“I can’t wait to finally meet your friends.”
For three days, the party was all Kate talked about until she found out the celebration was for Zora. So, Mike had been both looking forward to this day and dreading it.
Mike kept the drinks and the music flowing, and soon he’d loosened up and lost track of the time.
A flush crept over Kate’s skin and she peeled her hair off her neck and pulled it into a ponytail. “I’m going to run to the restroom. I’ll be right back.” She was winded and smiling as she walked toward the back of the club. She seemed like she was finally having a good time.
In her wake, Mike didn’t leave the dance floor. He closed his eyes and fell into the rhythm of the music. At the change of the song, he checked his phone to see there were still no updates on Olivia and Zora’s whereabouts, but, as he lifted his chin and scanned the room, he spotted a couple of Zora’s friends, Remi and Steph. They were dancing off to the side with some other girls he’d met once or twice but whose names he couldn’t quite remember.
Mike waved.
When they saw him alone, they all rushed over to dance with him.
“Hey guys, how are you?” he asked, noticing the slight slur to his voice.
One by one, the girls greeted him with a hug.
“Oh my gosh. We thought you weren’t coming.” Remi’s brows furrowed in question. “Zo is going to be so stoked.”
“Yeah. Olivia invited me. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. I know how hard she’s been working toward publishing her book. Where is she?” Mike lifted his chin above the crowd on the dance floor.
“You know how she is. She’s over there by the bar pretending to have a good time. She’s doing a good job of it tonight. Zo is fierce. You might not even recognize her.”
“Oh, yeah?” He cocked his head to the side, unsure about what Remi meant.
Why wouldn’t I recognize Zora?
“Uh…” His lips twitched as he bit back a laugh. He forgot exactly what he was about to say. For some reason he couldn’t explain, a mixture of curiosity and disbelief flooded his insides. He needed to know what Remi was talking about. Whatever it was, it was enough to give him pause.
He hated change.
More to the point, he hated the idea of Zora changing.
In the back of his mind, she was sort of the sweet mainstay in his life—untouched by time. To him, she would always be Everett’s crazy little sister who kept him tapped in to what was current and cool. She wasn’t exactly a millennial, but she definitely had the undistracted drive and leaned into her goals with a fierceness he envied.
“I’ve, uh…been looking for her. Will you take me to her?”
Mike looked over his shoulder toward the restrooms for Kate before weaving himself into the crowd behind Remi and the other girls. As he worked his way around, the dimly lit wall framing the sleek bar came into view, and he felt a vibration in his pocket. He fished his phone out just as a notification dropped down from the top of the screen.
Zora had posted something.
Or, rather, Olivia tagged her in a picture.
As the image filled the screen, it did take Mike a second to recognize Zora. His gaze raked lazily over her. Usually, she wore loose jeans and T-shirts or some casual bohemian getup. He wasn’t blind, he’d seen her in shorts, so he knew she had great legs. Every once in a while, she’d show off some midriff, but not much else. Tonight, though, she was wearing a tight, sexy blue dress that gave him a good idea of what she was working with underneath it.
Every nerve ending in his body stirred and tingled as he scrutinized her.
This Zora wasn’t the friend he hung out with sometimes and played games with since they were kids. That sleek body didn’t belong to Everett’s cute little sister, either. Nor the endless legs extended by a pair of clear heels or the delicate column of her neck or the pink-tinted pouty lips…
Mike bit his own lip remembering how he once got to taste her mouth so long ago. The memory took him aback. He hadn’t thought about it in years. That was intentional. He wouldn’t let himself.
He was breathless.
And apparently, losing his mind.
It’s the same Zora. Nothing has changed, he tried telling himself.
But as he dissected every one of her lean, svelte curves, Mike felt the change by the tightening of his cock. He couldn’t unsee the woman. He zoomed in on the image. Her smooth, tawny skin and slightly flushed pink cheeks. Her expressive almond-shaped eyes still held the promise of joy, a summer sunset, and all of their inside jokes.
What am I doing?
In the picture, the room was dark and crowded, but Zora was on the side of the bar where he’d been sitting earlier with Kate. Below the image there were no comments, only three hashtags. #Silentdisco #Zoragothergrooveback #Mikewho
Mike who?
Am I the surprise? Is this why Olivia invited me?
At the moment, he didn’t know whether to hug or strangle Zora’s friend. His heartbeat raced as warmth flooded his body. His eyes darted over to the bar as he pushed passed people. He was breathless as he made his way to the edge of the dance floor. Then he spotted her.
Zora.
She was leaning on a barstool with her arms wrapped around some guy’s neck and her lips pressed to his.
Mike’s heart dropped into his stomach. He felt like he’d been sucker punched. A burning sensation took root in his chest, and his stomach hardened. He felt the heat rise to his face as anger and humiliation washed over him. His breaths were coming coarser and faster.
What the fuck, Olivia?
He definitely wanted to strangle her. He was pissed—mostly at himself.
Where is all this coming from? Why do I want to pummel that guy?
Mike tore his gaze away, tasting the bitterness on his tongue. He couldn’t watch.
It was then Mike noticed the pinched expression on Remi’s face, but she wasn’t looking at him. Mike turned to find Kate beside him and it didn’t take a genius to register the sullen look on her face. Tears welled at her red-rimmed eyes and she swiped them one by one from her cheeks.
“Nothing to worry about, huh?”
Kate had seen the way he watched Zora. He assumed it was probably the way she wanted him to look at her.
It wouldn’t make Kate feel any better, but Zora transforming into a fine ass woman and having this effect on him was new to him, too.
Chapter Three
Zora
Game night rotated houses every other Saturday. Tonight, it was at Everett and Sophia’s, Zora’s current digs while her house was under construction. She cursed this situation most days—like when her brother’s lovemaking came through the walls in surround sound. At the moment though, she couldn’t be happier. She was in fluffy socks and sweats and curled up on the couch getting ready to play board games. More importantly, she was not in the sticky, hot silent disco where she’d apparently lost her mind along with her inhibitions.
“I vaguely remember wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.” Zora held her hands to her throat and opened her mouth like she might wretch at the memory then fell back in a fit of laughter.
Oli’s top lip curled. “Ew, that is so nasty.”
“Don’t act innocent like you didn’t try to pass Andre off on me after you got dog-slobbered, too. That was no kiss.”