“Brant, this is my friend Madison.” And then because she couldn’t resist, she added, “I believe you went to college with her old boyfriend Paul.” She could see the exact moment that he made the connection in his head.
She fully expected him to excuse himself and head for the door, so she was surprised when he gave Madison a dazzling smile and said, “Paul always was a lucky bastard.” As soon as he spoke, it was clear Madison was officially in love with him, and Emma was at a complete loss. As her friend hung all over her fake boyfriend, Emma had to wonder if maybe she didn’t miss the usual tightass Brant just a tiny bit. This one was unpredictable. Things that would normally freak him out didn’t seem to faze him at all.
Before Emma could blink, there were three more of her old friends, Meg, Tina and Jill, gathered around them. Even David, who her mother had targeted as a possible reunion date, had joined them. Emma had to admit her mother was right—David was a damn nice-looking guy. The problem was, though, he, like her other friends, seemed more interested in Brant’s attention than hers. Fifteen minutes later she was sipping her second drink and trying not to stare daggers at her friends. Was this what being jealous felt like? Brant, to his credit, had kept a firm hold on her hand no matter who attempted to squeeze her out. When Jill asked him to dance, she was relieved. Jill was happily married, even though she hadn’t seen her husband yet tonight. Brant released Emma’s hand and escorted Jill to the dance floor. Emma was floored when Jill put her arms around his neck and plastered herself against Brant. “What the hell?”
Madison stood beside her surveying the scene. “Yeah, I can’t believe you let that happen. The girl has turned into a major slut since Dean left her.”
Whirling around, Emma gasped in horror. “What? Why I am just hearing about this?”
“I have no idea; your mother must not gossip as much as mine.” Yeah, right, Emma thought. Her mother never missed anything . . . so why didn’t she know about Jill’s divorce? She would have at least warned Brant ahead of time.
“Damn, would you look at that,” Madison said. “I can’t believe she went there.”
Emma shut her eyes and opened them again before she could muster up the strength to look back over at the dance floor. No, it wasn’t a dream; her friend had her hand on Brant’s ass. She was just fixing to march over there and make a huge scene when Brant took Jill’s hand and gently but firmly removed it from his backside. Whatever he said to her must have been effective because her hand stayed where he placed it without roving again.
David had come back from the bar and turned his head to see what they were looking at. With a sigh, he said, “I don’t guess he’s gay.”
“Um, no,” Emma grumbled, “he is definitely not.” My God, couldn’t any of her friends keep their eyes and their hands off her man? Okay, well, maybe he wasn’t really her man, but he damn well was tonight—and it was time she staked her claim. As she set her drink down, the room started spinning for a moment. When she had cleared her head enough to proceed, she noticed that Jill was no longer alone with Brant on the dance floor. Madison, Meg and Tina had now joined them as the music changed from a slow song to a faster number. Emma watched in shock as Brant moved like he was Justin Freaking Timberlake. Why was he torturing her like this? She had wanted him to impress her friends as a good piece of arm candy, but she hadn’t actually wanted them to admire him enough to follow him like the Pied Piper.
If the looks he was receiving were any indication, the women loved him and the men hated him. Her Mr. December had taken the reunion by storm, and she didn’t think there was anyone in the room who wasn’t affected by him in some way. Had she created a monster?
Emma moved up behind him, sliding her arm around his waist as she moved her hips against his. That’s right, baby. I saw Dirty Dancing at least a dozen times. He stiffened against her for a moment until he recognized her. He turned, pulling her against him, chest to chest. He whispered in her ear as they danced together, “Interesting friends.”
“I didn’t see you complaining when Jill grabbed a handful of your ass.” Beside her, Madison raised a brow. Whoops, maybe that was a little louder than she had planned. Jill seemed to be oblivious, though.
Brant circled his tongue around the shell of her ear as he replied, “I only want your hand on my ass, baby. I think Jill knows that now.”