Drowning (Tears of Sin Series) (9 page)

The man near the door glances up and grins. The sweetness in his eyes is a direct contrast from the bulging muscles plumping out of his black wife beater. He reaches down and picks up Alice like she’s a small child, and she sits on the curve of his arm. I stand taller and hold back a scowl at the ease he manhandles her. The first taste of jealousy fills my mouth with an acrid memory of being held down and forced to taste a battery Gabe fished out of one of his remote control cars.
I’m almost to them when the brilliance of her smile stops me. She leans against the big bouncer and winks at me. The poor guy was just as taken with her as the rest of us.
“I suppose you want me to let you in.”
Alice tilts her head to the side, and gives him a smirk I haven’t seen before “Why would you think that?”
“Because you hate waiting.” He raises the rope leading to a metal door and waves us under. I’m almost past him when he puts a hand against my chest. “You here with her or for her?”
I'm not sure what he means, but I also notice the tension lining Alice's shoulders. “I'm here for her.”
“Good answer. Keys?”
I’m not sure what he means, but Alice hops down and rushes back to me. She digs her hand into the front pocket of my jeans. Holy fuck. Her knuckles graze my junk, and I’m instantly hard. Any minute she’s going to realize that I’m sweating to sink into her. I arch my hips to escape those searching fingers. She yanks out the keys and hands them to the doorman. I want to growl when she finishes with a swift kiss to his cheek.
“Have a good time.” He pats Gabe on the shoulder and flips off the moaning crowd. “You do what that girl can do, I'll let you in.”
I have no idea what he means, and I’m pretty sure if I ask Alice, it’ll piss her off. We don’t have ties to each other, so I have no right to ask. Everyone gets quiet, and we disappear inside.
Before she can get too far ahead of me, I snag the back of her blouse. “Is my baby going to be okay with that guy?”
She glances over her shoulder and smiles. “They have valet. Don’t’ worry. The owner has a parking garage a block over. They’ll park it for us.”
What the hell kind of underground has parking?
Alice leads us down a long stone stairwell to what I guess would be the ground floor of the club. She grins as she passes people, but heads straight to the bar. “Hey Jenna, I'll have a water.”
Not what I was expecting her to ask for. The pretty girl behind the counter leans toward Gabe. “And you? What do you want?”
His eyes light up. “I'll have one of you.”
“Yeah, I'll bet.” The girl flips her pink hair out of her eyes. “Seriously, what'll you have?”
“Two Coronas.” When the waitress doesn’t card him, Gabe pays for our drinks and hands them around. Lucky shit never had to show ID. It was the damn muscles.
The music beats with a steady thump, and the black light in the room makes everyone glow. It is a typical rave club, except the vibe. There’s something else going on in the shadows.
Alice leads us to a booth and pops the top on her water. “So, what do you think?”
I glance down at the drop of water clinging to her bottom lip. I’d give anything to taste that drop. “Why did you bring us here if you were just going to order water?”
“You'll see. I want to show you something, but the fun doesn’t start until later.”
The club pulses and bounces, but we all sit in a quiet hub. I watch Alice. She watches the crowd. And Gabe is tapping out a tune on the table. He stands up, takes Alice's water out of her hand, and tugs on her hair. “Let's dance.”
She grins and slides from the booth. He slips an arm around her shoulders while I stew over my drink. I guess I should've known he was going to do something to goad me, but when he steps in against Alice's body, I see red. She is mine.
I make my way to the dance floor and wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her back against my stomach. She giggles and glances over her shoulder. “I thought you were going to sit there all night.”
Gabe quirks an eyebrow at me but doesn’t back off. Alice is dancing and laughing at his funny antics. Normally, I’d laugh too, but normally, we don’t have a woman between us. Gabe grins at me and reaches for Alice, wrapping his hands around waist, and tugging her away from me.
She floats into his arms, giggling and bouncing. I’m gifted with a fantastic view of her ass as she tip-toes up to say something to Gabe. It’s so fucking loud in here. I can’t make out her words. So, I do the only thing any other self-respecting male would do. I make an Alice sandwich.
The ass I’d been admiring before fits snug against the top of my thighs. I’m amazed at just how small she really is. The back of her head brushes against my chest. I wrap one arm over her collarbone and push Gabe’s hand away from her hip with the other. The dancing fairy backs up a step and bobs his head to his own drum beat. Certainly wasn’t in time with the bass line in this techno-shit.
