Divided (2 page)

I gave Katie the ‘let’s go’ look but she was not having it.

“Katie,” I called again. “Are you ready?” 

“My feet really hurt Ally. Can we get another drink? I was enjoying the back and forth between the two of you.” She said looking between Ryan and I.

I couldn’t believe she was really doing this. I opened my mouth to protest but I felt a strong calloused hand grab mine. The electrical shock ran through me again. It felt like I had stuck my finger in an outlet with the jolt that shot up my arm, and then all of a sudden, nothing else mattered as long as Ryan was touching me and I had to fight to hide the effect he had on me.

“Can I help you?” I asked looking down at our intertwined hands. My small hand fitting perfectly in his.

“No more questions. I just want to dance with you. Is that ok?” He asked, tugging me towards him.

“That was a question Kraft, but yes, let's dance.” I smiled up at him not even acknowledging Katie or Mike as we passed by.

Without letting go of my hand, Ryan walked through
the club
like he owned the place. It was dark inside but the room had white cloth drapes that hung from the ceiling and long white sofas around the perimeter. There were white and black checked floors that easily played tricks on you when you were intoxicated.  We had arrived pretty early so there weren’t that many people, and the music wasn't too loud yet so we were still able to hear each other speak. Ryan walked past the dance floor and I pulled on his hand to stop him. 

“Rooftop VIP has a better dance floor, plus a wicked view.” He said to me while he continued to walk. Four flights later we were at the top.

The rooftop was beautiful. There were the same white couches that were down below up here, lined up against the wall for people to sit. We were just above the strip and I could hear all the noise from down below and felt the Las Vegas heat on my skin.

Ryan walked over to the bouncer standing behind the velvet ropes. I expected the bouncer to turn us away, but instead he pulled the rope back to let Ryan and myself in. Ryan led the way over to the VIP section and took a seat. I let go of his hand and stared at him.
God he was sexy!
The club down below had been so dark and smoky that I hadn’t really seen how perfectly defined his face was until now. He was very masculine, with a hint of boyish charm. He had a strong jaw and high cheekbones but his lips and eyes made him seem younger. And his hair, oh his hair. I just wanted to run my fingers through it and never stop. Images of tousled sheets and a morning after grin assailed my vision.

“What?” He asked, catching me staring at his flawless face.

“I wanted to dance.” I pouted in an effort to distract him from my obvious staring

“But I owe you an apology; so I decided to bring you here first where we could talk and then we can dance the night away.”

“Oh.” Now it was my turn to be quiet. Wait, what did he have to apologize for?

I sat next to him on the couch as the cocktail waitress made her way over with her orders.

“I’m not usually such an asshole,” he began. “When I saw you in the bar downstairs I was really pissed, if that’s even possible. I was just, I don’t know, angry.” Ryan paused for a second rubbing both hands through his hair. “Mostly just disappointed. I know I’m not really making much sense, but I can’t help but be mad at you.”

I slid back on the couch shocked by what he was telling me. “How can you be mad at me? You don’t even know me.” I said in a low voice.

His eyes changed as he exhaled, I could see that he was trying hard to be patient and understanding, neither of which I gave a crap about at the moment. Annoyed that he was mad at me, I looked at the crowd and then back at him. I was enjoying my night and had been feeling really nice and tipsy until he came along. My emotions were haywire and now
he
was mad with me. I stood up to leave, I didn’t need this, but he grabbed my wrist effectively stopping me.      

“Alani wait. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. Of course, I don’t know you and that’s why I’m mad I guess. I don’t want to sound creepy but I want nothing more than to know you. I came here tonight with no intentions of meeting anyone. But I saw you the second I walked in and just felt drawn to you. Like there was something that was pulling me towards you. I saw that you and your friends were here celebrating and when I saw the tiara I prayed for a birthday celebration or a job promotion. Hell even a divorce party!  But you turned around and I saw that your sash said ‘bride to be’ and I was, I don’t know...” He trailed off, reaching to take both of my hands in his. “Shit this sounds so stupid. I guess… I was upset because it meant that I wouldn’t be able to get to know you. You know, the real you. Not the one who is reserved because she doesn’t want to disrespect her fiancé. I didn’t mean to come off as a jerk and for that I’m sorry.”

