A/N: Sorry if it took me ages to finish this, but after the first 1300 words, I had a hard time writing while laughing uncontrollably! Hope you'll have fun reading like I had writing :D
And thanks to Mary for giving me the inspiration I needed!
Three days before the wedding. Only three days!
Alicia paced nervously across her living room, throwing random glances at the wall clock. As she waited for Will to come and pick her up, she wondered what could have possibly crossed his mind to take a night out, for the two of them, when they still had so many things to finalize! Her gaze fell on the papers scattered on the table and made her sigh in dejection.
She checked her reflection in the mirror as she painted her lips with twitched movements; the lipstick was the rouge one that Will loved so much, which was definitely improper to wear during the day. Where were they going anyway? She didn't even know if she was done up properly with that dark ruby dress. Will's 'put-on-something-nice' could mean anything. Nice for what? He had been extremely vague.
There were still so many arrangements; the seating placements still to decide for each table down to the last person, a few last-minute guests from Baltimore to accommodate and the hotel they had chosen had no rooms left. And she still had to work on her vows. Whenever she read them, she found something that sounded wrong, that she didn't like, that felt impersonal or stupid. Or simply not enough. So the last thing she needed was for Will to reserve a whole night from themselves. Wasn't the honeymoon invented for that? To take away all the stress of the wedding arrangements? She was pretty sure that was its purpose. But he had been uncannily adamant in his invitation, or whatever it was. She had tried everything to decline, tricking him in every possible way – fair or not - until eventually she had yielded to his inflexible secrecy. And when he showed up at her door to pick her up, she had scanned him carefully in every detail. He was dressed rather elegantly, so her outfit's choice seemed to fit. Maybe they were going to dinner? Then why so much mystery? Will just smiled at her, enigmatic and more inscrutable than ever.
Sitting in his car minutes later, she studied the streets, attentively, trying to guess the destination; she threw casual attempts at a guess, now and then, scanning his face to spot even the minimal change in his expression so she could shout I knew it! But no, Will's eyes were amused but she couldn't do much to cross his lawyer's impeccable poker face. All she knew was that they were heading north.
After a twenty minute drive, Will stopped his car in front of some place. A pub? A nightclub? She had no idea from the outside. But it seemed quiet. No movements, no comings or goings. Of course, it was Wednesday night. They were probably the only two souls on the whole street. And as they walked into the locale she observed that it was the same inside. Completely empty, except for a couple of waiters and a bartender. A stage, a few small round tables, it really looked like a nightclub. What on earth were they doing in a nightclub? "Will… are you sure this is the right place?" she asked in bewilderment, a brow raised questioningly.
"I hope so," he answered as he glanced around, "otherwise the night will turn… interesting," he added with an enigmatic smile and a slight cough.
She caught him as he nodded discreetly at someone – the owner? – then placed an arm on her back and gently guided her farther into the wide hall and towards a small round front table. She smiled when she saw that it was already set with chilled champagne, two flutes and a small crystal vase with a single red rose. In the background she could hear some soft, over-saccharin love song she didn't know. As they sat, she stared intensely into his eyes and caught something, an odd light and a bit of anxiety. She knew he was up to something and she was quite sure that she should be worried about whatever it was that he had in mind. "So… what are we doing here?" she dared to ask with an inquisitive look.
"Celebrating that in three days you'll become Mrs. Gardner?" he offered with a slight shrug and a smile that smelled unmistakably like faux indifference.
One of the waiters approached them and, at Will's nod, filled their flutes then disappeared behind the counter. Will raised his glass and she gladly imitated his gesture.
"To my soon-to-be wife," he started, "and the only woman I have ever, completely, unconditionally loved in my entire life," he declared solemnly.
It took a lot of self-control for her to not let her emotions take over. If these words were just a way to celebrate, she had no idea what his vows could be like. She was pretty sure she would end up being a crying mess. And her own vows just sounded worse and worse in her ears. Will deserved something special, if not only for his patience and perseverance over the years. He never gave up on her love; not when she broke up with him the first time, not when she left the firm, not even when the nerve-racking fights that followed the professional separation always ended with the same feeling of things that remained unconfessed. It had always been about love, even when it was about hate. And it took her so long to realize it that when she finally did, when she finally opened her eyes, she didn't waste a single moment or word to fight it, to fight him. She was done battling her feelings. The engagement ring adorning her left hand would be joined soon by an elegant yet very simple gold band. It was an odd feeling to be back being somebody's wife. An odd feeling that she was embracing with no double thoughts or rethinks. "To my soon-to-be husband," she almost whispered, "and the man who never gave up on me."
"And I'm happy that I didn't," he nodded with enthusiastic pride, managing to steal her an amused laugh.
Yes, she was happy too. Like she was happy the night she had boldly decided to show up at his door to make things clear. In the end, they hadn't talked for more than a few minutes. Most of the conversation had been very eloquently physical. But they had both known in that exact moment that the irrepressible burst of passion was the rekindling of feelings that had been writhing, constantly brewing under the ashes.
"This music is awful by the way," Will observed, as he peeped around with a disgusted expression.
She couldn't agree more, so she nodded with a grimace.
"Hold on," he excused himself with a light kiss on her lips, "I'm going to plead for a better soundtrack."
Alicia smiled and nodded in approval as Will stood up and disappeared quickly behind a curtain. She was still sure he was up to something. She had learned to recognize when he was going for trouble. And tonight he was speaking inconvenience all the way. She sipped her champagne, slowly, savoring every chilly bubble as she waited for him to come back.
