Page 60 of You're All I Need

“Sure am,” he replies, grabbing the hand of a woman who looks young.Veryyoung. “Have you met Mel yet?”

The woman in her early to mid-twenties steps forward, teetering terribly on her very high heels. “’Lo,” she greets, stepping forward and giving me a hug. She presses her chest against mine, causing me to stand rigidly straight as I gently pat the middle of her back awkwardly. “You look just like your daddy,” she sings, reaching up and patting me on the cheek.

I clear my throat. “Thanks,” I mumble before taking a step back and wrapping my arm around Adrienne’s waist.

Mel’s eyes flit over to Adrienne before turning away. She slings her own arms around my dad’s neck and practically purrs against him like a cat in heat.

Jesus.

“This is Adrienne,” I introduce.

My date reaches out her hand to Mel, having already met my dad earlier in the evening. “Nice to meet you,” Adrienne says with a polite smile.

“Likewise,” Mel replies. “I need another drink.”

As soon as the bartender moves to where we stand, I order another white wine for Adrienne, a Coke for me, and my dad throws out two drinks for him and Mel. Awkward silence follows as we wait for our drinks.

“Do you mind if I run and use the ladies’ room?” Adrienne asks, turning those stunning light-brown eyes my way.

“Not at all. I’ll grab your drink and meet you at the table,” I suggest, anxious to get back over to Gram. Not that I’m uncomfortable with anyone else, but she acts as a good buffer, keeping all her other grandkids and kids in line.

My father included.

“Sounds good,” she replies, going up on the tip of her toes and placing a kiss on my cheek. “Be right back.”

My cock takes notice of her red-stained lips, hopeful to see them wrapped around me later tonight.

“I’ll go too! Girls have to stick together in the ladies’ room,” Mel announces, reaching out and sliding her arm through Adrienne’s. I’m not sure if it’s for solidarity in the restroom or if she needs Adrienne’s support to walk.

“She’s not like the others.”

I turn my attention back to my dad. “Excuse me?”

“That girl. Adrienne. She’s different. Not the typical girl you usually take home,” Dad says as the bartender places our drinks on the bar top. I slip a bill into her tip jar and grab our two drinks before stepping to the side and out of the way of other guests.

I glance back to where Adrienne once was, only to find she’s already inside the restroom. My dad’s words replay in my head while I take a drink of my Coke. He’s right. She’s not my usual type. Everyone before her was fake. Superficial. Fun. They were high on thrills, with no chance of anything more than a few nights of sex. And yes, as tasteless and crude as it sounds, Ihave a type. Your typical Barbie doll, though I never really had a preference on hair color. At first, I avoided blondes because of Dawn, but over the years, I started to not care as much.

“She’s got curves,” my dad states when I don’t reply. Of course, his response pisses me off. I don’t want him noticing anything about Adrienne’s body.

Again, I don’t reply, which to him, must mean keep talking. “And the fact you’ve brought her to a family function is pretty telling.”

“We’re not together, Dad. Just friends.”

He snorts. “Could have fooled me.”

I feel Adrienne’s hand brush against my side as she slips her arm around me. I catch her floral perfume hanging around her, and it’s all I can do not to lean over, run my nose up her neck, and inhale. Instead, I hand Adrienne her white wine.“Mel needed a few more minutes in the restroom,” Adrienne tells my dad with a concerned look on her face.

“Yeah, all right, I’ll head over and make sure she’s okay. She doesn’t drink much so when she does, she tends to get a little too drunk too fast, you know what I mean?” my dad says with a laugh.

I nod, realizing the woman my dad is dating is exactly the type of woman I always went for too. It’s a little unsettling actually. I’m thirty and he’s a good twenty-five years older than me.

He turns to walk away, pausing before he gets too far. “Thanks, Addi, for the heads-up.”

I feel her tense in my arms and hear the sharp intake of breath. My mind recalls the time I drove her home and called her Addi. Her reaction was pretty much the same. Then, she wouldn’t tell me what was wrong, and I can’t help but wonder if she’d tell me now. Not that a lot of time has passed, but we’ve still come a long way as friends since.

Feeling her pull away emotionally as well as physically, I keep my hand clamped firmly on her hip. It’s not enough to hurt her or truly keep her in place if she wants to get away, but enough to let her know I want her exactly where she is.

The song changes to a slow one, which is perfect. “Dance with me.”

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