Page 80 of The Forbidden
Slipping my vibrating phone back in my purse, I head back to the dancefloor, stopping by our booth on the way, and taking a shot of vodka straight from the bottle. The clear liquid burns as it works its way down my throat, leaving a trail of numbness settling over my body. It’s reckless, drinking like this, but I’m past caring. All I want is to forget Evan and everything that led me here tonight.
Stumbling back to Lana, I smirk when I spot her now kissing the guy she was dancing with, their movements frantic, almost indecent. But hey, who am I to judge. I admire how unapologetically Lana owns her sexuality.
I tap on her shoulder, waiting for her to look at me so I can let her know I’m back. She absently acknowledges me. Then, without thinking, I grab the first guy that approaches me. He’s cute in that all American kind of way. Preppy, clean cut. The sort of man you’d see walking down Wall Street.
He grins, leaning in and dropping his face to my neck. My stomach twists with guilt, like I’m doing something wrong. Without realizing it, I’ve made the crook of my neck Evan’s place. And now with someone else touching me there, it feels off.
“Hey beautiful. I’ve been watching you all night.” His arms wrap around me. He pulls me close, letting me feel his arousal. I flinch.
My instinct is to pull away. Knee him in the balls and tell him I have a boyfriend. Only, I don’t. Evan’s not mine. Notreally. And anyway, he was cozying up to his ex-girlfriend tonight.
“Is that so?” I purr seductively.
His grip on me tightens. He grinds into me harder, mistaking discomfort for desire. I feel sick. Because despite how much I hate Evan right now, I don’t want to feel another man’s cock against me.
“Yes,” he groans. “Have a drink with me?”
I flutter my lashes, knowing I’m only encouraging the situation. “I don’t even know your name.”
His mouth meets my ear. “Grady. The man who’s going to rock your world tonight.” I almost gag at the cheesiness he’s spewing. What’s worse is he genuinely believes it. “And you are?”
“Anais,” I shout, trying to put distance between us.
He doesn’t let me, gripping me tighter. Pulling me closer. “Beautiful name for a beautiful woman. Drink?”
I shake my head. “How about a dance?”
I don’t really want anything from this man. But if a dance will soften the blow of rejection, I can offer him that. I’m sober enough to know accepting a drink from Grady would be a bad idea, but intoxicated enough to indulge him with a sway of my hips. He flashes a salacious smile, then spins me in his arms, and pulls my ass to his cock. I tense when he presses closer, getting more uncomfortable with every grind against me.
Instead of making a scene, I inhale a deep breath, telling myself it’s just one dance and then I can push him away. Forcing my body to relax, I take a step away from him, putting some space between my ass and his dick. I close my eyes and let my body move to the music.
Grady’s fingers dig into my hips, possessive, rough, and so hard that I wince. He tugs me back, grinding his dirty dick into me once more like his life depends on it. I only have myselfto blame, but still. I’m just about to shove him away, shout at him, when he’s ripped away.
People scream; the music stops. I spin around, my eyes widening in horror when I see Grady on the floor. My gaze snaps up, and I almost wither when I spot a furious looking Evan stalking toward me.
“What the hell?” I screech. People part like the red sea, making space for the raging bull closing in on me.
“What the fucking hell is right,” he snarls. “He had his fucking hands all over you.” He grabs my wrist and drags me off the dance floor.
My gaze bounces around the club, trying to locate Lana. I breathe a sigh of relief when I find my shocked friend scrambling behind me.
I turn back to the angry man in front of me, shrieking. “Let me go!”
Evan looks back at me, unbothered, and the picture of calm arrogance. He opens his mouth to speak, but Grady steps between us. “You heard her. Let her go.”
Evan gets right up in Grady’s face. I frantically look around for any sign of security ready to step in and put a stop to this. “You have two seconds to move away from her before I destroy you.”
Grady laughs, looking confident. But the flash of fear in his eyes tells me it’s a front. “And how the fuck will you do that, huh?”
Evan smirks, the look so devilish it sends a shiver down my spine. Grady’s self-preservation must kick in, because he takes a step back, his throat bobbing on a swallow. “First rule of war? Never give your opponents an advanced warning of what will come.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Grady asks, and I wish he would just go away. It was a mistake dancing with him.
Just then, the bouncers charge toward us, ready to break this up.
“It means; you won’t see it coming when I fucking destroy you.” Evan growls. “Now get the hell away from her. I won’t ask again.” Grady moves back, allowing us to step past him. Evan smirks. “Smart man.” He drawls.
“You can’t destroy someone you don’t know,” Grady sneers, obviously deciding he has a death wish.
