“What do you think?” Trey asked.
“I like it,” she answered.
“Wait till you hear the music.”
The waitress brought their drinks and they settled back as the musicians took their places.
“This group plays jazz fusion,” said Trey.
Danielle sipped her wine as she watched the men, wearing jeans and long-sleeved shirts, pick up their instruments.
“I’ve listened to a little jazz on the radio,” she said, “but I don’t know about the different styles.”
“Well, jazz fusion doesn’t get much broadcast time, probably because of its complexity, and the fact that it usually has no vocal . . . and the tracks are quite long, too.” Trey sat back and smiled. “This should be a real treat for you.”
The musicians began their set. Danielle snuggled against Jake as she enjoyed the raw energy of the music. She especially enjoyed the sweet sound of the saxophone. She could feel the sax player’s sheer love of playing in the vitality and edginess of the music. When he ran down a flurry of notes, tingles ran down her spine; then when he switched to rich low notes, the deep tones raised the hairs on her arms.
Too soon the set was over.
Trey smiled at her, his eyebrow arching up.
Danielle nodded. “That was really something.”
A DJ began to play a slow dance number.
“So, how about a dance?” Jake asked.
She sipped her wine, then followed him to the dance floor, where he slid his arms around her and held her close. She danced with him for a while, enjoying floating on a cloud of music with Jake guiding the way. After a while they returned to the table, and a few minutes later Trey asked her to dance. They danced to several slow songs. With his arms around her and his body close, she became intensely aware of her breasts pressed tight against him. The need built within her. She snuggled against him. It would be so nice to return to the house and get closer still.
Trey must have sensed her thoughts, because he leaned close to her ear and said, “You interested in heading back to my place?”
“Don’t you want to catch another set?”
He nuzzled her ear. “I’d rather catch you.”
Memories of being captured by him the night before flooded through her and heat rose within her.
She grabbed his hand. “Let’s go.” She turned and led him from the dance floor.
As they headed toward the table, she realized someone had joined Jake.
Jake seemed deep in conversation with the other man, but he glanced up as Danielle and Trey approached. He seemed a little uncomfortable.
“Uh . . . Rico, these are my friends, Danielle and Trey.”
The dark-haired young man turned toward them and glared. “Friends? Is that all?”
“Rico. That’s enough.” Jake’s warning tone quieted the man.
“We were thinking of going back to my place,” Trey said.
“Okay, uh . . .” He turned to Rico. “Wait here a minute.”
He stood up and walked with them a few paces from the table. The other man sat at the table glowering.
“Look, he’s had a few drinks and . . . I want to make sure he gets home okay. He’s got his car here. I’m going to drive him.”
“Sure, that’s fine,” Trey said. “You can meet up with us later.”
Jake patted Trey on the shoulder. “Thanks, I’ll do that.” He sent Danielle a heated gaze. “I’ll definitely do that.”
She walked out the door with Trey, then to his car. “How will Jake get back to your place?”
“He’ll probably take a cab. Or maybe he’ll drive Rico’s car. That’d serve Rico right if he woke up tomorrow and had no idea where he’d left it.”
“Who is this Rico anyway?”
“He and Jake had a thing going, but it ended about six months ago. I don’t know a lot about it, but some friends Jake and I have in common told me that Rico wasn’t very happy about it. He’s the jealous type. That’s a big reason Jake had to call it quits. It’s tough when you’re attracted to either men or women. . . . The guy suspected Jake of cheating whenever he spent any time with anyone. It became a real headache.”
“So now they’re broken up but this guy is still jealous?”
Trey shrugged. “Love is never simple.”
Well, that sure was the truth.
Trey drove his car through the dark streets to his house, then pulled into the driveway. Hickory, Trey’s cat, pranced across the front lawn and met them at the door, meowing and rubbing against his legs as he unlocked the door.
“Yeah, I get it. You want some dinner.”
Danielle petted the sleek cat, but when the door opened, Hickory raced inside straight to the kitchen.
Danielle kicked off her shoes, and Trey helped her take off her sweater, then hung it up in the front closet. Hickory trotted back into the room, mewing loudly.
“I’ll go feed Mr. Grumbles here. Why don’t you get comfortable?”
She sat down on the couch as Trey disappeared into the kitchen. A moment later, she heard the can opener, followed by Hickory’s frantic meowing. She picked up the remote control from the table and pressed the button to play music from Trey’s playlist. He had shown her yesterday how he had his entertainment computer, as he called it, set up to record from the TV, to play music, et cetera. A soft, jazzy piece, primarily piano, filled the room, and she relaxed against the cushions.
“I thought you were going to make yourself comfortable.” Trey grinned as he settled beside her. He drew her close and kissed her, his lips lingering while his hands slid from her shoulders to the front of her blouse. He released the first button, then the second. Her skin tingled as his fingertips brushed her skin, gliding over the swell of her breasts above the lace of her bra.
“Aren’t we going to wait for Jake?”
The tangy scent of his cologne and the light shadowing across his jaw proved irresistible, and she caressed his cheek,
