Midnight Ballerina

by Cori Williams

  “Move,” I demanded from Tanner, smacking him on the shoulder as he stared at the girls open-mouthed. For his sake, I hoped he was only staring at Amelia that way or we would have a major problem. Instead of getting out of the booth, he moved closer to Monroe, making room for me to sit down on the opposite side. “Tanner.” I grabbed his arm. “Get the hell out of my way.”

  “Fine.” he signed loudly, sliding out of the booth to let me sit down. Instead of sitting back next to me, he moved to sit next to Amelia, who was still dancing along with Monroe and didn’t seem to notice or care that Tanner was now next to her. I was surprised as hell to see the three of them here, but I think that shocked me even more. I found it hard to believe that they just happened to show up here on the same night at the same time.

  Monroe smashed her body against mine, laying her head on my shoulder, and I grabbed her hand, kissing each finger. “What are you doing here?” I whispered into her ear and her whole body shivered.

  “I told you I was going out with Amelia,” she explained. “And this is where she brought me.” She laughed and hiccupped at the same time. “Think we can borrow your pole sometime? Amelia wants to learn how to swing around it.”

  I knew what she meant, but the way the question came out sounded wrong, and Monroe and Amelia noticed right away, even in their inebriated state. “I don’t want to borrow your boyfriend’s pole!” Amelia exclaimed. “I mean, I’m sure it’s a very nice pole and all, but that would be a little awkward. I’m just not into that type of thing. Sorry!”

  “You’re jealous I have his pole,” Monroe replied, snorting loudly, and Amelia slapped her on the arm.

  “I am. I’m pole-less right now. It’s so freaking lonely.”

  “I’ve got a pole right here for ya,” Tanner interjected. “Feel free to swing around it anytime you want, preferably with your mouth.”

  Amelia glared in Tanner’s direction, giving him her answer without even speaking, and I laughed, signaling for their waitress, Jenny, who quickly scurried over. I ordered more drinks for everyone, including myself.

  “Are you done working?” Monroe asked, her hand now dangerously close to my dick, so I moved it down a few inches or I wouldn’t have been able to control myself.

  “Yup, I just needed to cover for Luke for a little bit.” I took a sip of the beer that Jenny promptly brought over, thanking her.

  “Well that was awfully nice of you,” Monroe said, tipping her head toward Jenny who was now having a conversation with Tanner. Well, she was talking to him and he was just staring at her boobs while Amelia watched them with a scowl on her face. Yeah, there was something going on with those two.

  “Because I thanked her? I’m not that big of an asshole, Monroe.”

  “I didn’t say you were, but most of the time you’re a little scary whenever you’re at the club.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Yes, really.” She licked her lips and I bent down to kiss them.

  “Why don’t we get out of here and go to a few clubs? Think Tanner and Amelia want to tag along?”

  “If they want to. Amelia,” she threw her hands up in the air, shouting, “we’re going to dance our asses off!”

  We ended up going to three different clubs. By the time we got to the second one, Monroe began drinking water, so when we were getting ready to leave the third, she was starting to sober up. That didn’t stop her from dancing and I certainly didn’t mind.

  Right now, she was currently grinding her ass against my dick, my hands planted firmly on her hips. She rested her head on my shoulder for just a second, and I whispered hoarsely into her ear, “You really need to stop doing that or I’m gonna have to fuck you right here.”

  She jumped away, spinning around to face me, and began pulling on my arm. “I think it’s time to go home. Let me see if Amelia’s ready and we can drop her off since we left her car at the club.”

  I watched impatiently as she found Amelia, who was standing at the bar with Tanner. Luckily, she was only over there for a minute before she came back and yanked on my hand, dragging me toward the front entrance and out to the parking lot. “They’re finding their own ride back. Let’s go.”

  Monroe’s hands were all over me the second we got into my truck, and I think I broke several traffic laws just so I could get back to my house and get her into my bed. I’d only had two beers so I didn’t have to worry about how we were getting back to my house at the end of the night.

