I needed a damn break to review things with fresh eyes.
I needed some fresh air.
Pa had been avoiding me and I’d made the mistake of telling him what it was I’d wanted to talk to him about.
Armand.
Leaving Vegas was my Plan A, but I figured talking it out could ease the situation until I could leave.
The minute I mentioned his name Pa was suddenly busy and he’d been avoiding me ever since, just like he’d been doing whenever the subject of Europe came up.
After that oh, so wonderful conversation I’d had with Armand, I’d decided this was absolute shit. I wasn’t a little girl anymore and it was time to take a stand. Stand up for myself and not be afraid of my father. I was his daughter, so what would he really do to me if I left?
How could I be the age I was and so afraid that he’d lock me away?
If I jumped on a plane right now, what would he do?
Nothing…
He couldn’t do anything to me if I left, so that was the plan.
Leave.
Find some way to leave this Godforsaken life and follow my own path.
It was just planning it out. That was the part I had to get my head around. To do that I needed Armand off my back. Hence why I just wanted to speak to Pa.
Leaving would take very careful planning and I’d have to do it in a subtle but effective way. I’d need money and I could imagine Pa being spiteful and cutting me off. Cutting me off so I would have to crawl back to him.
I could see it and knew that what I had to do was prepare for that if I was going to brave it and defy him.
It was all these things I’d wanted to speak to Anya about, and she wasn’t here.
The bartender made his way back to me and offered up a smile.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“Just some fruit punch,” I answered.
“Sure.” He winked at me and sauntered away to get it.
I’d have that, maybe dance a little then leave.
He came back with the drink and set it down on the counter at the same time the music became more lively with one of the popular club mixes.
Up at the bar, the music had been kept low but because that mix was popular the DJ turned it up louder here for a few seconds then lowered the volume, funneling it back to the dance floor. It was very cool the way he did it.
“Call me if you need anything else,” the bartender said with another wink, tipping his head so his blonde dreadlocks bobbled. He was new here. I’d only seen him twice before.
“Thank you.” I smiled and he left to serve another customer.
This was a cool club that Anya and I always came to.
Pa had arranged for us to have the VIP lounge when we came but tonight I’d just mingled with everyone else. It was better since I would have hated for him to call here and find out I’d signed in and then he’d send someone like Armand to come and find me. Shit like that always riled me up the wrong way.
I shuffled on my chair and got the distinct impression of eyes on me. It was weird because I was in a club brimming with people.
The sensation however was very strong. It made me turn to look in the direction I’d felt the intensity.
I was right. Boy, was I ever right.
On the second floor balcony, my gaze landed on a tall blond man so good looking the sight of him stole my breath away and lulled me to stare. We were about twenty feet away from each other but our eyes locked and even from here with the flashing club lights I could see that his eyes were the brightest blue. Like I was looking at droplets of the Mediterranean sea, against the backdrop of the club.
Our eyes locked and he definitely had my attention. Both body and mind.
The man had a face that was all angles and definition. The kind that would give a ton of male models a serious run for their money. The kind that made me want to stare at forever.
Dressed in a black biker jacket, white V-neck t-shirt and a pair of black slacks that hung low on his hips he looked every bit a masterpiece. His clothes only accentuated his hard body.
As I continue to stare my body heated up from head to toe with the hot wave that cascaded over me. While he looked cool and collected, holding an air of confidence that made him seem more alluring with his Hollywood heartthrob gorgeousness.
Alluring and interesting. Wow.
Those were two things I’d always found extremely sexy on a man.
The power to charm with the way they looked and an interesting personality.
This guy looked like he had both.
Mr. Gorgeous…
Yes… that was the perfect name for him.
Mr. Gorgeous continued to stare at me and it didn’t look like he had any intention of looking away. He looked at me like he knew me and I considered if he might.
Had Pa sent him?
He didn’t look like any of the other guys who worked for Pa.
My phone buzzed in my hand. Glancing down at the screen I saw it was Pa again and I switched it off, giving him a taste of his own medicine.
When I looked back to where Mr. Gorgeous had been standing and saw he wasn’t there anymore, disappointment settled in the pit of my stomach.
I scanned the balcony looking for him, but, nope, he’d gone. Maybe he had a girlfriend.
Or, a wife…
Oh well… at least he was pretty to look at. Guys that good looking should definitely come with some kind of warning label.
Frowning, I took my drink and hopped off the barstool deciding to make my way down to the dance floor. Sipping on the punch through the twisty straw, I savored the sweet strawberry flavor that tickled the back of my throat, and stopped by the balcony to watch the crowd below dancing under the strobe lights.
Everyone was so carefree and happy, dressed in their finest. Just dancing away and losing themselves in the music. As so they should. The DJ’s here were always off the hook amazing.
I wished I could get lost too and at least look like everyone else here who didn’t seem to have a care in the world. Instead, here I was feeling haggard with the weight of it.
I finished off my drink and placed the glass on the side with some other empties.
One dance then I’d leave. One dance to forget and then I’d go home. I was almost sure that when I got home either Pa or someone else would be waiting outside my house for me. Or, inside to piss me off.
I went down to the floor, allowing the music to envelope me with the beat. It was the kind to make your body move and move I did.
A twist and a wiggle, with my hands running down my chest down to my waist and then I found Mr. Gorgeous again.
Watching me…
Watching me this time with a slow easy grin that warmed my insides right up.
Jesus…it was like my body took on a life of its own, reacting freely in response to this man without the control of my brain.
He was on the upper deck now, across the dance floor, closer than previously. And still looking at me. His eyes roamed over my body taking me in slow and purposefully like he was committing me to memory, and I allowed myself to do the very same.
I’d never been the shy wallflower. Most times it got me in trouble. Ma always blamed our hair color. She was a platinum blonde like me. Her family were from Sicily. She said it was enough to tap into the essence of trouble. That and the hot Italian blood running through my veins always had me hyped up with sexual curiosity.
I could hardly be blamed if I had a man looking at me the way this one was.
Instinct told me to give him something to look at, so I did. I thought I’d turn up the sexy a little more in my moves. He seemed to like that because that grin on his face became more of a satisfied smile.