Chapter 3: Dirty Dancing

"Let's dance and work off some of the booze!" Kate laughed and screamed.

Kate was right, Zoe thought. She was undeniably a genius! Zoe grabbed Kate's hand and walked right on into the mosh pit of a dance floor. Though the music wasn't quite Zoe's taste, it was loud and the beat made it easy to dance. Throwing herself into the moment, she let the music take her to places she hadn't been in quite some time. The dance floor was packed to the gills and no one knew who they were actually dancing with, but they had fun anyway; not a care in the world whose body they were getting to know almost in the biblical sense.

Zoe felt awesome, even if she didn't know precisely the right steps or how the younger generation danced these days. Everyone was moving and gyrating to the deafening music with nameless faces. Dancing their little hearts out as if there was no tomorrow and loving every minute of it. The beat of the music combined with the vodka-spiked beer she had been guzzling all night made her feel a little more carefree, a little detached, and a whole lot out of control and she didn't give a damn.

She felt familiar hands close firmly around her bare arms, pulling her against a similarly familiar suit-clad chest. Zoe looked up as she flipped her hair out of her eyes, smiling coyly at John and continued to dance. She had been aware of his presence as soon as he had stepped into the bar. Even in her inebriated state, she sensed that he was there; ready to protect her from harm. Or the occasional butt grab.

He couldn't pin point what it was exactly that had caught his eye. But something did that made his heart beat just a little bit faster than normal. Akin to the parting of the red sea, the crowded mosh pit parted, giving John a peek into the collection of gyrating bodies. Taking a swig of his lukewarm beer, he set his glass down with a bang, his eyes never left the mosh pit; or rather, his eyes never leaving one particular gyrating body.

Zoe was dancing with her eyes closed, seemingly lost in her own world. She was dancing perfectly to the beat of the music; her movements graceful, flawless, and natural. John stepped into the path that had been cleared as he worked his way deliberately towards her.

Upon reaching her, he almost said something then realized that whatever he said would have been swallowed up by the booming sound system. Zoe's eyes were still closed as she continued to dance. Mesmerized, he leaned into her, his eyes taking in her movements, his nose taking in her scent.

She instinctively leaned into him as his hands clasped her arms and pulled her backwards towards him. With a hair flip and a smile, she invited him to join her. John found himself closing his eyes as well as he started to move to the music. John was not one to shimmy and shake, but moving along with her just seemed so natural that he couldn't help but move to the infectious music.

John's mind completely blanked out as she turned around and slipped her leg between his; bringing them into closer, full body contact. He stifled a moan as he felt her glittery beaded top rub against his suit coat, the heat of her bare back in his palms; their hips moving in sync to the wild and relentless rhythm.

And holy hell, the movement was just plain exciting, exhilarating even. Dancing in a crowd meant dancing mashed up against John with all their clothes on. It was sheer torture. Body to body, she heard his stifled moan as her breasts brushed against him, and his hands at her back pulled her even closer than before.

Zoe was impressed with John's adaptability. Though he was doing nothing more than swaying with her, it was enough to blend in with the rest of the mosh pit. His eyes never left her face, as she watched his eyes grow dark. She slid her arms around his waist, under his suit coat, her palms rubbing circles all over his muscled back. She closed her eyes once more, reveling in the feel of his hands gliding over the bare skin of her back and arms, causing her to shiver.

Zoe spun away from John, smiling impishly as she felt the hitch of his breath. She quickly spun back towards him until her back was flush against him again. Though John didn't shimmy and shake, Zoe sure did, playing the part of a tease to the hilt. His arms slipped around her again, palms resting on her stomach, just underneath her top. His fingertips playing tag with the smooth skin just below the waistline of her jeans. Rocking and swaying they continued, relishing the friction. His cheek rested on the top of her head, his sense of smell intrigued by fragrance of her hair.

Turning around to face him, Zoe laid her forehead to his chest. Once again, her leg slipped between his. The continuous movement of their bodies built up the tension to almost unbearable heights. And then, the music stopped abruptly.

She stepped out of his arms and backed away. John opened his eyes to find her cautiously looking at him. She threw a fleeting look below his belt, and, tracking her stare, he realized he was in no shape to remain on the dance floor. With a small smile, she shook her head slightly at him, not now, later, her eyes said.

It was well after two in the morning when Zoe looked around their table and realized that Brenda, Susan, and Kate were beyond the wilting stage and much closer to passing out. The lights had flickered off and on indicating last call several minutes ago. John was still at the bar, watching over her. She appreciated the gesture, though still on the tipsy side, she was well on her way to sobriety. Brenda and Susan were going to pay dearly for their little stunt. See how they feel about losing their privileges at the racquet club for a month. She had her connections and she would use it wisely.

Dialing the car service she used quite often, she ordered the car she had on stand-by to Rodeo Dan's. Laughing, she shook each woman's knee gently to rouse them. "C'mon ladies, it's time to go home." She stood and waited for the ladies to gather up their things then the four of them made their way out of the bar. Zoe was well aware of John following them a few paces behind as the car she had ordered rolled to a smooth stop in front of the bar. She glanced at him and offered him a small smile. He nodded back to her indicating that he would wait.

She handed Dave the driver some cash. "Thank you David. Will you please make sure they each get safely into their respective apartments?"

The driver nodded, "Of course, Miss Morgan, and you ma'am?"

"I'll be fine David, I have an escort home."

"Very well, ma'am," Dave responded as he returned to the car and drove the ladies away.

The night or rather the morning air was cool on her bare shoulders, she and John walked down the street. During normal business hours, the street would have been busy and crowded, but at this time of the morning there was not a soul in sight.

Still wearing the cowboy hat she had commandeered earlier in the evening, she commented as she rubbed her hands up and down her bare arms, "It's like a ghost town, I can't recall the last time I was out this late . . . "

"I'm sure there are still a lot of idiots raising hell somewhere in this neighborhood," John replied as he slipped off his coat and laid it over her shoulders. "You're freezing, what happened to your jacket?"

Shrugging her shoulders, she replied ruefully, "Long gone, I suspect . . . but thank you for the use of yours."

He nodded as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Heat rose in her belly at the feel of his arm around her. Barely a touch from him and she was already buzzing.

"Better?" he asked.

"Much," she replied risking a glance toward his face. He was watching her closely; almost as though he had never seen her before. As if he didn't know her.

"What? Quit staring at me, you're giving me the creeps." She joked elbowing him in the gut. At his grunt, she wrapped her arm around his waist.

"You just looked like you had fun tonight; you let your guard down." John's hip bumped against Zoe's as they walked.

"The wonders of inebriation," she replied. Forcing a smile, she added. "It won't happen again, it was stupid, I know, had I known sooner . . . "

"Hey," he said as he stopped and turned to her. "I'm not criticizing, it was nice to see you let loose," he reassured her as he pushed an errant brown lock behind her ear.

"Oh –"

John leaned closer and she swallowed the rest of her words as he pressed a kiss to her lips. He pulled away briefly and looked at her. Staring back at him, her eyes were stunned, questioning the appropriateness of the location. In answer, he palmed the back of her neck, kissing her once more, his tongue sweeping in as her legs turned to jello.

She pressed her body against his as his tongue stoked hers softly, provocatively. Slowly, she pulled away and asked. "Are you coming home with me?"

"Well duh," he said smiling with hot promises in his eyes.

John slipped his hand in hers and hailed a cab.