  As soon as we made it to my bedroom, Monroe pushed me with both hands onto my bed, grabbed her phone out and turned some music on. Apparently, she wasn’t done dancing quite yet. I watched with hungry eyes as she slowly stripped away every piece of clothing she had on until she was standing in front of me with nothing on but a pair of high heels and the cowboy hat she’d picked up off of my nightstand. It had to be the sexiest thing I’d ever seen in my life. She was still swaying her hips back and forth in time to the music but I couldn’t keep my hands to myself any longer.

  “Come here, cowgirl.” I jumped off the bed, pulling on her waist, and she squealed when I pulled her on top of me on the bed. “Time for you to saddle up. Better hang on, it’s gonna be a rough ride.”

  “I’m ready,” she purred into my ear.

  “HAVE YOU DECIDED what you’re going to do this summer?” I asked Monroe, playing with her hair as we laid in my bed watching the morning news. She was just a few weeks from finishing up her spring semester and I’d tried not to ask her what her plans were, but it was getting hard as hell. I didn’t want to come off as overbearing. I knew I wasn’t the only person in her life. She had her family back in Michigan and I knew she missed them.

  “Well, I don’t know. My boss is kind of a jerk and never lets me have any time off. He’s very demanding, always working me so hard.” She pouted her lips and I slapped her ass just as she turned away from me in bed.

  “You can have whatever time you want off, just tell me when.”

  “You’re way too nice, Mr. Buchanan, and I’m not going to take advantage of you just because you’re my boss and my boyfriend. I’ll figure things out, I still haven’t decided what to do.”

  “You know what would help?” I sat up and she held up a finger.

  “Hold that thought, I have to pee.” I watched her run toward the bathroom, willing her to come back as quickly as possible so I didn’t lose the nerve to say what I was going to say. I’d been thinking about it for some time now, hinting at it here and there, but Monroe always brushed it off as a joke.

  “So, what would help?” she asked, jumping back onto the bed and curling into my side.

  “Well, I was thinking that maybe you could move in here. That way you wouldn’t need to worry about paying rent, utilities, and all that. Then taking time off during the summer wouldn’t hurt ya so bad financially. Not that I want you to go or anything.”

  “Miller, I’m not moving in here so I don’t have to worry about paying bills.”

  I sighed loudly. “Of course that’s not why I want you to move in, Monroe. I want you to move in because I want to wake up with you in my bed like this every morning. I want you to move in because I love it when you’re here and hate it when you’re not. I just want you here because I want you all the time.”

  “I think that’s the most I’ve ever heard you talk at one time.” She giggled, pressing her face into my chest. “And since you put so much effort into telling me why, I guess I could move in,” she said nonchalantly.

  “You guess?” I dug my fingers into her sides, tickling her, and she squealed, squirming underneath me.

  “Stop! Yes. I meant I would love to, let’s go get my stuff right now, I can’t wait any longer,” she finished dramatically, my fingers coming to a standstill, and I jumped off the bed.

  “All right, sounds like a great idea.”

  I WAS STARTING to get a little drained between work, finishing up for the semester at school, and the dance workshops on the weekends. I think Miller could tell,
too, because he kept sending me home early, even though I argued endlessly with him. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. I refused to give anything up though. I didn’t need as much money as before because I was living with Miller, but I still needed money. I wasn’t going to depend on him for that. He wasn’t my sugar daddy.

  I went to the grocery store when he was working, so he couldn’t get pissed about me using my own money to pay for groceries, and I grabbed a few utility bills out of the mailbox, mailing a check in before he even saw the bill. All he could do was shake his head at me and roll his eyes. School would be ending soon and I was relieved. It was a struggle, but I was keeping all of my grades up in every class and I was looking forward to next year and finally being finished, even though I really wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my degree right away.

  Being back in the dancing world just made me want to stay there and never leave again. Nina mentioned something a few times about me coming on as a full-time teacher for the night classes during the summer and it sounded like an amazing opportunity, but I wasn’t sure what I was going to do yet.

