Addicted (Addicted Trilogy Book 1)

by S. Nelson

  “You were right. I look good, although I’m still not a hundred percent sold on the shirt. But I’ll work with it. Thanks, Lex.”

  “I knew you would come over to my side one day.”

  “Just for tonight,” I chuckled.

  It was already 7:15, which meant I only had a little over an hour to get ready. We had to allot at least twenty minutes to drive to the club.

  I dried my long chestnut-colored hair as quickly as possible, running a big curling iron through it to smooth it out and give me some nice bouncy, loose curls. I wore minimal makeup, some sheer eyeshadow, a little eyeliner and mascara, some blush and a clear lip gloss. I thought the outfit was enough already; I didn’t want to add to the dramatics with an overdone face.

  I was officially done with fifteen minutes to spare, so I sauntered into Alexa’s room to see how she was coming along. She was almost ready as well, putting the finishing touches on her own makeup. She really did look beautiful, even with the revealing clothing she chose. She had shoulder-length, dark blonde hair with sun-kissed highlights. It was her natural color, and almost everyone complimented her on it. Her pale blue eyes and olive complexion were a great contrast to her tresses. Alexa really was quite the looker, and I made sure to tell her as much.

  “You look really beautiful tonight, Lex. You’re going to have to fight the men off for sure.”

  “You look fantastic, too. We’re going to have a great time.” She laughed as she did a little dance. “Thankfully Matt will be there to get rid of anyone we don’t want bothering us.” Sometimes we had Matt act as a boyfriend, warding off guys who couldn’t take the hint.

  One more quick glance in the mirror and we were off to enjoy our evening.

  ~3~

  Sara

  By the time we found a parking spot and walked to the front of the club, it was just after nine o’clock. Matt was waiting for us on the sidewalk, looking like he’d stepped right out of a J Crew ad. Wearing dark jeans, a fitted light grey polo shirt and brown boots, he was quite the sight to behold. He was one of the few guys I saw who could look good with wearing his collar up.

  After we finished greeting one another, we glanced at the line and realized it snaked around the corner. I really wanted to go in, but I wasn’t too sure about the long-ass wait.

  “Come on, guys, let’s go,” Matt said as he grabbed each of our hands and pulled us toward the guy with the clipboard.

  “Matt, don’t we have to go to the end of the line?” I asked, eyeing up the other waiting customers.

  “No, I know one of the bartenders working tonight. He said he would put us on the list. So let’s go, shall we?” I instantly reached up and kissed him on his gorgeous cheek, thankful he had connections.

  As soon as we walked in, we noticed how big the place was, much larger than it looked from the outside. Private sitting areas littered either side of the enormous room, each with four black leather sofas running the length of each wall.

  It was cozy while still managing to be classy.

  The dance floor was smack-dab in the middle of the space, the house music at a tolerable level. People were already busy having a great time, swaying and grinding to the beats thrumming through the large speaker system.

  There was a very large bar straight ahead and an area set up for actual bands to play. There wasn’t anyone scheduled that night, though, which was a little disappointing. I loved to discover new music. Local talent was certainly in abundance around our area.

  As we walked, we almost missed the second floor towering above us, a DJ booth hidden in the center of it. So that’s where the music is coming from.

  First impressions were everything, and Throttle was a club I could definitely see us coming to over and over again.

  “Let’s head back to the bar to grab some drinks before it becomes way too crowded for us to even order anything,” Alexa hollered over the increasing music.

  “Don’t worry about it. My friend Colin said he’s working the bar. I just have to find him.” Matt grabbed both of our hands again and led us toward our drink hookup.

  Finding him easily enough, we had our double orders in less than five minutes. I tried not to make eye contact with the people who had obviously been waiting before us. I could feel them giving us the evil eye.

