The door across the hall opened and Terry spotted me. He gasped then shook his head, looking at Ella. “She does look gorgeous, doesn’t she?” Then he gloated in true Terry fashion. “It was all me. I hired the woman to help her shop, so, yeah.” He blew a kiss to me. “You’re welcome.”

The black dress I had on was lovely. It was a sweetheart cut cocktail dress that came a little too high on my thighs, but when I added the heels, I quickly realized it was beautiful. And I felt beautiful in it.

I had left my hair down, clipped back at one side, lightly applied makeup, and secretly slipped on a new pair of slightly sexy underwear. I was surprised by how great they made me feel. I knew no one could see them, but I knew they were there, and the silkiness of my panties gliding along my dress felt awesome, sensual.

Ella held out her hand, smiling. “You must be Terry.”

He took it, but gaped at me. “You’ve told people about me?”

I grinned. “Of course. You’re one of my two favorite guys.”

He smiled then and it was so tender, so un-Terry like, that my heart warmed. Then he turned. “Hi, Ella, so nice to meet you. I love your hair. It’s wild! Curls are so hot.” He spotted the wine in her hand. “Oh, bubbly. Mind if I have some?” Before Ella could answer, he was already dragging her inside his apartment.

Shaking my head with a smile, I retrieved my purse, locked my apartment, and then joined them just in time to witness Ella fall in love with Bill as I had. Then Bill looked over at me and his smile turned soft. He looked down at my dress and simply uttered a gentle, “Stunning, sweetheart,” before taking my hand and kissing my knuckles. I could have sworn I heard Ella whimper.

Before long, Ella and Terry were talking like old friends, retelling old adventure stories while Bill and I listened and laughed. We finished the bottle of wine, kissed the guys goodbye, and then caught a cab over to the bar.

Saturday night was shaping up to be one of the best I had ever had.

The bar was not as I expected it to be.

Ella and I—completely overdressed and out of place—stood by the bar as I questioned her. “I thought you said you’ve been here before. I could have worn my jeans, El!”

Unmistakably sheepish, she lifted her screwdriver to her lips and muttered apologetically, “I have…but I may have left out that it was years ago.”

A man sitting on the opposite end of the bar raised his shot glass and tried to wink, but it came off as a blink. From the way he was swaying side-to-side, I thought it was one shot too many.

I glared at Ella. “I need a drink.”

She tapped the bar to get the bartender’s attention. “We need drinks, kind sir.”

The bartender was a tall, strong man with rolled up sleeves and tattooed arms. He was attractive in his own way, and as soon as he laid eyes on Ella, he was a goner. His smile looked as though it had been hidden away too long, and Ella was bringing it out. He leaned forward to get closer to her. “And what would you girls like?”

I sat on my stool and leaned my chin on my upturned hand. “Something that doesn’t taste like alcohol, if you can manage it.”

He turned to me. “You ever have a Long Island iced tea?” I shook my head and he grinned. “I’ll set you up.”

Mike, as it turns out the bartender’s name was, indeed set us up. I was four Long Island iced teas in and feeling pretty all right. It was well past eleven pm, and there was still no sign of Ella’s beau. While Ella had relaxed some and started to flirt with Mike, I checked my phone.

I wanted to call Quinn. I felt like chatting. But I wasn’t dumb. It was a Saturday night and he was an escort. There was no doubt in my mind that he would be quote entertaining unquote this evening.

That kind of sucked. I wanted to tell him about my night’s escapades. I had a whole lot of firsts going on. My first dress. My first Long Island iced tea. My first drunken experience. And I was sure tomorrow would see my first hangover if I didn’t switch to water soon.

Suddenly, the entrance opened and a cacophony of hooting, whooping, and laughing passed through with the men who entered. Ella smiled up at Mike then turned to the door. Her smile fell. And so did my gut when I caught Mike watching Ella look at another man.

Ella muttered softly, “Oh, my God, that’s him, Mia. The guy in the white shirt and blue jeans. That’s Rick.”

I focused on the group as best I could. Five men piled into a booth and a rather dashing man with a gleaming smile laughed along with his friends. They all looked to be in their thirties, and were clearly having a great time. From first glance, I could see that he was a good-looking man, but something about him gave me the shivers. His eyes held no warmth.

Without a moment to think, Ella stood, straightened her dress, downed the rest of her drink, and walked over to the men. They stopped talking as she approached, but Rick looked her up and down, a sly smile crossing his lips. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but Rick slid out of the booth, took Ella’s hand, and led her to a small booth by the restrooms. As they walked, she turned to me, smiled hard, and gave me a thumbs-up.

I smiled back in support and turned to a now sulking Mike. “Sorry about Ella.”

He smiled back. “Don’t apologize. She’s sweet.”

While Ella better acquainted herself with Rick, I played games on my phone and sipped at the water Mike had brought me. I raised my head to look for Ella, but she wasn’t at her booth.

Mike must’ve seen me searching for her, because he wiped down the bar, uttering a rough, “Lover boy took her into the restrooms.” My mouth gaped. He smiled sadly. “She looked eager.”

What on earth is going on?

I sat at the bar, fully conscious of the fact that Ella had been gone for more than ten minutes. When she returned, I breathed a sigh of relief. But when she came over to me, she couldn’t look me in the eye. “Can we go? Please?” The tone of her voice had changed. It was flat. Empty.

Rick entered the room and mimed pumping his thrusting pelvis into a chair. His crowd of friends burst into fits of laughter.

Oh no.

“Yeah. Let’s go.” I placed some cash on the bar for Mike and when he returned, he handed me a folded note.

He looked over at Ella. “Will you make sure she gets that?”

I liked Mike. He seemed like a decent guy. “Sure.”

In the cab home, Ella cried. She cried all the way to my apartment, where she told me she had sex with Rick in a dirty toilet cubicle that smelled like piss. Once they were done, he told he she was all right…for a piglet.

I cursed Rick to hell as I held and comforted my new friend. I had a mind to go back there and show him what I really thought about him…by shoving my shoe up his ass. Not wanting to talk about Rick anymore, Ella cried some more.

We got back to my apartment where she cried until she fell asleep.

Chapter Twenty-One

Quinn

I woke up smiling.

Today was the day.

I’d made sure that my previous night’s appointment didn’t run too late, because I wanted to be positive I would be in my best form for the night to come.

Maya.

I was meeting her for the first time. To say I was excited was a complete understatement. I mean, sure, I was going to take her virginity, but I would also be meeting my friend. The person who had made the last two weeks run easier for me. The person I would call to talk smack with. The one person who made me forget about what I did for a living and just treated me as I was.

I was appreciative of Maya, and tonight I would give her an experience she would never forget. She deserved that much.

As soon as I could see properly, I slid off my bed and stood nude, stretching. Once I felt able to function, I made my way into the kitchen and downed a protein shake then slipped on some gym shorts and running shoes. I walked out of my apartment building and onto the beach sans shirt.