| The Hot Seat |
[23 Dec 2005|06:02pm] |
"It's all for the good of business," Bethany muttered as her brown eyes swept the assembled group of people in front of her.
She had to keep repeating this mantra so she felt she had some reason for being in this godforsaken place with the company that surrounded her. She knew that some of the most influential people in Vegas were in room and she knew it was best that she make contact with them.
What was the one thing she could do without?
That would be all the sleazy men in suits trying to get a kiss out of her every sixty seconds or so. So far, she had successfully eluded four men and had paid the bathroom many visits to insure herself a plausible excuse. Perhaps she should have worn something that was a little less revealing and a little more ..frumpy? It was too late to change what she was wearing and it wasn't her fault that the men couldn't keep themselves in check, her clingy black dress wasn't to blame. Not at all.
An arm snaking around her waist and giving her side an almost familiar squeeze dragged her attention away from the interest she was paying to her own silent thoughts. "Hello, Bethany my dear," a raspy voice seemed to purr, and the full weight of overindulgent aftershave hit her right in her face and she knew who it was immediately.
She used the excuse of turning to look at him to escape his grip and put on her best fake smile, the smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Hello Jeremy."
"Enjoying the party?" he questioned innocently as a hand strayed behind his back.
'That better not be what I think it's going to be...' passed silently through Bethany's mind as she saw the movement of his hand. "Immensely," she lied through teeth as they came together to form a grin that she used to hide her distaste.
Unfortunately for Bethany, that something was exactly what she thought it was going to be, a sprig of mistletoe. Her groan went unheard as Jeremy leaned in and wiggled the sprig between two fingers. "How about a kiss? To celebrate this time of year."
Across the room, someone who looked as human as all the rest, but was less so than even the lawyer crowd, wasn’t doing a thing to hide his distaste.
Darian stood amidst a sea of black tuxedoes, wearing one remarkably similar. It was the favored attire for the Vegas elite at a penthouse holiday party, this one held by a nameless, faceless banker he’d met over a business deal one night at a topless bar. Tit for tat. A list of desperate contacts for Darian, and a larger… endowment… for the luckless banker.
Where better genitals were concerned, a man’s gratitude was never-ending. Hence the invite.
There was a drink in one of Darian’s hands. The other was curling into a fist in his trouser pocket.
Darian flinched away from the newest intrusion into his personal space. This time, it was Celeste the Party Planner! A blonde with a head full of springing curls, a tiara tucked somewhere in the hair-sprayed nest, and more white teeth than could possibly be normal. His nostrils flared at the scent of Vasoline that emanated from her. It explained the ever-present smile, but she more closely resembled a pissed off poodle than the belle of the holiday ball.
“Heeeere’s your mistletoe!” she giggled, dangling a spring in front of the demon like a carrot.
With a scowl, Darian plucked it out of her fingertips and smacked her hand out of his way. Once his back was turned on Celeste’s press-on nails, he felt marginally less homicidal.
He made his way across the room a bit at a time, standing a few inches taller than most of the men present, and showcasing the rigid posture that made it seem as if Darian was cutting a swath through the crowd, even if persistent nudging was a more apt description.
The blonde in the tight, black dress was like a port in a storm. He didn’t feel the same about the other ‘ship’ making its way into what Darian considered his harbor. Pulling up alongside the couple, he stood so close he was almost in between them, and looked back and forth, Bethany to mistletoe-wielding suitor.
“Jeremy,” he acknowledged, with a casual lift of his glass. “I’ve a better idea what you can do with that,” offered in a deceptively friendly tone of voice.
Jeremy's eyes almost bugged out of the sockets that held them in place, and with a quick step back, his arm dropped to his side and the mistletoe disappeared within the depths of his hand.
"Hello, Darian," he replied nervously, as his eyes looked from Bethany to the dark, imposing figure stood close to her. Jeremy might have been somewhat of an idiot but he wasn't a fool. He knew when to back off, and he knew Darian mostly by reputation alone, and so he quickly made an excuse to leave, pretending like he had just seen someone he needed to talk to.
Bethany's shoulders visibly sagged in relief as Darian appeared and Jeremy took his leave of her. "My savior," she took to commenting in a low voice and with an appreciative smile curling the corners of pink lips. Her head tipped and her eyebrow cocked at the look that Celeste was directing towards her and a cool look was returned in kind with a slight glint in both eyes which quickly encouraged Celeste to look away. Bethany could be just as catty if not more catty as most women.
Attention quickly returned to Darian, and an admiring gaze wandered over the suit that seemed to hug him like a second skin. In spite of seeing everything that there was to see, Bethany's imagination was still able to run quite free.
"I don't suppose you have any mistletoe on you?" The question might have been surprising, as Bethany had spent most of her evening avoiding men wielding mistletoe, but like most things, Darian was different.
( Well, It Just So Happens... )
( No Taking That Back, Is There? )
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