Naughty All Night

by Jennifer Bernard

  “You want to know what’s wrong?”

  “Of course. You can tell us anything.” Jessica fiddled with the woven bead bracelet on her wrist. Kate had one of those too, somewhere. So did Maya, but obviously it didn’t go with a police uniform. Jessica was the only one who still wore that relic from their teenage summers.

  “What’s wrong is that this band rocks and I haven’t danced or had any fun at all in forever. And we’re sitting here talking! That’s what’s wrong. Who is this band, anyway?”

  “They’re from out of state—Oregon, I think. But don’t change the subject.” Jessica shook her head at her, setting a hand on her arm to keep her in her chair. “Maybe what’s wrong is that you’re avoiding your feelings just like you always have.”

  “I haven’t always avoided my feelings. Just when they try to ruin my mood.”

  Maya laughed at that and tilted her shot glass for a toast. “I hear that.”

  Kate downed her shot and finally felt a buzz set in. “Sorry, Jess, but you know I’m never going to be Team Talk About Your Feelings, aka Team Romance. We all decided that a long time ago.”

  Sunbathing on the deck of Jessica’s family’s fishing boat, they used to discuss things like destiny and soulmates. Jess had been a believer, Kate the cynic, and Maya the neutral observer.

  “People change,” Jessica insisted. “I know I’ll win you over someday. I mean, I won’t. A man will. It just has to be the right man.”

  “The right man?” Kate gestured to the passing waitress for another shot. “The right man is the one who’s going to help me forget my crappy life tonight. Like whoever’s on that bass. He’s already making me forget. Anyone who can play like that can make me forget all kinds of things.”

  Maya and Jessica exchanged a glance filled with something Kate couldn’t quite identify. “The bassist? Do you know who he is?” Maya asked casually.

  “Doesn’t matter who he is. I don’t want to know. I’m Team Sex, remember?”

  “What if he’s eighty with a beard down to his waist?” Maya teased.

  Kate twisted around to peer through the crowd toward the stage. Too many people were in the way, so she stood up. Even though she was on the tall side, all she could see over the sea of bobbing heads was the neck of the bass—a hand working the strings—and a black cowboy hat.

  Okay, she could work with a black cowboy hat. And that hand moved so smoothly across the strings. It was a large hand, with long fingers and a wide spread. A man’s hand.

  And then the crowd shifted just enough so she could see all of him. He was a big guy, just…big. Wide in the shoulders and long in the legs. Tall and powerful and husky and fit and tall. He played standing up, bent over the upright bass, pouring all of his attention into the strings he was plucking and slapping. Along with the black cowboy hat, he wore a black t-shirt and black jeans.

  She couldn’t see his face under the cowboy hat, but just then he looked up and—pow. He grinned at her—or maybe it was at the crowd in general—the kind of smile that spread across his entire face and made her want to do wild and naughty things to him.

  And wait—was that—holy shit! She almost hadn’t recognized him.

  She dropped back down on her seat. “I do know that guy. I mean, I don’t know him, but he pulled me out of the mud earlier today.”

  “It’s destiny,” Jessica said excitedly. “Clearly there’s something going on here. He pulls you out of the mud. Then he pulls you out of your bad mood.”

  “You should talk to him,” Maya agreed.

  “Are you guys trying to get me into trouble?”

  “At least it’s the good kind of trouble.” Maya and Jessica laughed and exchanged a high five.

  Kate sucked down more tequila. It was kind of odd that her friends weren’t warning her away from the bassist. Normally they would because he was a stranger. Except he wasn’t totally a stranger, since he’d already rescued her from the mud. But maybe they agreed with her that she needed some fun. Or maybe the tequila was blurring things just enough so she didn’t care.

  Was he from Oregon, like the rest of the band? If so, what had he been doing on the muddy back roads of Lost Harbor? Visiting friends or family? Sightseeing?

  If he was from Oregon, what was the harm? There would be no chance of running into him at the bank or the grocery store or Gretel’s Cafe.