His eyes were so sincere and I felt an ache form in my chest. I couldn’t believe that my heart was aching for this man that I only met twenty minutes ago. I had to shake this off and blame the tequila for making my head feel so fuzzy and I needed to get rid of whatever it was that I was feeling every time my heart beat. God what I needed was another drink.

“Say something.” he said. I didn’t realize that I hadn’t said a single thing after his apology. I only managed to stare at him, my mind rapidly repeating what he said.

“Ryan, it’s fine. We’re in Vegas so let’s just have a good time. Since you ruined my buzz you owe me a serious amount of liquor.” I joked. Mentally talking myself out of a minor anxiety attack.

“Alright Bug, let’s get your buzz back, and then I’ll show you my moves on the dance floor.” He smirked back at me, a dimple forming on his cheek, and just like that the seriousness of his previous statement was whipped away.

Ryan called over the cocktail waitress and ordered four double shots of
Patrón
, chilled.  We each toasted to a truce and then downed both shots back to back. By then I stood up ready to dance and led Ryan to the extremely small but semi-private dance floor. The DJ was playing 
Scream and Shout
By 
Britney Spears
and at first our dancing was innocent. We both just two stepped with each other back and forth. But as the liquid courage started to flow through our veins we inched closer to one another. It was like every song that the DJ was playing was directed to us.

The cocktail waitress came by asking if we wanted another round, Ryan ordered two more double shots, and a beer for himself and I ordered a Red Bull and vodka. The shots went down smoothly and we continued to dance with our drinks in hand. Each step we took moving us closer to one another.

Time was moving quicker than I had noticed. I was so stuck on him that, I didn’t realize that the girls were in the VIP along with a bunch of guys chatting and drinking.

When I looked up at them, they all gave me the thumbs up, encouraging me to go on. I tossed my dark loosely curled hair to the side and bit down on my lip.  Nervous of what they would think, I just closed my eyes and continued dancing with Ryan. They were my friends. At the end of the day they wanted me to enjoy myself.

Things were getting hot between Ryan and me. Every once in a while my ass would rub up against his crotch and sometimes he would come in so close that our cheeks would rub together. I inhaled as deep as I could to smell his cologne, his scent spellbinding. I couldn’t help but continue to breathe him in. Unable to control myself any longer I leaned in and whispered, “follow me” into his ear.

As I passed the girls, I told them that I was going to the restroom and that Ryan was escorting me. He only nodded in agreement. I went back down the stairs one at a time gripping Ryan’s arm like a vise. I knew we both had a lot to drink and I didn’t want to fall flat on my face, though if I was being honest with myself, I didn’t want to lose contact with him either.

I found a dark, private corner and pulled Ryan closer to me before beginning our dance once again. “You didn’t like the view?” He asked into my ear. Being that we were back inside he had to get very close in order for me to hear him. I held my breath as I felt his proximity. I tried to stay cool, but all I wanted to do was lick and bite his neck.

“No, the view was fine.” I replied, unable to stop myself from biting my lower lip.

Ryan was a fine specimen to stare at and admire but I didn’t like being watched. I felt that way upstairs surrounded by everyone. Not that the girls would ever say anything to Marco but still, I didn’t like the feeling of being an animal in a zoo. And I wanted privacy to give me the courage to do what I was about to do so I turned around and pushed my back into Ryan. He didn’t miss a beat; he put one hand on my stomach to keep me in place and we danced as if we were the only two in the entire club. His hand lay flat on my stomach pulling me tighter into him as my body submitted to whatever he asked. 

Though neither of us said anything, the dancing was enough to get the message across. I felt him as he grew in his pants and that only added fuel to my fire. I reached up and did what I had wanted to do all night. I ran my hands through his hair and it was everything had I imagined, thick and smooth through my fingers. As I threaded my fingers through his hair again, he moved my own hair to the side and licked my neck. I pulled tightly on his hair involuntarily as his tongue grazed my skin. My panties becoming wet with the need for release. I stepped out of his grasp and looked him in the eye.