  “Earth to Monroe.” Amelia snapped her fingers in my face, pulling me back to what I was supposed to be doing. Studying. It didn’t seem like much of that was happening though. We were in the courtyard, spread out in the grass with our books, just like ninety percent of the students were today since the sun was shining and the spring air was flowing. You could still see plenty of the locals though bundled up as if the low seventies temperature was chilly or something.

  “Sorry.” I closed my book and stuck it in my bag. “I guess I’m not getting much done. Did you still want to grab something to eat before I head into work?”

  “Sure.” She jumped up quickly and looped her arm through mine as we headed to grab some sandwiches. “We’re in need of a hang out soon. Maybe we should do something at your place, even though I still haven’t come to terms with the fact that you’re actually living with Miller. Tell me, how in the hell did he get you to move in so easily again?”

  “I don’t know.” I shrugged my shoulders and held the door open for her. “It just felt right so I said yes.”

  “I can’t believe it was that easy. Actually, my feelings are pretty hurt since I tried to get you to move in with me over and over again and you flat out refused.”

  “Because you have a roommate! Where did you expect me to sleep, the floor?”

  “She’s never there, you know that.” She stopped talking once we reached the counter and we placed our orders and then found an empty table toward the back. “But anyway, we should have a barbeque or something. Franklin and I could bring over the food since I know both you and Miller shouldn’t be allowed in the kitchen. Oh, and I’ll bring plenty of dessert for you, too.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I held up a hand and Amelia’s lips turned downward. “Back up a step there. Did you just say Franklin? Did I miss something?” I think she was hoping that I hadn’t realized that she’d mentioned his name.

  “Oh, I didn’t tell you we were seeing each other again? Yeah.” She waved a hand, like it was no big deal, but I knew better.

  “Amelia, please tell me you’re not dating Franklin to make your parents happy. I know things haven’t been good between you guys, but you can’t let your parents dictate who you’re with. It’s just not right.” Amelia had been struggling in school lately, probably because she just wasn’t interested in it and would rather be doing something food related, and her grades slipped drastically. She would be lucky if she passed all of her classes when the semester was over. I just didn’t understand how her parents had that much of a hold over her. Sure, I cared what my parents thought, but I didn’t live to please them.

  “Of course not!” She was acting way too offended by my accusation so I knew I had hit the nail right on the head. “I like Franklin, I really do. He’s a great guy, so smart, and knows what he wants to do with his life. He’s going places. He might even start working for my dad after he graduates.”

  “What? Amelia, that can’t happen. That would mean things would be really awkward if they ended between you two.”

  She fiddled with her straw wrapper before pasting a fake smile on her face. “Oh, Monroe, don’t worry your pretty little head about that. I’ve got things handled.” She changed the subject, going on and on about something one of her sorority sisters had done, so I half-tuned in while I ate my lunch and looked forward to the fact that I would be seeing Miller shortly. But Amelia’s situation would probably be right there in the back of my mind from now on. I wanted my best friend to be happy and I knew that she wasn’t truly happy with Franklin and she definitely wasn’t happy at school. I just needed to figure out how to make her see that.

  “ARE YOU SURE you don’t want to head back to your family’s for a bit?” Miller asked me again, my last day of school for the semester finally being completed. I was in the office, dancing around as I filed invoices with my shoes kicked off and a sense of relief at school being over. I was looking forward to summer.

  “No, Miller. I told you maybe I’ll go to visit in about a month or so but I need to plan it out. Are you trying to get rid of me or something?” I shoved a folder into his chest and he grabbed onto my hand to pull me against him, a heated look in his eyes.

  “Of course not. I just don’t want you to feel obligated to stick around because of me. Whenever you want time off, take it.”

