Page 32 of Deprivation

Almost choking on my beer, I try to digest his statement. Jake turns to the men sitting in the booth and makes introductions. “You remember Mark? These two are Tate and Tanner Manning. They work for Hanover Police.” I watch as mirror images wave back at me.

“Glad I met you two together or I’d have thought I was seeing you everywhere.” These two are clearly identical twins. I always assumed as twins got older, they’d change their hairstyle or aging would cause subtle differences to be more noticeable. However, these two couldn’t look more alike. Both have brown hair, a little facial hair, green eyes, and appear very fit. Luckily, they didn’t dress alike.

“Yeah, we get that a lot,” one of the twins remarks. I’ve already lost track of who Tate was versus Tanner.

“And you met Huggie the other night.”

I look over to see Kat, Nate, and Melanie dancing to “Moves Like Jagger” by Maroon 5. Again, Kat appears in her element as she swings her hips back and forth like a temptress.

“I see D.L. is back,” Mark states, tilting back his beer, giving an almost predatory look toward Kat.

I lean in toward Jake, “Uh, D.L.?”

Shaking his head, he lowers his beer “It’s a nickname the guys have given Kat when she dances.”

About that time a tall, muscular bald male approaches the booth. “You didn’t tell me the Dirty Librarian was coming tonight, Jake.” Again, I almost suffocate on my beer.

“Hey, Holt. Yeah, she can’t help herself. Holt, this is Nick. He’s an orthopedist at the hospital. Nick, Holt’s a medic. He’s trying to get into the fire academy, but they’ve probably heard all the salty tales floating around about him and have blacklisted him.”

“What the fuck, man?” Holt responds with a chuckle. “I can’t help it if I have a healthy appetite for women. And they don’t leave the table hungry, so why is anyone complaining?”

“Oh, Good Lord. The ego on this one,” Mark laughs. “If you make the academy, you better shut your pie hole before someone does it for you.” Mark shakes his head at the pompous young man.

I look back to the dance floor and notice a stocky male has moved behind Kat and is dancing with her.Is this another firefighter? I continue to watch as he places his hands on her hips, pulling her toward him. Feeling my spine stiffen, I observe carefully feeling overprotective. Melanie has her back to the situation, dancing with Nate, but I can see by the look on Kat’s face this isn’t a welcome interaction. As the stranger’s hands start to slide around her waist, I can tell she’s becoming agitated. I peer over the group of domineering men beside me. They’re watching, but I become irritated that no one appears interested in intervening.What the hell? Are they just going to sit here and watch him maul her?My gaze quickly flicks back to Kat and her uninvited guest, and I feel my skin become prickly as one of his hands moves behind her and grabs her ass.I can’t take this any longer. I start to jump up and head over to them when I feel a hand on my shoulder preventing me from straightening.

“Just hold on, cowboy,” Jake says.

I look at him, dumbfounded. As I return my gaze to the grope in progress, I watch as Kat reaches over to grab the guy’s right hand, still sitting on her hip. She spins and twists his hand just before he buckles to the floor. My eyes fly open in surprise. With my mouth still hanging open, I hear Jake in my ear.

“I think we just found your next patient,” he snorts.

Spellbound, I watch as Kat slowly walks toward the booth of onlookers and says, “God, I need a beer.”

This time, I leap up before Jake can pin me back to the seat. “I got you. I’m going to get another, anyway.” Speechless at what just transpired, I walk toward the corner bar, thinking it won’t be as crowded as the larger one at the club’s entrance. I know Jake’s buying tonight, but I need to clear my head.

As I’m standing in line, I hear “Hey Mama” by The Black Eyed Peas begin to play. I strain to see if this song will get Kat back on the dance floor and chuckle when I see she’s grabbed Nate and returned to dance like the earlier incident never happened. My eyes are glued to her form as she moves suggestively. I realize, the longer I watch, I’m growing uncomfortably hard.Good Lord. When exactly did I revert back to a fourteen-year-old boy? I turn toward the men’s room and decide to splash some cold water on my face and get my act together before rejoining the group.

Returning to the bar, I notice Kat walking toward me with a look of determination. As I stand in wait, holding my breath, she stops directly in front of me. “What, no beer?”Holy hell. What is wrong with me?

“Yeah, sorry. The line was long, and I got a phone call and stepped away for a second,” I reply, hoping she can’t see through my ridiculous excuse. I turn to the bartender and order two beers, dropping a twenty on the bar. Taking a cleansing breath, I turn back toward Kat as I wait for the chilled beverages to arrive.I need to get my head out of my ass. Once I’m facing her direction, I notice she has her back to me but is wiggling and swaying to the next song. Her short black skirt skims the top of her legs as she sways to the music, exposing even more of her creamy, soft skin.Stop looking at her legs, you fucker, or you’re going to get hard again.

I turn back to the bar and notice the two amber bottles resting within reach and tip my head in thanks to the bartender. With one in each hand, I wrap my left arm around Kat in attempt to hand her the beer, and feel a jolt of electricity when she places her hand on mine. Without thinking, I drop my hand to her waist as she takes the beer from me. Quickly assessing whether I’ll need Sebastian Lee’s services if my hand remains on her body, I feel her lean closer as her hips sway back and forth against my hardening dick.Fuck me!Unable to help myself, I feel my fingers dig into her hip as she continues to incline her voluptuous backside against my now raging hard on.

“Kit Kat!”

“Oh my, God. Olivia! What’re you doing here?” Kat shrieks toward the striking blonde beauty before her, wrapping her in a tight hug. It’s then I notice the familiar face of the blond male who was in front of the restaurant the other night.

“Mac and I were just out celebrating. It’s been a few days, but I figure if you date for twelve years before you get engaged, you should be allowed to celebrate all week,” she giggles, eyes sparkling. “Who’s the hottie, Kat?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. This is Nick. We work together at St. Luke’s. Nick, this is my best friend, Olivia, and herfiancée, Mac.” Kat giggles in return, elongating the fiancée. But even though the mystery of the ring and the hug have now been made clear, I’m focused on replaying the way my name sounds on her tongue.“Nick.”Now my fantasies will probably include her saying my name over and over.

“It’s nice to meet you both. Congratulations,” I direct to the overly happy couple. Realizing my dick has decided to behave itself, I take the opportunity to leave before I can embarrass myself more. “I’m heading out, Kat. It was nice to see you.”

“Oh. Bye, Dr. Barnes. Thanks for the drink.”

I walk toward the exit, not even stopping to say goodnight to Jake and Melanie. I’ll apologize when I see him next. All I can think is,Dr. Barnes? The name change giving me whiplash. As I reach the main entrance, I take one more look back at the siren who’s enchanted me all evening. I immediately make eye contact with her, stealing my breath.Hell, does she feel it, too?

Chapter Thirteen

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