Burn (Breathless #3) Page 23

  Caro grinned so big that it lit up the inside of the limo. Then she glanced Josie and Brittany’s way and her smile got even bigger.

  “I’m Caroline,” she said, extending her right hand. “You must be Josie and Brittany!”

  “I’m Josie,” Josie said, returning her smile. “And this is Brittany.”

  “Brandon’s waiting so let’s get going,” Caroline said enthusiastically. “He has our table, of course, and tonight we have two waitresses instead of our usual one. We’re expanding, girls! Soon we’ll have the entire club to ourselves on our nights out.”

  “Now there’s an idea,” Mia drawled. “Our own private club. It has a certain ring to it.”

  Bethany snorted as they piled out. “All you’d have to do is tell Gabe you want one and he’d buy it for you.”

  Mia grinned. “This is true.”

  “Chessy, Gina and Trish are already inside waiting at the table,” Caroline explained.

  Then a big, goofy smile attacked her face and Josie glanced up to see what she was looking at.

  A tall, very muscular, very hot guy stood there, smiling indulgently. He had a goatee and he wore an earring in his left ear. It was obvious, judging by the way Caroline looked at him and the way he looked at her, that this had to be Brandon, the bouncer. He certainly looked the part.

  “Ladies,” he greeted. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to your table.”

  “You did awesome, Brandon,” Mia said, patting him on the shoulder. “Caro’s ring is gorgeous!”

  He smiled. “Glad you approve. I wanted her to have the perfect ring. It’s only fair. I get the perfect girl so she gets the perfect ring.”

  “Oh damn,” Brittany muttered. “That’s the most awesome thing I’ve ever heard a guy say.”

  Josie had to agree. It was absolutely sweet.

  Caroline’s cheeks flushed but her eyes shone with love for Brandon. Two weeks ago, seeing this would have made Josie insanely jealous, because Michael would never ever make his feelings known in public. Or private for that matter. But now she had Ash. Ash who had no problem whatsoever with people knowing Josie was his.

  They pushed their way to the front, bypassing the long line of people waiting to get in. Then Brandon led them through the noisy crowd toward a set of tables in the corner of the room just off the dance floor.

  Music reverberated through the air, invading Josie’s blood, pumping along in time with her pulse. Her feet were already hurting, and she knew there was no way in hell she’d dance with these shoes on. She’d probably kill herself. But the shoes were more for Ash’s benefit. He’d actually been quite vocal about his choices when they’d gone shopping. She’d spare her feet for the evening, but when she headed back to Ash’s apartment, they’d go back on.

  When they reached the table, a waitress stood there with a tray full of drinks. Mia smiled and turned to explain to Josie and Brittany.

  “She always brings us two drinks to start the evening. We drink one down immediately after a group toast and then we sip the second until she gets back with more. Bethany and I weren’t sure what your preferences were so we went for girly drinks. Cosmos and amaretto sours. The sours are Bethany’s favorite and one of the few things she can drink to the point of intoxication. If you let the waitress know what you like, she’ll swing by with another round later.”

  “I like Cosmos,” Brittany said over the music.

  “I don’t drink much,” Josie said ruefully. “I’m kind of making an exception for tonight. Ash was so eager for me to go out that I couldn’t disappoint him.”

  Bethany and Mia both laughed.

  “That’s because Gabe and Jace have tortured Ash with all the details of what the man gets out of girls’ night out,” Bethany said with a roll of her eyes.

  “Try an amaretto sour, Josie,” Bethany said, shoving one of the drinks into her hands. “I don’t drink much either, but this one is really good. Sweet and fruity without too much alcohol. I still manage to get wasted on them though.”

  When everyone had their drinks, they gathered in a tight circle as Mia made introductions between Chessy, Gina and Trish and Josie and Brittany. Once they were done, they all held their drinks up.

  “To Caro!” Mia yelled. “And that big ass rock on her finger!”

  “To Caro!” the group chorused.

  They clinked glasses, sloshing the drinks over the rims. Then they gulped them down, chugging until the glasses were empty. The waitress emptied her tray of the second-round drinks and with a smile left the tables to go get refills.

