Chapter 8

Sara could clearly see the distress in Warrick's eyes. She knew he truly did not want her leave, especially after what had almost happened between them. She felt him reach out and grab her hand. He squeezed it gently trying desperately to convey what he could not say in words. She gave him a small reassuring squeeze in return before she pulled her hand out of his.

Sara glanced over at the beautiful black woman who was glaring at her. Unable to meet her eyes she quickly turned and walked away, wishing the earth would just open up and swallow her. She felt an arm circle her shoulder and she smiled gratefully when she saw it was Reggie. She let him escort her away from the dance floor.

Beth raced up to her and grabbed her hand and declared, "Don't worry honey, Rick has no interest in the manipulative bitch." Sara sighed uncomfortably as her eyes sought out Warrick and the woman.

Sara knew from the way Warrick was holding himself, he was furious. His back was rigid, his shoulders tense and one of his hands was clenched into a fist by his side. She knew she should feel some sense of relief but she didn't. The beautiful woman had her hands on him and Sara could not help but feel jealous. It should be her out there touching him.

The sound of Reggie's voice asking her how she was doing, forced her to advert her eyes back to him. She shrugged her shoulders. "I thought he said he hadn't dated anyone in 5 months." she said quietly. "He hasn't!" Beth cut in, "They broke up about 5 ½ months ago. They didn't date very long because Warrick realized how awful she was. I can't believe she's over there trying to stake a claim on him. She has no right!"

Both Sara and Beth heard Reggie clear his throat nervously and their eyes flew to his face. "What?" demanded Beth. "Well technically they did break up but they saw each other on occasion." he answered sheepishly. "What!" Beth exclaimed. Reggie looked away embarrassed as Beth cried, "That dog!"

It took Sara a moment to understand what they were implying and when she did her cheeks flamed red. Warrick and that woman were still sleeping together. Sara's eyes shot back to Warrick and the woman. She felt herself grow envious when she looked at the sexy curvy black woman. She was every thing Sara was not: petite, beautiful and full breasted. What the hell did Warrick want with her; miss absolutely plain, flat chested, too tall Sara.

She turned to leave when Reggie grabbed her arm. "Sara please give him a chance. The thing he has with Lisa isn't serious. She's someone to fill the lonely hours with. You know the negitives of your job. It's hard to have a personal life. But Warrick wants one. He's ready to settle down. I can see how he looks at you Sara; you're different from the rest. There's definitely something between the two of you, something strong. Don't run from it."

Sara could see the sincerity in his eyes. She glanced at Beth, her new friend and smiled when Beth said, "I think you two are perfect together Sara." Sara couldn't help but grin at them. She wished what they were saying was true and that she and Warrick could ride off into the sunset together. But in reality she and Warrick had a lot of obstacles to overcome and she wasn't sure if she was ready to deal with all of them quite yet. She turned back to Warrick and saw that he had moved closer to where they were standing. He was facing her now and his clouded eyes sought her out.

Warrick was ready to strangle Lisa. She kept going on and on that she couldn't understand why they had to end their arrangement. She thought it had been working out great. He tried to tell her that it had made him uncomfortable. After a few weeks of it, he realized he wasn't into the casual sex. He wanted a real relationship. He wanted someone he could talk too and Lisa was definitely not that girl. He was lucky if he could get 4 sentences into a conversation. Yes she was beautiful but looks were not everything. He wanted someone he could lay in bed with at night and share his feelings with. Someone who would understand his love for his job and the heartache it sometimes caused.

He looked at Sara and knew she was that girl. She would understand his dedication and his determinedness because she felt those same things too. Plus she was beautiful and sexy as hell. He shook his head because it had taken him so long to see it. Sara Sidle was perfect for him. He watched her as she turned to leave and Reggie stopped her. He would have to thank his friend later. Words were exchanged and finally a small smile graced her face. She turned and looked at him and he felt a spark of hope ignite. She squared her shoulders and headed toward him. He thanked God for giving him a second chance.

Warrick felt a sharp poke in his side and he growled at Lisa. "You're picking her over me?" she asked in disbelief. "Hell yeah!" he responded enthusiastically as her turned to watch Sara walk toward him.

