Page 95 of Power Play

With the dress Blaire brought over for me, the warmth is necessary.

She tried to convince me that just because something has sleeves, that means it’s appropriate for this time of the year. But it’s backless and it’s short. Very, very short.

“I can’t believe you got me to wear this tonight,” I say, as I tug the dress down over my ass again.

“What’s wrong with your dress?” Blaire asks.

“Besides the fact that it’s missing half of it.” I deadpan.

“Stop it, Ness, you look hot. Your legs look fucking amazing in that dress. And with those shoes. Damn. I’d bet every man in this line is imagining what your legs would look like wrapped around their neck.”

“Oh my gosh,” I say, as my face heats up.

Blaire has no filter, and as always, she chooses the most inappropriate times to say things. Looking up, I notice a group of guys being escorted in through the VIP door directly in front of us.

I can’t help but stare at them. Each is wearing a perfectly fitted suit that highlights their builds nicely. Definitely not just pulled off the shelf.

The last one to enter the club turns back around just in time and winks at me with a knowing smirk. Normally I’d be embarrassed, but I can’t help but stare at him as he smiles my way, his eyes the most stunning emerald green I have ever seen.

Blaire interrupts my staring just in time for him to turn around and walk inside.

“Oh, please, everyone here is thinking it. Besides, anyone that is here is drunk, or will be. No one will remember any of this tomorrow, so who cares?” Blaire says as we walk up to the bouncer at the VIP door. She gives him our names and he lets us in. I guess it pays to be friends with Blaire.

“Did you see that group of men outside the club?” I ask nonchalantly.

“No, I didn’t get a good look at them. This is a pretty high-profile club, so it wouldn’t surprise me if there were celebrities here tonight.”

“He didn’t seem like a celebrity, he seemed . . . in charge, dominant. I don’t know, something about the way he looked at me just made me feel like that’s who he is.”

“I’m confused. Are we talking about a group of guys, or one?” Blaire asks as we head towards the bar.

“It was a whole group of guys, probably four? But the guy at the end, I think he heard what you said. As they were heading in, he turned back around and winked at me. But hot damn, he was something else. The way he looked at me, I nearly melted right there,” I tell her as we squeeze our way up to the bar.

Once we get up there, she grabs the attention of the bartender and orders us two shots of tequila each, which we immediately slam back one after another.

“Was he hot? Let’s go look for him. If something is making you notice, it’s worth finding out. You haven’t been interested in anyone in . . . hmm . . . years.”

Quickly, she pays for the drinks and grabs my hand, leading me away from the bar.

“Nope! We are not searching for him. We came to get drinks and to meet your friend. Let’s go over there. Maybe we’ll run into them later on the dance floor or something.”

Blaire pauses for a minute, obviously weighing the decision. She must realize I actually don’t want to go looking for a man because she finally nods.

“Isaac has a table over in the corner; we can go there,” Blaire says, smiling from ear to ear. It feels like she’s genuinely happy to be out with me, which is nice. I’ve been a little different lately with everyone except for Blaire, but it has made me more introverted.

It’s hard not to feel a little sad at the loss of who I was. I can’t help but think about this as I follow Blair. She pulls me through the crowd of people, walking towards a group of four guys, one of whom I assume is Isaac.

“Hey! You guys made it!” He quickly jumps up, giving Blaire a longer than necessary hug, proving just how happy he is that she made it.

Thankfully, I have a little liquid courage in me, which makes it less painful to be at a club on a Friday night, meeting new people, and wearing a dress that is much shorter than I like.

Isaac looks over at me, giving me a quick hug before turning back to sit down with his friends, pulling Blaire to sit next him.

As Isaac starts to go through introductions, I sit down in the only chair available. I barely notice the names Isaac is saying until he gets to the last guy. Sitting directly in front of me, with bright, emerald-green eyes and a sly smirk, is the man from outside the club.

“Finally, this is Adam.” I realize that Toby must have been talking that whole time, and has just now finished his introductions, but honestly, I can’t remember a word he just said.

The man, who Isaac just introduced as Adam, is sitting across from me at the end of the table, holding his scotch in one hand while the other rests on his chin.

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