When it comes to lifeβs fun and games, always know:
Sophie Sage.
Hot damn. Sheβs fucking here. At my club. Itβs almost like I willed her here, for shitβs sake.
A pair of sexy stilettos are clasped to her feet, and her crossed legs look a mile long beneath the sexy green dress that hugs the curves of her body. Her hair hangs across her shoulders, and her blood-red painted lips curve up and into a smile.
But itβs not at me. Itβs at some dude in a pair of jeans and a collared shirt sitting beside her on the couch.
What the fuck? Is she here with that guy?
I shake my head. It wouldnβt be the first time one of my hookups tried to play petty bullshit games of jealousy in the interest of gaining more of my attention, but Sophie really hasnβt seemed like the type.
Picking my way through the fringe of people standing in front of her platformed section, I move in her direction carefully, hoping to get a better idea of whatβs really going on before I jump to conclusions. As I get closer and the music threads lower between songs, I overhear him ask, βCβmon, honey, let me at least buy you a drink.β
Sophie offers a conciliatory smile but also shakes her head at the dude who looks like he just left a fucking frat party. Iβm honestly surprised the bouncers even let him in here. I mean, he just oozes douchebag.
On what planet does this guy even think he stands a chance with a woman like Sophie? The situation is the epitome of him trying to play out of his league.
βWhat about a dance, honey?β he pesters as I climb up the steps in front of them, ready to intervene on her behalf, but Sophie responds before I can open my mouth.
βI would love to, but my parole officer gave me explicit instructions that the judge said I canβt do that.β
The dudeβs face scrunches up like he just ate a piece of bad fish. βParole officer?β
βYeah. Truthfully, my court order even says that Iβm not supposed to be here since itβs within four miles of the guyβs apartment.β Sophieβs smile turns conspiratorial as she leans in a little closer to add, βBut you wonβt tell on me, right? I just finished up a three-year stint at Bedford Hills, and there is no way I want to go back there. Iβm sure you can understand why.β
Bedford Hills is a womenβs-only correctional facility that most New Yorkers know about because itβs where Amy Fisher did her time after she shot Joey Buttafuocoβs wife.
Basically, there is no fucking way Sophie Sage spent three years there. But the fact that sheβs pretending to be a secret, undercover felon in the name of making this guy leave her alone amuses the hell out of me. Iβm going to have to thank Ki-Ki for the smooth, understated vibe of this song sheβs playing now, because normally, thereβs no way I wouldβve been able to make out what they were saying at all.
βUhβ¦Y-yeah. Of courseβ¦β The dude pauses and swallows hard around a mouthful of shock as his eyes dart around the nightclub. In mere seconds, his face has morphed from douchey and flirtatious to a man who fears the woman beside him is going to pull a shiv out of her purse and stab him in the dick.
βOh shit!β he shouts far too loudly and holds his hand up to his ear like heβs actually hearing something from the other side of the club. βI-I think my buddy is yelling for me. Yep. Thatβs him. Definitely him. Iβ¦uhβ¦better go see ifβ¦heβs okayβ¦yeahβ¦I should do thatβ¦uhβ¦bye.β
Like a sprinter out of the gate after the gunshot, heβs off the couch, gliding past me with a whoosh, and heading straight for the dance floor. I track his momentum over my shoulder to steal a final glance of his warp-speed departure, and man, itβs worth it. Like a pinball in an active machine, he bumps into several people as he tries to put as much distance between himself and Sophie and her prison stories as quickly as humanly possible.
Itβs comedy in its purest form and a situation I could spend a good ten minutes laughing aboutβif it werenβt for the woman on the couch. When I turn back toward her, sheβs staring at me with wide, tumultuous emerald eyes.
I grin down at her and scoot past the low-set table between us to settle a small kiss on the apple of her cheek. Her whole body shivers as I put my warm palm to the opposite side of her throat and whisper softly into her ear. βHello, Sophie. Fancy seeing you here tonight.β
βUhβ¦hey, Jude,β she greets quietly, her voice shaking slightly with something I canβt fully discern.
Satisfaction? Surprise? Nervousness?
I donβt know. But Iβm undeniably glad to see her and get the chance to find out. Taking a seat next to her, I skim my hand over the top of her bare knee and cross my ankle over my own, stretching an arm across the back of the sofa behind her. Her body turns toward mine subtly, and my grin kicks up a notch or two.
βParole officer? Court order? And a three-year stint in the slammer?β I repeat her earlier words, and a little laugh jumps from her throat.
βI take it Iβve been caught red-handed in the middle of my web of lies, huh?β
I nod. βWhere in the hell did you come up with that shit?β
βTruthfully? Iβm not quite sure.β She shrugs one bare shoulder. βLifetime movie. Dateline. Too many Netflix crime documentaries. Any of those could be to blame for my depravity.β
βWhy do I get the feeling thatβs not the first time youβve done something like that to scare off a manβs unwanted advances?β
βProbably because itβs not the first time.β She cringes, but also, the hint of a guilty smile kisses her perfect mouth.
Itβs so fucking cute I wish I could snap a picture to remember the adorable expression on her pretty face. Not to mention, the realization that sheβs not giving me even remotely the hard time she did Brad Phi Kappa spurs a thrill of satisfaction in my veins.
Something tells me Sophie Sage enjoys my kind of fun. And more than that, I think thatβs why sheβs here right nowβ¦
βAre you by yourself tonight?β
She nods, and her eyes flash like a traffic camera after sheβs just run a red light. They tell a story, one made up of highs and lows and a conclusion that ends at this club with me, serving her willingness on a platter much larger than a simple text to my number. Iβve never been more certain of one thingβshe is here for me.
And now the fun can begin. Game on.
I smirk, stand up, and reach down to take her hands into mine. Once I gently pull her off the velvet couch and to her feet, I wrap my arm around her waist and bring her closer to my chest so I can whisper, βYouβre here,β into her ear.
βI am.β She nods again, and the shell of her ear brushes across my lips.
βYou look beautiful,β I tell her truthfully and reach up to tuck a piece of her silky brown hair behind her ear. βThat dress of yours is reason enough for you to actually have a parole officer, or hell, maybe for me to have one.β
βWhat do you mean?β she asks.
βIβm liable to get into fifteen brawls on the dance floor tonight, Soph, and thatβs just with the men who are brave enough to touch you. I canβt even consider the ones who are bound to be looking at you in this thing.β
Even to myself, I sound oddly territorial. I reason internally, though, that no boy likes to share the newest of his toys, and boys never really grow up. I want to kiss and dance and fuck. I donβt need any other men coming over with their bullshit one-liners and distracting her. Right now, I want all of her attention.
Her cheeks redden a little at my words, and my nose doesnβt miss the fact that she smells insanely good. The soft hints of vanilla and sweet sugar and something else I canβt determine fill my head and damn near make me high.
I have to get confirmation of her intentions quickly, before I get completely lost in her. βAre you here for me?β I ask bluntly, and Sophie leans back to search my eyes.
βWellβ¦itβs either that or Iβm having a temporary moment of insanity.β She scoff-laughs. βHell, maybe itβs both.β
βTemporary insanity isnβt always a bad thing.β I smile and let my gaze flit from her gorgeous eyes to her full, red-painted lips before locking my eyes with hers again. βIn this case, I think it means youβve given yourself permission to have fun.β
βYeah. I think thatβs what it means, too.β
Instantly, a buzz of excitement blasts into my veins and sets my blood to singing. If Sophie Sage is here for fun, Iβm going to make sure I give it to her. And with the club running as smoothly as it is, I have the freedom and time to make it happen
Oh yeah. Tonight is going to be a good fucking night.
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