“I can’t believe you accidentally messaged some stray instead of your girlfriend,” said Lauren.
“Does my girlfriend seem bothered? No. So remind me again, what business is it of yours, hmm?”
“If you hurt her, Ev and I are going to take turns disemboweling you with a shovel. Be warned.”
A gruesome mental image, but I had to smile. It felt good to have friends watching my back.
Mal scoffed. “You can’t disembowel someone with a shovel.”
“Sure you can. It’s just messier.”
He grunted.
“Anyway, why are you in the spare bedroom? She sick of you already?”
“Gotta put my shit somewhere, Anne’s closet is packed. You girls, no idea about sharing.”
I shut the bedroom door and started shrugging out of my jeans, pulling off my shirt. Next came the panties. The neckline on the dress was wide and strapless bras always dug into my sides. There were few torture devices more horrible than a strapless bra. It wasn’t like my breasts were big. The girl in the mirror looked good and happily, the dress still fit just fine. No way could I do up the zipper on the back however. I slid my feet into my super-high black heels saved for special occasions and headed on out, trying to hold my dress together.
“Lauren, would you mind–”
“That’s my job now.” Mal smiled and stepped behind me. “Cool dress. Classy.”
“Thanks.”
Mal leaned in closer, his breath warming my neck as he slowly did up the back. I immediately broke out into goose bumps.
“I never noticed how long your neck is. It’s very nice.”
“Mm.”
“And you have sweet little ears.”
“Um, thanks.”
“No bra?” he asked, his voice casual.
“No. With this dress, I can’t … We don’t actually need to discuss this right now.”
The tips of his fingers trailed up my spine, ahead of the zipper. I got shivery, the English language leaving my mind.
“That’s going to be a hell of a distraction, pumpkin,” he breathed. “Trying to look down the front of your dress all night.”
The look he gave me made me quiver in strange places. This was the problem; my inability to tell if he was serious or not. The whole scene was about establishing ourselves as a couple for Lauren’s benefit, right? It just didn’t feel like it for some reason. It felt personal. With Mal touching me, I kind of forgot Lauren was even in the room. She was, however, most definitely present.
Lauren groaned, loudly. “Oh good god, my ears are bleeding.”
He made me feverish without even trying. I needed to guard my reactions and keep it together. It was the only way this would work.
“Thank you,” I said, as my dress finished tightening around my chest and settled into place.
“My pleasure.”
I expected him to move back. He didn’t. If anything, he got closer. The warm male scent of him, the iron-hard feel, all of it got closer and closer. I tried to bend away from him in an effort to preserve what remained of my sanity, but he just followed. Overwhelming didn’t cover it.
“Guys.” Lauren was tapping her foot. “Whatever you’re doing, stop it.”
“Ignore her. She’s just jealous of our love.” Mal’s arm came around my middle, holding me to him. The press of his hardening cock against my rear could not be mistaken. I know we were supposed to be playing the couple, but was rubbing his penis against me really necessary? Me liking it was beside the point. Don’t even go there.
“Yes, Malcolm, I’m jealous of your love. That’s it.” Lauren shook her head slowly. “Come on, let’s get moving. Nate will be waiting and he doesn’t wait well.”
“We better go,” I said.
“Yeah.” His voice was soft and dreamy, and spoke of good, hard times in bed. Then he shook his head, gave me his usual grin. “Pumpkin, stop rubbing your ass against me. We gotta go! I don’t have time to do you now. Prioritize, woman.”
Sometimes the temptation to hit him was so huge.
***
Twice the crowd had gathered at David and Ev’s condo tonight. They varied in age from young teens to elderly, from conservative to edgy. All of them primped to perfection. Every inch of David and Ev’s condo had been decorated, also. White candles of every size sat in clusters around the room. Vases filled with bright bouquets were on every available flat surface. The ring of fine crystal and the popping of champagne corks battled classic rock for supremacy. Tonight’s vibe leaned heavily toward the romantic.
There was a buzz in the air, one of expectation. It was exciting.
Mal kept a tight hold on my hand, his big, warm fingers encasing mine. I took my cues from him, staying close to his side. Whenever some sexy siren tried to approach him he basically shoved me at them with a “Meet my girlfriend, Anne.” I’d almost tripped the first few times he’d used me as a human shield, but I was getting the hang of it now. With the last one I’d just held up a hand and said “He’s with me.” She’d taken it with relatively good grace.
“I thought that one was going to hit me,” I said, watching the disappointed girl stalk off into the crowd. “Being your girlfriend is dangerous.”
“What can I say? I’m a magnificent specimen of manhood. Of course they all want me. But I do appreciate you protecting my honor.”
“I should hope so.” I smiled.
“Come and meet Jimmy. This’ll give you a thrill.” He wound his way through the crowd, drawing me along behind him. “’Scuse us. Move please. Move.”
Jimmy Ferris stood beside the mantle like a painter had positioned him there. The man was living art. Dark hair brushed back, blue eyes bright. He was a lot like his brother, David, long and lean, but smoother and harder. More intense if it was possible. Maybe meeting Ev had chilled David out. Jimmy certainly lacked the lost-in-love eyes.
The dark looks he gave the woman at his side were far less than friendly. She kept her nose high in the air and ignored him. I’m not sure I could have maintained her pose of complete indifference so well. Jimmy Ferris had a lot of presence. There’d been all sorts of rumors going around about what he’d been up to since rehab. Given the size of him, I’d say lifting weights featured heavily. Ben was a big guy in general, heading on into lumberjack territory. But Jimmy appeared to have been working at it, hard.
“Jimbo,” said Mal, making room for me beside him. “This is my girlfriend, Anne. Anne, this is Jim.”
Yep, Jimmy gave me the same chin tip as the others. It was a secret handshake. So I gave him one back. He smiled, but only just. It was a fleeting thing.
Mal leaned down in front of me, getting in my face. “Nope. No crazy eyes. Your theory is bullshit, pumpkin. They’re only for me.”
“It’s lovely to meet you, Jimmy,” I said, pushing my pretend partner out of the way.
“She still doing the eyes thing?” asked Jimmy.
Rock stars gossiped. There you go.
“Lust has no expiration date, Jimbo. And hello, Lena. You look very nice.” Mal offered his free hand to the woman at Jimmy’s side. The arctic chill of her manner turned equatorial in an instant. How strange.
“Mal. How are you?” The woman gave his fingers a brief squeeze, before offering her hand to me to shake. Brown hair fell past her shoulders and funky red plastic-rimmed glasses sat on her nose. “And this must be Anne. Great to meet you. Mal’s told me so much about you.”
“He has?” I shook her hand, returning her smile.
“At band practice today, you were all he could talk about,” she said.
“She’s the love of my life,” sighed Mal, throwing an arm around my shoulders.
“See? You’re the love of his life.” Lena gave me a charmed smile. Apparently it was only Jimmy she detested.
“This week,” said Jimmy.