  We were lucky enough to find an open seating area, enough room for all three of us. “I can definitely see us coming here a lot,” Alexa voiced as she winked at some random guy passing by with his friends. She didn’t waste any time. I wasn’t as aggressive, which was totally okay with me. But I couldn’t fault her for her forwardness, either. She knew what she wanted and she went for it.

  I was envious of that kind of confidence.

  “Lex, can we be here for twenty minutes before you start stalking your prey?” Matt asked as he hit her shoulder with his, giving her a wink.

  She laughed. “You know me better than that by now, sweetie.”

  “I do.” He looked over at me and shrugged, knowing Alexa would continue to be Alexa, no matter what.

  We’d been sitting for about an hour before we needed a refill. Since Matt bought us the first round, I announced I would go for the next one. I wasn’t sure whether or not Colin would remember me from a two-second introduction an hour before, but I would give it a shot.

  I made my way through the ever-growing crowd, knocking into a few people on my way. How am I going to make it back without spilling everything all over myself, or someone else for that matter?

  I was able to spot him right away, and thankfully he remembered I was Matt’s friend. “More of the same for all of you?” I couldn’t believe he remembered what we were all drinking, but I guess it was his job. It was still impressive nonetheless.

  Trying my best to figure out how I was going to carry six drinks back to our area, I was startled when I felt warm breath on my skin.

  Then I heard a voice.

  “Do you need help with those?”

  The hairs on the back of my neck instantly prickled.

  That voice!

  It couldn’t be.

  Sure enough, when I turned around I hit against his towering form, spilling part of a drink all over his shoe.

  It was Mr. Sexy from earlier in the week. What the hell is he doing here? And how did he see me in this crowd? I was lucky if I could even see my own friends, and I knew where they were sitting.

  Stepping back, I was able to get a better look at him. And oh, was he quite the sight. His black shirt fit him like a glove, a hint of an exquisite body underneath. He cuffed the material up to his elbows, exposing his sexy forearms. Dark-washed jeans hung seductively on his hips, teasing and tormenting the hell out of me.

  He looked……opulent.

  His hair was behaving in that unruly way, looking as if he was constantly running his hands through it. Sexy was what it was. I longed to run my fingers through it, twisting his soft strands around my hand as I pulled him into me.

  Holy Christ. Get a hold of yourself, woman!

  Being in close proximity to him was a dangerous game. His intoxicating male scent surrounded me, automatically making me even more aroused than I was a second ago.

  His pheromones were sending mine into overdrive.

  He was enchanting.

  I have to get away from him.

  “Did you need some help?” he asked again, patiently waiting for my answer. Roving his eyes slowly over my face, he lingered on my lips before dipping lower to gaze at my displayed breasts. This damn shirt. His look descended my body until he reached my feet, then ever so slowly raised them back up to meet my eyes. Eventually. I felt so vulnerable, as if I was standing naked in front of him. Parting his mouth, he slowly ran this tongue over his bottom lip, a lip I suddenly wanted to bite. Without realizing it, I mimicked his actions, running my tongue slowly over the sensitive skin.

  Quickly regaining my wits, I finally answered him.

  “No, thanks. I can manage just fine by myself.” I was trying to pretend li
ke I didn’t remember him, trying not to appear affected by his mere presence. I didn’t think I was too convincing though.

  “I insist.” Before I could protest, he grabbed four of the six drinks, turned and waited for me to follow him. He was obviously not taking no for an answer.

  “Fine,” was the only thing I could think to respond. He was making me uneasy again but in a purely sexual way. My breathing had changed, inhaling and expelling quick, shallow breaths. My nipples had become painfully erect, pushing against the thin fabric of my shirt. It was definitely not cold in the club, so I knew it was my reaction to him standing so close to me. A deep ache started to bloom between my thighs, making me hyperaware my body was betraying the distant persona I was trying to give off. Never before had any man affected me so deeply.

  He led the way to where we were sitting, which was a surprise since I barely knew my own way back. But I followed him, and sure enough he stopped right in front of both of my friends. They glanced first at him then over to me with questioning eyes.

