by Vivian Arend
Vicki squirmed, the heavy sensation of being stared at worse than ever.
Well, wasn’t this a ton of fun?
She glanced around the room and counted how many people’s gazes darted away as she skimmed past them. Maybe the whole idea of breaking through her bad-girl rep was stupid. Awkward for sure. And this time she’d hauled Joel along into her unique brand of torment.
Brilliant. Way to go.
The idea of leaving was very appealing, so when Joel rose, hope rose with him. He caught her by the hand, tugging her to her feet. “Come on.”
Thank God. “My jacket…”
She reached for it, but he shook his head. “Not leaving. Let’s dance.”
Okaaaay.
He led her around the divider between the two halves of the bar. On one side of Traders were the pool tables, dartboards, and seating for the get-away-from-it-all crowd who wanted to relax and shoot the breeze. On the other was the dance floor, where tall standing-room-only tables lined the edges to entice drinkers to watch and mingle.
Vicki could count on one hand the number of times she’d been in the bar. Not only did she tend to avoid places where the ridicule got worse, she’d lied her ass off to Joel—she couldn’t drink at all.
But as the music volume increased, she focused less on the people around them and more on the man holding her hand as he guided her through the maze of bodies.
He turned and took her in his arms. She relaxed, resting her cheek against his chest as they moved to the slow music.
He chuckled, his body vibrating under her. “That was pretty terrible, wasn’t it?”
Vicki tilted her head as his fingers touched under her chin. “Let’s not talk about it. If we pretend it’s not there, it’ll go away.”
“Actually…” he nodded, “…it will. So let’s have some fun.”
The floor was only partway full. Joel’s older brother Matt was dancing with his fiancée Hope, and the two of them smiled as they caught sight of Vicki.
“Remind me never to get on the wrong side of your dad, okay?”
Joel frowned. “What makes you say that?”
She pointed to Matt and Hope. “After his rah rah speech the other day, your immediate kin seem to have calmed down about me being around. He put the fear in them I guess.”
“Hope’s a damn good woman. She’s got pain-in-the-ass family as well. I think she can empathize, and so can Matt since the pain in the ass is his ex.”
“Right.” Vicki glanced their way again, a rush of sympathy hitting. Hope’s older sister was back in town, and her strange behavior continued to light up the gossip circles as bright as the tales regarding Vicki’s family.
Maybe it was stupid to feel a connection—having family who wasn’t much family—but somehow Vicki felt it. Real or not, for the first time since they’d walked into the bar, she got her mind off herself and the damn town gossip, and focused on someone else.
“You ever double date with them? Or, you know, hang out?”
“With Matt and Hope?”
“Yeah.”
Joel tucked his hand against her lower back and pulled her in tighter. “Sometimes. Usually do more with Jesse and Travis, but…”
Yeah, she’d put the kibosh on that option. “Not a big deal.”
With his hands spread on her body, the smooth slide of his touch as he stroked her suggested how they could spend their time once they left the bar.
Joel interrupted her dirty daydreams. “I think Matt said something about camping out for a weekend before the snow flies. You want to join them?”
“Camping? Like, in a tent?” Vicki laughed. “I’ve never been. Other than at the cabins for the kids’ camp.”
“Then you’re in for a treat. Baked beans and hotdogs over a fire. S’mores. Coffee in the morning strong enough to wake the dead.”
“Jumping in the creek for a bath?”
His expression twisted into sheer mischief. “Dare ya.”
Bastard. “Now, that’s cheating.”
Joel’s grin increased. “So I have figured out the way to motivate you. Awesome. I’ll get the gear together, and you can help with the food. It’ll be fun.”
The music tempo increased, and they slipped apart, more gyrating and hip shaking going on than up close and personal. The floor got crowded enough they bumped and connected, Joel inserting his big body between her and the others.
She’d never really been protected like that before, and it felt kinda awesome.
