Page 94 of Loving Ladybug: Part One
“You know, when you said we were going clubbing with the Yeti, this wasnotwhat I expected,” Carlos whispered as we sat at a high-top, in a honky-tonk bar, that seemedveryout of place in New York City.
It felt a lot like the dive-bar in town my parents liked to go dancing at on Saturday nights.
Everything with Hydrosteel had gone well. Today, I’d successfully signed with them and we’d gone out to Tito’s to celebrate. When Gwen wanted to go dancing with Tenzin and me, Carlos and Dimitri asked to come with us.
Here we were.
“Tens is into it.” I took a sip of beer as I watched her two-step with Tenzin. They were cute in their hats and boots as he twirledher around the dance floor. While I knew a few line dances, I didn’t know how to dothis.
“Well, Lucky likes country bars. We’ll send Grif a pic.” Carlos tipped his beer like he was giving the cat some and snapped a photo.
I found the whole imaginary cat thing a little weird, but it wasn’t the strangest thing I’d encountered playing hockey.
The song ended and people started a line dance that was common at weddings back home, so I dragged Carlos out and joined them.
Gwen waved at me as she kicked, turned, and stomped. Tenzin looked relaxed and at home. It made me very curious about all the time he spent in bars with his sister, while he was in high school. Maybe she was a bartender, and he sat in the corner doing his homework, while she worked, like Ma’s friend’s kid.
After a few dances, we all came back to the table to drink some water and get more beers. The music changed as Gwen twirled around, closing her eyes, holding her beer. “I love this song,” she squealed.
It was one of those revenge songs, this one about throwing your ex’s truck in the lake, and it had a good beat. This version seemed to be sped up with a thumpy warehouse track to it. Apparently, it had a dance. A bunch of women came onto the floor and did a modified version of another I knew.
Gwen’s cheeks were flushed as she set her beer on the table and took my hand, dragging me out to the floor.
Tenzin shot me an amused look, toasting me with his beer, as I took the floor with her. Without bumping into too many people, I managed to figure out the dance, mostly. We did a few others, our friends joining us. Everything then slowed down for a two-step.
Gwen took my hand. “Dance with me.”
Oh, how I wanted to. I shook my head. “Gweny, I have no idea how to do that.”
“I’ll dance with you, Bozh’ya Korovka.” Dimitri took her hand and swept her off her feet.
Leaving me in the dust.
“How does he do that? I swear the man didn’t even know what country music was when we walked in here,” I muttered.
Tenzin stood at my side. “Come.”
Without waiting for me, he turned and left the dance floor. I followed him to a place near the back by some pool tables.
“I’ll teach you. You be Gwen, so you can understand how to lead her.” Tenzin took my hands and put one on his hip, the other on his shoulder. His hands weren’t baby smooth, but they weren’t rough either. They were alsolarge.
You know what they say about large hands.
“Her hands go on you like this. Yours would go like this.” He placed his hands on me, pulling me close, but not incredibly so.
I could feel the heat of his body through his button-down shirt, his jeans, and smell his heady citrusy scent, as he led me through the very basic steps.
“Now, to get fancy, here are a few things she likes.” Tenzin showed me how to twirl her and a few other moves.
I tried to pay attention. After all, it was kind of him to teach me to dance, so I could go out there with Gwen. It grew difficult to focus though, because his intent teaching face was sexy.
Would he look like that during sex?
Not to mention we were a good height for dancing together. His scent was so enticing, and I could only imagine what sort of muscles those clothes hid.
My low-key crush on the Yeti had been growing.
It was easy to pretend he was dancing with me, whirling me around the floor, us on a date, rather than him teaching me to dance, so I could make Gwen happy.
