Page 64 of Timeless
His lips tasted like mint and whisky while the bass seeped into my skin, pulsing through my veins like a wicked dose of adrenaline. That feeling, paired with the club’s suggestive vibe and allure, was intoxicating. It was the perfect bait and switch, providing the front of a polished, high-class atmosphere, sweet and restrained, but the deeper you explored and pushed the boundaries, the more seductive and disarming it became.
I felt alive and in control of my body, my desires, and my needs.
I wanted to be reckless. To be his private dancer.
“Okay, ladies, time to go hit the dance floor before Jaxon pulls Lily into one of the back rooms and we lose our girl.” Ari’s remark was clearly a joke, but her teasing tone carried just enough weight to break us apart before we got too carried away.
The guys murmured half-hearted objections but eventually conceded defeat, and once our drinks were topped up, we sashayed our way down to the dance floor.
“This trip was exactly what I needed,” Lakelyn shouted over the music. “And I’m so glad we could make it work on such short notice.”
“I think we all needed this.” Ari lifted her drink. “To the hottest, fiercest babes I know. And while life can sometimes geta little messy, we’ll always have each other. Cheers, ladies. To thriving and living our best life.”
“Cheers,” Lakelyn, Jenna, and I echoed.
The electric tempo transitioned to a sultry beat with breathy vocals that complemented the bass pulsating through the air, sharp and sensual. I swayed my hips, letting the music wrap around me and fuel the cadence of my steps.
We danced, wearing bright, stress-free smiles through song after song, spinning in circles, raising our drinks, and falling into each other with bursts of laughter whenever the chorus hit the spot. We let ourselves get lost in the rhythm, feeling carefree and completely unbothered. It was then, under the haze of the flickering lights above us, that I suddenly felt the air around me change, causing a chill to ravage my spine.
I clutched my chest in a sudden panic, spinning on my heels to look up toward the balcony where the guys were hanging out. Jaxon’s eyes collided with mine, and I knew instinctively it wasn’t his gaze that caused my reaction.
My breath hitched when the booming music disappeared, only to be replaced by the sound of my heart beating erratically in my ears. Jaxon must have sensed the alarm blanketing me and reacted. The image of him vanishing from my line of sight caused my knees to buckle, but the jolt from hitting the ground wasn’t enough to break me free from the chaos pressing on my chest.
My skin crawled with hands belonging to faceless people.
Shame stole my breath.
The feeling of being violated had me dissociating. I scrunched my eyes closed and braced for the inevitable, the fall into despair. All the while, tears burned behind my eyelids as I pleaded with my mind to take me to a happier place.
Something tightened around my waist before a wave of warmth wrapped around me, body and spirit. Voices faded, and I became weightless. Suspended in the air, sheathed with protection and an overwhelming feeling of home.
The familiar scent of Jaxon’s cologne filled my lungs with safety, pushing down the panic, offering me a lifeline, and pulling me from the downward spiral into darkness as my mind took me to a happier time.
In that memory, his smile filled my vision, surrounded by a halo of the sun peeking through the clouds. He looked down on me adoringly as we lay on a plaid blanket at our spot. The sound of the trees rustling and the birds singing was a peaceful backdrop. A moment in time so innocent and untainted by the harsh reality of evil that lurked in the shadows.
Stealing parts of us without permission.
Breaking us with purpose.
Breaking us to be owned.
Jaxon was the lighthouse in my dark and the comfort I clung to when my world went dark.
Chapter Nineteen
Jaxon
My head was spinning with worry.
I was out of my depth, out of my mind.
I didn’t know how long it had been since we’d arrived back at the hotel. Time felt irrelevant as I sat in bed—next to a sleeping Lily—with my back against the headboard, cloaked in darkness, unable to stop my mind from replaying the night’s events over and over in my head.
Everything had felt light, flirty, and fun. The group’s camaraderie came easily, and Cameron and Jenna, the newest members of our tight-knit group, blended in flawlessly.
I recalled looking down from the club’s balcony in awe, watching Lily move with the kind of confidence and freedom that stole my breath. She was wild, radiant, and so full of life that it felt almost sacred to witness. It gave me pause, questioning if that version of her had ever seen the light of day before. I doubted it had been anytime recent, and yet there she was in the center of the club, stepping out of her comfort zone andcapturing the attention of those in her sphere without even trying.
All was well until it wasn’t.