  She could follow Maya’s suggestion and go ask him.

  She hadn’t come out tonight for anything other than seeing Maya and Jessica. But life had been very challenging lately, and maybe she really did need a distraction.

  Like dancing.

  “Come on, you guys. Remember when we used to secretly borrow Jess’s dad’s car and drive up here to go dancing? Why are we just sitting here! Let’s move!”

  She jumped to her feet and ditched her jacket.

  Maya shoved her chair back and rose to her feet, already moving to the beat. “So long as no one takes any damn selfies.”

  “Why are you even worried? You don’t look anything like your usual self. I didn’t even quake in my shoes when I saw you,” Kate teased her. “It’s amazing how effective that uniform is.”

  “It’s not her uniform,” said Jessica, making her way to her feet. “It’s her natural authority.”

  Maya froze her face into a severe frown, then relaxed it again with a laugh after Kate’s eyes widened.

  “Damn. You really are good.”

  “Yup. It works on everyone except the guys I happen to like. Makes them disappear.”

  They all laughed as they carved out a spot on the dance floor. The crowd was a mix of couples and amorphous groups dancing together—like them. The music pulsed right through her system, lighting her up from the inside, like a switch turning on.

  Kate threw her head back, letting the beat take her wherever it would. All the mess in LA faded away. It was all so far away now. Her legal career was dead. Her condo sold. Her future unknown.

  And right now, none of it mattered.

  Next break, she was going to tell Sir Armor-all what a magician he was. Maybe ask him where he lived.

  Just then, he looked up and caught her eye. And winked. Obviously he recognized her too.

  She must have made a sound, because Maya and Jessica both slowed their dancing and looked in the direction she was staring.

  “Wow,” Kate breathed. “That man might make me break my biggest rule.”

  Maya shot her a curious look. “Which is what?”

  “Only one stupid thing a night. I already got stuck in the mud, so I’ve filled my quota. On the other hand, he’s possibly from Oregon, so maybe it isn’t all that stupid.”

  She caught another of those odd glances between Jess and Maya.

  “What difference does Oregon make?” Jessica asked her.

  “The men here aren’t really my type.”

  Maya’s eyebrows climbed up her forehead. “Oh really? But that man up there behind that upright, he is your type?”

  Kate looked at him again, her mouth literally watering. “I don’t know if he’s my type, specifically. It’s more like he’s anyone’s type. I mean, look at him. Would you kick him out of bed?”

  Maya exchanged another glance with Jessica, this one filled with secret laughter. There was some kind of joke that Kate was missing here.

  “I see your point. So what are you going to do about it, Team Sex?” Maya asked.

  Jessica nudged her. “Did you know the owner has fishing cabins out back that he rents out?”

  “Oh ho, so the Moose is Loose is for lease?”

  Kate giggled at her own joke. She was pretty loose herself right about now. Loose was good. Loose was great. She felt loose and relaxed and happy, and it wasn’t just the tequila.

  It was the juicy thrill of attraction. The glance across a room. The connection sizzling through the notes of that deep bass. They were dancing together, her and Sir Armor-all, even though he was still onstage. She could feel each note he played curl into her blood
stream.

  After everything she’d been through lately, couldn’t she allow herself one flirtation with a smoking-hot man? Did that even count as a “stupid thing?” He’d already rescued her once. He was very likely from out of town. How risky could it be?

  Chapter Four

  Oh man. How was Darius supposed to concentrate on “Light My Fire” when the woman from the stuck Saab was out there dancing in that red top? And those curve-hugging jeans? And those flirtatious hair tosses?

  Darius caught a glance from the band’s singer as he came close to falling behind the beat. After getting held up by the mud-rescue situation, he’d barely made it up the peninsula in time for a quick rehearsal. Luckily, they were pros, and he was pretty damn good himself, for an amateur. He used to play back in Texas, and still did when he could find someone to jam with.

