Exception (39 page)

“You suck.” Emily glared at him, trying to hide her amusement. Her reaction made him laugh even harder, and it didn’t take long for her to join him.

The conversation that followed reminded Emily of the first night they’d talked at Old Joe’s. They were sitting at the same table they sat at now, having a conversation that was as light and as fun as that first one. At the same time that everything felt the same, she knew better. Everything was different. Their friendship was different, and she was completely different. That should have scared her senseless, but it didn’t. In fact, it had the absolute opposite effect.

Overwhelmed by the happiness and peace she felt, Emily turned her head towards him and delivered yet another kiss to the now smooth patch of skin where his scruff used to be. It was a longer kiss and, in those seconds, she allowed his scent to fill her nostrils and lungs.
God, he smells good
. Removing her lips from his cheek, she rested her chin on his shoulder and stared at him with a wide smile curving her lips.

Taylor turned his face towards her. They were so close their noses were separated by an inch, and their breaths mingled in between them. “What was that for?” he asked, a silly grin on his face.

Her shy smile and light blush were doing a poor job at hiding her thoughts. “This is the same table we sat at that night.”

Taylor looked around, forcing his mind to remember any detail of their first night at Old Joe’s that went beyond her beautiful smile and the way she looked in that red dress. It was an extremely hard task. “It is,” he stated with an adoring smile, combing a lock of hair behind her ear. “That was a great night, and that dress . . . wow!”

Locked in each other’s eyes, it was like they were closed in a bubble where the loud music and the hundreds of voices around them didn’t exist. There were only each other and their favorite memories. That was, until Zack and Toby plopped on the stools in front of them. “It’s already Friday. Only a week until Vermont, woo-hoo!”

While Emily turned to her friend with a smile on her lips, resting her temple on Taylor’s shoulder, he took the opportunity to deliver a death glare to Zack. Of all the inopportune moments he could have chosen to celebrate their up coming trip to his aunt and uncle’s B&B in Stowe, where they would celebrate his thirtieth birthday, he had to pick that one. Nonetheless, he joined the other three people at the table in a round of cheers, followed by a mumbled comment about the kids being awake to Emily’s ears.

For the next few hours, Taylor’s mind was completely absent from the conversation happening between Emily and the other two men. He knew they were talking and that she was giggling, but he had no idea over what. All he could think about was what would have happened if Zack hadn’t showed up at their table when he did. He knew his imagination was getting the best of him and leading him down a dangerous path, but he didn’t care, because the fresh smell of her breath still lingered in his nose, and the energy that emanated from their previous closeness still jolted the hair on his arms. He didn’t know what that meant, but he wanted to feel her that close to him again; in fact, he was desperate to. The only problem was how to go about it.

Opportunity presented itself when Zack took his boyfriend to the dancefloor again. Emily was still giggling from something Toby said as she watched them walk away. “You’re too quiet. What’s up?” she asked, with tiny worry lines around her eyes.

Taylor shook his head, dismissing her question and worry. “I know you don’t do dancefloors, but would you make an exception and dance with me?”

His question came as a shock and her reaction to it was an even bigger one. Aside from being close to giddy, her stomach was weirdly fluttering with butterflies. Emily looked him straight in the eye. “You’ll have my back?” she asked.

Taylor grinned at her and nodded. “I’ll have you at every angle.” His words came in such a rush that he only realized the double meaning in them when Emily’s face turned tomato red, and a roar of laughter somewhere between amused and awkward escaped her. His hands instantly found their way to his eyes and, in true Taylor fashion, he began rubbing them compulsively.

“A bit of an overachiever, aren’t you, Tay?” she laughed heartily. Her teasing, almost hysterical tone didn’t go unnoticed; nor did her rising blush, which now flared beyond her cheeks, flaming her ears a deep crimson. Still, he could see the effort she maintained behind her cool facade, and he hoped he was doing a better job at concealing his own mortification.

