Stop this, Prue. You’re starting to sound like a broken record.
She stared down at her hands then reached behind her.
“I’m really happy you agreed to go with me,” she said, staring between her two friends.
Becky and Anya looked at one another before turning to her.
“I was shocked you called at all. I’ve not heard from you in so long I thought something had happened to you. You’re working in a supermarket, Prue. You hate those places.”
She shrugged, sipping her drink. There was only a small amount of alcohol in her drink. Prue needed to keep her wits about her. She sipped her drink while gazing out at the floor. The couples looked so relaxed and happy.
I miss this.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called or gone out. Life has been pretty hectic,” Prue said, stirring her drink with the straw.
“Did James break up with you?” Becky asked, brushing aside her hair. “I can’t believe you got the blue colour.”
Prue smiled. “Yeah, I needed a change, and I don’t know what’s happening between James and me. It’s complicated.”
“Sorry to interrupt you ladies, but these drinks are for you,” Gabe said, placing three filled glasses in front of them.
Prue handed Gabe her empty glass. “Who are they from?” she asked.
“The boss, there.” Gabe pointed at the alcove where she and James had once danced. There he stood, dressed in leather looking as commanding as he usually did.
Her heart rate picked up. He looked so good with his arms folded over his chest. The muscles bulged. She remembered what it felt like to be pushed against the tree with his body crowding her.
“Speak of the handsome devil,” Anya said.
“Excuse me.” Prue took her drink and moved toward the alcove where he stood. His gaze followed her. Prue loved his attention, and the knowledge he still watched her sent a thrill up her spine. “Hi,” she said. Words failed her. Being close to him reminded her how tall and imposing he was.
“You came.”
“Yes, this place is great.”
“And you’re out with your friends.”
“Yes.”
Where was the easy banter between them? Even when he dated her sister they’d gotten on better than this. The lack of conversation made her uneasy. His gaze remained on hers. She didn’t know what to say. Staring at the floor she waited for the right words to spring to mind.
“You look good,” he said, cutting through the silence.
“Thank you.”
“I hope you have fun. The drinks are on the house.” James turned to leave. Seeing his back spiked her anger.
“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say to me?”
“What more is there to say?” he asked, turning to face her.
“You use to be different. Why don’t you care?” She hated the way she sounded so needy. This wasn’t her. She didn’t like feeling this way.
“Enjoy yourself, Prue.”
The use of her nickname annoyed her. James refused to call her by anything other than Prudence, and yet there he’d just called her Prue.
Turning away from him, she went back to her friends. She downed her drink then ordered another. “I suggest you drink to your hearts’ content, ladies. James says the drink is on the house.”
Gabe handed her another drink, which she downed in one.
She lifted her hands above her head letting out a whoop. Her friends did the same.
“Come on, let’s dance.”
Prue tugged them onto the dance floor. The number was fast, and she rocked her body with the beat of the music. Throwing her arms above her head, Prue worked her hips. She matched her friends step for step not wanting the glorious buzz to stop.
When one song ended, she ran to the bar and downed a shot. She began to feel the buzz of the alcohol along with the heavy thump of the music. Even though she laughed with her friends and then danced suggestively with the men who came near her, Prue knew something was missing.
James didn’t come out of his office. Men wrapped their arms around her waist then humped her backside, and he didn’t come out to stop them. She didn’t know what annoyed her more, the lack of response or the fact she missed the response he used to give. James had once told her she was all his. He was an owner, and she was his property. At that moment, she felt like he’d put her up for sale.
She went to the bar and ordered a glass of water. One of the guys followed her. Prue ignored him. She didn’t want his attention, and he’d been dancing with one of her friends.
Gabe handed her a glass.
“Fuck off,” he said to the man beside her. The look Gabe gave the man would kill people on the spot. The guy beside her left in the next instant.
“Thanks.” She sipped the water looking toward the office.
“He’s in his office if you wish to go and see him.”
Draining the water she left her seat heading toward his office.
****
James turned the computer screen off. After watching several men dancing with his woman he was struggling with the urge to go out and murder them. He sat in his office chair clawing at the handles to stay in place. Never in all of his life had he needed to fight his natural instincts.
Gabe came through to his office to let him know he was keeping an eye on her. The new Dom at Ravage was a blessing. James had told Gabe about Prudence and had also shown him a photo of her hoping she’d come back to his club.
He wished he hadn’t invited her back.
The way she moved tantalised him. Her h*ps swung from side to side, and her tits moved with each beat. Shit, his c**k thickened in his pants. Two months without her and he threatened to rip apart his trousers in order to get to her.
His office door opened and slammed against the wall. Prudence stood glaring at him. She stepped into his office looking threatening. He found her cute with her arms folded. She wasn’t tall, and her presence was more adorable than scary.
She closed the door advancing closer to his desk.
“Why are you here, Prudence?” James asked. Her scent was driving him crazy. In the short space everything about her filled every part of his office. Her scent, the way she looked, everything captivated him. She always wore the most subtle perfume, which always drove him crazy with wanting her.
“You ask me to come to Ravage; you buy me a drink, and then nothing?”
He heard the hurt in her voice. Calling her Prue had been a mistake. He’d hated the word on his tongue. To him, her name would always be Prudence.