He wore a shy smile; knowing he had stepped too far but still he pulled me into his embrace and whispered in my ear. “Bug, don’t be mad. I wanted to lick that beautiful neck of yours all night. I was trying to behave but when you grabbed my hair,
Christ
and then pushed that sweet ass against my cock, you’re lucky it was only your neck that I licked. What I really want to do is lick that sweet pussy of yours while you pull at my hair.” 

Stunned I jumped back. “Walk away, Kraft!” I yelled over the sound of the music.

He reached out and grabbed me again.
Why am I going willingly into his arms
? This time he pulled me and stepped back until his back hit the wall.

“I’ll never disrespect you, I don’t know what happens to me when I’m around you. This isn’t my usual behavior, I just I can’t control myself.” He said, cupping my face. “Why don’t we go back outside and get to know each other better? If I can’t have you at least let me know everything about you?”

Something inside of me melted at his admission and I nodded my consent and turned around, heading towards the rooftop. My head beginning to fill with clouded thoughts. When I asked him to walk away it wasn’t because I was mad. I wasn’t. I was so turned on that if he tried to kiss me, I didn’t know if I had the strength to turn him down. I didn’t need fresh air. What I needed was a cold shower.

When we reached the rooftop VIP area, all the girls were dancing with the guys so Ryan and I had the couch to ourselves. “So Alani tell me, where are you from? What do you do? Where did you grow up? What’s your favorite color?” he asked, appearing excited about the last one.

 “Brooklyn, New York, I’m a writer for a pharmaceutical magazine, New Jersey
and
Purple.”

“You’re a Jersey girl huh?” He didn’t let me ask the same questions of him though and instead replied for me.

“North Dakota, Ice hockey coach, North Dakota and White”

“White? Really” I asked surprised by the odd answer.

“Where I live it snows a lot. So you grow to appreciate the whiteness of everything.” Ryan and I sat on the couches facing the strip, getting to know one another as best we could in the small time we had. We asked each other all of the basic questions. Where did you go to school? What did you major in? How was your childhood? What was your favorite food? If you could go anywhere in the world where would it be? The questions became an endless stream.

Most brides to be wouldn’t spend there last night in Las Vegas getting to know someone, but I couldn't get rid of the feeling that I needed to know everything about Ryan. It could be my mind playing tricks on me, but I got the feeling that he felt the same way. 

At about two in the morning, Katie came and interrupted our little bubble. “There is karaoke at
Planet Hollywood
, let’s go sing.” I gave her a mortified look. “Katie, you know I can't sing and there is no way I'm getting on stage.”

“I’ll sing with you, Bug.” Ryan replied in a soft whisper; reaching for my hand and with that alone, I completely changed my mind. I wanted to see if he could sing just as well as he danced. Could he dance with me while he sang?

“Ok.” I could barely respond, as my knees went weak.

 After gathering everyone together we made our way across the strip. Ten minutes later we were making our way into
Planet Hollywood
. It was the quickest ten-minute walk of my life. Katie and the rest of the girls walked ahead of us with the guys, while Ryan and I hung back from the group. He held my hand the whole time, his pinky finger holding onto mine. He didn't say a word to me as we walked, simply enjoying each other’s company. Every once in a while he would bring our intertwined hand to his lips and kiss the back of my hand. He had no idea what he was doing to me, or to my heart. I couldn’t think straight around him and I had to keep reminding myself that in less than two weeks, I was getting married.

Inside of
Planet Hollywood
we walked directly into the casino of the hotel. The small bar that was hosting the karaoke was right next to the entrance. I was so relieved because I knew I couldn’t make it walking much longer. My four-inch heels were getting the best of me and Melanie wouldn’t allow any of us to walk without them. She swore that men loved women in heels and that it made our legs appear longer. I laughed to myself as I thought of Melanie’s rules, all of which she called ‘what Cosmo didn’t tell you.’ Most of the time I didn't disagree, but I had been in heels since eight that evening and my little toe was begging for freedom.

       We walked right in to the small bar, the guys once again paid for a VIP section. While everyone was so excited and knew what song they wanted to sing, I was not as happy. I hated public speaking, it was one of my biggest fears and I had never been able to get over it. The butterflies were flapping in my stomach; and a cold sweat began to form on the back of my neck. I held Ryan's hand tighter hoping he’d ignore the feel of my sweaty palms. Looking directly into my eyes I could tell he noticed the fear written across my face.