Burn (Breathless #3)

Bethany shook her head. “Of course not! Caro will fix you up. Maybe introduce you to one of the guys.”


When they arrived at the club, the door immediately opened, and a pretty, younger woman stuck her head in, a broad smile on her lips. She shoved her hand in before anyone could get out.

“Look at it!” she squealed. “Isn’t it awesome?”

Mia pounced on the woman’s hand and then pulled her so she fell into the car with them.

“Oh my God, Caro, it’s gorgeous! Brandon did so good!”

Caro grinned so big that it lit up the inside of the limo. Then she glanced Josie and Brittany’s way and her smile got even bigger.

“I’m Caroline,” she said, extending her right hand. “You must be Josie and Brittany!”

“I’m Josie,” Josie said, returning her smile. “And this is Brittany.”

“Brandon’s waiting so let’s get going,” Caroline said enthusiastically. “He has our table, of course, and tonight we have two waitresses instead of our usual one. We’re expanding, girls! Soon we’ll have the entire club to ourselves on our nights out.”

“Now there’s an idea,” Mia drawled. “Our own private club. It has a certain ring to it.”

Bethany snorted as they piled out. “All you’d have to do is tell Gabe you want one and he’d buy it for you.”

Mia grinned. “This is true.”

“Chessy, Gina and Trish are already inside waiting at the table,” Caroline explained.

Then a big, goofy smile attacked her face and Josie glanced up to see what she was looking at.

A tall, very muscular, very hot guy stood there, smiling indulgently. He had a goatee and he wore an earring in his left ear. It was obvious, judging by the way Caroline looked at him and the way he looked at her, that this had to be Brandon, the bouncer. He certainly looked the part.

“Ladies,” he greeted. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to your table.”

“You did awesome, Brandon,” Mia said, patting him on the shoulder. “Caro’s ring is gorgeous!”

He smiled. “Glad you approve. I wanted her to have the perfect ring. It’s only fair. I get the perfect girl so she gets the perfect ring.”

“Oh damn,” Brittany muttered. “That’s the most awesome thing I’ve ever heard a guy say.”

Josie had to agree. It was absolutely sweet.

Caroline’s cheeks flushed but her eyes shone with love for Brandon. Two weeks ago, seeing this would have made Josie insanely jealous, because Michael would never ever make his feelings known in public. Or private for that matter. But now she had Ash. Ash who had no problem whatsoever with people knowing Josie was his.

They pushed their way to the front, bypassing the long line of people waiting to get in. Then Brandon led them through the noisy crowd toward a set of tables in the corner of the room just off the dance floor.

Music reverberated through the air, invading Josie’s blood, pumping along in time with her pulse. Her feet were already hurting, and she knew there was no way in hell she’d dance with these shoes on. She’d probably kill herself. But the shoes were more for Ash’s benefit. He’d actually been quite vocal about his choices when they’d gone shopping. She’d spare her feet for the evening, but when she headed back to Ash’s apartment, they’d go back on.

When they reached the table, a waitress stood there with a tray full of drinks. Mia smiled and turned to explain to Josie and Brittany.

“She always brings us two drinks to start the evening. We drink one down immediately after a group toast and then we sip the second until she gets back with more. Bethany and I weren’t sure what your preferences were so we went for girly drinks. Cosmos and amaretto sours. The sours are Bethany’s favorite and one of the few things she can drink to the point of intoxication. If you let the waitress know what you like, she’ll swing by with another round later.”

“I like Cosmos,” Brittany said over the music.

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