  “I don’t feel obligated. I want to be here with you.” I felt his body relax and I knew that I had calmed his mind down a little. I think he was constantly worrying about the state of our relationship, like I would just up and leave him one day and never come back. I knew those abandonment issues had a possibility of coming into play. Luckily, they didn’t seem to affect us that much, most of the time, but sometimes I could see that it was a bit of a struggle for him just to let go and trust me.

  My cell phone rang from my desk and I kissed Miller on the cheek before I went over to see who it was, mentally groaning when I saw Carter’s name flash across the screen. He’d already called me twice since I got here this afternoon. Carter tended to be one of the issues that Miller had. He never really said anything to me about our friendship, but I knew he wasn’t a fan of Carter’s. I guess I could see why. I really wouldn’t want Miller talking to one of his ex-girlfriends all the time either, but Carter and I had known each other for years.

  I hit the silence button on the side of my phone and turned back to Miller, who was now standing in the doorway of his office, one hand above his head, causing his shirt to rise up slightly and give me just a glimpse of that sprinkling of hair above the waistband of his boxer briefs that led to a very happy place.

  He crooked a finger at me and I took a step forward. “Did you need something, Mr. Buchanan?”

  He shot me a sexy smirk. “Wouldn’t you like to know? How ‘bout you step into my office and I’ll let you know what I need.”

  My stomach flip flopped and I loved the feeling. Sure, we hadn’t been dating that long, but I was worried that things might get stale over time, especially when we moved in together, but they didn’t and I doubted they ever would. It made me wonder why I had been so against being in a relationship, but maybe that’s not what it had even been.

  Maybe I’d just been waiting for Miller to come along.

  I walked into his office and he quickly shut the door behind me, locking it before pushing me against it. “I thought you had somewhere to be, Mr. Buchanan. And I have a ton of work to do,” I emphasized and he snorted.

  “Good thing I’m the boss. You’re working in my office for the rest of the day.”

  “Oh, really?” My eyebrows shot up and my legs clenched together at the thought of what kind of work we would be doing. It had been a while since we’d been able to get any work done in his office.

  “Yes, really,” he whispered hoarsely in my ear before he spun me around and had me spread out across his desk. Luckily, the thing was cleaned off or it would be rea
lly uncomfortable. His hand crept underneath my skirt, and I was so thankful that I had dressed for easy access because I needed him immediately. His mouth closed over mine at the exact same time his fingers brushed across my panties, and I sighed into his mouth. But then he pulled away all too soon and I started to get frustrated, wanting his mouth on mine, until he flipped my body over and whispered, “I want to take you from behind,” into my ear and my whole body shook in agreement.

  He kissed down my back as he slid my panties down and off, bunched my skirt around my waist, and then his hand went back to work between my legs, rubbing agonizingly slow circles then switching to hard, and then back to slow. The warmth continued to grow in my body and I was so close but I wanted him inside of me. “Miller,” I whimpered, arching my hips back against him, but he moved away an inch.

  “You’ll get that soon enough, but for now, just let go.” He ran his nose across my shoulder, and I leaned my head back into his chest, squeezing my eyes tightly shut and just let myself enjoy him pumping his fingers in and out of me.

  “Come for me,” he demanded and I happily obliged, and I came hard, rocking my whole body. Miller didn’t even wait before I was totally down from my high, making quick work of his pants and boxers, before pressing on my lower back and entering me from behind in one quick thrust. He gripped my hips firmly, groaning once he had himself pushed completely in. “I love being inside of you,” he murmured against my hair before he picked up the pace and I arched back into him, trying to keep up, but mainly hanging on for one hell of a ride as my body slid back and forth across the top of his desk. I could tell he was getting close as we panted together, and I was already close again. He must have sensed it too because one hand slipped away from my waist and moved back between my legs. “I want you to come on my dick. Come with me, baby.” He swiveled his hips slightly, slamming us both forward, and I moaned his name loudly, just as his whole body shuddered and I felt him spiraling out of control, right at the same moment I did, and he collapsed against my back, our breathing slowly returning to a steady rhythm. “I think it’s time for an evaluation. You’re in definite need of a raise.”