  “Let’s dance!” Caro yelled.

  Josie allowed herself to be pulled toward the dance floor. She liked to dance. Was actually pretty good at it. It had been a while, though. Michael wasn’t into dancing or clubbing. She could shake her ass with the best of them, and tonight was as good a night as any to let loose and have some fun.

  She liked Mia and Bethany’s friends. Brittany did too judging by her big smile and dancing eyes.

  “We have a precedent to follow,” Mia yelled.

  “Oh?” Josie inquired.

  “Yeah,” Bethany interjected. “We get really sexy on the dance floor, make all the men’s tongues hang out, and when whoever’s drawn guy duty for the night gets here, we pull out all the stops and give them, Brandon and the rest of the guys a show they won’t forget.”

  Josie burst into laughter. “Okay, I’m starting to see where Ash is coming from with the girls’ night out thing.”

  Mia’s eyes twinkled merrily. “Oh, Bethany and I will fill you all in after we’ve had a few drinks and are taking a break at the table.”

  That sounded fair enough. Until then? She was going to let her hair down. Just a figure of speech, however. Bethany had spent a lot of time upsweeping Josie’s hair into an “elegant messy bun” as Mia had called it. The result was sexy if Josie had to say so herself.

  Soft tendrils escaped the pins holding the bun in place. Mia had used a lot of eye makeup on her, for that matter a lot of makeup in general, but the effect was stunning. The entire package was pretty awesome. Josie wasn’t vain, but she knew she looked hot tonight.

  Bethany had called her a bronze goddess. The dress Josie had chosen was a bronze/gold color that went perfectly with her hair and skin color. Skintight, strapless and short. There wasn’t much of it there, but it accentuated her legs and then with the four-inch heels she’d chosen? Yeah, her legs looked great.

  The collar really stood out with her hair upswept and the dress being strapless. She’d seen both Bethany and Mia eyeing it on the ride over, a hundred questions brimming in their gazes. Josie wondered how long it would take before they started prying.

  Brandon checked in with them often. He and three other guys Josie surmised were also bouncers. Though one of them looked too . . . Well, she wasn’t sure what he looked, but he wasn’t a bouncer. Of that she was certain. While Brandon and the others were dressed casually in jeans and polo shirts, this other guy was wearing an expensive suit, silk shirt, diamond cuff links that did not look fake.

  The interesting thing was that while Caro had introduced Brittany to the three bouncers who worked with Brandon, the guy in the suit had walked over and asked Brandon to introduce him to Brittany. And now? Brittany and mystery guy were standing off to the side, talking. Brittany had a glow about her that could only mean one thing. The guy was interested.

  Josie nudged Mia and dipped her head in Brittany’s direction. “Who’s that with Brittany?”

  Mia followed her gaze and then frowned as she studied the couple. “No idea, but Brandon will know. I’ll ask.”

  Before Josie could tell her it was okay, Mia gestured for Brandon to come over. He came, Caroline tucked into his side, his fingers splayed possessively over her upper arm.

  “Who’s the guy with Brittany?” Mia asked.

  Brandon
pursed his lips a moment before returning his gaze to Mia and Josie. “His name is Kai Wellington. He owns the club.”

  Josie’s eyes widened. “He owns it? Like the whole thing?”

  Brandon chuckled. “Yeah. He owns several. He’s usually not here that much. He just opened one up in Vegas a few weeks ago and he’s been spending all his time out there.” He glanced down at Caroline and squeezed her closer to him. “He wants me to work out there. Take over security. If I go, I want Caro to go with me.”

  For a moment, Mia looked stricken and Josie’s heart went out to her. Caro was her best friend. But Mia quickly got a grip on her reaction and she smiled broadly.

  “Is that like a promotion or something?”

  “Or something,” Brandon said in amusement.

  “I’m happy for you,” Mia said, but Josie could see that her lower lip trembled.

  Then Mia threw her arms around Caroline and hugged her tightly.

  “I’m happy for both of you,” Mia said in a rush. “Are you excited, Caro?”