A loud cheer went up, and the crowd pressed aside, giving more room to a couple who was using the music way too vigourously for her to match. Joel tucked her against him and retreated farther, ending up close to where Travis had a firm grip on a blonde in a skintight outfit.
Travis rocked his lady, his fingers splayed over her hipbones as she nestled her back to his front. He raised his voice to be heard over the pulsing music. “Joel, Vicki. You know Ashley, right?”
Vicki recognized her, but didn’t know her. “Hey.”
Something about the way Ashley checked her out didn’t bite like the stares of the rest of the crowd, especially since she gave Joel that same once-over. It was less judgmental, more sensual. Her lips curled into a smile that somehow looked hungry. “Well, damn, don’t you two look hot together?”
Travis swatted her ass. “Be nice, Ash.”
“I am,” Ashley protested. “If I’m not allowed to admire a good-looking couple while you’ve got your hands on me, you need to work on your self-esteem.” Her gaze returned to Vicki even as she rocked her hips against Travis. There was no doubt that the two of them were more than first-time dance partners.
The move screamed intimacy, and heat pulsed inside Vicki. She moved closer to Joel, looking for more of the passion between them, because, damn, watching Travis and Ashley rub together was making her hot.
Something flashed in Ashley’s face, as if she’d read Vicki’s mind. Vicki’s cheeks flushed, but she refused to look away. Refused to draw back from Joel who had her by the hips, one leg slipped between hers, brushing her core on his thigh.
It was crowded enough there was a reason for her to be riding him, but not enough reason for her to lose her mind and forget herself completely. She and Joel were supposed to be setting a new direction, not becoming the talk of the town for doing it on the dance floor.
The woman gave her a wicked smile. “We got the best guys in the house, sweetheart. What say we make everyone jealous?”
“Shh.” Travis spun Ashley and squeezed her against his body, hands capturing her ass and keeping the motion of their hips going. “Behave. Joel and Vicki aren’t looking for your kind of mischief, sweetheart.”
Joel chuckled. “No, but don’t let that stop you.”
Vicki glanced around the place, enjoying having Joel holding her tight, relishing the way the energy of the room seemed for once to be working with her and not against her. People still stared, but for the most part they were engrossed in their partners, bodies undulating in time with dance, with the music. She wasn’t experienced enough as a dancer to try anything fancy, content to make touching the connection between her and Joel.
Compared to the couples around them, they must have looked prim and proper, but she didn’t care, barely noticed. An organic flow to everything took her, and she ignored the dirty dancing, lifted her chin and focused on Joel.
His hands circled her waist. The wide grasp made her feel delicate and fragile, even as his expression said ravishment was rising on the agenda. Vicki trailed her fingers up his chest until she caught hold of his neck, nothing but fabric separating them.
His pupils dilated, his breathing increased in tempo. It wasn’t just the dancing, wasn’t the energy around them feeding the demand. Vicki felt it, needed it. Needed something with an urgency she’d never experienced before.
I want you. The words were there in her brain, yet she kept her lips from forming them. Not in public, not with their plans.
He seemed to have hea
rd her anyway, his nostrils flaring. If he’d dragged her from the dance floor in that moment, she wouldn’t have been surprised, the tension thick enough to make her want to throw caution aside.
Good thing one of them was in control, because she seemed to have lost it, and this time it wasn’t her temper making her careless and foolhardy, it was the fire in her veins that called for his touch. For more than public glances and caresses.
The music broke, switching to another slow song. But instead of taking advantage of it, Joel found them a spot at one of the tables and tucked her against his side. “I need a drink.”
So did she. Ice water, to pour on her head. “Okay.”
Travis and Ashley joined them. Matt and Hope. In the time they’d been on the dance floor, more of the Coleman clan had switched to the dance side, and suddenly the space around them was filled with Joel’s family. Another couple of the older guy cousins who Vicki only knew vaguely stepped closer. Tamara was there with a lean, dark-haired man. It was a totally overwhelming and complete surrounding.
