in climax. She wished it was his finger, imagining how good it would feel as it slid into her. The extra stimulation triggered her orgasm faster and harder than expected. Sherrie threw her head back and cried out into the darkness, gasping for breath after the climax rendered her breathless.
Flopping down onto the bed as the shattering tremors finally subsided, she laughed. She bet Ty would love knowing she masturbated over him. As much as she liked him, she didn’t doubt for one minute he’d been toying with her earlier. Ty seemed like the kind of guy who liked to see the effect he had on women. It was all probably a game to him. Sherrie knew she could never let her guard slip by revealing her feelings. Ty would probably get her fired…and Baz would have a field day.
She settled down to sleep with a smile on her face, enjoying the fantasy of what she’d do with Ty. If she ever was fired, she’d want to fulfill her desire. Baz would probably handle her dismissal with a victorious grin and a big bag of sequins and some glue.
And maybe a few feathers.
Chapter Two
Sherrie didn’t get the opportunity to speak with Ty again for several days, even though she was at the studio constantly and on set for the two show tapings on Saturday and Sunday. Besides the occasional hot look Ty threw her way, nothing much happened.
The show was coming to the end of its six week run and everyone was insanely busy working on the final show, including the wardrobe department. She’d spent much of her last day on set ensconced in the designer’s room with the staff —all hands on deck to finish the costumes in time. Ty, along with the other dancers and celebrities were buried in rehearsals in one part of the building while in another, caterers and musicians began to gather and prepare for the after-show season finale party. The tradition started during the early years of the show’s history and Sherrie was excited about it. If what the other girls told her was true, it would be a fun night.
But fun was the last thing on her mind as she watched from the wings later in the day, when Ty performed a spirited Paso Doble. Sherrie’s throat constricted again as he threw his partner to the floor, and then grabbed her hand to drag her a little way across the polished surface, the way a Matador would his cape. The dance ended with Ty straddling the woman while her hand clasped his tree-trunk of a thigh. Sherrie wished it was her beneath him, her hands mere inches from his cock, face upturned and waiting for his next move.
She snapped out of her reverie when a shout resounded from backstage. The dancers needed help preparing for the finale and despite her best efforts, she didn’t see Ty again before she left the studio.
Even after rushing home from work as soon as she could get away, it still took ages to get ready. Sherrie had never been to a gala where celebrities and ballroom stars would be mingling, and nothing in her wardrobe could be considered fit for such an occasion. After an hour of tearing her clothing out of cupboards and drawers, she reluctantly went back to her first choice. The ankle length shift in basic black was too figure-hugging, and God only knew why she’d bought it—but it was clean, new, and she had nothing else to wear. She put it on and didn’t bother to look at her reflection, knowing she’d change her mind if she did.
There was no time to fix her hair in a dramatic up-do, so she quickly ran a brush through it. The chunky silver earrings she’d chosen complimented the outfit and without a second thought of her appearance, Sherrie headed out into the night.
* * * *
Sherrie’s mouth dropped open as she walked into the ballroom set at the studio. The head of the costume department warned her it would be glam, but nothing could’ve prepared her for such opulence. The place was crammed with beautiful people, many of whom she recognized from the small screen.
She made her way past all of the glamorous people, feeling totally out of place, and searched desperately for her colleagues. Finally, she came upon the table reserved for the costume department and took a seat on the only empty chair remaining—next to her friend Grace. Her colleague was older than Sherrie and the nearest thing she had to a friend at work.
“Will the dancers be here?” Sherrie asked.
“Oh, for sure.” Grace smiled and gave Sherrie a nudge. “Why, who are you looking for, as if I didn’t know?”
Sherrie tried to keep her voice neutral. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Grace chuckled and rolled her eyes. “Okay, honey, whatever you say. But just in case you are interested, Ty, Diana and the others are performing an exhibition dance later.”
Shit! If Grace could spot her attraction for Ty, she wondered who else took notice. The good news that he would be around later on was dampened by the knowledge that Diana would be there too. On the surface, the young English woman seemed to be nothing more than his professional dance partner, but the gossip was rife about a relationship between them, albeit a love/hate one. The tall, willowy blond could just as easily be a prima ballerina, and her delicate frailty was the perfect foil for Ty’s raw masculinity. The press and public speculated constantly about the chemistry Ty and Diana produced on the dance floor, as if unable to believe that the intensity between them didn’t come from a romantic connection.
“Why do you think I would be interested in Ty?” Sherrie asked, knowing she had to say something. Staying red faced and silent only added weight to her friend’s suspicions.
“Damn, girl. Everyone is interested in Ty.” Grace's kind face split into a wide smile. “Where ya been the last month?”
Sherrie laughed, both at herself and at Grace’s bawdy expression. So she wasn’t the only one who’d fallen for his charms? She felt a little better knowing that information.
