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“All I was doing was dancing,” the guy snarled. “Then this asshole comes up and interrupts.”
Worth looked at me, obviously wanting me to have the chance to speak for myself. I reached for his hand. He took hold of me and squeezed gently, giving me the courage to find my voice.
“I told him I didn’t want to dance with him. He kept talking to me, my…friend came to my defense.”
One of the guards motioned to the other two men. “Get him out of here.”
They were big men themselves, but they had to fight to get my assailant’s arms behind his back so they could cuff him. Once he was restrained, they frog-marched him toward the door.
I turned to Worth and tried to thank him, but the room spun around me, the flashing lights adding to my dizziness.
“Bring him some water,” Worth ordered the remaining guard. The man simply nodded and went off to do his bidding. Worth focused on me. “Can you walk, or do you need me to carry you?”
I tried to answer, but I couldn’t speak as panic raced through me. “What if you hadn’t been here?” I finally managed to say.
“Princess, I’m not going to let you out of my sight. You’re mine, and no one is going to hurt you.”
I wasn’t sure how far the man would’ve pushed it, but after what I’d been through, I was terrified of any overbearing man.
“Do you want to go home?” Worth asked.
“Not now. I need to sit down.”
I took a wobbly step before Worth scooped me up into his arms and carried me to our table. I realized many of the people in the room were staring at us. Some were making swoony faces, a few even clapped. I turned and buried my face against Worth’s shoulder as heat filled my cheeks.
He sat me down, and pulled his chair close so he could put his arm around me. “If you’re up to it, I’d like to take you back out there and dance with you.”
“We…we shouldn’t.”
“Princess, I can’t stay away from you. I don’t want to stay away from you. I know you have no reason to believe me, but I don’t want only one night from you, I want so much more.”
He was right. I shouldn’t believe him, but I did. Was it because I felt the same way? Was it because he made me feel magical, made me feel whole and strong? I looked up at him. “I want to believe you. It feels so good when you hold me.”
He brushed the backs of his fingers over my cheek.
“I want to hold you all the time. I can’t explain it, but I know you’re mine. That doesn’t mean you can’t be exactly who you were meant to be. I don’t want to put you in a cage. I want to keep you with me and give you what you need to be yourself.”
The dizziness, the fear, the panic all faded away. I downed the water the security guard had brought us, then I stood and took both of Worth’s hands in mine. “Let’s dance.”
I knew better, but I followed Worth without protest. He held me against him, and it felt so fucking good to dance with him, so right. I wasn’t less when I was with him like I’d been with Tommy. If anything, I was more. Worth didn’t hold me too tight. He let me dance like I wanted to, and he moved with me. The feeling was intoxicating.
I’d had my back to him, but when I turned and he pulled me close, I wrapped my arms around his neck. I don’t think either of us made a conscious decision, but suddenly we were kissing. His lips were soft against mine, gentle at first, then hungrier, needier. By the time he pulled away, I had a leg hitched over his hip, and we were working our hips against each other. We stared at each other, both hard and breathless.
“Are you ready to go back to the villa?”
I nodded. “What’s going to happen when we get there?”
“What do you want to happen?”
My heart was pounding even harder than it had when I’d danced my fastest. I knew what I wanted, but I also knew why it wasn’t a good idea. I had kept so many secrets for so long, hiding what was happening with Tommy, hiding my true self from him and his friends, hiding all my feelings. I didn’t want to hide anything anymore, but I also didn’t want to risk Beck hating me.
“You don’t have to decide right now,” Worth said. “Come on. Let’s go.”
We got our jackets and Worth buttoned up my shirt, took my hand, and led me to the front of the club. Our ride was already there. How did he manage to have everything arranged perfectly and precisely on time? Maybe this was all a dream. I hoped to hell not. I didn’t want to lose what I had found.
Worth held my hand in the car, stroking the back of it with his thumb. I looked out the window, glad the ride was short. I wanted to climb onto his lap to straddle him, to kiss him again. I wanted to be wrapped up in him. That was dangerous because I needed to learn to rely on myself.
Worth closed the front door of our villa and turned to face me. I stood, frozen, not sure what I wanted—or rather what I would dare let myself have. The feel of his body against mine on the dance floor had been exquisite and it had brought back every moment of the night before.
