Pulled to the Dark (The Siriena Series) (35 page)

The two of them bantered back and forth. I couldn't tell if they were serious or not. I finally decided it didn't matter. I was there to have a nice time.

The waitress came by and took our order. We ordered two of the sushi platters for the table. Petra and Sally consulted and ordered a bottle of wine.

I was feeling playful. I snuggled against Petra, but I reached out a booted foot and found one of Karen's feet. She glanced over at me and grinned. We played
footsie
under the table. I regretted the boots. It would have been more fun in heels.

"What are you doing?" Petra asked me.

"Drinking my wine," I told her.

"Knock it off," she said.

"I can't drink my wine?"

"Quit flirting with Karen," she said.

"But she's cute," I said. "Don't you think she's cute?"

"I think she's cute," Beth said. "But I didn't see any flirting."

"They're playing
footsie
under the table," Petra said.

"There is no way you can tell that!" I said.

She stared me down. I sighed. "Spoilsport," I told her.

Erika laughed then turned to Sally. "That is your foot I'm playing with, isn't it? I'd hate to think Felicia had another foot way over here."

"It's mine," Beth said. "I didn't know you felt that way about me."

"Are you people always like this?" Sally asked.

Petra sighed. "Yes," she said. "It was bad enough when Erika and Beth were long distance, but now the three of them are positively incorrigible, and they've corrupted Karen, who used to be sweet and innocent."

I reached a foot over to Karen again. Petra squeezed my hand. Hard. I brought my feet back to myself.

The sushi platters came. They were as good as I remembered. Petra asked Sally about Alicia. "She'll stop by," Sally told her. "Later, if she gets a chance. Do you know her?"

I cuddled against Petra and wrapped a leg around hers under the
table
. She adjuste
d and sandwiched my calf
between hers.

Sally and Petra carried on a conversation. I kept giving Petra puppy dog "I want to dance" eyes, but she wasn't paying any attention to me. I reached my free foot over to Karen and got my hand squeezed again. I guess she was paying attention
after all
.

I began to fidget. Petra looked down at me and raised an eyebrow. "Are you bored already?"

"I was just wondering if I had to work the room to get an invitation to the dance floor. Carol brought some pretty hot looking women past a few minutes ago."

She stared at me for a moment. "Would you like to dance?"

"I would love to, Petra," I said sweetly.

We slid out of the booth, and she led me through the club to the dance floor. As dancers go, she sucked. She looked like she wanted to be anywhere else but there on the floor with me. I tried flirting her into a better mood, but she ignored me. After two songs, she pulled me back to the booth and nudged me into my seat. I waited until she was seated then pointedly put several inches between us, as far as I could go from her without crowding Karen. Petra didn't seem to notice but went back to her conversation with Sally.

I finished my wine and decla
red a need to use the bathroom. Petra let me out, but I got a glare for it. I had no idea what that meant.

I found the restroom. I hadn't really needed to go, but as long as I was there... I washed up then stared into the sink.

A couple of women came in. I ignored them and they appeared to ignore me.  I stood at the sink and pretended to be fussing at my makeup.

I'd been gone for ten minutes when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out. There was a text from Beth. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," I texted back.

"Yeah, right," came the response. "Do you need Erika and me?"

I stared at it for a few minutes. The bathroom door opened, admitting Erika and Beth.

"What's wrong?" Erika asked.

"Are you as pissed that your date is ignoring you as I am at mine?"

"She hasn't been ignoring me," Erika said. "She's been flirting my skirt off me."

"She's deep in conversation with Petra."

"Not under the table," Erika said. "But I admit your date is being a bitch."

I turned to Beth. "Do you think you could pretend to enjoy dancing with me?"

"I don't have to pretend," Beth said. She took my hand. "Let's go."

She pulled me right past the table on the way to the dance floor. Behind us, Erika asked Sally to dance.

I danced two songs with Beth and had a much nicer timer than when I'd danced with Petra. Then we switched and I danced with Erika while Beth danced with Sally. Then I got a song with Sally.

A slow song came on and Sally stepped away. "I think this song is for my date," she said.

"That would be best," I agreed.

Sally grabbed Erika and pulled her into her arms. I turned to Beth.

"Oh no," she said. "I like you, Felicia, but Petra will do all sorts of things to me if I slow dance with you, and they won't end with an orgasm."

"You're right," I said. I scanned the room. There was a woman sitting alone at the bar. I took one step in her direction before Beth grabbed my arm.

"Do you really want to go there?" she asked me. "Are you really breaking up with Petra over a dance or two?"

I sighed. "No."

I let her pull me back to our table, but when we sat down, I slid in next to
Beth
instead of taking the seat Petra was offering me.

She glared at me. There was a fresh glass of wine at my old seat. I reached past Beth and Karen and grabbed it.

Karen looked back and forth between Petra and me. "What's going on?" she asked. "Why are you two glaring at each other? Whatever is wrong, kiss and make up. Right now. You're ruining everyone else's night."

I looked at Karen. She was right. I was ruining everyone's night. The realization took all the w
ind out of my sails of anger. My
lower lip started quivering. "I'm sorry," I said quickly and ran for the bathroom.

I started sobbing even before I made it through the door. I threw myself into one of the stalls and began blubbering. That just made me mad all over again. I hated crying.

