Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 60219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 301(@200wpm)___ 241(@250wpm)___ 201(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 301(@200wpm)___ 241(@250wpm)___ 201(@300wpm)
“Mallory,” I said. “We know each other.”
“Really?” both Tessa and Marcus said at the same time.
“High school,” Mallory said. “I’ll have a beer.”
My eyebrows rose, and I grinned.
“A beer? A beer for the birthday girl,” I said.
“I’ll have a Sex on the Beach,” Tessa said, her attention falling to Marcus.
“Me too,” Kat said, coming up on his other side. Either they were really comfortable with each other or were preparing for battle. I didn’t know which, but I was pretty sure Marcus wasn’t going to have a problem with either. I was just happy I wouldn’t have to chase after Mallory, although I would have in a heartbeat.
I ordered the drinks, and the girls melded with our group. As midnight approached, there were more breaks between singers where the DJ would play dance music, and it wasn’t long before I’d had enough liquor to give me the liquid courage to make a move.
“Mallory, would you like to dance?” I asked.
“Sure,” she said cheerily. Behind us, as we made our way to the floor, I could hear Tessa jump at the chance to ask Marcus before Kat could. They followed us, and soon the floor was full of people.
The music was loud and thumping, and the lights were dark and contrasting, flashing with the beat as Mallory and I were pushed closer and closer by the crowd. Our eyes were buried into each other’s, and neither of us could have wiped the smiles off our faces with a sandblaster. Her body was so close, touching mine and grinding as the music got more intense.
She turned her back and pressed her body against me, and I felt like I might lose control. The smell of her hair filled my nostrils, and her ass brushed and wiggled against my center. My cock twitched and thickened in my boxers, and as I pulled her tighter against me by her hips, it molded to the place between her ass cheeks.
Things were getting hot and heavy, and sweat was beading on my neck. But the dance music was coming to an end, and I wasn’t going to have much more of a chance to make a bigger move. As she turned back to face me, I pulled her tight so her breasts were pushing into my chest and dipped my head.
“Happy birthday,” I whispered, just inches from her lips.
The kiss was soft at first and then deeper, our tongues dancing together. My hands slid to her ass and squeezed, pulling her tight. It felt so wrong to do it right there and then on the dance floor smack dab in the middle of our hometown but I didn’t care one bit. Then the music stopped and we separated, grinning widely. She took my hand as we headed back to the group, and I drank an entire glass of water in an effort to cool down.
“I think it’s time to get going,” Kat said as we stood around the bar just a minute or two later.
“Aw,” I said, “not yet. It’s barely past one.”
“I know,” Mallory said. “But I’ve been traveling all day and am exhausted.”
I stood and pulled myself close to her, speaking low so only she could hear.
“You could stay a little bit longer, though? Maybe you could come back to my hotel room for a night cap? It’s not far.”
She smiled but shook her head. “No, I don’t think that would be a good idea. For either of us. You need to get some rest before you leave town tomorrow.” She leaned in and kissed me softly on the lips, then leaned back. “Goodnight, Graham.”
“Goodnight,” I said, watching her leave.
I hated seeing her go and was deeply disappointed, but in all honesty, she was probably right. Besides, a one-night stand didn’t seem like her style and I respected her too much to leave it like that.
5
MALLORY - FIVE YEARS LATER
I stared at the screen, the clock in the upper right corner ticking down. The mouse hovered over the ‘buy’ button, and I hesitated. Was I really about to do this? Tickets weren’t exactly cheap, and while my career wasn’t in terrible shape, it wasn’t in ‘spend a grand on tickets to a baseball game’ shape either. Even with people paying me back in a few days for theirs, my own ticket was still pricier than I probably would spend if the right circumstances hadn’t all come together.
For one, Tamara’s birthday was the same day, and she wanted to do something she had never done before that was an ‘essential New York experience.’ Tamara had been a friend of mine since the second day I lived in the city, and I would have done just about anything for her. She lived in the apartment above me for a couple of years, worked with me, and was also an actress. We had helped each other work on audition pieces, rehearse, and cope when we missed out on roles we were sure we would get.