Page 52 of The Significance of Moving On

We perform for the men in the room, that kind of lesbionic soft core on the dance floor. Men are predictable eating us up by the spoonful. We grind and pet and shake all up on each other.

Under the sparkly lights several greasy men who hadn’t gotten the message, apparently, that GTL has been dead for years, grind and pet and shake up on us, too. All I do is dance and thinkhas he tried to text me? Call? I shouldn’t be thinking about him at all on this trip. But really, how realistic is that, especially when there’s some unwanted dude with his unwanted hand on my ass trying to engage me in unwanted conversation?

“Sorry,” I scream into his ear over the music so the chance that someone else hears seems pretty likely. “I don’t want to lead you on. I like girls.” To prove the point, I spin Kelsey around to face me, grab her chin in my hand and plant a big shocker of a kiss on her lips then walk off back to our table.

Kelsey, the pro that she is, never fazes from the kiss, and follows me back to the table. “D sent a text.”

“What?” I ask.

“Since Casey doesn’t want to bother you, he’s been hounding D about how you’re doing. Feel better?”

This thin, embarrassed smile creeps over my face. “Yeah, kind of. Was it that obvious?”

“Only to the world.”

Leave it to Kelsey to not hold anything back. This is one of the many reasons we are friends. We sit for a while longer watching Pam and Ann relish all the attention from those Jersey Shore dudes who like to be all up on it. She doesn’t want that attention any more than I do. She has Demetrius and she is so far gone over that boy I doubt she’s ever coming back.

“Where my girls at?” Daniel’s voice rises above the music to reach us.

Kelsey looks at me then follows my gaze. “Daniel?” she asks.

“Surprise,” I tell her. “We decided he’d meet us down here while he’s visiting family. I texted him when we got here and told him to tell the bouncer that Tran Hoc is expecting him.”

“You got Casey to go along with it?” she asks me.

“He’s trying.” And that’s the truth.

Daniel is all smiles as he makes his way to our table wearing his Latin club on South Beach attire of a black satin button-down and tight designer jeans fashioned to his toned ass by the gods of jean fashioning.

He’s really a very good-looking man. Tanned skin, darker hair and eyes that seem to be all pupil, whatever his ethnic combination, it’s a good one. Somehow the good-looking gene found that family even though not a damn one of them is blood related.

“Mamacita,” Daniel says to me. “Looking hot tonight. You too, Kels. “May I?” he gestures to the empty chair across from us.

“Yes, please,” she says back.

Daniel takes a sip from his drink and swirls the ice around in the glass. “So what kind of trouble are we getting into tonight?”

“Don’t know,” Kelsey says. “What do you have in mind?”

“I have some business to attend to—gotta hustle even on holiday. But otherwise, skies the limit. Casey and D alright with you sneaking into clubs?”

“Her dad’s an investor. It’s not sneaking.”

Kelsey kicks my shin under the table.

Oops. “No one’s supposed to know that.” Then I take a sip of my drink, too.Stupid, Tal.Real stupid.

“Did you have a nice Christmas?” I ask.

“Same as any other,” he says.

“How come you didn’t stop by?”

“Had places to be. You know how it is.”

“Well do your brother a favor,” Kelsey adds. “and stop by a little more often, especially now that Casey’s coming around.”

“You got me.” He holds his hands up placatingly. “I should be more available. We’ll talk tonight or tomorrow. But until then, may I escort you ladies around South Beach?”

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