It took several minutes to get myself back under control. I dried my tears and decided to text Beth that I'd find my own way home then realized I'd left my purse on the table. I hid in the stall, not wanting to face anyone.

The bathroom door opened. "Honey? Felicia?" It was Petra's voice.

"Go away," I told her. "I can find my own way home."

"Where are you?"

"Now you care? Go away."

She started rattling stall doors and found mine. "Let me in."

"What part of 'go away' wasn't clear?"

"Beth and Karen read me the riot act," she said. "I'm sorry."

"This was supposed to be a date.
With flirting.
And dancing.
And pressing our bodies together during the slow songs.
I didn't realize you were that ashamed to be seen in public with me. I must really be an embarrassment. I didn't realize."

"It's not like that," she said.

"Sure felt like it to me. You wouldn't let me have a little fun, and then you acted like I had the plague. Were you that pissed I was teasing Karen?"

"You were confusing Karen,"
Petra
said. "She thought you were serious."

"Don't be daft. She knows how I feel about you. Or perhaps felt about you. I have no intention of being with someone who is so ashamed of me. If you wanted someone
who
acted more maturely and less playfully, what the hell are you doing with me?"

She didn't respond and then it sounded like she was crying. I opened the stall door and saw tears running down her cheeks. I stared at her. "It's not like that," she said quietly. "You've heard from Karen about her upbringing. Well, mine was worse. I have never in my life before tonight danced with another woman in public. As you saw, I don't know how."

"You knew I expected dancing tonight. Why didn't you say something?"

"I didn't realize I'd feel so self-conscious. I was ready to dance with you again when you came back to the table, but then you sat down on the other side and we got mad at each other."

"There was a slow dance. You could have come out and joined me."

"I need more not-slow dances first."

I stared at her for a moment, then brushed past her and stood in front of the sink, wondering how I was going to fix my makeup without my purse. She walked over to stand behind me and set my purse down on the countertop. I didn't realize she had brought it with her.

I fixed my makeup then hers.

"I expect dancing," I told her. "And a real date. I expect you to work up the nerve to a slow dance, and I expect you to kiss me like I've never been kissed, right there on the dance floor. I'll be at our table."

And I walked out.

The four of them stared at me when I returned. "All better?" Beth asked.

"I don't know. I'm sorry for ruining everyone's night."

Sally turned to Erika, cupped Erika's chin with her hand, and kissed her, right there in front of us. Then she turned to me. "My night isn't ruined."

I cracked a tiny grin.

Beth turned to Karen with a hopeful expression.

"Forget it," Karen said. "I'll flirt with you. I'll dance with you. I'll let you do what you're doing with your fingers right now. But girls are way too much drama. I'm sticking to boys."

Erika looked under the table to see what Beth was doing. She came up grinning.

"They aren't," I said.

"Look for yourself," she said.

I stared at Beth and Karen. Karen suddenly shifted. "Oh yeah, right there," she said.

"You two are full of shit," I said.

Beth smiled at me. Karen stared into space and squirmed. "There, honey?" Beth asked.

"Oh yeah," Karen said. "You've-" she gasped. "Done this before."

"You are so full of shit," I said again,
then
ducked under the table to look.

They were innocently holding hands.

I popped back up.

"Made you look," Karen said.

Petra walked up to the table. She looked poised but a little tense. "Felicia," she said. "Would you care to dance?"

I looked at her for a moment. "Yes, Petra, I very much would like to dance."

I took her hand and she led me to the dance floor. She was still stiff and reserved, but when the third song came up, she didn't flee the floor. I stepped closer to her and tugged on her hips, sliding my leg between hers so we were hip to hip, my leg between hers, hers between mine. I took her hands and put them on my hips and wrapped my arms around her neck.

"Think about what you want me to do to you later," I told her.

Her eyes grew a little wide, but she didn't pull away. She let me lead for two songs. I danced us at half rhythm, turning a fast song into a moderate song. She was still stiff.

"Imagine you're using dance to seduce me," I told her. "Because you are."

She was still stiff and self-conscious.

"No one matters here but me," I told her. "You better convince me of that, Petra."

I captured her eyes with mine. Every time she tried to look away, I pulled her chin back to me. "No," I said. "I'm right here, not over there. Convince me you want me."

I could tell the moment she started to enjoy herself. She settled closer in and smiled at me. She pulled me closer against her, and suddenly she was the predator again. I melted against her.

A slow song came on. She pulled me into her arms and kissed the side of my neck. "Mine," she said.

"Yours," I agreed.

She kissed me when the song was over. My knees grew weak. I clung to her tightly and enjoyed the kiss.

After that, I let her pull me back to our table. I slid in,
then
moved against her once she was seated. I put my head on her shoulder and my hand in her lap.

She pulled my chin up to look at her and said, "Thank you."

I pushed myself against her more firmly.

"I'd like a tiny bit more wine," I said. "And one more of those sushi platters."

"I just ordered another one," Sally said.

"And then I want more dancing," I said. I looked up at Petra. "Some with you, some with my friends."

She caressed my cheek.

* * *

We closed the bar down. Everyone danced with everyone, and it was nice seeing Petra on the floor. I was amazed when Sally asked her to dance and
Petra
agreed.
I immediately grabbed Erika, and the two of
us
danced where we could watch Petra and Sally.