Laughing humorlessly, he lifted a brow at her. “You know what I meant, smartass. No one will get close to you. Now, are you doing this?”

Emily giggled when another possible double meaning popped into her mind, but she simply dismissed it, for both their sakes. “I’d love to.”

Standing up, he offered her a hand. They walked side-by-side, and hand-in-hand, until they reached the edge of the dance floor where a DJ had taken over from the band and was now playing a remixed version of one of Emily’s favorite songs. From their position, they could see Zack and Toby dancing almost at the center of the crowd and Emily couldn’t have been happier when Taylor didn’t suggest that they join them.

There were people all around them, bodies pressed against unfamiliar ones, arms waving and bumping in the air and strangers talking awfully close to each other. In summary, the place was Emily’s worst nightmare. That was, until Taylor pulled on the hand he was holding, bringing her flush against his strong chest.

Carefully, he placed her hand on his shoulder and reaching for her other one, repeating the motion. As Emily knotted her fingers behind his neck, he snaked his around her waist, holding her tightly, and began to move.

Their dancing started slow, swaying movements from left to right as they gazed into each other’s eyes. The more they moved, the more Emily relaxed, both physically and mentally. There was something about dancing in Taylor’s arms that made her feel free and peaceful, almost as if the mob of people surrounding them had vanished.

Her movements became more urgent, and the few inches that once separated their bodies vanished. With her eyes closed, she was in her own little world, her head thrown back and her hands moving across his shoulders and neck in time with the beat as her nostrils filled with the spicy scent of him.

Taylor danced somewhat stiffly, but he had gotten everything he’d asked for and more. He was, in every possible way, wrapped up in her. His body was tangled with hers, his senses were overpowered by their closeness and his mind was completely overrun with thoughts that would have been scary and dangerous if they weren’t so damn delicious. The only thing allowing him to maintain his sanity was the need to watch their surroundings on her behalf. The task however, was proving itself much less demanding than he’d first imagined, probably an effect of their closeness.

The upbeat notes of one of Emily’s favorite Jason Mraz songs blasted through the sound system, placing a wide grin on her face. Moving against Taylor with her eyes still closed, she touched her cheek to his so her lips were in direct line with his ear. “I love this song,” she said loudly, but with all the noise around them, the words reached him as barely a whisper.

His fingertips dug a little harder against her lower back as her slim body curved and rocked against him and, for some reason, it seemed to make her move even more vigorously. In an attempt to divert his mind from all the places her movements were taking him, Taylor started paying attention to the lyrics both the singer and Emily were singing, but the very graphic words had the opposite effect. Instead of paying less attention to the feel of her body sliding against his, he was paying more.

Through hazy eyes, Taylor watched a layer of sweat form over Emily’s perfect facial features. Every bead of moisture was hypnotic and added a new layer of fog to his brain, and when combined with the way her lips curled around the words that stated every fantasy he should not be having, it made his blood circulate through fewer parts of his body.

Emily was singing the chorus when her lids popped open and her eyes focused on Taylor. His eyes were watching her intently, and through his barely open mouth she could see the tip of his tongue touching the inside of his bottom lip. He looked like something out of a magazine or maybe a movie, and for the life of her she couldn’t peel her eyes from his face and those lips.

He seemed to be just as entranced watching her as she was watching him. Their eyes met, both equally heavy and filled with emotion. Realization of what was happening and the terrifying implications of their actions seemed to hit them both at the same time, equally as hard.

Without removing their arms from around the other, they stopped moving and each took half a step back, successfully putting some distance between their heated bodies.

“I have to go to the restroom,” Emily said in a raspy voice. Her voice was overlapped by his, which was saying the same thing. Both snickered, more out of awkwardness than humor.

With his arm firmly circling her waist, Taylor led the way out of the dancefloor and towards the little hallway where both bathrooms faced each other. A fairy and a naughty nurse were waiting outside the door, both equally trashed, making Emily cringe at the thought of the state the bathroom would be in. However, she needed to throw some water on her neck, and look for some clarity.