Alice’s hands come up and lock behind my neck, and I lean down over her. My cheek grazes hers, and she turns into me. Our lips are achingly close. She smiles, and a sharp thud hits my heart. I lean back, just enough to sink lower, wrapping the hand on her hip around her waist and enclosing her even tighter against me. I’m hard and horny from the almost black intensity I’d seen in her gaze.
Gabe inches closer. One hand cups her thigh, and he tugs it up to his hip. If it wasn’t for the floor full of horny dancers around us, I would have been sure we were going to jail. Gabe and I are eye level, pissing on our territory, but I’m not sure why. I thought he planned on backing off.
It takes us both a shove and a jab to notice that Alice has noticed the hard vibes passing between us. “Hey you two, let’s take it down a notch.”
Gabe backs up again and grins. “I can’t help it if you’re too fucking hot to walk away from.”
“Ha-ha, you’re just horny. I’m sure there are plenty of girls around here that would love to have that pole rubbing up against them.”
Gabe laughs. “But not you?”
“Sorry. Not tonight.”
The thought of her between us pisses me off. I want to lash out at both of them and their easy banter. I want to hurt them both, and it’s a feeling that doesn’t sit well with my normally laid-back behavior. The urge is still in my head, and I hear myself ask, “You ever had brothers before?”
She twirls against me and loses the fun light I'd seen in her eyes earlier. I killed that. “I'm sorry. That was a douche thing to say.”
“I'm not into that.” The deadpan expression upon her face doesn’t give me even a slight hint if she’s disgusted with me. I would be. I am.
I grab her arms and draw her back to me. Gabe is grinning like a damn fool, and it takes every ounce of calm in me not to punch him.
“What are you into?” I'm not sure why I say it, but she seems to pause from the cocky grin she’d been about to unleash on me. “Alice?”
She plants a hand against my chest and leans close. “I'm into respect.”
“I respect you.”
“No you don’t. If you did, you wouldn't have even thought of saying something like that.” She doesn't give me another opportunity to apologize before she rushes from the floor and pushes through the crowd.
“Man, when you fuck up, you do it good.”
“I know.”
Gabe thumps my ear. “Well, go get her.”
I don't need any other encouragement. I fight my way through the dancers grinding against each other. The top of Alice’s head bounces chin level with everyone else. I lose sight of her when she slips into a room. The door is heavy, and I half expect it to be locked, but it’s not. It’s dark in here, except for the single low amp bulb hanging in the middle of the room, illuminating a small circle at the center. The corners are pitch black.
A whisper breathes against my neck. “You can go back to the party.”
I listen for movement, something to give away where she is. “I upset you, and I'm sorry.”
“I'm not upset. I really didn't expect much more from a spoiled rich boy that probably has never had to show an ounce of respect in his life.” She’s in one of the corners behind me.
“Come into the light? I can't see shit in here.”
“You’ll see me when I want you to.” She passes me, and I can smell her perfume. It's sweet and spicy and haunting. “I'm thinking it's time for you and me to come to an understanding.”
I see a flash of skin, and her hand traces over my ribs. I flinch, the tickle of her fingers hardening my dick into a steel length against my thigh. “Alice.” I swing an arm out, reaching into air, desperately trying to snag a shirt or piece of hair, anything to stop this game. Sure, I can find her in the shadows, but I’m also curious to find out what her game is about. Punishment for embarrassing her? Well, then I deserve it. Teasing for torture? I’m there.
“Seth.” A hand wraps around from behind me and slips just above my belt.
I sigh. My cock is throbbing to the beat of the music. “What are you doing?”
“I'm just doing what I know how to do. Right? I must be good at it, since I hang out with homeless people and live with my sister.”
I feel the soft press of her breasts against my back and hiss. “You’re mad. I get that, but I said I’m sorry.”
“I don’t get mad.”
Small fingers trace the shape of my right ass cheek. If she’s not mad, then that can only mean one thing. “Are you coming on to me?”
“No.” She grips my belt, and then slides her hand along each loop.
“It sure feels like a come on to me.” I pivot, intent on turning around and catching her, but she grabs my shoulders with more strength than I expect her to have and stills me.
She's teasing me. This is worse than being in junior high when the girls still said no. I've never wanted a yes so bad in my life. She slides around my body and glances up at me. My cock twitches, reminding me that he wants out. I dip my head. I want just one taste of those bee-sting lips. Want to see if the water she had earlier still tastes as fresh as it looked on her bottom lip.