There had been no sign of him by the time the first course arrived. Sherri found it hard to eat with her stomach fluttering and her eyes on the door, but after a couple glasses of wine, she forgot all about him. Her nerves disappeared and she chilled out, genuinely enjoying the atmosphere, the food and the banter at her table. After dinner, gentle music and soft laughter filled the air and Sherrie watched as elegantly dressed couples danced beneath the huge chandelier dominating the center of the room.
The tinkling of a glass drew everyone’s attention to the raised dais at the top of the room. The president of the network took the stand and thanked everyone for their hard work over the season, joking briefly about the staff attendance at the party being the largest the studio had ever seen.
Sherrie caught the curtain flutter and her gaze landed on Ty, looking absolutely delicious in a black suit. His glossy hair shone under the spotlights when he dipped his handsome head in greeting. His all too familiar smile warmed the room in general and Sherrie in particular, then he and the beautiful Diana gracefully took up their positions in the center of the dance floor.
They performed a medley of styles—Latin, Jive and American Smooth—leading up to the grand finale where all of the other dancers and contestants joined them for a group Samba that brought the house down. The boisterous applause from the crowd didn’t seem to want to end, and Sherrie’s heart sank when she spotted Ty disappearing from view. The other performers dragged some audience members to their feet, ignoring their laughing protests and forcing them onto the dance floor.
A moment later, Sherrie’s heart threatened to jump from her chest when she spotted Ty walking past their table. He continued on his way, failing to notice Sherrie until Grace said, “Hello” very loudly. Ty paused and his dark green eyes scanned the table, a slow grin spreading across his face when his gaze settled on Sherrie. She smiled as warmly as her nerves would allow with her stomach doing somersaults. He’d taken off his tie and several of the buttons on his shirt were undone, and her gaze lingered for a little too long on the dark shadow at the base of his neck where muscle curved over his collarbones. Grabbing the much-needed drink Grace handed her, Sherrie turned to find he was no longer looking at her face—his stare had wandered down over her torso to
her thighs. Unable to simply sit there as his gaze touched her all over, she put her glass down with a clumsy bang.
“That dress…Wow,” he said, his hungry perusal warming her skin everywhere he looked.
“Th…thanks.”
A slight smile lifted the corner of his mouth when he recognized his compliment made her blush. The people packing the dance floor drew his attention for a second and a knot lodged in her stomach. When he turned back to the table, his hand reached for hers. She stared at it in mortified silence.
“Dance with me, Sherrie.”
Although his words reached her over the noise of the music, her brain refused to acknowledge them so she stayed put. Ty must’ve assumed she hadn’t heard him and leaned in closer to repeat the invitation, his warm breath fanning her ear and neck. All at once, everything above her waist went numb just as everything below it woke up. Her brain engaged finally. Wake up, this delicious man wants to dance with you!
“Dancing isn’t one of my strong points, since…you know.” Sherrie gestured towards her feet, hating herself for using her bad leg as an excuse. Still, if anything in this world could make her self-conscious, hobbling around the dance floor next to a handsome and graceful Adonis would be it.
“I think we can manage,” he said. Ty pried Sherrie’s death-grip off the edge of the table, winking at Grace when she made a poor job of stifling a giggle.
Sherrie followed him to the dance floor on trembling knees as an interested murmur rumbled around the room. Obviously, the other guests took notice. Ty pulled her into his embrace, smiling as he whispered in her ear to relax. Her hands settled on his shoulders, feeling for the first time—rather than seeing—just how muscled he was. Ty held her with a light touch on her hips and drew her in to a close yet respectable distance as he began to move. Sherrie was ridiculously grateful that he seemed happy to dance in a way she was used to, rather than attempt to lead her around the floor in some complicated waltz she wasn’t familiar with.
“So, what do you think?” he asked, gesturing around him to the ballroom. “They made a great job of doing this place up.”
She nodded, forcing herself to speak. “It’s amazing. It doesn’t look anything like the plain, ugly building it really is.”
Ty smiled devilishly. “The studio isn’t the only thing done-up. You are stunning.”
Checking his eyes for any sign of humor but finding none, she glowed at the compliment but didn’t trust her voice to thank him. She simply smiled. Ty seemed happy to do all the talking and the conversation did help calm her down. He asked about her life outside of work with a few probing questions about her family. She told him about her parents and the small business they ran just outside LA. When he asked what Sherrie’s boyfriend did for a living, she smiled and told him she wasn’t dating at the moment.
The music ended and she expected to be released but his grip on her body grew tighter still and he pulled her even closer. Her breasts brushed across his hard chest every now and then and her thighs whispered against his as they moved as one. Sherrie was too close to look at him as they continued to talk and his hot breath fanned her neck again, but this time, it also seemed to increase the heat slowly building between her legs. Ty pulled back to look down into her face after a long moment of silence between them. Realizing he’d spoken and was awaiting her answer, she tried to cover up the fact she hadn’t been listening, too absorbed with horny thoughts. She asked him to repeat the question. He stared at her for what seemed like ages before he spoke again. His sharp gaze warned her he might’ve suspected what she was trying to hide.