  “Who’s your friend?” Alexa immediately asked. I could see her delight as she was taking him all in, top to bottom, stopping longer than necessary when her eyes hit his package. When she finally ripped her eyes away, her mouth agape and practically drooling, she connected her gaze with mine. I laughed. Her blatant perusal of Mr. Sexy was too funny, and I couldn’t help myself. Thankfully he was oblivious, or at least I thought he was.

  “I don’t know, and he’s not staying.” I didn’t mean to come off as rude as I sounded, but I couldn’t stand the fact a stranger was making me feel that way, pitting my body against my brain. I grabbed the rest of the drinks from his hand and put them down on the table. When I finally happened to look over at Matt, I noticed he was glaring at our visitor. I instantly shifted my gaze and saw Mr. Sexy returning Matt’s glower.

  Both men looked pissed, for reasons unknown to me. But I knew enough about testosterone to realize I should put some distance between them both. Although Matt was in excellent shape, this guy had a good couple inches on him, not to mention a few more pounds of muscle. Plus, I didn’t want to put Matt in the position to defend me, like he did sometimes. He had become somewhat protective over me when we were out together. Maybe it was because I was kind of on the shyer side when it came to dealing with people I didn’t really know. I stuck up for myself when necessary, but I didn’t like confrontation unless it was unavoidable.

  I turned around toward the relative stranger and instinctively put my hand on his arm, pushing him away from our table. Shit! His arm is even more rock-solid than it looks. Yeah, I had to remove him before Matt said something. “You can go now. Thanks for your help,” I mumbled, still trying to rein in my overactive hormones. When I turned back around, I could still feel him standing behind me for a brief moment.

  “I’ll see you real soon,” he said, his voice like velvet coating my ears.

  Shivers instantly wracked my body.

  Then he was gone.

  ~4~

  Sara

  “Wasn’t that the guy from earlier this week? How did he know you would be here? Do you know him?” Matt was shooting off questions at me quicker than I could even think of the answers.

  “Yes, it is and no, I don’t know him. I don’t know what he’s doing here. He saw me at the bar and offered to help me bring the drinks back over.” That was a true account of what happened, leaving out the part of how my body reacted to him. Even after he was gone.

  “There’s something about him I don’t trust. Be careful if you meet up with him again, Sara.” Matt was concerned for me; I could see it written all over his face. But it’s not like I keep running into the man. He knows where I work and now he has seen me at the club. Does that mean I should stay away from this place now? I knew it was my first time there, but I was kind of planning on coming quite often in the future, especially since Matt had someone on the inside who could give us some VIP treatment, so to speak.

  “You never mentioned anything about a God-like creature coming into the shop this week. Seriously, Sara, how could you forget to mention that man?” Alexa was still trying to scope out the crowd to see if she could catch another glimpse of him. She was so obvious.

  What I couldn’t understand was why her interest in him was suddenly bothering me. I hardly knew him, yet I had an unexplainable jealousy emanating from not that deep down. I’d never had this feeling about anyone before, especially someone I’d just met. I secretly mocked women who were jealous of others around their men; too much emotional energy.

  Or so I always thought.

  “I didn’t mention it because he’s not worth mentioning. I don’t know him. He came into the shop to buy flowers for a friend,” I said, using air quotes, “who had surgery recently, and he thought it would be a nice gesture. I told him it was misleading to her but…whatever.”

  They both stared at me with a puzzled look in their eyes. “Who are you trying to kid, girly girl? You like him; otherwise, why the hell would you remember your conversation with him? You can’t fool us, Sara.” Alexa laughed. “Plus, you’re a terrible liar.” I fumbled with a comeback to her absurd observation, but I had nothing.

  I couldn’t really think of anything to say which would convince them—or maybe myself—I wasn’t interested so I simply responded with, “I don’t know what to tell you. Can we please talk about something else?”

