She turned to me and smiled. “I know, right? It’s fucking beautiful.”
I didn’t know about beautiful. From the way everyone was groping each other and making out on the dance floor, I felt like I’d walked into some kind of prelim to an orgy. It gave me the chills.
“What have we here, Celeste?” smiled another bouncer with long, red hair and a multitude of piercings lining his eyebrows. “Fresh meat?”
Celeste threw her head back and laughed. “You wish. No, we’re going downstairs.”
His eyebrows shot up. “With her?”
“Yes,” she replied, grabbing my hand and pulling me away. “We’re expected.”
As we moved towards the other side of the club, I tried not to gawk at the couples. Many of them had their hands under each other’s clothing, some were even partially naked.
“Is that legal?” I asked, noticing a girl sitting on a handsome guy’s lap. She was wearing a short, loose skirt and I could tell from the way she was moving her hips and moaning that they were having sex right out in the open. Before I could tear my eyes away, I met her lover’s gaze and there was a flash of feral vampire lust glowing brightly.
“Legal? Probably not, but I won’t tell if you won’t,” teased Celeste.
Embarrassed to be caught looking, I looked away from the couple and kept moving.
As we continued through the club, I noticed right away that they weren’t the only couple having sex. Some of them were doing it so blatantly that I felt dirty just being near them.
“This is nuts,” I whispered, lowering my eyes until I could only see the floor. Watching the other couples doing their deeds out in the open made me feel like I needed to go directly to church and confess their sins. As far as I was concerned, the place was creepy and I’d never be back, especially after hours.
“We’re taking the elevator,” said Celeste as we moved to another hallway.
“Okay,” I said, following her. Soon we came upon a single mirrored elevator and she pushed the button to go down.
“So, what do you think?” she asked as we waited.
“The club? I guess it’s not really my thing.”
“Does it make you uncomfortable?” she asked as we got into the elevator.
I sighed. “If you ask me, it’s disgusting.”
“Duncan didn’t seem to think so. He’s always been a very willing participant,” she said, her eyes beginning to glow.
I frowned. “Did… did you have sex with him, here?”
“Do you really want to know?” she asked, with a wicked smile.
No, I didn’t.
I looked away and was silent as we took the elevator down several floors. When we reached the bottom, the door opened up into another long hallway.
“Where are we going?” I asked, following her.
“It’s a surprise,” she said.
“I don’t think I can handle any more of those. Where’s Ethan?”
“Don’t worry, you’ll see him soon enough.”
Something in the way she said that made me hesitate.
“Celeste,” I asked. “Why didn’t Ethan come back for me himself?”
She stopped and turned to me. “He was very busy.”
“I… I just don’t understand.”
She grabbed my hand. “Just, come with me if you want to see him.”
I sighed and let her drag me to the end of the hallway, to a large double-doorway, where I could hear loud music coming from the other side. As she opened it and we took our first steps, my eyes strained to adjust to the darkness inside.
“My my…” giggled Celeste, “Now what is going on over there?”
I turned my head to look and noticed we’d happened upon another creepy sex scene, this one a ménage à trois. I didn’t recognize the two girls, who were both dressed in leather and chainmail, but as my eyes began to adjust to the low lighting, I did recognize the guy lying on the bed.
“Uh, oh,” chuckled Celeste.
“Ethan?” I choked, unable to believe my eyes.
Ethan’s head shot up from the center of the bed and our eyes met. “Nikki?”
I turned around and ran out of the room towards the elevators, which were thankfully, still in the basement. I slipped inside, pressed the “close” button, and began sobbing.
Chapter Twenty-four
I was still crying when I left the front doors of the club. Trevor had tried to talk to me, but I’d ignored him and walked away, wanting to escape the memory of seeing Ethan entwined between those two girls.
“Need a ride?” asked a young couple who appeared to be getting ready to leave the nightclub. From the way the guy was ogling me, I knew his ride meant something totally different than mine, and from what I’d witnessed in the club, it didn’t surprise me.
Willing myself to be brave, I turned away from them and wiped the tears from my face. “No, thanks.”
“It’s dangerous to be wandering the streets like this,” called his girlfriend from the passenger side. “Are you sure?”