  Caroline pulled back from Mia, smiling broadly. “Yeah, I am. I’m so happy for Brandon. He’s worked hard for this and it’s huge that Mr. Wellington trusts him. But I hate to leave the city . . . and you,” she finished unhappily.

  Brandon pulled her back into his arms and then pulled Mia to his other side.

  “Look on the bright side. Your girls’ nights out can be relocated to Vegas. I’ll make sure you’re given VIP treatment from beginning to end. You can plan a couple a year.”

  “I like the way he thinks,” Bethany said, speaking up for the first time.

  “So, Brandon,” Josie said, pulling the attention back to Brittany. “What does Mr. Wellington want with Brittany? Didn’t he ask you to introduce her to him?”

  Brandon glanced sideways again before looking back at the women. His eyes expressed regret. “I can’t really say anything. Mr. Wellington is a very private man. But I’d say he was interested in Brittany. He never took his eyes off her the entire evening.”

  Very interesting. Josie glanced their way again and Brittany hadn’t once taken her eyes off him either. Ash would probably find it interesting as well, although he’d most likely do a complete background check on Kai Wellington.

  “We’ve got some drinking to do,” Caroline said brightly. “The evening’s going to waste and Jace will probably be here at any time. Bethany, he’ll be so disappointed if you aren’t completely shitfaced. He thinks you’re the most adorable drunk ever!”

  Mia burst out laughing and Bethany smiled, though she did reach for her drink.

  “I’ll have the waitress swing by and set you up,” Brandon said. “Break’s over for me. Time to make another pass around the club. If you all want a quieter place to drink and relax, I’ll put you in one of the boxes overlooking the dance floor. There’s a button you can push to silence the music and outside noise.”

  Josie smiled at his understanding. No doubt he thought that Mia and Caroline would want to talk about her impending move and they couldn’t really do that on the floor.

  “That sounds perfect!” Bethany exclaimed. “Can we move there for a bit? I need a break from dancing and standing on my feet, and I’d love a quieter place to drink and talk.”

  “Follow me. I’ll have the waitress round up Chessy and the others. They’re still on the dance floor. She’ll let them know where to find you when they’re done dancing.”

  The women followed Brandon, but Josie motioned them to stop when they got to where Brittany and Kai were standing. She wanted to check in on Brittany and make sure she was comfortable or see if she needed rescuing.

  “Hi,” Josie said, donning a bright smile as she greeted Kai. “I wanted to let Brittany know that we’re going to one of the boxes. Didn’t want her looking for us.”

  Kai’s arm slid around Brittany’s waist, anchoring her to him. Okay then, it would seem the man moved fast. He smiled, and it was a gentle, warm smile, but Josie did not miss the strength in those eyes. This was a powerful, intimidating man. She glanced at Brittany to gauge her reaction.

  “Your concern is admirable,” Kai said in a low voice she almost couldn’t hear over the music. “But I’ll take very good care of Brittany and I’ll escort her to your box myself when she’s ready.”

  “That okay with you?”

  Josie directed the question just to Brittany because so far Kai had done all the talking.

  Brittany smiled and Josie could see no strain or faking it. Her entire face was flushed.

  “I’m fine. Thank you, Josie. I’ll catch up to you and the girls in a minute.”

  “Take your time,” Josie said with a smile.

  “She will,” Kai murmured.

  chapter twenty-four

  Ash stretched on his couch, drink in one hand, as Gabe sprawled into the armchair across from him. The two had eaten takeout that Gabe had picked up on his way over after leaving the women at his apartment.

  Ash checked his watch and grinned. “How drunk you think they are by now?”

  Gabe grimaced. “I’m sure they’re well on their way.”

  Ash chuckled, though he was willing the hours to pass. He wanted Josie back, drunk, cute, and he was dying to see her in that dress and heels she’d bought. She wouldn’t even let him see them when she tried them on in the store. All she’d said was that she thought he’d like the end result.