Only, this time the atmosphere changed subtly. No one focused on her alone. No one checked her and Joel and Jesse to see if something kinky was about to start.
Especially since Jesse had found someone to dance with, and the two were wrapped around each other on the floor. He’d as good as put up an I’m not interested in Vicki sign, and she couldn’t be happier.
Maybe this evening hadn’t been a mistake after all. Glancing up at Joel and the wicked promise in his eyes, the evening wasn’t over either.
Vicki reluctantly untangled herself from his embrace. “Got to hit the washroom.”
She needed a moment alone to cool off. She patted water on her face when she was done, trying to soothe her heated cheeks, but there was no hiding the sparkle in her eyes.
She hadn’t felt this alive in forever. Being with Joel and his family was a different world. Hope for the future gave her a reckless courage. This relationship was only going to last for the next six months, but she was going to enjoy every minute of it.
She was headed out of the bathroom when the door opened. Vicki moved aside to let a group enter when one of them blocked her path.
The woman gasped indignantly. “I can’t believe you have the guts to show yourself in public.”
Without any warning she raised her hand and slapped Vicki in the face.
Chapter Fourteen
Vicki fell back, hands rising in defense, her cheek burning as she attempted to escape her attacker. She found her balance only after she slammed into a stall door.
“What the hell are you doing? Stop it.” She swung at the hands reaching for her.
The blur of bodies in the small space made it difficult to focus on faces. The air filled with noise, and one single voice called out above the rest in anger. “Bitch. Get out of here, you whore.”
Fingers caught her dress, the fabric ripping as she was shoved out the main door. She stumbled over her feet and ended up in a heap against the opposite wall. Anger flared along with a healthy dose of fear. Fight or flight was kicking in, but she wasn’t stupid enough to head back into a confined space to face her attackers. Nor did she want to end up brawling in the hallway.
For once logic swept away the urge to swing her fists, and she scrambled upright and headed toward the main room and the protection of the crowd.
Cool air brushed her side, and she stared in disbelief at the wide gap in her dress, the seam torn in two from her rib cage to her hip. Even pulling the fabric together didn’t help, as holes gaped on either side of her white-knuckled grip, leaving her bra and underwear exposed.
She couldn’t go into the main room like this. And she couldn’t stay in the hall—the group that had assaulted her could be out at any moment.
Frustration and anger flared, this time at the unfairness of it all. Everything had been going well, and yet her usual luck had caught her again.
She turned and headed for the emergency exit, hoping it wasn’t wired to set off alarms.
The tears that threatened to rise were shoved away by sheer determination and the rush of cold air that greeted her. Cigarette smoke carried from the sitting area to the north, a far-enough distance from the main doors to meet provincial regulations.
Vicki glanced to check she was safe, but the few people huddled together within the smoky haze scarcely looked her way before returning to their conversation and beers.
One arm wrapped around her waist to hold herself together, she pulled her phone from her purse and dialed Joel.
The noise in the background was deafening loud, but the confusion as he answered was still audible. “Vicki?”
“Can you grab my coat? I’m outside. We need to go.”
“I’ll be right there.”
Thank God he didn’t ask any questions. She tucked her phone away, keeping alert as she hid in the darkest section of the area. It seemed only safe to stay out of sight from anyone driving by.
She was shivering by the time Joel rounded the corner, but hell if she’d let this break her. Although running and jumping into his arms was what she wanted, she simply stepped forward.
He was at her side in a moment, wrapping her coat around her shoulders, looking her over. “Damn it, Vicki, what the hell is up?”
“Someone—”
What did she say when she wasn’t sure, other than it had to have something to do with her family?
“Fuck.” Joel lifted her chin and turned her face to the side, brushing his fingers tenderly over her cheek. “Who hit you?”
He was furious. She played it down. “Let’s go home. I’m cold.”
