by Lisa Sanchez
“Ooh…I forgot I had this. It’s perfect,” I said, giving her a high five and a grin.
She smiled in return and pointed toward the black fabric. “That top will have him standing at attention faster than you can say ‘didgeridoo.’”
I scrunched up my face in confusion. “Didgeri-what?”
“Never mind,” Jessica said, swatting her hand through the air. “You need something hot to wear with that shirt. What about a skirt?” She held up one of my shorter denim minis. “This just screams easy access. Pair it with some hooker heels and you’ll have his tongue lolling out his mouth.”
I stared at her with a look of mock horror. “Jess! First off, who are you and what have you done with my shy, sweet best friend? Secondly, I want to seduce him, yes. I do not, however, want to look like some ho-baggity freak. I think the top is as daring as I want to go.” There was something to be said for the old adage about leaving some things to the imagination. And besides, Quinn had already had an eyeful of my goods.
Jess frowned. “I’m still your sweet BFF. I’m just tired of letting everything scare me. Tired of holding back all the time, trying to do what’s proper, you know?” She pointed to the skirt. “I still think you’d look hot in the skirt.” She rifled through my closet looking for something else. “Here,” she hollered over her shoulder, and tossed a pair of jeans at me. “These are perfect. No complaining.”
I groaned. “You’re killing me, Jess. I can’t wear these. They barely cover my ass.” I shook my head in protest. I’d purchased the jeans earlier in the year, but had yet to wear them, as the rise was so low they barely covered my girlie bits. I wasn’t keen on strangers looking at my burning bush, no matter how well I kept it groomed.
“That’s the whole point, isn’t it?” Jessica stood with her hands on her hips, looking at me like I was crazy. “You want to give him a taste of what he’s missing. Those jeans scream sexy.”
“He’s already seen what he’s missing,” I said and shrugged.
Martha looked up from her magazine with wide eyes but remained silent.
“What did you just say?” Jessica held up one hand and burned me with an intense glare. “What exactly has he seen, Ryann? What are you not telling us?”
A blush crept over my cheeks as I thought back to earlier in the day when Quinn had watched me shower. Aside from the mind-blowing kiss we’d shared, that morning’s voyeuristic escapade was the single most erotic thing I’d ever experienced, and Quinn hadn’t even touched me. I knew he wanted me. I saw it in his eyes, and in the way he carried himself. I knew he loved me. Queen Morgana had confirmed that herself.
Love and desire were not the problem. Fear was. Afraid of losing the only person he’d ever connected with, Quinn refused to do anything that might jeopardize the only real relationship he’d ever had. Some way, somehow, I needed to help Quinn move past his fear so we could be together. Hopefully, my plan of driving him mad with jealousy would set things in motion. I was running out of ideas.
Jess furrowed her brows after I told her what happened in Quinn’s bathroom, took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. “He’s more pigheaded than I thought.” She pointed at the denim in question and then looked at me. “I’d go commando in those jeans if I were you.”
“Commando?” My jaw dropped in horror. “Jess.”
She gave me a pointed look and shrugged. “I’m just sayin’,” she grumbled to herself and sat down onto my bed.
I looked over to Martha, who sat quietly on the floor reading a magazine. She looked up, sensing my gaze and shook her head. “Don’t look to me for fashion advice. Do I look like I know how to dress sexy?”
Clad in a short, red plaid mini, a black pleated button down, with a black corseted belt over it, black tights and her trademark Doc’s, Martha did look sexy in a completely different way. Though I didn’t share her sense of style, I had to admit she looked pretty in her own way.
“I think you look great.”
She treated me to shy smile. “Thanks. I can help you with your shoes, though. If you’d like me to, that is.”
“My shoes?” I shot her a look of confusion. Did girlfriend think she was Geppetto?
She walked over to my closet and pulled out a pair of black flats. “Just watch.” She waved her hands over the shoes and, with a bright flash of light, my simple flats transformed into a wicked looking pair of Docs.
