He turned to look at her. “Are you okay? You seem a little antsy.”
She pointed at the stage. “Will I embarrass you if I get up there and sing?”
His eyes brightened. “Stop worrying about embarrassing me. I want you to enjoy yourself.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Go for it!” He didn’t ask her if she could sing. It didn’t matter to him. All he wanted was for them to have a great time.
Quite a few of the males went crazy when Dakota stepped up onstage.
Ethan thought the wolf whistlers had great taste, but they’d have to take a backseat tonight. Dakota Faraday was there with him.
Once Dakota make her song choice, she picked up the microphone. Blowing kisses to the crowd and bowing, she acted out the part of a diva. Losing all of her inhibitions, she tossed her hair around and let the music enter her soul. None of this would’ve been easy without the encouragement from Ethan and his friends. Dakota didn’t know she could have such a good time—and she didn’t want this night to end.
Everyone talked about fun and Dakota wanted to show them she’d gotten it.
Ethan didn’t realize he was holding his breath until he was forced to release it. He was nervous for her. Audiences could be cruel and he didn’t know how she’d react if they heckled her. As she hit the first few notes of the song, he felt himself go lax. The girl had it. She hadn’t gone onstage just to be up there. Dakota had something to offer.
As she seductively belted out Beyoncé’s version of the old classic “Fever,” that’s exactly what Ethan and every other male in the place felt. Dakota put on a show she didn’t know she was capable of. She knew she could sing, but never in her wildest dreams did she think she’d get up in front of a crowd like this. She had a ball with her magical performance. Dakota’s goal was to make sure everyone else did, too.
Then, Dakota suddenly turned her smoldering and seductive eyes on Ethan. The message he received let him know she had come down with a fever, too. Only he could bring down her temperature.
Ethan stood up and kissed Dakota to welcome her back to the table. The ladies were beside themselves with joy as they jumped up to give her warm hugs. Dakota was glad she’d been able to show everyone she was game, too.
All the guys quickly left the table and rushed the stage. They had gotten pumped up during Dakota’s performance and now it was time for them to show off. Ethan grabbed the microphone and mussed his hair, making an Elvis-like stance. Rudy strummed a nonexistent guitar and Maxwell and Todd had everyone cheering on their fancy, animated footwork.
“All Shook Up” was the song they’d chosen.
Dakota couldn’t believe her ears as she recalled thinking of how Ethan had her feeling: all shook up. Tears of joy filled her eyes. No longer would she dwell on what she’d missed out on. All she’d think about now was what was next on her social agenda.
Dakota now had firsthand knowledge that Ethan and his boys were regular cutups. Maxwell was hardly the only comedian and Ethan was an absolute riot. She hadn’t seen this funny, engaging side of him before now. She knew he had a great sense of humor, but his sharp wit and quick verbal comebacks had been downright hilarious and intriguing. Ethan and his crew had been successful at making her laugh until it hurt.
At fifteen minutes before midnight, Ethan leaned against the outside door of Dakota’s apartment. He had followed her home to make sure she got there safely.
Wrapping her up in his arms, he looked deep into her eyes, kissing her gently. The next kiss deepened, escalating his heart rate. The third kiss was all he’d hoped for. With a beautiful, sexy woman like Dakota he could easily lose his self-control. So far she had only agreed to build toward an exclusive relationship and he had to respect that. In his heart he already believed she was a woman worth waiting for.
Dakota smiled brilliantly. “I had a beautiful time with you and your friends. I think I passed their muster.”
“I know you did. You were a big hit, lady. Think I can get an encore of the song you sang at the pizza place?”
“You were a big hit, too, with me. As for the encore, I hope we’ll have many.” Laughing inwardly at how his mouth had fallen agape, she wiggled out of his arms and unlocked the front door. “Goodnight, Ethan. Hope we’ll talk soon.”
“Lady, you can bet money on it.”
Chapter 3
Ethan always felt much better after a hot shower, yet the back of his neck still had a crook in it. He’d love to have it massaged out. It was too late to get it taken care of tonight. He’d call in the morning and get an appointment with his therapist.
Dakota had soft hands. He easily imagined her massaging his tight muscles. Her fingers were strong. They’d held on tightly to his digits during the initial fall at the roller rink a couple of days ago, he recalled. Her hands were also as tender as their strength. The tenderness was what he remembered best. Every time she’d touched him he had felt it right down to the center of his core.
A glance at the clock let him know it was too late to phone Dakota. He didn’t want to risk disrespecting her, but it was difficult to ignore the strong desire he had to hear her voice. Whenever he talked to her, he got caught up in her gentle, soothing tone.
Instead of picking up the phone, Ethan settled for getting deeper in thought about the evening he’d spent in Dakota’s company at the roller rink. She had been a megahit with all his friends, especially Maxwell, who’d said he definitely would’ve asked her out had he met her first. The two friends had a rule to never date anyone the other one had been involved with, no matter how casual or serious the relationship was.
Once Dakota had gotten over her embarrassment of falling down, he remembered how she had shown the valiant side of her. Her show of character had made her a major leaguer with Ethan and his friends. Although he still thought she was somewhat reserved, he hoped her demeanor toward him would change as she got to know him.
To distract himself from calling Dakota, he walked down the hall to his office and pulled out a folder from the filing cabinet built into the el extension of his desk. Bent on perusing its content, which held the work he’d done so far on his book, he carried the file back to the living room. After turning on the television set, he made himself comfortable on the sofa, propping pillows behind his back before stretching out fully.
Ethan turned his attention back to the folder. After reviewing the first couple of dozen or so pages, he was unable to concentrate further. He closed the folder and set it aside, taking a quick glance at the clock.
Before Ethan could change his mind again about calling Dakota, he grabbed the receiver and dialed her number, hoping she was still awake. As her sweet voice instantly brought a generous smile to his lips, an audible sigh of relief followed.
“Glad you’re still up. I’ve been dying to talk to you. How was your day?”
“I’m glad, too. Wouldn’t want to miss your call. My day has been busy but good. I accomplished a lot of must-do things. I was just about to turn off the light. Normally I don’t go to sleep until after the late-night talk show. When I don’t have to get up early, I stay up until the wee hours. I love to read before settling in.”
“That makes two of us. I either read or write before shutting down. I’ve been doing a lot of research on the computer this evening. I already mentioned my project to you.” He hadn’t told her the subject matter of his work. His curiosity was strong about an industry very few people knew exactly how it worked or how to go about breaking into it.
“That’s great! I’m sure you’re excited about getting tenure?”
“It’ll be nice. I’m working my butt off to earn it.”
“It’s just a matter of time. You should be proud of yourself. I’m proud of you.”