They Say Love Is Blind by Pepper Pace
The next day, Tory intentionally missed her normal bus. She wore a dress that complimented her curves and slipped on comfortable heels. Even though her feet protested due to all of the walking she'd done this week, she figured it would okay since her bus stop wasn't far from any of her destinations. Besides, bigger girls looked great in heels; especially if they knew how to do a model walk, and she'd practiced perfecting that long ago.
When she saw the bus rounding the corner, she stood up from her seat on the bench, her heart pitter pattering in anticipation of seeing Lee again. Her cheeks grew warm as she remembered the fantasies that she'd had about him the night before. He was sitting in his regular seat and Tory hurried to grip the pole since she'd figured out the bus driver's game.
"Hi, Lee." She said shyly.
"Good morning." He smiled. "Let me put your money in and you can sit down here by me." His hand was held out and she dropped the coins into his waiting palm. His movement was sensual and slow as he rose from his seat, absently clutching the pole as he slipped her coins into the feeder. In the process he managed to brush her backside as she stepped around him in order to sit down.
She perched herself into the empty seat next to his and when he sat down, his hand reached out and lightly brushed her shoulder, than he sat down and looked at her. "You weren't limping today. Do your feet feel better?"
"Much."
"Good, I don't want to be forced to remove your shoes and give you a good rub down tonight." Every muscle in Tory's lower body tightened. She watched Lee's playful expression. He was such a flirt! Did he even know how much his words affected her? By the look on his face, he did.
"That would be my pleasure." She said seriously, giving him back his own line.
He suddenly chuckled. "I'm looking forward to tonight."
She smiled, enjoying the game of seduction and double entendre. "Me, too, Lee." She was suddenly serious. "It was all I could think about last night..."
He licked his full lips and she had to force herself to remember that she didn't need to be at work fully turned on with no outlet! Lee tilted his head slightly.
"I think that we're going to have fun tonight. I did some research on the net and found that the band that's playing tonight is Reggaeton and they have a lot of Ska influences."
"Reggae...Tone? I know Reggae, but never heard of reggaeton."
"Really? Wow, girl, I'm going to have to show you something." He said with pleasure. "Reggaeton is
like...dancehall music. It would be more like a hip hop reggae. You've heard of Shaba Ranks, right?"
"Yeah." She nodded.
"That's reggaeton. Mix Beenie man with Lil Wayne."
"Ooo, that's going to be nice."
He licked his lips again and then grabbed his duffel bag and stood. "This is my stop. I hope you're up for some dancing tonight, because I can dance all night long!" He was halfway down the stairs before he called over his shoulder. "See you tonight, Bela."
"Bye Lee!" Her brow was raised doubtfully...dance all night? Damn! Maybe she could take a pain pill since her feet were already sore. Still, the idea of dancing the night away with a sexy Latin guy was appealing despite the corns developing on her feet!
~***~
Work went super slow. At lunch she tried to select something to eat that wouldn't talk to her later during her date, which meant no onions, fish, or bean burrito. She settled on a ham sandwich and a cup of chicken noodle soup just to make sure that her stomach wouldn't be doing any embarrassing growling.
When Tory finally stepped off the bus across the street from Club Kat, her eyes immediately searched for Lee and there he stood near the entrance. No cane in sight, he stood patiently waiting for her arrival. It sent a thrill through her--that, as well as the fact that he looked really sexy. He was wearing black slacks, a casual t-shirt and a black jacket. She hurried across the street and when she was just a few feet from him, he smiled broadly and greeted her first.
"Tory. Hello."
"And how did you know it was me before I even said hi?"
He offered her his arm. "Remember, that I can see pretty well with my other senses. Are you ready for some reggaeton? It's taking all of my will power not to stand out here and dance...but then people would throw me money."
She put her arm through his. "They wouldn't even know that you can't see."
"No. You can be my cane again. And I got our tickets online when I checked the itinerary."
"You use the computer?" He mentioned that earlier but she hadn't had time to ask him about it.
"Yes, all of the time. Actually, the computer is essential for my job." She led him into the entrance of the club and through a small crowding of people as he spoke. "I use a system called JAWS that reads the material for me. But most computers have an automatic text to voice program built in."
"Ohhh, gotcha."
"I have a little British woman that reads to me on a daily basis." He joked.
"Your computer has a British accent?"
"Or any accent I want it to have."
"Did you name her? I bet you have a name for her."
He chuckled. "I do actually. Her name is Nancy. Nancy has quite the sexy voice when she's reading a Dr. Suess book for me to transcribe." Tory couldn't help but to laugh. Lee had a great sense of humor. He looked at her. "Of course, it's not as sexy as that laugh of yours."