  Hell, he’d like her in a sackcloth or with a paper bag over her head. Didn’t matter to him what she wore, because he’d get her out of it quick enough. It was what was underneath that mattered the most. But still, the image of her made-up, teetering on sexy heels and eyes cloudy with alcohol? Yeah, that did it for him. He’d listened to Gabe and Jace enough to know that girls’ night out was not something to miss.

  Neither man had any issue with their women going out and having fun because afterward they came home to them and the reward was pretty spectacular.

  His cell phone rang, and he picked it up immediately, thinking it might be Josie. He hoped the evening was going well and that she was relaxed and having fun.

  He frowned when he saw his doorman’s name as the incoming call.

  “Ash,” he said shortly.

  “Mr. McIntyre, you have visitors in the lobby. They wanted to go up, but I called first. They say they’re your parents.”

  “Oh Jesus,” Ash muttered. Just kill him now. They had to be here tonight of all nights? They’d never set foot in his apartment building, just as they’d never set foot in his office building either. Hell, before the lunch his mother had intruded on earlier in the week, he seriously doubted they’d ever stepped into one of his hotels either.

  Such a move reeked of desperation. His mother had wanted to “talk” after making her scene in the restaurant and he’d let her know in no uncertain terms that he had no desire to discuss anything with her. He’d banned her from his hotel properties, but perhaps he should have broadened his parameters a bit. But he wouldn’t have imagined that they’d come here. Making him come to them was more their style.

  He glanced over at Gabe who was regarding him with a frown. He shook his head to let Gabe know it wasn’t anything going on with the women.

  “I’ll be down. Do not let them up. In fact never let them up if they show up again. They aren’t allowed here,” Ash bit out. “I’ll come down and take care of the matter personally, but in the future, if they show up, you’re to show them the door. And you damn sure better not ever let them up when I’m not here and Josie is.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Ash ended the call and then got to his feet.

  “What the fuck, man?” Gabe demanded. “What’s going on?”

  “My parents are paying me a visit,” Ash said dryly. “I’m going down to inform them they aren’t welcome.”

  “Shit,” Gabe swore. “I’ll come with you.”
<
br />   “Not necessary,” Ash said in a calm voice. “Just hang out up here. I’ll be back in a few.”

  Gabe got up, ignoring Ash’s response. “Didn’t say it was necessary. But I’m going with you.”

  Ash shrugged. Most people wouldn’t want their dirty laundry and family drama aired in front of others. But Gabe wasn’t just anyone. He was Ash’s real family. Just as Jace was. And Gabe knew everything there was to know about mommy dearest. Except her showing her ass at lunch. It wasn’t that Ash hadn’t wanted to tell him or Jace, but it had slipped his mind. He’d been too focused on other things.

  “She showed her ass the other day,” Ash said as they got into the elevator. “I was having lunch with Josie and Brittany at the Bentley and she strutted in making a scene. I had her escorted out and gave instructions that she wasn’t to be allowed on any of our hotel properties.”

  “Jesus. Does she ever quit?”

  Ash shook his head. “Evidently not. She insulted Britt and Josie. Then she wanted to talk. As if I’d give her the time of day even if she hadn’t spewed her vitriol all over Britt and Josie.”

  Gabe shook his head as the elevator descended. “It’s a sad fact but maybe you ought to look into a restraining order. Have their asses arrested the next time they come poking around. Maybe that would be a wake-up call and let them know just how serious you are about them staying the hell away from you and Brittany.”

  “I’ll make my point face-to-face,” Ash said, his face going hard over the impending confrontation.

  Having it out with his parents in the lobby of his building wasn’t his first choice, but no way in hell was he allowing them into his home. That was his sanctuary. And Josie’s. He wasn’t about to have it invaded by people he loathed. And he damn sure wasn’t having this confrontation on their turf. He wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of going to them. Ever.

  When they got off the elevator, Ash saw his mother and father waiting in the lobby. Neither looked happy and when they turned and saw him, there was no welcome in their eyes. No recognition that he was their son. But then there’d never been. He didn’t understand it. Couldn’t fathom being so cold toward your own children. The hell he’d ever treat his own kids this way.