  Oh shit. Now the woman—Kate, he remembered—was tossing back an entire glass of something that looked like tequila. That couldn’t be good. The friends she was dancing with would probably take her home, and he wouldn’t get to lust after her from his spot behind the bass anymore.

  The crowd moved, and he realized with a shock that the woman’s friends were none other than Police Chief Maya Badger and Jessica Dixon from the Sweet Harbor Bakery.

  Kate was friends with the police chief.

  He too was friends with the police chief, more or less. They had their conflicts, as firefighters and police officers often did, but he respected Maya Badger. He definitely respected her enough to stay the hell away from her friend.

  Maybe he should stop staring at her and focus on his job. At least for now.

  The song ended and he sat down on his stool and took a break while the singer talked to the crowd.

  Kate had disappeared, possibly into the bathroom. He caught Maya’s eye and beckoned to her. A few minutes later, she appeared next to the stage. Honestly, he barely recognized her in that gold top with her hair all wild.

  “Question for you. Your friend Kate. I met her earlier tonight. I don’t want to step on—”

  “It’s all good. Go for it.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. Maya could be hard to figure out because she played her cards close to the vest. “That was quick.”

  She wagged a finger at him. “Just don’t tell her who you are, that’s my only advice. Also, don’t tell her where you live.”

  “What the hell? Why not?”

  “Look, just go with it. She’s great. And she thinks you’re hot. So far as I know, that’s the only thing really wrong with her.”

  He scowled at her. “Save your insults for the job, why don’t you?”

  “But why would I, when they’re so fun no matter what the circumstances?”

  With a growl, he took a sip of the water the waitress had left him. “I only have a couple minutes before the next set. Come on, give me something more or I’ll tell everyone I saw you dancing in a gold lamé top and Lost Harbor will never be the same after that.”

  She smirked and folded her arms across her chest. “You wouldn’t.”

  He raised one eyebrow and held her gaze. But this was Maya Badger he was dealing with, and he quickly caved. “Okay, I probably wouldn’t. I’m not that kind of guy.”

  “Aaaaand, because you know I don’t care all that much.”

  “Good point. Okay, at least give me the lowdown on your friend. Is she single?”

  “She’s single. She’s very cool. Smart, funny, weird taste in men. She’s from the Lower Forty-Eight. But she spent summers here growing up.”

  From out of state. That was a good thing. It could be hard dating in such a small town. A woman who lived somewhere else…yeah, that could work.

  “But look, you should get to know her for yourself. Want me to pass a note to her or something?”

  He gave her his most intimidating lip curl. “I can take it from here, thanks. I just want to make sure I’m not going to get on your bad side.”

  “What makes you think you were ever on my good side?”

  “Believe me, nothing makes me think that,” he said wholeheartedly, making her laugh. “I just don’t want to backslide.”

  “You have my blessing. Just…” she hesitated.

  “Just what?”

  “Keep me out of it.”

  “Why?”

  “This is girls’ night out. We’re trying to have fun. I don’t want her pestering me about you. The two of you are on your own, okay? Either you click or you don’t. I don’t want to be involved.”

  “Fair enough.”

  She leaned in just a little farther and gave him a quick wink. “Word has it the owner rents the cabins out back.”

  “I know. They gave me one for the night as payment for filling in. They’re pretty nice.” At least from what he’d seen; he’d barely had time to drop his bag on the bed before the mini-rehearsal.

  A wide grin spread across her rich brown face. “Sounds like destiny to me. But what do I know? I’m just a cop. Have a fun night, Chief.”

  “You too, Chief.”

  They added a high-five to that, completing their usual sendoff. Maya disappeared back into the crowd.

  The singer picked up the mic again, sending a twang of static through the sound system. “All right, who’s ready to keep on rocking?”

  And it was back to work.

  But not without one more glance at Kate. This time, she was looking back. Their gazes caught. And held. And she gave him the naughtiest smile this side of reform school.

  He missed his cue. Oops.

  Well, it wouldn’t be the first time a woman had completely thrown him off track. Judging by the electricity sizzling between him and Kate, it would be worth it.

