Natalie waved off Stevie's suggestion. "Let Risk Kincaid do the honor. He's kept his small-town mentality."
Zen looked at Aaron. He felt sorry for the man who had ditched his past to fit into this woman's future. If Aaron didn't know it now, he'd soon learn that Natalie Llewellyn was an utter and complete bitch.
A light tug on the sleeve on his sport jacket gained his attention. "I want to dance," Natalie said as the band came back on stage.
Zen held back. "I was about to dance with Stevie."
Inserting herself between Zen and Stevie, Natalie insisted, "Surely she won't mind if I steal you for a minute or two. For old time's sake." She nudged Stevie closer to Aaron. "Feel free to talk high school."
Natalie would cause a scene if Zen didn't oblige. "Aaron?" Zen looked at the man for permission to dance with his fiancee.
"As if I have a say," Aaron returned, his voice sharp, his expression granite hard.
Once on the dance floor, Natalie pressed herself against Zen's body, suggestively close. She ran a finger down his cheek before tucking her left hand behind his neck. There, she stroked beneath his shirt collar. Ran her thumb over his Adam's apple.
"Nice strong neck," she whispered, her breath hot against his throat. "Sexy ears." A flash of white teeth, and she bit his lobe. Hard.
Zen jerked back. "Do that again, and I'll walk off the dance floor."
Natalie tugged on his tie. "I've missed you, Zen."
He looked down his nose at her. "So much so, you got engaged to Aaron."
She pouted. "You dumped me. I wanted to hurt you."
"No broken heart here."
She poked him in the chest. "We had good times."
"That's a matter of opinion."
She tilted her head. "What about Saint Kitts?"
He remembered the strip of Caribbean beach where swimsuits were optional. Natalie had shed her bikini, then stolen Zen's towel and swim trunks from his gym bag. Miles from nowhere, she'd hidden the car keys, forcing him to choose between lying on the sand in his T-shirt and jeans or floating on a double-sized air mattress offshore. He'd chosen to ride the waves. Naked.
"Not a fun day," he returned. "I got sunburned, then peeled in places never meant to see the sun."
"How about Lucerne?" One corner of her mouth curved slightly.
She'd tried to mount him on a ski lift in Switzer-land. The lift had rocked, and he'd seen his life flash before his eyes. "We could have been killed."
"I thought you more adventurous," she softly complained.
"I like my sex private. Not a spectator sport."
"I've yet to be caught."
"Someday you will."
She placed a hand over his heart, sighed. "I don't want to argue."
"Then stop talking."
There were no further words, only the touch of her hands as they moved freely over his body. Hands he couldn't contain. He caught the stares of other dancers as she slowly humped his leg. Somehow, Zen managed to keep his cool—until Natalie rubbed her belly against his, leaned back, and licked her lips. "You're hard for me."
Hard, his ass. Natalie didn't have the power to turn him on. "That's Stevie's shoe," he said as he slipped one from his suit pocket. "The heel," he emphasized, "poked your stomach."
Natalie looked none too pleased.
From the corner of his eye, Zen caught Aaron and Stevie in conversation. Stevie looked at Aaron as if he'd set the moon and the stars. Even though Aaron kept one eye on Natalie, his expression was animated. He nodded, smiled, openly enjoying Stevie as much as she enjoyed him. Something he said made Stevie laugh. The sound drifted to Zen. A heartfelt laugh. Happy and carefree.
Apparently the spark he'd felt with her had been lit by her loneliness, and had now been doused by Aaron's undivided attention.
Clipped by disappointment, Zen felt his throat go dry. He'd grown fond of Stevie. Fond of her smiles, her curves, her sense of loyalty to Aaron, however misplaced. She deserved better—someone kind and considerate and appreciative of her good heart.
He blew out a breath and wondered: If Natalie was removed from the equation, would Stevie's chances with Aaron improve?
Zen could give Stevie such a chance… if that's what she truly wanted.
When the song ended, Zen returned an aroused Natalie to Aaron. "We've had our dance."
Natalie stood flushed, her eyes dilated, while Aaron appeared ready to kill. Disgust darkened his features as Aaron took in the rapid rise and fall of her chest, her sidelong glances at Zen. Aaron shot Zen a dark look before taking Natalie by the elbow and steering her across the room.
Stevie watched them walk away. "So much for old time's sake."
"Old times aren't all they're cracked up to be."
"Aaron mentioned that you and Natalie were once involved."
"That's behind me now."
"Her dirty dancing says different."
"I wasn't the one humping."
"She humped for two. She wants you bad."
"Natalie wants until she gets. Then she loses interest."
Stevie looked at him thoughtfully. "She never got you, did she? You were the one who got away."
"Natalie is fickle. She'd have lost interest eventually."
"Think she might lose interest in Aaron?" Zen shrugged. "I can't foresee the future." What he could see, made him cringe. Across the room near the black velvet curtain that divided the ballroom from the buffet, Aaron and Natalie were engaged in a heated exchange. They were drawing a lot of public speculation. Aaron's jaw was locked; Natalie's features twisted, her color high. Zen knew that look. She was turned on, taunting Aaron, pushing the man toward public sex.
He felt a pang of sympathy for Aaron. He wondered how often the Tampa Bay pitcher had been caught in a public place with his pants down. A man could go from hard to soft in a heartbeat. How fast was Aaron's heart beating now?
Aaron Grayson was furious. "How did it feel humping another man's thigh?" he growled low in his throat.
"I wasn't humping," Natalie shot back sharply.
He disagreed. "Stop denying what everyone in the room witnessed. You were trying to get off on Zen's pant leg."