She blushed and didn't know what to say. "Thank you," she finally replied.
"De nada." They reached a window with a coat check and a girl with a blue Mohawk and five facial piercings greeted them.
"Welcome to Club Kat. For two?"
"Yes. I paid online." Lee responded. He gave his name and she slid two tickets to them. Tory retrieved them and then led them down a short flight of stairs. The music was already loud before they had even entered the room and the beat was thumping! She liked it already.
The club was popular, that was evident. Even at barely six thirty there were a lot of people on the dance floor. It was a mix of all kinds of people; black, Latin, whites and there was no specific age. She saw younger college age men and woman just as she saw more mature couples. The one constant is that they loved moving their bodies wildly to the reggaeton beat. She led him to a small round table that wouldn't be large enough to hold her elbow.
He sat down and briefly placed his hands on both sides of the round table before leaning towards her and speaking over the loud music. "Do you want a drink?"
She didn't drink much since she didn't do much socializing and drinking alone was no fun.
"A wine cooler would be nice."
"Do you like sweet wine?"
"Yeah. I guess I'm not a wine connoisseur or anything. But I would like something sweet and fruity."
He nodded. "Is there a waitress or just a bartender?"
"Both." She looked around and waved a waitress over. "One is heading our way now."
"I'm going to order you something good. Trust me." The waitress was young and cute wearing an extra short tube skirt and a tan that could not be natural.
"Would you like to order drinks? Tapas are complimentary with a drink order." She had an accent...not quite like Lee who only had an accent when speaking Portuguese, and Tory could sense a different dialect.
"Sangria for the lady and cerveja for me."
"Cerveja? Você é Português?"
"Portuguese, yes."
"Ahh." She gave him a lingering look and Tory crossed her feet under the table in annoyance. No this woman was not flirting with her date right in front of her?! The waitress smiled at Lee. "Any particular brand of beer?"
"Do you have Super Bock?"
"But of course." She paused and when no one responded she spoke in a rush. "I'll be right back with your drinks and two complimentary tapas." Tory hid a smirk. Lee would not be giving that one any secret looks.
"Do you care if I move my chair next to yours? I feel like I'm on the other side of the world."
"The other side of the world with this lit
He moved his leg back and forth against her knee. "I know. But more of us can touch if I'm sitting next to you."
Again she was at a loss for words. "That would be nice." He brought his chair around so that they both were facing the dancers and stage where the band would later appear. When he was settled he put his arm around the back of her chair and spoke next to her ear. "This is better. Now I can talk to you without screaming."
Chills traveled up her body as the slight puffs of air from his mouth touched her skin, and not to mention the way the sound of his low voice reverberated through her body. She nodded, knowing that he was close enough that he would feel even her slightest tremble. Feeling adventurous, she suddenly turned and placed her lips next to his ear to whisper.
"This is much nicer than sitting across from each other. Good idea." She enjoyed feeling his hard body right next to hers. His arm draped over her chair allowed his hand to rest lightly against her shoulder and she decided that she loved touching and being touched by him.
Lee's body was moving to the beat of the music. She could tell that he longed to be out on the floor dancing. Her body began to sway unconsciously along with his.
He put his hand on her arm and leaned in to whisper to her again. "I am going to teach you how to dance the way we do back home."
"Oh...kay." Was her nervous response.
"Don't be afraid. Trust me."
The waitress returned then when they were whispering to each other. She slid two plates onto the table.
"I trust you." Tory whispered back.
"Good, because I want you to have fun."
"Um..." The waitress spoke. "It's happy hour. Your beer is on the international menu so it doesn't normally count for one dollar but I can hook you up." She winked at him. He was smiling as he turned his gaze to the waitress.
"Thank you. One dollar beer and free tapas? Great deal, isn't it, bela?"
"It is." She snuggled against him and smirked at the waitress. "We'll definitely have to come back."
The waitress gave her a confused look. It said, 'here I am with my tiny waistline and I'm available'...well that's what Tory read into her look.
"Sorry," the waitress spoke in a clipped tone. "Your drink wasn't on special. That will be six dollars please."
Lee reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He thumbed through several bills and when he reached the last; a ten, he gave it to her. "Can you bring us two glasses of ice water? We're about to work up a big sweat. And keep the change please." She took the money and left.
"Mmm, smells good. What is it?" He asked.
"Um...mine is a plate of potato chips. Yours is wontons and a dipping sauce."