  Since Alexa knew she wasn’t getting any more out of me about him, she decided to move on to other topics. Shopping, food and men were at the top of her list, which I was completely fine with.

  After about another hour or so, we were all due for another refill or two. It was Alexa’s turn to secure our drinks, so Matt and I sat back and got comfortable. She gave a little pout but headed off toward the bar. It was nearing 11:30 and the place was pretty much at full capacity.

  Alexa was back in no time thankfully, due to Colin still working the bar and not being on break. As soon as she took her seat, I decided to make my way to the ladies room, if I could only find it first. She said she saw one to the left of the bar, underneath the stairwell.

  “I’ll be right back, guys. Watch my drink.” I hastily made my way through the throngs of people and ended up behind six women waiting in line for the same purpose. Needless to say, after a few drinks, I really had to use the facilities and the longer I waited, the more I realized it. Thankfully, everyone was relatively quick so I was in and out in less than ten minutes.

  Just as I was rounding the corner, someone grabbed my hand and pulled me into a dark section of the hallway. I instantly panicked, having flashbacks, until I smelled him. His scent was positively intoxicating, and I was instantly put at ease.

  Emotionally, not sexually.

  As with our last close encounter, a dull ache between my legs, made me slip deeper and deeper into some sort of daze. His hand was still covering mine, and I grew warmer by the second.

  “I’m glad I had the chance to run into you again before I left,” he mumbled as he stepped closer.

  “How did you know where I was? Did you follow me to the ladies room?” Why was I secretly hoping he would say yes?

  “Not at all. I saw you walk by and reacted. Hope you don’t mind?” His smugness was almost off-putting.

  Almost.

  I yanked my hand from his warm grip and said the first thought which came to mind.

  “I really don’t have anything to talk to you about, so if you’ll excuse me, I have to be getting back to my friends now.”

  He leaned down closer to my face, so close I thought he was going to kiss me. “I don’t think you want to go anywhere. In fact, I think you want to stay right here. With me. Tell me I’m wrong.”

  “You’re wrong,” I said with mock defiance.

  “Why are you lying?” His tone indicated he was a little irritated, but I wasn’t sure why exactly. “You can’t deny there’s an attraction between us. Why don’t you just go with it and see what happens?” His warm breath fanned
my face, tickling my mouth in the most delicious way. Leaning closer, he asked, “Can I kiss you?” His question certainly surprised me. I doubted he was a man who asked permission for anything and the fact he sought my consent told me he didn’t want to overstep any boundaries.

  It was sweet.

  It was torture.

  Resting my hands on his chest, my initial reaction was to push him away. My God, his chest is as hard as steel. I can feel every muscle definition perfectly.

  But he was right; there was an undeniable attraction between us, something I couldn’t explain.

  So I gave in.

  “Yes,” I whispered, my hands gripping the material of his shirt and pulling him into me. The S hadn’t left my mouth before he was on me, devouring my breath as if he needed it to survive.

  His kiss undid me. It was everything I’d read about in romance novels. It was everything I’d seen in those mushy, lovey-dovey movies. It was real. And it was happening to me. The first time his tongue softly stroked mine, I almost came on the spot. He was perfectly skilled, and artisan mastering his craft of seduction.

  I’d completely lost myself, holding onto him and praying our moment would last forever.

  He broke our connection, a move which left me wanting him even more. “I’ve been craving this for so long,” he whispered before he was instantly back to consuming me with his perfect mouth. His statement flitted through my mind but quickly disappeared the more he teased me.

  He tasted slightly of scotch, and mixed with all his other scents, it was quite overwhelming, but in a good way. I slowly inched my hands toward the back of his head. Snaking my fingers into his hair, I gripped him closer to my mouth. He groaned at my small display of enrapture, letting me know how aroused he was. Pushing me against the wall, he covered my body with his, pressing his lower half into my own. I could feel him straining against his jeans, something which made me even more excited. I didn’t know what got into me, but I reached down and ran my palm over his erection.