He might have ignored her request if a full-body shiver hadn’t shaken her. Joel had her against his side and headed toward her apartment without another word.
She didn’t need revenge right now, didn’t need his anger. He was there, and that was enough. Made it easier to put aside some of the confusion, and a lot of the frustration, and just accept his arm around her, the heat of his body brushing hers.
The couple of blocks passed quickly, and they were out on the landing as her fingers shook on the keys.
Joel wrapped his hand over hers and helped her, turning to snarl wordlessly at the man in the next apartment who’d opened his door to snoop, this time classily dressed in nothing but boxers.
“Fucking bastard. I’m talking to your landlord tomorrow.”
Vicki dropped her purse on the table beside the door, too wound up to protest. She kicked off her shoes and stumbled to the edge of the daybed. “Thank you for taking care of me.”
“If I’d taken care of you properly, you wouldn’t have ended up standing outside in the cold.” He was on his knees in front of her examining her cheek again. He swore, his knuckles whisper-soft over where the strike still pounded. “What happened, darling? You went to the bathroom, and next thing I know it looks as if you’ve been beaten up.”
“Someone called me a whore.” The words burst out. So much for keeping her cool. The hopelessness she felt was clear even in her own ears. “I didn’t do anything, Joel, I swear I’ve never done anything to—”
Her voice broke. Staying strong when he was looking at her with such tenderness in his eyes was impossible. She caught him by the shirtfront, leaned closer to soak in the comfort of his body, and gave in to the tears.
Emotionally he’d been yo-yoing all night. The slow changeover in attitude from those around them once they’d hit the dance floor had reassured him there was hope. The blazing heat rising between him and Vicki made the rest of their deal that much more attractive as well. With a few plans falling into place for the future, like spending time with Matt and Travis and their partners, things were looking up.
But the confusion of having her call him, and the sight of her stepping from the shadows so forlorn and broken had torn something inside him apart.
The truth finally sank in. It wasn’t rumours and innuendo Vicki had to put up with. It wasn’t laughing jokes or snide comments like he
and Jesse had been fielding. To be physically hurt by someone pushed her life into territory he’d never experienced.
The asshole across the hall was just one more example of a dangerous situation she daily disregarded because there was no choice for her than to ignore it. How long did she have to put up with this insanity, until it was too late? Until she was seriously hurt or raped?
His safe, small town showed a different face in that moment, and Joel Coleman grew up in a hell of a hurry.
While Vicki wept in his arms, Joel’s heart ached. He held her tight and let her have it out. Didn’t try to reassure her everything would be all right, didn’t give her any platitudes, because there was so much wrong here that he didn’t know how to fix.
She released his shirtfront, slid her hands around his torso and squeezed him tight. “Thanks for being there.”
Joel slipped his hands around her and was shocked to discover naked skin. He leaned away to figure out what the devil he was touching. “God damn it, what happened to your dress?”
“That’s why I had to go outside. I don’t think they meant to rip anything.” Vicki took a stuttering breath as she lifted her fingers to touch her cheek.
“And that handprint was an accident as well, I suppose.” Joel caught her gaze. “You should press charges.”
Her expression tightened. “I don’t even know who they are.”
Which made it worse, not better. “No one should be able to attack you for no reason, Vicki.”
“They had a reason, only I’m not the one to blame. I told you, the woman who hit me called me a whore. Said she was surprised to see me in public.”
Joel’s anger wasn’t cooling, if anything it was getting worse. “You think they got you and your sister mixed up?”
Vicki broke her gaze away, and Joel wanted to hit something. Yeah, that didn’t make the attack any better at all.
Screw it. Joel sat on the bed beside her and pulled her into his lap, cradling her close. “What do you want to do?”
She wiped her eyes then rested her cheek on his chest. She was so still he thought she might be holding her breath. Then she brought one hand up to trace the buttons on his shirt, and all the tension in the room flipped the corner, his body stupidly tightening with need.