Not knowing where her courage came from, Sara squared her shoulders and headed toward Warrick. She stopped beside him and gave him a smirk, "Are you ready?" Warrick gave her a grateful smile and said, "Most definitely." He held out his hand and she took it, savoring the strength of his touch.

Warrick started to move away when Lisa reached over and grabbed Sara by the arm. "You'll never satisfy him in bed you skinny bitch! He's too much of a man for you!" Lisa hissed venomously. Warrick watched Sara's face fill with anger as she yanked her arm out of Lisa's grasp and growled, "Obviously you couldn't satisfy him otherwise you'd still be in his bed!"

Warrick couldn't hide the small grin that crossed his face. He had been at the receiving end of quite a few of Sara's terse comebacks. He had to admit it was one of her 'flaws' that he had grown fond of.

Lisa reeled back at Sara's truthful words and raised her arm to slap her when Warrick stopped her hand in mid-air. "You don't even think about touching her! Ever! You understand?" Warrick growled menacingly. "You leave her alone and you leave me alone. I told you weeks ago it was over. I didn't like you then and now I really don't like you." Lisa's face contorted in rage as she turned and stormed off.

Warrick took a deep breath and turned to face Sara. Her face was etched in embarrassment. She avoided his eyes and said firmly, "Please take me home." "Sara," he implored. "Now Warrick," she said curtly as she turned and walked away. He sighed, thankful that she was at least letting him take her home. He knew Lisa's words had hurt her. But they were far from the truth. He just had to find a way to prove it to Sara. He couldn't help but smile as he watched her walk with her head held high and her shoulders straight. She was a proud woman. But it was the sexy sway of her ass in that teeny tiny tantalizing mini skirt that had him grinning like a fool. She had no idea how attractive and alluring she was.

Sara was furious. She had never been in such an embarrassing situation. God half the people in the club had just watched that sordid little drama unfold. And that vicious woman! How dare she say those things to her? She just wanted to go home and pretend like this night never happened.

Sara walked up to Reggie and Beth and gave them each a hug. "Thanks," she whispered in each of their ears. Beth whispered, " I can go pop her one for you." Sara just smiled and shook her head. Reggie said with a sly grin, "Make him work for it." Sara couldn't help but laugh. She really liked these two people.

Warrick told them he was bringing her home. Reggie leaned over and quietly said, " You better work that Warrick Brown charm because if you lose her you'll regret it." Warrick said, "I know it man." He turned to Beth and she gave him a sympathetic smile.

Warrick followed Sara through the crowd. This time there was no hand holding or touching. They stopped at the coat check to get her jacket. He went to help her put it on but she brushed off his hands. They headed outside and walked a few paces apart. Neither saying a word. He glanced over at her and saw the rigid ness of her spine and the set scowl on her face. He wished he could erase the last 20 minutes. He could tell by her demeanor she was going to try and push him away. No matter what she said or did, he was not going to let that happen. Sara Sidle was going to have to accept the fact that he liked her…a lot.

When they reached his SUV he helped her in. He climbed in his side and started the engine. He looked over at her and said, "I'm sorry you had to go through that." "I know you're sorry. It's not your fault. How were you to know that your lover was going to be there?"

Warrick's eyes widened at her words and he silently cursed Reggie and his big mouth. "Ex," he said flatly. "I ended it almost a month ago. It was not what I wanted."

"I'm surprised. You had a pretty good thing going. Sex with no strings attached whenever you had an itch to scratch. That's every man's fantasy especially with someone who looks like they just stepped out of Playboy." Sara said bitterly.

Warrick looked at her, stunned that she had just said that. "I'm not like that Sara. I thought you knew me well enough by now to know I'm not that shallow. Obviously you don't have a very high opinion of me." Warrick said with ice in his voice. She looked at him and knew that she had purposely said those things to hurt him. "I'm sorry. It's my nasty flaw rearing its ugly head again," she said softly.

Warrick couldn't help but smile at her words. "Sara," he said reaching out his hand to her. She looked down at it for a moment before tiredly saying, "Just take me home Warrick." She then turned, ignoring his hand and looked out the window, signaling that the conversation was over. Not knowing what to say to her, Warrick drove her home and the silence between them was deafening.

TBC