It happened during the seventh week of my stay.
It was regulars night at Under, so instead of the usual hundreds, there were only about sixty people milling about. I watched from a booth as they took full advantage of the open bar. Sipping on my virgin cocktail I saw Luke face-plant onto the floor and immediately spit my drink out, laughing until I couldn't breathe.
Slowly he stood and glared my way, even with everyone else laughing too. I noticed his cheek and forehead were scraped and bleeding. He walked over huffing after I waved a hand my way.
The music wasn't as loud as usual, so he could hear me clearly without leaning in. I pointed at the areas and said, "You got some boo-boos, Lukey."
He rolled his eyes and touched the scrapes, wincing. "A bitch tripped me, I swear," he defended gruffly. One eyebrow raised as I saw him sway.
"Maybe if her name is alcohol."
The voice came from behind me, exiting one of the rooms. The woman had a slick black bob and the darkest skin I'd ever seen. Kohl rimmed her eyelids while her lips were colored burgundy. Currently they were pursed and her eyes were narrowed at Luke as she leaned casually on the threshold next to me with arms crossed. The woman wore a black and red fringed silk robe, and underneath I could only see a black turtleneck.
"If it isn't my favorite lady of the night," Luke grinned. "Welcome home, Nadina."
"Luke, I have told you time and again not to call me that. I am not a prostitute."
He shrugged. "Prostitute, escort, it's all the same to me. Have you met Katherine here? She's David's, so hands off."
She laughed harshly, "Never stopped you." Luke's eye twitched as they stared one another down. I sat between them awkwardly. Luke didn't scare me anymore, but this new goddess of a woman had such an intense presence I felt the need to get away. How could Luke even form words around her?
"You should go get your face fixed before you consume new prey tonight, playboy. Scars are no longer in," she sneered, showing off snow white teeth. Luke said not a word and drudged away from us, leaving me alone with a frantic heart.
The woman slid off the wall and went around the table to sit next to me. Her long legs stretched and crossed as she got comfortable. Sharply she turned to look at me fully. I could only freeze as her long fingers piled with rings stretched to my face slowly. Then, she pinched my cheek and pulled it down with a laugh.
"Why're you so scared, kitten? I'm not going to bite," she smiled and let go. "I'm Nadina, or Nadi for short. And you're Katherine." She held a hand out and I took it hesitantly. She had done a complete one-eighty and left me breathless.
"Y-yes I am. Um. I-How come I haven't met you yet?" I'd met everyone in the last two months. I'd heard stories about a Nadina from Selena and Erin, even a mention here and there from David, but it was always about how she was MIA and never talked.
"I'm often out of the country. I'm rarely able to stay one place for long."
"Why is that?"
She smiled again, but this one didn't reach her eyes. It reminded me so much of David when I brought up home or my mother. It also happened when I asked a question he didn't like the answer to. "It's my job. I have people that need my service."
I didn't ask anymore. Her life was her business, but I guess the same didn't apply to me because she started, "So, life with David? How is it?"
Nadina's face was blank. "Do you know how I came to be here?" I asked carefully and she nodded. Well, I guess it was just a given fact, like how we're underground or the sky is blue. "Life with David is…different. I grew up in an entirely different lifestyle, sheltered. But here I feel free. He makes me want to love my life."
"Do you love him?"
There it was. The million dollar question. "I don't know," I answered truthfully. It was such an awkward topic, but with a stranger it was somehow easier to talk. "He makes me feel loved. I definitely really, really like him. And I'm questioning going home. I can't really imagine my life now without him. And he's so patient, so gentle with me. And the way he just looks at me, even when I'm eating," I laughed breathlessly, thinking about his eyes. "Like I'm the only thing in the world." I stopped and noticed I'd been rambling. "I'm sorry."
"Don't feel bad, Katherine," Nadina chuckled. "That light you speak of shines the same in your eyes. It's very endearing. Have you been intimate yet?"
I choked on my fruity drink. Had we had sex? "Er-no. We've gotten…close." It's not that I didn't want to, I was just terrified. I barely knew the mechanisms of sex. I'd have no idea what to do. David surely knew that. He was the only man I'd ever really been touched by before.
She patted my back. "Perhaps the time will come soon. Don't be scared when it does. I've known David for a very long time, and trust me when I say he will not disappoint you." Panic filled me as I took in her words, and quickly she countered, "No, I've never been with him. Good gods. I just know he'll take care of you. In every way," she winked. Again I flushed.
Her eyes trailed after a passing woman in a tight red dress. Nadina licked her lips and gave my hand a final pat. "I've got my own needs to fill, kitten. Good luck," she kissed my cheek and grinned before slinking off with the grace of a cat.
I sat in my booth letting her words of wisdom sink in. Soon David came out of his office, rubbing a hand across his eyes tiredly. I scooted out of the booth to greet him before he came to hunt me down. The bleakness in his eyes disappeared when they landed on me. The slow grin and intense gaze I could never get accustomed to swirled a strange desire in my stomach.
"Having fun?" he murmured against my ear after pulling me into an embrace. On instinct I cuddled closer to his warmth, inhaling that intoxicating scent he carried like a second skin. I never could pinpoint what it was. I nodded into his chest. David attempted to pull away but I squeezed my arms tighter around his torso. I felt it rumble with his chuckle. "Miss me?" I only nodded once more.
I felt him kiss my head and I looked up, tilting my head back. Nadina had planted thoughts into my head, and now I couldn't stop picturing David shirtless, above and all over me. Maybe it was her words or maybe it was just time it happened. The urge rose in me, and before I stomped it down like usual, I stood on my tiptoes and planted my lips firmly on his.
David didn't respond at first, surprised at my forwardness. Finally he leaned down and forward to move his lips with fervor. My hand itched to run through his dark locks; I pliantly obeyed and grasped the strands to get him somehow more close to me. He growled and wrapped a hand around the nape of my neck, attempting to do the same. Our lips danced for an indefinite amount of time before I pulled back for air.
"Wow," he grumbled, his lids lowered as they stared at my lips with lust. I'm sure I mirrored his look. I was so lost in the heat between us I didn't spare a thought to the people around us, what time it was, or even the day. None of it mattered.
"David," I breathed. "Let's go upstairs."
He blinked a few times and his brows furrowed, but the man wasn't stupid. "You sure?" All I could do was nod and grasp his hand in mine. Before I got too far he swept me into his arms without warning and bolted for the door to the stairs. I couldn't contain my laughter at his urgency.
Finally reaching the bedroom, he as gently as he could tossed me onto the bed and crawled over my aching body. The want and needed radiated off our bodies. But David still slowly leaned down to kiss me, searching my eyes for any hesitance. He paused when he found some.
"We can stop anytime," he reassured softly.
"David, I-you know this'll be my first time. I don't know what to do. So you'll-you'll have to show me. I really want to do this, I really want you. Just-please lead the way," I admitted shakily. The lust cleared from his eyes as they turned soft and understanding. He nodded with a small smile.
"We'll go slow, baby. It's all about you tonight, okay?" I nodded my response and put my hand against his scratchy cheek. I loved when he didn't shave for a few days even though it tickled, and he knew that. I bit my lip, picturing that same texture further down. When I clamped my legs together as the desire hit, I knew I was ready. Just like Nadina, I had a need to fill.
We kissed, the match was lit and tossed into the trees, and so began that uncontainable wildfire.