Page 16 of Sunshine with You
“Hey, Aid.” He smiles at my coworker.
“You two know each other?” Willa asks.
“Yeah! Isaiah is a bartender at my favorite bar downtown. Well, hewasbefore he took off for the East Coast. How did the show go?”
I don’t hear the rest of their catching up since I’m suddenly distracted by the tall butterfly winged brunette walking toward us. Ava’s already seen me, which is bad news considering I haven’t responded to a single message she’s left in the weeks since the engagement party. “Shit,” I whisper, turning sideways like I can hide.
Ashlie sneers when I bump into her. “What’s your deal?” she grumbles, regaining her feet and glaring up at me. She scans the crowd when she sees my grimace.
“Hunter? Is that you?” Ava asks, putting a hand on my arm. I sigh, turning slowly as I force a grin on my face. Her dark green dress clings to her like a second skin, and platform boots set her high enough to be at eye level.
“Oh,hey, Ava.” Ashlie’s cheery voice is eclipsed by her mischievous smile. Ava’s eyes narrow as she scowls at the fairy costumed spitfire next to me. “Great minds…” She points between the two of them, and the glower on Ava’s face deepens.
“Oh,please. I’m not a fairy.” Ava scoffs. Ashlie stiffens next to me. If I know anything, I know the one thing Ashlie can’t stand is people being rude to her for no reason.
I glance at my best friend, who’s tapping her finger on her lip. “Hmm. A giant then? Or an avocado? The green dress really nails that.”
Choking back a laugh, I peep the livid sneer on Ava’s face.
I’m surprised when Ashlie wraps her arms around my waist and looks up at me through her lashes. If she were any taller, she’d be able to hear the speeding of my heartbeat. “Huntie-baby, can we go in now?” She nuzzles her face into my side as her fingers rub my back, leaving tingling imprints in their wake.Off-limits, Hunt.
“I thought you two were just friends,” Ava says through her scowl.
“Things change.” Ashlie shrugs, flashing a sassy glare that makes Ava take a step back. She pulls me to the entry line, and right before we get to the door, turns and waggles her fingers at Ava.
The thumping bassline swallows Ashlie’s laugh once we step inside the doors. Intermittent flashes of color paint the packed main dance floor as she tips on her toes to yell in my ear. “She’s gonna follow you all night. You know that, right?” She drops her arms from my waist, and I dig fingers into my palms to resist pulling them back around me. Luckily, Willa, Isaiah, and Aiden manage to make it in right behind us, serving as the perfect distraction. After a brief gameplan, they head upstairs to the lounge.
Pulling Ashlie onto the main dance floor, we move to the beat under the purple and green strobe lights. Tonight’s supposed to be fun, and watching her hips sway as she dances circles around me is my idea of a good time.
I lostAshlie about an hour ago, but the scantily clad nurse grinding on me right now is cute enough to keep my interest. She tosses a wink over her shoulder and places my hand on her hip. I’m sure it’s supposed to be seductive, but her bony ass is wearing a hole in my jeans.I should touch base with Ash, just to check in.Her costume rides up her thigh as she presses into me, and I surprise myself when I look away.Naw.Not interested.The crowd is thinning out, anyway. That’s my cue.
A strobe light shines right in my eye, and I spot Ashlie’s latest ex across the dance floor with some blond in a bikini. I wouldn’t even call it a bunny costume, seeing as the only identifiable parts are ears on her head and a puffy tail over her ass.I really need to find Ashlie. Whispering a goodbye to the nurse, I dig my phone out of my pocket and head to the stairs. Hopefully, I can get a better view of the dance floor from the balcony.
Me
CODE RED: Marcus spotted downstairs.
I scan the second floor, but she’s so damn small, I can’t make her out in the blended sea of bodies. Looking over the balcony, I finally spot her at the bar, standing next to Willa. Marcus has crept closer to them with the bunny under his arm.Shit.
Springing back toward the stairs, I dodge several wasted dancers who get in my way. I don’t know why I have this sudden urge to get down there and save Ashlie from this encounter, but my feet won’t stop until I’m next to her. By the time I reach her, Willa’s gone, and I’m breathing hard.
“You good?” Ashlie sways backward to look me up and down. I shake my head when she offers me the seat next to her, but she pulls my arm until I’m sitting on the stool. Her eyebrows dip as she takes a sip of her drink.
“You see my text?” I ask.
With a slight tilt of her head, she pulls her phone out of her dress. “Shit!” Eyes wide, she looks around the room. “You sent that twenty minutes ago!”
“Yeah, no shit… I looked all over for you.”
“Hey, Ashlie. Hunter,” a deep voice says from behind us. I turn toward Marcus, who’s dressed as a doctor of all things, standing with his spray-tanned arm slung over the bunny’s shoulders.
Ashlie stares at her ex with a twisted-up expression, clutching her drink like it’s a life preserver.Is she even breathing? Feeling like I need to save her from whatever that look is on her face, I pull her between my legs, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Oh, hey, Martin,” I say.
“Marcus,” the big dumb doctor corrects me. I nod, rubbing Ashlie’s upper arm to ease her out of her haze. Her hold on that glass is so tight, I’m surprised it hasn’t cracked under her fingers.
“I got you,” I whisper in her ear, and it snaps her back down to earth.
“Hi, Marcus.” She takes a sip of her drink, and then another, before settling back against my chest.
