“I know. I’m afraid of what I’ll find out once I start talking to her.”
His large hand slipped to rest against the small of my back, leading me towards the small group. Managing to plaster a huge smile on my face, I approached Georgia first.
“Hey, Georgia.” I reached out and hugged her lightly, concerned when she stood unmoving and stiff, her arms hanging at her sides. I was relieved when she finally returned the hug and laughed lightly. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“And miss your going away party?” Georgia asked, pulling away and patting my cheek with her manicured hand. Her smile was tight as her gaze flashed to Stefan. He was standing next to me, holding me close against his side. Her smile slowly faded as awareness swept over her face. I had purposely left my shields down tonight so I could monitor Georgia and her emotions were… odd. She wasn’t frightened of Stefan, or even scared. Instead she was emoting smugness and resentment, yet had resigned herself to not cause any trouble. Unconsciously, she had recognized him for what he was, even though she didn’t understand or have a name for it. She sensed he was something different. Not exactly human, but something peculiar.
As Stefan would say, interesting.
Anna made a beeline to me, with a drink in hand. She handed it to me and winked, her cheeks flushed. She swayed back and forth for a moment before she whispered loudly to me. “Drink this, Josie. Lukas is the best bartender ever. It’s a shame he’s gay because…”
“La la la. I don’t want to hear it.” Plugging my ear with my free finger, I shook my head to clear my head of Anna’s drunken chatter. I swallowed down half of my drink in one gulp as Stefan’s handmade reappearance at my back and guided me towards Lukas. His ice blue eyes sparkled as I sat down at the small bar and watched me toy with the stem of my margarita glass.
“I’m glad you could join the party, Josie. It’s for you after all,” Lukas placed his hands on the bar and rested his weight on his forearms. “It must have been difficult to pull yourself away from the magic Stefan possesses. You know, his magic di…”
“Shut your mouth, Lukas!” I hissed, pointing a finger at him as a blush spread across my face.
“Don’t shoot the messenger! Anna and I were just talking.” He waved his hands in surrender. “I’ve spent 175 years with him and I’ve found out more about him since you’ve been in the picture. Magic dick and all.”
“Lukas,” Stefan muttered his name in warning. Lukas nodded and busied himself in cutting up a lime.
Anna had wasted no time in telling Lukas about our discussion today. Angrily, I glanced over my shoulder to glare at Anna. She was talking away to Georgia but felt my eyes watching her and glanced up. When she saw the expression on my face, she swallowed and diverted her eyes downward into her drink.
Sensing my annoyance, Stefan scooted my drink away and took me by the hand just as the music changed.
“Come dance with me…it is the merengue,” he said, leaning to whisper in my ear.
“What is it with you and your obsession with dancing, Stefan? I don’t know how to do this.” I tugged against him, attempting free myself of his grasp.
“I love to dance with you. Come.”
He began walking seductively backwards, pulling me along with him, his hips moving in time to the music. He drew me to the middle of the spacious living room and spun me once around to face him. He grabbed my right hand with his left and pulled me against him, his right hand splayed across my lower back. His powerful thigh slipped between my legs and we started moving in a one-two rhythm, our hips swaying together to the music. He twirled me around. The infectious music and the enticing way we moved together were making my reservations slip away.
“See. You are having fun, yes? It is all in the leading.” His mind voice was smug as he tightened his grip on me.
Stefan seemed to love dancing almost as much as the way my hips moved to the music, if I judged solely by how often his hand would drift down my back to brush against my ass. He’d then wink and twirl me out, pulling me back against him. It was then that I let my eyes sweep over his chest, watching every muscle ripple beautifully as he moved in sync with me. Finally, I looked up and our eyes met, his blue eyes were glowing as our legs and feet moved quickly to match the beat.
The song ended and he dipped me backwards until my hair touched the floor. When he pulled me back up, his lips aligned with mine. They were soft, his breath warm and sweet. He kissed the side of my mouth, brushing my lips against mine until they parted to allow him in. His soft tongue filled my mouth and our tongues met in a lazy duel, each moment that passed increased the strength of the kiss until I could barely breathe at all.