New Game in Town(17)

Slightly self-conscious, Gina made her way around the fringes of the crowd to find an empty table at the edge of the room. Strategically maneuvering onto the tall barstool to take in the crowd, she ordered a martini from a passing waitress.

At first, the place looked like a regular nightclub, nothing out of the ordinary until you peered beneath the surface and looked a little deeper. The energy was suffused with latent desire. The glances being passed were more penetrating, the dancing more seductive and the touches lingering. Nothing outwardly blatant—just more.

The green band around her wrist seemed to be attracting attention. Most of the other patrons had on red wrist bands, probably denoting their status as members, Gina guessed. She hesitantly made eye contact with those around her. Most smiled, others went a little further and stared back in interest as if trying to get a read on her.

Feeling a little conspicuous being on her own, she ordered another martini and sipped it a little faster than was prudent.

“Careful with that martini,” came a friendly suggestion from beside her, “looks harmless, but take one down too fast and most of us would need to be scraped off the floor.”

Gina turned to see a young woman with long silky black hair standing at her table. The woman was stunning. There wasn’t another word to describe her. The thousands of tiny silver sequins making up the little dress she wore were moving seductively with her every movement. And she was moving. She stood beside Gina, swaying her hips in time to the beat, her blue eyes full of delight.

“Would you like to join me on the dance floor?”

“Ah…”

Gina couldn’t help but wonder if the woman was just being friendly or if she was hitting on her. How in the world was she going to deal with this if this was indeed a come-on?

Reading her mind, the woman threw her head back and laughed, “Honey, I saw you sitting here on your own, and with your green band, I’m going to guess this is your first time here, right?”

At Gina’s affirmative nod, she continued, “I’m not into you in that way, I just know how overwhelming it can be your first time here. Maybe you could use a friend to show you around? I’m Leah.” She held out a slim hand in introduction.

Feeling a little foolish, she extended her own hand with a self-castigating smile. “Gina.”

“Let’s dance, Gina.” Not waiting for an answer, Leah pulled her into the throng on the packed dance floor.

Maybe it was the martinis or Leah’s infectious personality, regardless, Gina closed her eyes and moved to the music, feeling it deep in her core. She couldn’t remember the last time she had danced with such abandon. High school? No, not even then. She had been too shy as a teenager, unsure of her body’s rhythm.

Andrew had always said he had two left feet and had avoided dancing with her. Funny, he hadn’t had a problem dancing at his wedding, Gina thought sarcastically. And Steven, well, he had been too busy working to take her out to anything more than a quick meal close to his office.

Letting all of her frustration and disappointments of the past flow out of her, Gina surrendered herself to the pulsing beat and the sensual draw of the energy encircling her. She could feel the irresistible pull of the need to let go of her inhibitions, of moving her hips enticingly and raising her arms in abandon over her head. She was barely aware of hands flirting with her body, a touch on her back, another on her cheek, yet another lightly grazing over her ass.

She slowly opened her eyes at the feel of Leah’s hand on her shoulder. “Girl, I think you’re ready to check out the second floor. Let’s go!”

With Leah pulling her to the elevator through the crowd of dancing bodies, Gina was hard-pressed to ignore the looks of frank interest she and Leah garnered. Riding on her euphoric high, she followed Leah out of the elevator and onto the openly spacious second floor.

Here a clever mix of pop and house music was set at a slightly lower level, making conversation possible. White brick pillars up-lit with blue lighting broke up the heart of the room, giving her glimpses of large purple settees. The entire room was encircled by opaque glass walls, which were only broken up by thick purple velvet curtains acting as doors for what lay beyond. Hundreds of flickering candles in their clear crystal holders occupied every flat surface all across the room, their flames giving an added touch of shimmering brilliance to the already decadent room.

Many individuals were clustered around the settees, socializing. The sound of their laughter mingled with the music and conversations throughout the room. Leah pulled her deeper through the fray, leading her to the far edge of the room, where behind the glass walls lay sectioned rooms. There were heavy curtains at the entrance to each, some were drawn shut, others wide open.