The men chuckled in amusement and even Gwen had to fight laughter.
Grace smiled at Adam when he handed a wineglass to her. “Teresa is still in the restroom fixing her lipstick and washing her hands. I wanted to know if the coast was clear.”
“Thanks for helping with that, Grace,” Angel said as he watched for his wife’s approach. “Here they come.”
Grace smiled at Joaquin and Angel and said, “She didn’t see Judith but there’s no guarantee that’ll last all night. Judith seems to get around…a lot.” She glanced at Julián and patted his shoulder and held his gaze. “Julián, why don’t you take off your jacket and stay a while?”
Damn, maybe she’s psychic or something.
He pulled the jacket off, grimacing when he caught a whiff of the residue of Judith’s perfume on it. “Good call, Grace. Thank you.”
“No problem. I think I want to dance.”
“I was just thinking the same thing, baby,” Adam replied as he wrapped his arm around her and took her to the dance floor.
Julián peered at Gwen, waiting for her to look up at him. “Gwen? Would you like to dance?”
She nodded. “Sure.” Her tone was forgiving as she stood from the chair and slipped her hand into his as “If I Didn’t Have You” by Thompson Square began to play.
When he faced her on the dance floor, he pulled her close and held her hand against his chest as they two-stepped. “She and I hooked up a couple of times a few years ago. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
“You didn’t really have time to tell me, did you?”
He shook his head. “Forgive me?”
Gwen kept perfect time and didn’t miss a step as she mulled over her response. “Judith pissed me off with her nasty remark, that much is obvious. But I would be the biggest hypocrite in the world if I was mad at you because you fucked her. Like Teresa always says about Joaquin and Angel, and their cowboy pasts—what’s in the past is staying there. And I don’t really have the right to feel jealous.”
“For however long we have you with us, feel as possessive as you want.”
“I do feel possessive, even though I shouldn’t. I just hate Judith’s guts. She’s cruel to any woman she sees as a rival, and we’re all rivals.”
“Would you like to go home? I’d say we’ve all had enough confrontations for one night.”
Gwen smirked. “Are you kidding? And let her run me out of a club on my home turf? Hell, no. Let’s stay until midnight.”
Julián was pleased by her unhesitating reference to Divine and The Pony as “home turf.”
She snuggled up to him and then pulled away with a repulsed look on her face. “Ew. Do you mind?” She unbuttoned the second button on his shirt and his cock tingled at the way her fingertips traced through his chest hair.
“Not at all, love. Have at me. I’m just glad I’m forgiven for my bad judgment.”
She grinned up at him as she undid another button. “That’s not my brand of Bath & Body Works I smell on you.” She stroked his chest right where Judith had touched him and then snuggled against him. “And there’s nothing to forgive. My old whatever-you-wanna-call-him is standing not fifty feet away being obnoxious and getting drunk. I’m not a stellar example of good judgment myself. I should be asking you for forgiveness for not ditching his lame ass the night you and I met. I wish I had.”
“When we get back to the table, we’ll drink a toast to leaving the past buried.”
“Six feet deep, baby.”
The night progressed more smoothly from that point. Because Judith was rather loud and spent a lot of time flitting around the dance floor with Hatch’s friends, Angel and Joaquin finally told Teresa that Judith was there. Teresa was made of tough stuff because she stayed right in her seat and continued on with her evening unaffected. Her doctor was sitting right next to her so her men seemed comfortable with the situation.
Chris had Gwen on the dance floor as the clock ticked down to midnight. Seizing the moment, Julián joined them as the lights sparkled and streamers flew everywhere. They closed in around her and Julián kissed her, pouring all his longing into it. Longing for a new year that was filled with her, all twelve months, and not just two. He ended it reluctantly, knowing that Chris wanted her just as much.
She clung to them, refusing to let go of either of them. Chris stroked her throat as he stood behind her, then cupped her cheek in his hand. He kissed her, tangling tongues with her until Julián could see her pulse pounding at her throat as the lights danced brightly around them.