“I don’t really know designer stuff, so if you want something specific, you’ll need to show me a picture of what you want.”
“Oh, snap!” I said in total awe. “Wicked cool.”
Jessica raced over to my laptop, which sat on my desk. Wasting no time, she brought it to the edge of my bed while she logged on. “I know the perfect pair of shoes for that outfit. Look here.” She beckoned me over to where she sat while Martha looked on.
I looked over her shoulder and saw a stunning pair of Manolo Blahniks. Made of black leather, the cut-out sandals were adorned with three silver rings and had four- inch heels. The shoes screamed “vampy” and were the perfect addition to my sultry ensemble.
“Ooh…they’re sling-backs too. Perfect,” I said and looked over to Martha. “Can you conjure these?”
She nodded with a smile. “You bet.”
“You are my freaking hero.” I motioned toward my black flats she’d already worked her mojo on, beckoning for her to do it again.
“Shoot. You think you can glamour me a bigger set of boobs?” Jessica asked. She was doing her best to mend fences with Martha, and I cast her a look of approval.
Martha eyed Jess for a moment, probably shocked at her continued attempts to make amends, before answering. “Yeah, actually, I can.”
Jessica’s eyes grew wide. “No. Way,” she squealed, and shot off the edge of the bed like a rocket, sticking her chest out.
For a minute I was tempted to have her zap me a size two ass, but changed my mind. Quinn would notice, and that wasn’t something I wanted to explain.
An hour later we were all dressed and ready for a rockin’ night on the town. Jess decided to sport a denim mini, insisting that one of us needed to show some leg. She paired it with a dark blue, backless top that accented her pale skin and a pair of black boots.
“Who needs Dr. 90210? We’ve got Martha,” she said while admiring her newly glamorized breasts. Normally a small B cup, Jessica sported some very full C’s thanks to our witchy friend.
“Okay,” I said and took a deep breath. “This is it. Operation Green-Eyed Monster is a go. Let’s do this.” Nervous, I looked over to Jessica. There was no need for me to speak, she knew me well enough to know just how anxious I was about our evening out.
“Relax, Ryann. You look great. When Quinn sees how hot you look and how other guys respond to that hotness, he’s going to break. I just know it.”
I took a deep breath and sighed. “I hope so.”
Because I have no idea what else to do.
***
“Bloody hell!” Quinn grimaced as we walked toward the entrance of Fire and Ice. The loud bass thumping of the club’s music floated through the air. Legions of scantily dressed women flooded the establishment, gawking at Quinn as they passed by, drooling over him as though he were standing alone, and not with three women.
Quinn shot me a pleading look.
“It’ll be okay,” I said, smiling. “Trust me.”
I didn’t go commando for nothing.
“Come on, Quinn,” Jessica said. “Loosen up a bit.”
Quinn zeroed in on Jessica, his eyes narrowed and a frown on his face. “Something’s different. You changed something, yes?”
“I…uh…I…nothing’s different.” She stammered nervously, while flashing me a look of panic.
I didn’t think she wanted to explain her temporarily enlarged breasts were the difference in her appearance, so I threw her a lifeline. “Tonight is all about letting go and having fun, which is something we all are in desperate need of. Too much work, not enough play. C�
��mon, let’s go.” I tried to be as encouraging as I could, hoping to ease the tension I plainly saw Quinn trying to hide.
He was on edge about not locating the Zmeu’s lair. Believing we only had just over two weeks left together, Quinn would rather have spent the evening elsewhere, just the two of us. To be honest, I would have preferred the same. But given his stubborn refusal to get physical with me, I had no choice but to pull out all the stops and trigger the jealous side of his nature. It was underhanded and low. But hey…a girl had to do what a girl had to do.
Of course, he wasn’t privy to my plan, or the fact that my roomies were in on it, as well. In fact, Quinn had no idea my friends knew his true identity. I hated keeping him in the dark, but if I had any hope of saving him from his stubborn self, secrecy was not only necessary, it was essential. I looked up at him, giving him the most encouraging smile I could muster.