"Ladies and Gentlemen!"
A disembodied, unknown voice spoke into a microphone, the loud contrast with the previous soft music made her jump on her seat. Her gaze shifted around in anxiety. Where the hell was Will?
"For the first time on the stage of The Orchid Lounge, we are proud to introduce to you the attraction of the night…"
First time? Attraction?
What…?
Will was still nowhere in sight. She shifted a bit uncomfortably, her gaze trying to scan every corner of that damn place, shrouded in the dim light of candles and a few feeble lights.
"Ready to fire up the crowds with his masculine sensuality, please welcome…. William Sexy Back Gardner!"
What?
Her eyes goggled in shock as a captivating dance song started to play loud. Wait. She knew that song! Grace had it on repeat on her IPod for weeks. Justin Timberlake? She would recognize it among thousands. How could she not with a daughter that kept repeating sexy back at every minute?
The stage got lighted by floodlights and she covered her mouth in stunned disbelief when she spotted Will actually appearing on the stage.
Oh my God.
He can't really be doing that, can he? Judging by his nervous, faintly embarrassed smile, yes, he was.
Please tell me Grace had no part in this! For a moment she panicked at the idea that her innocent girl might have had something to do with it, like actually suggesting the song – and the coincidence was pretty scary.
She gaped in astonishment, then burst into loud laughter as Will started to move, clumsy and awkward at first, looking a bit ashamed. But as the lyrics started, his motions became more fluid, at ease. He seemed to be having fun, and by the way he moved, he had probably practiced!
Oh my God.
She screamed out loud in excited cheering, laughing uncontrollably as Will slinked, slowly undid his tie, then launched it in her direction. She shook her head in disbelief. He was really doing that for her? He was really doing that for her! She was well aware of the idiotic smile that was etched on her face as he started to unbutton his jacket, took it off and twirled it around in the air a couple of times before letting it fall on a farther part of the stage. She gave him a sly, provocative smile and eyed him up and down in encouragement.
He turned his back on her, shaking his ass as the chorus played.
She was so unprepared for such an unexpected surprise. All her previous worries were suddenly gone. Restaurant and hotel could totally wait. She shook her head for the millionth time in the space of a minute and smiled. She couldn't stop laughing. Apparently he knew what she needed more than she did. Now she knew why he had persisted so much for a night off.
She watched overexcited as he meddled, likely with the buttons of his shirt, as his body danced to words she knew all too well, then he turned around to face her again. With a grin he pulled his shirt open to reveal his bare chest. He didn't take it off. Instead he leaned closer to her, swinging on the stage until he stopped on the edge, a few feet from where she was sitting. She mouthed a you are crazy as he jumped down and stopped in front of her, swaying his hips. It didn't take much for her to get what he was inviting her to do. She laughed and started to slowly unbutton his pants. She teased him lightly, running an impish finger over the edge of his briefs. Her laughter stopped when he walked behind her and bent down to place a trail of light, teasing kisses down her neck. She winced in disappointment when he walked away and jumped back up on the stage. If this was her party, shouldn't she have absolute control of the stripper? This was entirely unfair.
She enjoyed the blissful, priceless sight of her almost husband taking his pants off and remaining on the stage with only his briefs on. She let out an excited scream and offered an enthusiastic round of applause as the music finished and he bent down to collect the rightful ovation. He did deserve it, if not only for the courage he had to exhibit in a public place, even if she was the only lucky audience of such an entertaining and hot performance. She was definitely going to exploit his - until tonight hidden - stripteasing talent more often in the future. She licked her upper lip sensually as she stood up and moved close to the stage. She offered him her left hand as he jumped down and stopped, only a few inches away.
"Now you will have to exhibit for me every night, Mr. Sexy Back Gardner, you know that?" she whispered in his ear with a provocative tone.
Will's reaction was an amused, soft laugh. "What do I get in return? This was your free ride… Next time you have to pay…"
Uhm….
"You certainly earned a generous tip for your… services," she agreed with a decided nod. "I'm sure you might want to collect it now," she teased him, as her fingers outlined imaginary forms on his chest. She felt him shiver lightly under her touch and she didn't know if it was her allurement or if he was starting to feel cold, completely undressed in that wide hall. If it was the second, she already had an idea or two to warm him up.
"And I'd be more than glad to collect it in the private area," he accepted as he glanced around with discretion.
Private area?
"Is there a private area?" she asked, smiling slyly, intrigued by the bit of news. It definitely sounded like the celebration tonight was still far from over.
"Yes, right behind those curtains…" He confirmed, as he pointed with his look at the dark curtains behind him.
Oh. This was interesting.
"And… I guess…" she whispered as she leaned even closer to him, till she could feel the heat of his body against hers, - nope, she got her confirmation that he wasn't feeling cold - "I guess that we are allowed to access.. that… private area," she winked.
"I'm the attraction of the nightclub tonight… I have full access to the most prohibited areas," he hinted.
"Then what are we still doing here?" she admonished him, playfully.
Will didn't let her ask twice. He took her hand and quickly dragged her where they could luxuriate in some privacy, far from the waiters' amused eyes. She wondered if they were used to this kind of private event or if Will was the only man crazy enough to reserve a whole nightclub for a night. Not that it mattered, in three days Will would give up his widely notorious bachelorship for her and she would get her own show within the four walls of their bedroom. Maybe she could even return the pleasure. Yes, she definitely could.