Page 1 of Dark Temptations

Chapter One

“Come on, Ariana. We want to get there early to get a table.”

Ariana rolled her eyes and checked her hair in the mirror before walking out of the bathroom in her condo.

“Holy shit,” Kelly said. “You look like a virgin sacrifice.”

Ariana looked down at herself. She was wearing a short white lace dress with white high heels. “What’s wrong with this?”

Macy, her other friend, spoke up. “We said to dress sexy.”

Ariana sighed. She loved her friends, but they were always trying to change her, and she would never be a party girl like them. She was like her mother, for the most part, who had always been soft-spoken and sweet. She’d never heard her raise her voice. Now, her father was the opposite. He was boisterous and fun to be around and made friends easily. They evened each other out, and she loved to see that when her mother touched him, he instantly settled.

Their love for each other was exceedingly apparent and had only grown over the twenty-six years they’d been married. That’s something she strived to have for herself someday. In the meantime, she had to keep up with her friends, who always seemed disappointed in her. There was nothing she could do about it. Her father had been extremely protective of her. One, because she was a daughter, and second, because she was the only child her parents had been able to have. Her friends knew this because the three had grown up together but still tried to change her.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with this. It’s short and pretty. And I’m wearing high heels.” She didn’t add that the shoes were already killing her feet.

“It’s only a few inches above your knees, and although I like the high heels, and they make your legs look fantastic, you’re still not showing off enough skin. Look at us,” Kelly said.

They were both in black, very short skirts that Ariana worried would show their tush if they bent forward even the slightest bit, and their shirts, also in black, barely covered them. Macy’s was the worst because Ariana could swear she could see her nipples through the thin fabric.

“I’ll never be able to pull off a look like that. I’d be trying to pull my skirt down all night or crossing my arms to hide my breasts. If my father saw me dressed like that, he’d blow a gasket.”

Both her friends grinned. They had been around her father a lot over the years, so they had to agree.

“Fine. We’ll just put you in the middle, and we’ll look like an Oreo,” Kelly said and laughed.

Ariana giggled. She liked that idea because Oreos were one of her favorite treats.

“Come on, you guys. Our Uber is waiting for us,” Macy called out.

Ariana grabbed a small white purse and followed her friends to the car. She let them give directions and sat back and looked out the window.

“Take us to the Good Knight Club,” Kelly told the man.

He glanced in the rearview mirror at them. “Are you sure that’s where you want to go?”

Macy nodded. “Yes.”

“Have you ever been there?”

Kelly and Macy shook their heads.

Macy grinned. “No, but we hear it’s a great place.”

“It’s a hard-core bar.”

That got Ariana’s full attention. “What does that mean?” The tension in the car made her stomach ache.

“It’s a place where anything goes,” the driver said.

Ariana’s brows snapped together. “Like what?” She caught the look her friends exchanged. “Do you guys know what he’s talking about?”

Macy sighed. “We heard it was the place to go to have fun and meet great people.”

“But…”

Kelly placed a hand on her arm. “It’s fine, Ariana. We’ll all stay together and watch out for each other. If it’s horrible, we’ll just leave.”

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