I’m almost offended. “The Electric Slide? I don’t think so.” Not that I have anything against dancing. Some guys will tell you it’s effeminate but I’m not one of them. Today’s dancing is practically sex with your clothes on, dry humping in a room full of people. And I’m definitely into that.
“What? Too cool for the Electric Slide?”
“Yes, I am. Besides, Steven has the monopoly on group dances.” I point over to where my brother-in-law is burning up the dance floor, at the head of the pack with Mackenzie at his side. “He also does a mean funky chicken.”
Kate cracks up.
A few hours later, we’re all walking out to the private parking garage together. My tie’s gone, the top three buttons of my shirt open. I’m holding Kate’s hand, which is lost in the arm of my tuxedo jacket that she’s wearing like a teenaged girl after the prom. Steven carries a sleeping Mackenzie on his shoulder, while Alexandra adjusts her dress with one hand and holds her shoes in the other. Matthew and Delores are already outside, saying their final goodbyes to the departing guests.
When he spots us, Matthew comes jogging up. His face is nervous-and remorseful.
“Drew…I didn’t know, man. I’m really sorry.”
“What are you talking about?”
He rubs the back of his neck and his eyes slide to my car, parked a few feet away at ground level, clearly visible under the garage light.
And that’s when I see it. Or more to the point-that’s when I see the words that have been carved into her hood.
“No, no, no, no, no…”
I stumble forward and fall to my knees beside my baby. I rub over the words, trying to erase the gouges with my hand. Then I yell over my shoulder at Delores, “You heartless monster! How could you?”
I turn back to my car and whisper soothingly, “It’ll be okay. I’ll get the best body guy in the city. It’ll be like it never happened. No one will ever know you were scarred.”
From the upper level I hear Billy Warren’s wail of anguish, and I know Delores got to his new truck, too.
I feel your pain, Douche Bag.
Leisurely, Delores strolls over. She looks down at me, eyes mocking, one fingerless-lace-gloved hand on her hip. “Pull any shit like that again and I’ll carve it into your fucking forehead.”
Then she smiles cheerily. “Night, everyone. Thank you for being a part of our special day.”
And she disappears into the shadows.
I feel bad for Matthew’s Guardian Angel. He’s going to be working overtime.
‘Cause I’m pretty sure my best friend just married a demon.
Volume 3
Prologue
Women walk a fine line.
Prude.
Slut.
Bitch.
Doormat.
Defining who you are to the outside world is a constant balancing act. It’s exhausting. But for some women there is an occasional out. An excuse that lets them say what’s really on their minds, allows them to forgive even if they know they shouldn’t, and pushes them to indulge all those nasty little fantasies-without the scarlet consequences.
Alcohol.
It can give the courage to talk dirty and the permission to go home with the bartender.
It’s the alibi. The cover story.
It wasn’t really you-you were possessed by Captain Morgan and the Grey Goose.
Unfortunately, I have a very high tolerance for alcohol.
Sucks to be me.
In all our years together, Billy was never able to drink me under the table. Not once. Maybe it’s because I started drinking at a young age. Maybe I was just born that way.
Regardless, it takes a lot to get me buzzed and even more to get me drunk.
That’s why, back in the day, I preferred pot.
Much more efficient.
Yep, you heard me right. Kate Brooks-pothead extraordinaire. Me and the Grateful Dead? We could’ve been bestest friends. Weed courage is what made me brave enough to get my tattoo.
But, sadly, those days are over. As I started business school, I realized the consequences of getting caught with a controlled substance were just too high.
So now I stick to legally sanctioned drugs only. Mostly wine.
Drew and I drink it nightly, just to unwind. And once a week we have kind of a date night-a special night. We cook together. Drew is a big fan of the fajitas. We drink and talk and drink some more.
Tonight we drank a bit more than usual. So, even though I’m not wasted in the literal sense, my limbs feel loose. Relaxed. Just like my inhibitions.
Have I got your attention? Excellent.
Open a window, ladies and gents-it’s about to get hot in here.
Images
We’re in bed.
I’m on my back. And Drew is between my legs.
Well-his face is, anyway.
“I love your pussy.”
I moan, and he reinforces his words with actions. He’s big on actions.
Wet, worshipful actions.
“I could fucking live down here.”
He picks up his pace, and before you can say “Slap me with a riding crop,” I’m pulling on his hair and screaming his name.
Moments later, Drew smirks proudly and crawls up my body. My limbs are lazy from the wine-and the orgasm, of course. All around, there’s a pleasant haze, a mist of numbness, making everything seem dreamlike.
Images
And then we’re kissing. And heat spreads throughout my body like an electrical current, bringing me back.
Making me feel how real this is.
I rip my mouth from his and whisper-the alcohol making me brave-“Drew . . . Drew, I want to try something.”
That gets his attention. “What do you want to try?” His tongue glides over my nipple.
I smile and bite my lip. “Something new.”
He raises his head. His lids are adorably heavy. “I like new.”
I chuckle and push him off me, then stand up and make my way toward the dresser-bumping into the nightstand as I go.
“Excuse me.”
I open the top drawer and pull out two pairs of handcuffs. Delores got them for her post-wedding bachelorette party, but she already had a pair.
Don’t ask.
I swing one around my finger. My sexy strut back to the bed is almost ruined as I stumble on my four-inch heels, and I giggle.
Drew rises up on his knees. He looks hungry, like a starving lion eyeing up a juicy steak that’s just out of reach.
He moves to take the cuffs from me, but I push him away.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.