Page 84 of Hidden Fears
I ease a little, but the fucker behind Mark’s back says something that I can’t hear. Mark’s jaw sets, and I figure it’s not good. He turns toward the guy who quickly scatters away before Mark makes a full turn.
I glance at Josie—I don’t think she took her eyes off my face the whole time.
“Are you okay?” I ask in a quieter voice, hoping she’ll hear me.
“Yes, I’m okay,” she replies softly. “But he’s right, you know. I was being suggestive, so it’s not really his fault.”
“For fuck’s sake, Josie!” I blow up. “You’re allowed to say ‘no’ if you change your mind, and he’d better get the fucking clue! It’s your fucking right as a woman. As a person.”
She swallows hard and nods silently, still looking guilty for no reason.
“Ken,” Mark calls out.
I glance at him.
“Justin is outside. We’ll take everyone back home. You good here?” He slightly nods at Josie.
“Yeah, go. Thanks.”
“Sure.” He nods and walks toward the bar where Alicia is struggling to hold onto Leila and Kayla. Both with pinched, angry faces and determined movements. My sister is a little warrior. I bet she went on a warpath when she saw what was happening. And Kayla grew up in a tough neighborhood, fighting for her life was pretty much her everyday activity, and she’s very loyal. So it amazes me how Alicia was able to hold off both of them at the same time. She has the build of an Amazonian, but those two are vicious.
And they are friends. More than just friends at this point, I think. They are a team. I’m sure if Freya wasn’t ready to pop any minute now, she’d be here too.
And it looks like they accepted Josie into their small circle. For some unexplainable reason, it makes me happy.
When Alicia meets my eyes, hers narrow, and she gives me a quick nod. Her nostrils are flared, her jaw set tight. Looks like she was also fighting herself to keep from coming to the battlefield.
The situation of them somehow staying out of here and leaving her alone for that moment when the asshole got handsy seems a bit too… rehearsed.
I look down at the woman who’s still holding my arm with both of her hands.
“Why are you here, Josie?”
She swallows. “I came here because Alicia asked me to come with them. I didn’t want to, but when I came here, it felt so good just to dance, you know.”
The fuckers set it all up.
“You said you were dancing suggestively. What did you mean?” I lean closer. “Did you want someone to come and get you?”
She lowers her eyes for a second before raising them back up at me. “Yes,” she mouths, and my heart drops into my stomach. The acid of rejection rises up, making my eye tick. “You,” she adds after a few seconds.
“What?”
“I saw you at the bar,” she says while chewing on her lip. “And then you were flirting with the bartender. Andwinkingat her.” A sniffle. “I just wanted, I dunno,” a shrug and another sniffle, “for you to get jealous or something. To notice me here.”
“So you shook your ass for me?”
She nods, and I let out a relieved laughter. “Do you want to go home?” I ask.
She shakes her head.
“Want to dance a bit?”
A shy nod.
I gently place my hand on her waist and pull her toward me. I let her decide how close she wants to be. And when Josie places both her hands on the front of my shoulders, I let my other arm slip around her back and relax.
Her hands seem relaxed, while her body is anything but. I lean a bit closer to her ear so she can hear me. “Are you okay?”
