Chapter 7

Nine Ten was loud and dark. The speakers throbbed with each note and remnants of Lil' Jon played throughout the former meat packing business building. Unlike a meat packing plant, the room was steaming and full of college students whose bodies were drenched in a combination of sweat and hard liquor. The strobe lights flashed, making it hard for anyone to tell who was who.

A long, tanned leg stretched out of the driver's side of a Lincoln Navigator. The owner of the leg ran her hand from her foot to her thigh and tugged at the hem of her silver and white tweed shorts. Her silver Christian Louboutin wedge hit the pavement and she smiled. She slowly brought her other leg out, followed by her thin body. Her hands ran over her fitted white tank removing all the creases and then met her pearl and gold chain necklaces. She straightened them out and cocked her eyebrow as she looked at the club. The closer Carter got to the club, the more excited she got. Carter loved going out. It was just "her thing" as all her former sorority sisters would say.

Carter passed the line waiting outside the popular club and Lyndsi followed close behind making sure not to lose sight of her chic friend. When she met the bouncer at the door, she coyly said, "Tony… honey." He winked at her, put his hand on the small of her back, and glanced at the line behind her. Carter winked back and leaned toward him, kissing him on the cheek. "Thanks babe." She grabbed Lyndsi's hand and dragged her into the club.

As soon as Carter's shoe hit the linoleum floor she turned to Lyndsi, "Lynz, it doesn't get any better than this." She took her shy friend by the hand and led her to the bar. Carter leaned across the glass counter top and yelled to the familiar bartender, "JB Browning! Carter Dunn is waiting!"

The blonde bartender quickly whipped his head around and smiled at Carter. He glanced at his ex-girlfriend, Lyndsi, and cautiously walked over to the two girls. "Hey Cart," He smiled at her, white teeth almost appeared purple thanks to the black strobe light behind the bar. JB looked at Lyndsi and in a civil manner said, "Hey Lynz."

Lyndsi pushed her dark hair off her shoulder and said "Hi," to him quickly before turning away from the bar and toward the crowd. Carter shrugged at JB and quickly took a long gulp of her Whiskey Sour. "J Bizzle, how is the RA job coming?" She ran her ring covered index finger around the rim of the glass, "Any new, sexy freshman?"

JB laughed and walked to the other end of the counter, slid a thirty something guy a Bud Light, and then casually walked back toward Carter "Ya know, there are always some sexy freshman girls." He leaned over the counter, "That's the thing, freshman girls are always more sexy."

Carter sipped on her drink and said, "I don't know if sexy is the word." She looked up at him, "Naive… willing…"

"Desperate," Lyndsi said, quickly spinning around on her leather bar stool.

"You were a freshman once Lyndsi," JB said quickly as he slid Carter another Whiskey Sour.

"And I was desperate." She replied quickly, pulling her long brown hair into a low bun.

JB rolled his eyes and headed to the other end of the bar.

Carter stared at the liquor behind the counter and noticed her reflection in the mirror behind the bottles. She noticed a familiar face across the bar and blinked hard at the sight. She took a long drink of her whiskey and looked at Lyndsi. "He's here."

Lyndsi looked at her, confused, "He? Who?"

The music stopped and Carter patiently waited for a new song to blare from the speakers. She turned around quickly when she heard the first note of Bubba Sparxx "New Ms. Booty".

"JB, I wish your sexy self could come dance with me," She winked at him and hit him on the shoulder, "But you've got to work…" She grabbed Lyndsi, "Come dance!"

Lyndsi shook her head as she sipped on her Long Island Iced Tea, "No, you go ahead." She kept her fingers on her straw, carefully guiding it to and from her lips.

Carter shrugged her shoulders and threw her hand into the air. She swayed back and forth, in and out of the crowd until she finally reached the middle. She let her hips hit hard with every pound of the base. Guy after guy would come up behind her, put their hands on her hips and grind against her. She shooed them all away. She had her eye on a tall, dark guy across the club.

TDH (tall, dark, and handsome) 's eyes met Carter's as he weaved in and out of the crowd. He smiled at her, put his hand on her back, and casually walked behind her. He leaned down and whispered into her ear, "I was wondering if a girl like you would come out tonight."

She slowly turned around and with a breathy whisper said back to him, "A girl like me comes out every night." He smiled and raised his eyebrow at her. He put his hands on her hips and grinded with her, their faces getting closer and closer with ever second of the song. She put her hand on the back of his head, asking him, "So where's the wifey tonight?"

TDH put his hands on the waistband of Carter's low rise shorts and pulled her closer, "At her friend's house. She is too drunk and too far up my brother's ass to come out."

