She nodded. “When I was in university I used to come here a lot. Now that I’m working I only come once in a while. And anyway, most of my friends moved away.”
He gave her a look that told her she’d sparked his curiosity. “So you come here…with other friends?”
She laughed. “No, I come alone. Just to dance.”
Rafe was frowning now and she could tell he didn’t believe a word of it. “You come here alone?”
“Yes. Why?”
“And all these men hanging around here, they don’t bother you?”
She waved her hand in dismissal. “Oh, them? I can handle them.”
Now his look of disbelief turned to one of incredulity. “You can handle them? I’d love to see that.”
She chuckled. “They know me at this club, Rafe. They know better than to come mess with me. Want to know what they call me here?”
“What? Karate Kitten?” He laughed, looking pleased at his joke which was actually quite lame. She wouldn’t tell him that, though.
“Nope. They call me Iron Fist. Want to know why?”
“Do I dare ask?” He gave her a look of mock fear.
She shrugged. “Okay, don’t. I’ll just show you. If a man invades my space I ask him to let me hold his hand. Give me yours.”
Without hesitation, he did. It was too easy. Rafe had walked into this one and he had no idea what he’d gotten himself into. She almost felt sorry for him.
As soon as their hands touched Anya wrapped her fingers around his and then she squeezed and squeezed. And squeezed some more.
Like she knew it would, Rafe's face went from tan to red in seconds and he tried to pull his fingers away but it was no use. With the specialized muscle training she’d done in order to achieve a super strong grip there was no way Rafe could escape. Not until she let him.
And then, because this was a man she actually liked, she did.
Rafe let out his breath in a whoosh. Then he sucked in air and let it out again like all the time she’d held him she’d cut off his oxygen. “What the hell did you do that for?” he half yelled, half gasped. “Are you trying to kill me?”
Smiling, she shook her head. “Well, you didn’t believe me so I had to show you. Now you know why the men – the sensible ones anyway – stay away from me.”
He nodded, giving her a pained look. “Now I know.”
Her smile deepened. “Now you know.”
After that, maybe it was because she felt a little bit guilty about playing that dirty trick on him, she was extra nice to Rafe, showing him all the latest dance moves and not laughing when he stumbled and not saying a word even though it was painfully obvious that he would never make it to ‘Dancing with the Stars’. Rafe was just too stiff to ever be a good or even passable dancer but she didn’t let that worry her. They were on the dance floor having fun and that was all that mattered.
That night Anya and Rafe didn’t leave Nur Fur Freunde until way past midnight and by that time they were all discoed out.
As they walked back to his car, Rafe surprised her with his next comment. “I haven’t had this much fun in a long time. Thank you.”
That made her raise her eyebrows. “You’re sure you had fun? You’re not just saying that?” Then when he nodded she said, “And am I forgiven for abusing you?”
Rafe grimaced as if the memory was still painful then he shook his head. “That, my dear lady, will not go unpunished.”
Anya frowned even though she wasn’t the least bit perturbed by his threat. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“That’s for me to know,” he said softly, “and for you to find out.”
“Hmm,” was all she said in response. She was pretty confident that she could handle whatever he planned to dish out. She wasn’t an expert in Rafe-ology for nothing. And by now she could read him like a comic book. He wasn’t that hard to figure out. So, that established, it was a confident Anya who hopped into the car beside him and when they got to her house, as late as it was, she still had no qualms about inviting him in.
“Are you sure?” he asked, glancing at the clock on the dashboard. “Don’t you think you’d better head to bed after all that dancing? You must be tired.”
She rolled her eyes. “Please. You’re talking to a girl who’s used to partying till four in the morning. Now come on.” She jerked her head toward the house. “Let’s have a nightcap.”
Rafe looked doubtful and Anya had to admit she respected him for that. Most men would have jumped at the chance to enter her home in the middle of the night. After all, what better setting in which to seduce a maiden? She chuckled at the thought. Any man who wanted to seduce her had better have his A-game on. Anya Petersen could only be seduced if she wanted to be seduced and the man trying would soon find that out. It took a minute but the doubt on Rafe’s face eventually dissipated and he shrugged. “Well, okay,” he said. “If you insist.” And then he got out and came around to open her door.
Inside the house Anya didn’t have to give Rafe directions. He headed for the living room while she went off to the kitchen to get them some drinks, wine cooler for her and sparkling water for him. When she got back he’d made himself comfortable on the floor, his back against the sofa, his long legs stretched out in front of him.
“What are you doing down there?” She placed the drinks on the table, straightened up and dropped her hands casually on her hips. “Or didn’t you notice the sofa behind you?”
"Don’t be fresh, little girl,” he gave her a crooked smile, “or else I’ll have to spank you.”
She didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she cocked her head to one side and regarded him. He really was cute, especially now, with the collar of his shirt slightly askew from all that dancing, his hair which was beginning to grow long again now curling at the collar of said shirt. A spanking from a guy who looked this good? She could live with that.
But that would have to wait just a minute longer. First, there was that little thing about quenching their thirst after a long night of dancing. She knelt down on the floor, right between his legs, and reached for the bottles on the coffee table.
By this time Rafe’s brows were raised in surprise. That was a good sign. She loved the idea of throwing him off balance. If she had any luck she would keep him like that all night.