“I said you dance well.”
“Thanks,” she mumbled. Why did she suddenly sound so brainless? “You’re not bad yourself.” Much to her relief, he laughed at her joke, his warm gaze still branding her.
“What are you so nervous about, Sherrie?” he asked a few minutes later, ratcheting her nerves up another notch.
“I’m not,” she lied. No need to tell him she could barely catch her breath with his body pressed against hers. Nor could she tell him her heart was racing as heat pulsed through every part of her. And she sure wasn’t going to admit she felt hot and wet between her thighs because of his close proximity.
Ty glanced at her lips when she smiled and when his gaze came back up to hers, the unspoken message that blazed back at her took the last of the breath from her lungs. Allowing her no time to recover, he pulled Sherrie closer, ensuring their bodies were in total contact. His cheek rested at her temple as his hands opened wide, clasping her hips firmly, fingers splayed out to curve her buttocks.
Sherrie closed her eyes and clung to him. The moment couldn’t last and she wanted to sear it into her memory. Ty’s body fit against hers so well that moving to the music with him seemed almost effortless. Her hands began to drift across his back and she couldn’t resist the urge to grasp a handful of the hair at the nape of his neck. The low chuckle she earned in response made her smile against his shoulder. Ty’s fingers pressed her pelvis closer to his and Sherrie bit back a groan when the hard ridge of his erection grazed her abdomen.
The desire to lift her mouth to his ear and suggest they go somewhere less public became irresistible and she’d just resolved to do it when the music changed abruptly. The funky beat vibrating across the dance floor normally would’ve excited her, but not this time. Their heated moment was over.
Ty straightened up and leaned back to look into her eyes, his expression mirroring the way she felt. That DJ is an idiot, she thought. Sherrie sighed and took a step away but his grip tightened and he leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Don’t move yet…”
Chuckling at the wide-eyed look she gave him, he dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose and stood back, buttoning his jacket quickly. Sherrie couldn’t help but smile back, happy she had such an affect on him to make Ty sport an erection.
“Ty.”
Diana appeared from nowhere, her approach unseen by either of them. A proprietary arm slid around Ty’s neck and the look in her eyes made it clear she wished Sherrie would get lost. “I’ve been searching for you.”
Sherrie made a hasty exit on the excuse of needing to visit the bathroom, desperate to escape both the heat coming from Ty and the arctic chill emanating from his dance partner. She sat in the stall, wondering what had possessed her to tell him she needed to do something as unsexy as relieve her bladder. She bit back the giggle forming in her throat as she heard someone go into the next cubicle. There were already enough people in the world who thought she was crazy.
Ty and his frosty friend were nowhere to be seen when Sherrie headed for the bar. Where did they go? She grimaced. Why did she care? The last thing she needed was to torture herself with the image of Diana doing everything to Ty, Sherrie wished she could. Maybe it was for the best. Wherever he’d gone, she doubted very much that he was fantasizing about her in the same way.
She jumped when a warm hand touched her shoulder. Turning to find Ty leaning on the bar behind her chair, she smiled. He hadn’t left with the deadly Diana. They weren’t off somewhere having elegant, effortlessly graceful—but still mind blowing—sex.
“Hi.”
Ty grinned. “I’ve been looking for you.”
“Well, here I am.” Sherrie grinned up at him when he laughed at her silly response. She didn’t care. He could do what he wanted—as long as he was doing it to her.
“Shall we get out of here, or do you want to play the game some more?”
“What game?”
He leaned closer. “The game where neither of us admits what we really want and we go through the motions of talking and drinking for hours and hours...when there are other things we could be doing.”
Ty’s confidence excited her, but she still put up a tiny fight. “You’re assuming a lot, don’t you think?”
His smile didn’t waiver. “Maybe I am, so let me be more specific. I don’t want to spend the rest of the evening wishing I had you somewhere alone, and feeling frustrated becaus
e I can’t do what I want to.”
Sherrie stared into his eyes, reading the promise in them, along with his arrogance. He knew what she wanted, just as well as she did. Ty stood and held out his hand. She knew by taking it, she was admitting he was right. A small triumphant smile crossed his face as his cool fingers closed around hers and he pulled her to her feet.
* * * *
Thirty minutes later Sherrie lead him into her small apartment.
“I wasn’t expecting company.” She rushed around tidying up, avoiding Ty’s gaze. As she reached around him to pick up some of the clothing she’d scattered around the house hours earlier, he grabbed her wrist.
“If I help you tidy up, will you let me kiss you soon?” There was a slight edge of impatience in his voice. Sherrie gulped as he pulled her closer and his fingers tightened around her arm. “Or will you at least stop trying to avoid me?”
Unable to ignore his delicious smile, she nodded. Ty seized the moment, swinging her around and up into his arms. He pressed a hot, but much too brief kiss against her waiting mouth and headed for the passageway leading to the other rooms.