Carter raised her eyebrow at him, "Too up his ass? She is your girlfriend, not his." Carter stated confidently as if she knew what was going on.

TDH shook her head and whispered into Carter's ear, "I didn't come out tonight to talk about my issues with my brother and my girlfriend."

A smirk fell across Carter's face, "Oh really. What did you come out for tonight?"

He pulled her in close to his face and kissed her on her neck, letting his kisses move from her neck across her chest, to her lips, saying in between kisses, "I… came… for… you." She let her lips remain on his and their tongues danced just as everyone else around them did.

She smiled into his mouth and said deeply, her voice raspy now, "You know this is wrong."

"That's why it feels so good." He smiled at her, his blue eyes twinkling, "Carter… I don't do this with just any girl… you are spec-"

The song changed and interrupted his words. "Bad Girl" by Usher blasted from the speakers. Carter looked up at the DJ station and noticed Nine Ten's DJ Slash motioning toward her. He leaned toward the microphone and in with a Southern twang said, "Carter Dunn, this one is for you, get up here Miss Thang."

Carter smiled at the DJ and then looked back at TDH. His strong arms were crossed over his even stronger chest. She bit her lip and leaned toward him, "Don't ruin this good thing we've got." She winked at him and audaciously said, "I'll be watchin' you from up there Scott."

Nathan watched her turn and walk away to the DJ stand. She finally reached the DJ booth and Nathan was in awe. He looked around the club and noticed every single person in Nine Ten was staring at Carter. They watched her throw her hands into the air and spin around. The watched her throw her necklaces off of the booth and into the crowd. The watched her every move. Carter Dunn was like royalty.

He walked over to the bar and unknowingly sat next to Lyndsi. Nathan smiled at her and ordered a Coors Light. The bartender, JB, promptly returned with the beer.

Lyndsi spun her chair around and said to JB, "She always does this…"

JB grinned at her and made her another LIIT, "It's just her thing. It's so her." He slid the drink to Lyndsi and leaned across the bar, "And Carter Dunn is always in season."

Lyndsi laughed a little and turned to Nathan, "You know Carter?"

Nathan took a long swig of his beer and nodded at her, "Yeah, you?"

"Best friend," Lyndsi said as she spun her straw around her glass, "I love her to death…" She looked at JB, "But that girl is a handful."

Nathan watched Lyndsi sip on her drink, "So I have heard."

Lyndsi smiled at him and extended her hand, "I'm Lyndsi."

He took her tiny hand into his and replied, "Nathan, you go to Duke, Lyndsi?"

She shook her head as she took another drink, "No, I actually go to UNC now."

"My brother goes to UNC too."

"Small world."

Nathan nodded and drummed his fingers on the counter top. He looked over at the DJ booth to see Carter now dancing on the DJ table with two other girls. Nathan laughed and took another drink of his beer.

"That's Hannah Taylor and Maddy Alvertson, they used to be my sorority sisters… at Duke." Lyndsi looked back at JB, who was carefully watching Maddy dance on the table with Carter. Maddy was that infamous sorority sister JB cheated on Lyndsi with. Chances are they would have still been together if Maddy hadn't cheated on JB with his Lambda Sigma brother Cris Smithson during Greek Week the beginning of their sophomore year.

Lyndsi let out a small laugh as she thought about the love triangles. Karma's a bitch, she thought.

Nathan's phone vibrated from his pocket and he quickly answered, "Yo."

It was Haley. "Baby…"

"Haley?"

"Where are you babe?" Her words were even more slurred than before. "I want you to come get me. I'm at Brooke's, baby, come get me…"

Nathan stopped paying attention to Haley and looked up at the DJ booth and watched Carter hug the two girls and then step down. She was walking toward him. Her long, wavy, blonde hair flowed behind her as she put her hands into her tiny pockets of her shorts.

''I'm at the club."

"You're still at the club?" Haley whimpered, "Come get me, I wanna see you. I need you."

"I have to get up early." Nathan said hastily as Carter got closer to him.

The whininess in Haley's voice immediately turned to annoyance, "Nathan, come get me now."

Carter was not standing in front of him and kissed him on the cheek. He closed his eyes and in an almost whisper said, "I have to go Hales."

"Fine." There was silence on the phone for a moment and Haley said, "I love you."

Nathan closed the phone and threw it into his pocket. Carter smiled at him, "Where to now?"

He put his arm around her waist and looked into her deep eyes, "How about your place?"

Carter didn't even look away as she said, "Not tonight." She turned away, grabbed Lyndsi by the hand and slowly turned back to Nathan, "Let's not ruin this good thing we've got Scott."