Quinn didn’t appear encouraged. In fact, he looked like a man walking toward certain doom. I knew he dreaded the unwanted attention that was sure to come as soon as he entered the building. Women went after him like strung out crack-whores looking for a fix. By accompanying us to the club he was practically throwing himself into a lion’s den. But instead of facing savage predatory cats, he’d be facing a hoard of oversexed gutter sluts, none of whom he had any interest in. I didn’t know which was worse.
He heaved a sigh. “Very well, then.”
I leaned in and whispered in his ear. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you.”
“And I you, a ghrá. And I you,” he said as we entered the club.
It felt odd entering Fire and Ice as a patron and not an employee. I brushed off the urge to grab a tray and start taking drink orders.
Packed to capacity, the club was very dark, and very crowded. I felt slightly claustrophobic as we wove through the crowd, having spotted a table at the far end of the room. I’d never seen the place so busy.
Quinn navigated in and out of the sea of single women who made up ninety percent of the crowd, keeping me close the entire way. His hand rested on the small of my back, and although our flesh never came into contact, I still felt an incredible electric pull between us. We were like two live wires, each of us charged, full of desire, but somehow incomplete. Once those wires came together, sparks flew, electricity flowed and magic happened.
Figures he’d find an area that was covered to touch.
I’d purposely worn the halter top because it bared quite a bit of skin and was more than a little disappointed when he found a “safe place” to touch me. Quinn was a tough nut to crack, and I had my work cut out for me.
Once we reached the table, Jessica dropped her purse and started jumping in place. “Oh! I love this song. Let’s dance.” She grabbed hold of me by the arm and pulled me toward the dance floor.
I wrangled my wrist out of her grasp and shook my head. “Sorry, girlie. I’m sitting this one out.”
With a shrug and a “pssh,” she disappeared into the massive crowd of dancing bodies, leaving Martha, Quinn and me alone at the table.
Quinn leaned in close, his delicious, masculine smell sending my thighs up in flames. “I don’t like this. It’s too crowded. There is an overwhelming sense of evil in here, and it’s coming at me from all directions.”
I stiffened. “You think the Zmeu is here?” A Mack truck filled with panic ran me down at the thought of my demon stalker hiding somewhere in the crowd.
“Possibly. Along with a few other buggers as well.” He placed his finger to his lips and looked over to Martha, who sat staring out into the crowd. He didn’t want her to hear our whispered conversation.
A few others?
My mouth felt dry. “Others?”
“Aye, love,” he said and pointed toward the bar. “You see those two shites dressed in the black leather jackets?”
I nodded.
“Vampires,” he huffed, and scowled with disgust.
“Vampires?” I shouted over the loud din. “Really?”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Martha’s head snap toward me after my outburst, her brows furrowed. Was she afraid of vampires? Why I hadn’t given any thought to the mythical, bloodsucking beasts before, I wasn’t sure. I was sure, however, that I didn’t want anything to do with them. One evil stalker was enough for me. I didn’t need any more, thank you.
“Goddammit, a ghrá,” he said, casting me a fierce shut-the-fuck-up glare. “Could you maybe shout a bit louder so the rest of the patrons can hear?”
My hand shot up to my mouth. “Sorry,” I said through my fingers.
I looked over my shoulder to where Martha sat, and though she still appeared to be looking out into the crowd, acting bored, I knew different. I saw her chewing on the inside of her lip, something I recently learned she did when she was nervous. Upon closer inspection, I saw her eyes darting through the crowd in the direction of the bar.
What is up with that?
Deciding we’d sat long enough, I hopped out of my seat and stood in front of Quinn.
“Let’s dance.”
Quinn snorted. “Do I look like the type that dances?”
“Well…I…” I didn’t want to agree with him out loud. He didn’t look like the type that danced. He looked, well, he looked intimidating. With muscle on top of muscle, Quinn looked like someone capable of reducing you to a bloody stain on the floor. He was deadly and sexy all rolled into one, and I suddenly felt flushed as I stood there gawking at him.
