“Are you sure this is okay? We could still sta—”
“I’m sure,” she says confidently before I even finish talking. “This,” she says, gesturing to us standing before us, “this makes me so happy. Go and enjoy yourselves.”
“I’ve got my phone,” I tell her. “If you need any—”
“I won’t.” She holds my eyes, daring me to argue.
“Come on, Jojo. Time to find some playmates to buy us some drinks.”
“Have fun, and stay safe. I won’t expect you home until morning.”
“See, even your mother thinks you need to get good and laid again,” Bri whispers in my ear, making me burst out laughing.
“I’m not sure that’s exactly what she meant.”
“Sure it is. Let’s go find those boys.”
The second we step outside, Bri pulls a small bottle of vodka from her clutch.
“Down the hatch, Jojo,” she instructs after swallowing a shot.
“I thought you stuck with the soft stuff,” I mutter, happily taking the bottle from her.
“Yeah, inside the house. It’s all to play for now we’re out.” She winks, bouncing toward the Uber waiting for us.
By the time we pull up at The Spot, I’ve got a nice buzz and my belly is full of erratic butterflies.
“Look at you,” Bri shouts as we step into the main bar. “He’s got you all kinds of crazy for him, huh? I mean, I get it. I could almost feel how good that was earlier, but damn.”
“Can you please stop reminding me that you watched us like a live porno?” I ask, although I’m pretty sure it’s pointless.
“When I’ve got someone giving it to me that good, I’ll let it go.”
I shake my head at her, heading straight to the bar.
“Ladies,” Eden shouts. “How’s it going?”
Turning away from the manager, I let Bri chat with her while my eyes scan the bar, desperate to find him. But I come up empty.
“They’re not here,” I shout in Bri’s ear once Eden has disappeared.
“He’ll be here, Jojo. Don’t stress. Drink, then dance. They’ll find us.”
With the vodka warming my belly, Bri takes my hand and leads me right into the middle of the dance floor. I let the beat flow through me, tip my face toward the ceiling and finally just let go of everything.
A squeak of fright passes my lips when a pair of hands land on my hips a beat before a hard body presses against my back.
I don’t need to see Brianna’s smile to tell me who it is. I feel it. My body relaxes back against him as if it was made to align with his as his scent surrounds me.
Resting my head on his shoulder, I twist so my lips are right beneath his ear.
“You came,” I shout, the slur to my voice more than obvious.
“You thought I wouldn’t?” he asks, almost sounding offended as his hips start moving with mine in time with the music.
I shrug, not wanting to appear vulnerable, because I was seriously starting to think they weren’t going to show.
“Plus, that one was like a dog with a bone after I suggested he might get a second shot with your friend.”