Lee reached for one of her chips and placed it in his mouth. His brow went up. "No, not just potato chips; HOMEMADE potato chips. This place is known for their handmade chips deep fried in duck butter and there should be a shaving of white truffles over it."
She gave him an openmouthed look. "Computer research, or are you just that good?"
He chuckled. "I research pretty much everything. Try it. It's good."
She put a potato chip in her mouth. "Mmm." She chewed, savoring the taste. It was warm from the fryer, crispy yet moist and the duck oil added a hint of flavor that was hard to place. And white truffles? "This is free?"
"Yep." He said after chewing another chip. "The white truffle adds a hint of salt."
"Is that the white truffle? I wasn't sure. Wow, that's good."
He drank some of his beer and she picked up her glass of sangria and took a short drink. Then she took a longer one.
He gave her a steady, expectant look. "Do you like it?"
"It's good. Not too strong, and fruity...just what I wanted." He nodded.
"Shall we try the wontons...um, when I did the research I read that these are probably deep fried mushroom ravioli and the sauce is a mayonnaise aioli."
She chuckled. "That sounds a lot more appetizing then potato chips and wontons." The waitress returned with their ice water. She placed it on the table and disappeared without a word.
They drank, and munched and just when her cheeks began to feel flushed from the liquor and her feet kept tapping to the rhythm of the music, Lee stood and took of his jacket, placing it neatly behind his chair.
She was so busy looking at the outline of his muscles through the short sleeved shirt and the definition of his chest muscles that she didn't immediately notice that his hand was held out to her.
"May I have this dance?"
She sputtered, expecting this but still not prepared to shake her 'stuff' on the dance floor with people watching. "Guys usually say that when there is something slow playing..." The current song had a funky, hip hop beat and the band members were chanting something in a foreign language. The crowd had picked up the chorus and was chanting along. She placed her hand in his and came to her feet.
"What are they saying?" She asked as she led them to the dance floor.
"I...uh...better not say."
"Oh my goodness." She stopped when she found a place where she hoped they wouldn't get trampled.
"Watch me." He brought his arms up, clapped his hands repeatedly and began gyrating to the beat...just like everyone else. His hips moved seductively, yet to the tempo of the music. Then he slowed his movements down a bit and reached out for her. She placed her hand in his and he put his other hand on her hips.
"Do what I do!" He yelled above the music.
She watched the way his feet moved, shuffling and stomping and mimicked it. Once she stopped, worrying about how she looked, but before too long she felt the music guide her movements and then the steps became more natural.
His hands on her hips monitored her movements and he smiled. "That's it! You're doing great, Tory!"
She laughed. The sangria, the music and the closeness of Lee's body made everything feel dreamlike. Watching him move so confidently and effortlessly loosened her up, allowing her to express herself in a way that she'd never felt comfortable doing before—not even in the privacy of her home.
They danced and as the music moved from one song to another, so did his movements. He pulled her gently into his arms and she discovered that a fast song could also be danced to by two people in perfect synch. He slowed his movements and made them simple and repetitious until she was dancing in his arms.
"I'm going to spin you."
"Not in these heels!"
"To late..." He spun her and when she stumbled he saved her easily with his strong arms around her waist. "When I'm done with you Tory, you will be doing three spins effortlessly."
"Not tonight, I won't...unless you want me to get sick on you."
All amusement left his face. "Oh, I don't intend to be done with you in just one night."
Instead of being shy and embarrassed, Tory slid her hand up to his shoulders. "I'm glad. I think I'd like to learn to spin three times."
"I can teach you that, and more. Like how to dip. Shall I?"
"Ok."
He suddenly clutched her to him. One hand stayed around her waist, the other slid down the side of her body, over her rear end, down her thigh. He tilted her backward just as his hand on her leg lifted it enough that her inner knee now straddled his thigh.
She gasped and put her arms around his neck, clinging to him before she went crashing to the floor.
"I got you. You're not going to fall." He held her firmly in his grip for a few moments before he righted her. Tory's breath came in excited gusts. His hard body had been flush against hers...and he felt so good. She had never wanted to kiss someone so badly in all of her life. When his face had been inches from hers and his hooded eyes were on her; his attention on her and no one else...she had felt that they were the only two people in the world.
"Getting tired?" He asked.
"Can we sit down for a while? I can use some of that water."
"Let's go to the bar and get fresh drinks. I don't want anyone
They got their water and sat down at their table. Their plates had been whisked away leaving them room for their bottled water. He put his arm around her again and unconsciously she leaned into his body.
"I hope I didn't tire you out too much."
"No. I've been missing my workouts, so I needed it." He didn't comment and after a lengthy pause she decided to ask him a question that she'd been curious about.