She drops to her knees in front of me, and I have to close my eyes to the mirage of images floating through my lust-filled brain.
Fingers wrap around my knees, and I feel moist breaths puffing against the bottom of my shirt.
“Did you really want to share me with Gabe?”
I glance down at the top of her head. She’s not looking at me. I struggle to get out the answer. “N-no.”
“I don’t share, Seth. I won’t be shared.”
I reach down and trace my fingers through her wild curls. “I get that.”
She catches my wrists and holds them away from her. Her head tips back and her eyes glisten. “Do you want me to make you feel good?”
“What the fuck, Alice?” She’s mad at me, and then she’s not. Touching me, but I can’t touch her. This woman is fucking my mind over in a matter of seconds, and it’s killing me.
“I want you to whimper for me.” My cock is aching. “I want to hear you beg me.” My balls knot up. “And when you get down low enough to grovel, then I'll laugh at how weak I've made you.”
“What—”
She laughs, but it’s a horrible sound—twisted with the pride I’d bent. “You think you know me. You think you know the dark I carry. Well, you don't know shit.” Her hands slip from my knees, and she stands, stutter stepping back from my outstretched hands. “I've seen worse than you'll ever even think of doing.”
“Where are you going?”
She sniffs, but there are no tears in her eyes. “Stay away from me, Seth. I'm shit. I destroy. Everything. I’ll ruin you.”
We stare at each other for a long moment, both gasping for air and a control that we’ve lost. She turns her back to me and disappears through the same door we used earlier. I really am alone. Holy shit. I rake a hand through my hair and drop forward, propping my hands on my thighs, fighting to control my passion. What makes a woman do something like that? I have no idea what I've gotten myself into, but I know that I can't walk away. She needs me. She needs something or someone. I'm not strong enough on my own, but somehow, I have to get her help.
I walk back to Gabe, and he's nursing a beer. “Dude, did you bag her?”
“Don’t say that about her.” If it had been anyone other than Gabe, I'd have fucked his shit up right here in the middle of a rave.
Gabe grunts. “You just asked her for a three way.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Alice saunters up to the table with an innocent expression on her face. No tells. “So, what you think about my home away from home?”
Gabe doesn’t know about our conversation, and I watch the two of them. She won’t look at me. She’s acting like nothing happened. I’m still not sure of her game, but I’m most definitely sure that all of her actions are doing nothing but inciting the thing inside of me that won’t let go. “It's good. It's cool. How often do you come here?”
“Often.”
A tall blonde chick with big tits bumps into Alice on purpose, and they both laugh. “Alice?”
“Yeah, hey Nicki! This is Seth and Gabe James. Boys, this is Nicki. She owns the place.”
Nicki is beautiful, but in a bottled way. I stick out my hand to shake hers and tell her, “Hi. Nice club.”
“Dude, this is not a club. This is ecstasy.” I smile and nod my head, conceding that so far it has been more torture than pleasure, but this was her baby. She whispers something in Alice's ear. She shakes her head, and the blonde whines. “Please? I thought that’s why you brought them here.”
“No. Not tonight.”
For a minute, I wonder if they are working out a drug deal, but Alice is drinking water. She doesn't seem the type to do those things, even with her piercings. Which, I have to admit are growing on me.
Nicki slides a hand up my arm. “Well, you are both welcome anytime. I know this bitch won’t do you right, but if you are ever in need of a friend, I'm here. I'll even take on the beast here for kicks.”
Gabe raises a brow and whistles. “I think I just fell in love.” He follows Nicki away, and leaves Alice with me.
I tap a finger on the table top, finding a beat to build my confidence. “Are we going to act like that didn't happen?”
She grins after her friend. “I know. Nicki is extraordinary.”
“That's not what I’m talking about.” She ignores me and watches the crowd. “You're doing it again.”
Like in a slow motion melt down, she turns to me. “What?”
“Making things awkward.” I sit back on my bar stool and silently dare her to deny it.
“Nah, just let it go. I got mad. I shouldn't have done that. It's the place.” She scans the crowd. “Do we need to find Gabe? I think I'm ready to leave.”
I check my phone. “It's only midnight.”
“I'll have to be up early to take care of Mol... Oh, that's right. I don’t have Molly in the morning.” She scoots onto a stool and plays with the label on her water bottle. Now that we’re talking again, the tension in her neck has eased, and she’s making eye contact with me.