Despite his own need to cool down and the physical pain Taylor was in, he wouldn’t leave her alone. So he waited in line next to her, fidgeting a bit. Neither was feeling like their relationship had gotten weird, not in the least—it was just a bit much at the moment.

The fairy went in and out, allowing the nurse to enter the small bathroom. Without anyone else in the cramped hallway, Emily turned to Taylor with a tentative smile on her lips and angled her head towards the men’s room. “Go ahead. I’ll be fine here. Besides, I don’t think she can puke much more, she’ll be out in a sec,” she told him, humorously signaling towards the closed door on her right.

“Sure?” Taylor asked hesitantly, and received a vigorous nod as confirmation.

The moment his back vanished through the wooden door, Emily dropped her head against the wall beside her. She was feeling so many different kinds of frustration that she could barely explain them. A million thoughts passed through her mind, all trying to rationalize what had just happened in a different way. Her conclusion was that nothing had happened; they’d always had a sort of pull between them, an attraction of sorts, but it was just what made them best friends. Nothing more. And, so what if she thought he looked handsome and sexy? He
was
handsome and sexy, that was nothing new, and nothing for her to feel ashamed of. It was simply the truth.

Emily closed her eyes, repeating silently her reasoning as a new wave of heaving sounds came from behind the door. She had no idea how much time had passed when a set of strong hands curled around her hips made her lips turn up into a smile.
Oh, thank god we’re okay,
she thought, dropping her head back to a hard chest. “I’m happy you’re not getting weird on me,” she said, inhaling deeply.

A strong, woodsy, cheap perfume filled her nostrils, sending a wave of what felt like ice-cold blood down her veins. Instantly, she moved her head away of the chest behind her and tried to move out of the man’s grip, but the hands at her hips were overpowering as they gripped and pulled her closer.

A warm, alcohol-scented breath blew against Emily’s neck and ear. “And we meet again, princess.” The voice was deep, smooth, and oddly familiar.

Panic and nausea made their way up and down her torso as different faces flashed behind her lids. For a split agonizing second she thought the man behind her was Kevin since sometimes he used that pet name, but after another whiff of the cologne she knew it couldn’t be him. Finding strength in that, she angled her head slightly, looking over her shoulder at the intruding man.

A curtain of pale yellow hair framed a face that would be beautiful if it wasn’t so damn creepy. Deep, dark, almost black eyes stared at her with a predatory gleam. A wave of chills traveled down her spine as she recognized the Nickelback cover band singer. Memories of Jody telling her about his persistence over “getting to know” her returned to her mind, rolling her stomach.

It felt like a rock was lodged in her throat, not allowing air or sound to pass. His fingers dug deeper through the fabric of her clothes. Her eyes made their way to the wooden door on the other side of the hallway, her mind begging, pleading for Taylor to come out. But the door remained closed, and the hallway remained empty.

Why was he taking so long to come out and meet her?
She tried to let the thought break into her mind, but pushed it aside as the first waves of deep panic washed over her. Emily knew she had seconds before the terror rendered her useless. Holding tight to the decision she made long ago to never be a victim again, she forced her brain to remember her self-defense moves.

She knew she was at a disadvantage. With her limbs becoming increasingly rubbery, she could only hope to cause enough damage to earn her a brief second of escape. The bathroom door was only a few steps away. Reaching that door and getting Taylor’s attention was her only hope. If she screamed, no one would hear her. The music was too loud. She only hoped, if she made it to the door, that her banging fists and voice would carry through it.

Ignoring her pounding heart, she forced down the terror that threatened to consume her. With one swift motion, she pried his middle finger from her hip, thrusting it forcibly away from her, and slammed the spiky heel of her boot hard toward the laces of his own. His grip loosened, but just barely, as he let out an angry yelp.