“Only cake boys and mollies participate in this type of dancing. Real men dance between the sheets.”
“So teach me to dance between the sheets.” I leaned forward, treating Quinn to a perfect view of my cleavage. I’d forgone a bra, something I never do. My bodacious tatas were enjoying a bit of freedom.
Quinn stared at my chest like a starving man at an all-you-can-eat-buffet, before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He sat silent for a moment and then opened his eyes to look into mine. “You know I cannot. Why do you torture me so?” His normally smooth voice sounded strained and I felt a pang of guilt for flaunting myself in front of him, though I knew I had no other choice. I needed him to take the bait.
“Yes, you can. You love me. Trust in that love, Quinn. Believe in me, in us,” I whispered.
I watched as he warred with his desire to connect with me on a physical level. He believed if he gave in he would not only lose me to madness, but also die with me no longer remembering him.
I knew the moment he found his resolve, as his jaw clenched and his face became hard and serious.
“No, I won’t take that chance. I can’t lose you.”
I whirled around with a groan. Stubborn faerie.
“C’mon, Martha, let’s dance,” I shouted over the loud music. I grabbed her by the hand, pulling her into the crowded abyss. Quinn’s fiery gaze burned a hole through me as we wove in and out the massive sea of bodies, looking for a place to dance.
“So what’s up with you and vampires?” I didn’t see any point in wasting time. Martha had looked visibly disturbed when Quinn and I discussed the vamps at the bar, and I wanted to know why.
Martha met my eyes with an icy stare. “A vampire killed my mother.”
Way to stick your foot in it, Ryann.
“Oh, God, Martha. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.” I felt like an idiot. Not only was I completely incapable of seducing the love of my life, but I was also a horrible friend to boot. I groveled some more. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay, Ryann. Really, relax,” she said, trying to reassure me. “It happened when I was a little girl. I don’t remember much really, just his face, and the face of the vamp that was with him. I’ve been on the hunt ever since, searching for the monster that took my mother from me so I can kill him.” Her voice was cold and determined, and I knew she was deadly serious. Martha would have her revenge.
I drew Martha into a hug in the center of the dance floor. I knew what it felt like to go through life without parents. It s
ucked ass, and I felt bad that she’d suffered such a terrible loss. “I’m so sorry, Martha. I’m here for you. Any time you want to talk, okay?”
I felt her nod as she returned my embrace, and in that moment I knew we’d be friends for life.
“Oh, hell yeah. Girl-on-girl. Kiss! Kiss!”
We broke apart to see a large group of idiots staring at us, beer in hand and eyes wide.
I heard a familiar voice shout, “Shut up, Tyler.”
The idiot from the gym emerged from the center of the band of creeps and strode over to me, a sheepish look on his plastered face. “Sorry about my friends. They’re a bunch of tools. Wanna dance?” He held out his hand, and smiled at me with glassy eyes. Idiot Boy was no Quinn, but he had two legs and a pulse and would do the job when it came to making my stubborn faerie jealous.
I looked over to Martha, who was already hightailing it toward the bar. “I’m gonna go check it out,” she hollered over her shoulder and disappeared into the crowd.
“Well, since my friend just left me, I guess I’m free. Sure, I’ll dance with you.” I took his sweaty hand, and followed him deeper onto the dance floor.
I felt Quinn’s eyes on me, even as we moved, and I knew he’d left the sanctuary of our table to keep a watchful eye on me.
I’ll give him an eyeful. Stubborn, irritating faerie.
Along with zero interpersonal skills, Idiot Boy also lacked rhythm, which was sort of necessary when dancing. While I swayed my hips to the beat of the music, he flailed around like a dead fish, thrusting his pelvis forward like a maniac. His frenzied air pumping continued until he pulled me forcefully against him so that my back pressed up against his chest. For a minute, I worried he might try and rub his junk against my backside, but I relaxed a bit when he settled down and grabbed hold of my hips, and swayed us side to side along with the music. Maybe I still had a chance to make Quinn jealous after all.