  At least she wasn’t from around here, so she couldn’t do any permanent damage to his life.

  All the stress. All the worry. All the annoyance at her father. It all went floating away as Kate threw herself into dancing. Sometimes you just needed to let loose and have fun. Especially when your life had gone to shit. Here she was at the ends of the Earth and the beat was insane and the tequila was kicking in and for the first time in a long time…Kate felt fine.

  And Darius in the black cowboy hat looked even more fine.

  Their eyes kept meeting…they kept smiling at each other…and every time she looked his way, he got more attractive. She was dancing for him. He was playing for her. He kept looking at her as if he wanted to jump off the stage and eat her alive.

  This was really happening, even though it felt almost surreal, as if she was dreaming the entire thing.

  She was very, very out of practice at anything that didn’t involve legal filings or growing peonies. Even drinking, for that matter. The Moose is Loose poured generous shots and the waitress was keeping them well-supplied. Was Maya ordering them? Jessica? Did it matter?

  The moments blended together in a happy, seamless blur. The taste of lime on her tongue, the thump of the beat, the smell of her own sweat.

  At some point Maya went to the restroom. Jessica had gotten into a soulful conversation with a cute guy. Kate was basically dancing alone.

  This was it. Time for Naughty Kate to make a move on that mud-rescuing, cowboy-hat-wearing, bass-playing hottie.

  On the one hand, she knew perfectly well that she was hellaciously buzzed and probably not making the best decisions. But that was the entire point. She wanted to do One Stupid Thing. Well, technically…One More Stupid Thing. This was happening, damn it.

  As long as he was definitely from Oregon.

  Hauling in a deep breath, she slid through the crowd, dodging elbows and beer bottles.

  “Ow, ow, ow,” she kept saying; her dodging skills clearly needed some work.

  Finally she made it to the stage. Darius hadn’t noticed her; he was sitting on a stool next to the standup bass, casually propping it up with one hand as he leaned back to listen to the something the drummer was telling him.

  She reached onstage and tugged at his pants leg. He didn’t notice becau
se he was too wrapped up in the conversation with the drummer. So she rapped lightly on his shin with her knuckles.

  It was hard as a tree, that shin. This man was packed with muscle, every part of him.

  When he still didn’t turn around, she tried again—harder.

  So hard she activated an automatic response and his foot jerked toward her, kicking her on the shoulder.

  “Ouch!” It didn’t hurt so much as surprise her, but the word popped out anyway.

  Darius swung around, an appalled expression on his face. “Good God, did I just kick you? Are you okay?”

  As he reached toward her, the speed of his movement knocked the bass out of balance. It slid out of his grip and toward Kate. He lunged to grab it.

  “I got it!” she announced.

  She stepped forward and caught the rounded lower part of the bass in her arms, dodging the endpin with its rubber cap. The instrument was so large; that thought sounded kind of naughty.

  “Kate Robinson to the rescue!” she continued. Sweet lord, was she buzzed. “Coulda shattered all over the floor. Nothing but splinters.”

  She grinned up at Darius, who still wore a concerned frown. “Don’t move,” he said sternly. “That thing’s too big for you to handle.”

  “That’s what they all say.” Did that sound flirty like she’d imagined? Or weird? She blinked at him, replaying it in her head.

  Yup, weird. Definitely weird.

  “I mean—”

  “I’m coming down there,” he interrupted. “Hold on.”

  “You’re so bass-y. I mean bossy. Get it?” Was that any better?

  The instrument slipped in her grip, so she adjusted the placement of one foot. Suddenly she was sliding on someone’s spilled drink and she staggered backwards.

  Oh shit. She was going to fall. She couldn’t fall. That would be so humiliating, not to mention painful. She teetered on the backs of her heels, fighting to stay upright.

  Then she blinked to clear her vision, because either she was really really buzzed or she’d never seen another human move so fast. In a blur of black, Darius leaped off the stage and landed at her side with a thump. His cowboy hat went flying off his head and she caught a glimpse of thick dark hair.