Watching Deandra flee through the heavy oak doors, Charlene let out a long, slow breath. The heavy weight that had crushed her chest for five years finally lifted.
She felt light. She felt dangerous.
The heavy, rhythmic thumping of bass echoed from the back of the lounge, where the jazz gave way to a hidden, high-energy dance floor.
Charlene turned her head. She grabbed Willow's hand. "Come on."
She marched straight toward the flashing neon lights. Tonight, she wasn't Mrs. Conner. She wasn't a substitute. She was just Charlene.
She stepped onto the crowded dance floor. Above her, the heavy strobe lights flickered with a faint, erratic buzz, a subtle warning of unstable wiring that was entirely drowned out by the music. She closed her eyes and let her body move. She rolled her hips, throwing her arms up, letting the music dictate her movements. Her dancing was wild, fluid, and completely uninhibited.
Overhead, a sweeping red laser light caught the fabric of her dress. She looked like a flame burning in the center of the dark room.
Her bright, genuine laughter rang out over the music. It didn't take long for the men to notice.
Three young, sharp-suited Wall Street brokers gravitated toward her. They boxed her in, their eyes hungry, moving to the beat alongside her. Charlene didn't push them away. She smiled, letting her hips sway close to theirs, intoxicated by the freedom of being desired for who she actually was.
High above the dance floor, behind a pane of tinted glass, was the VIP mezzanine.
Dawson sat on a plush leather sofa. He was surrounded by three venture capitalists, discussing a multi-million dollar merger.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. A text from his assistant: GPS pinpoints Madam's phone at the underground lounge on 4th.
Dawson frowned. He was in the exact same building.
He stood up and walked to the edge of the glass balcony, looking down at the writhing mass of bodies on the dance floor below. He scanned the crowd, searching for a lost, confused woman.
Instead, his eyes locked onto a flash of brilliant red.
His breath caught in his throat. His pupils dilated.
It was Charlene.
She was throwing her head back, laughing brightly as a man in a blue suit leaned in close to whisper in her ear. Her body was pressing against the stranger's, moving with a raw, sexual energy Dawson had never seen.
A violent surge of jealousy exploded in Dawson's chest. The blood roared in his ears, drowning out the music. His fingers tightened around the crystal whiskey glass in his hand until his knuckles turned white.
Crack.
The thick glass shattered in his grip. Whiskey and blood dripped onto the carpet.
One of the venture capitalists walked up beside him, leaning over the railing. The man let out a low whistle.
"That woman in red has a remarkable presence," the VC murmured, swirling his scotch with a calculated gaze. "She absolutely commands attention. I might just have to go down there and introduce myself."
Dawson turned his head slowly. His eyes were completely black, devoid of any humanity.
"That is my wife," Dawson growled, his voice vibrating with lethal intent.
The air in the VIP booth instantly froze. The VC's grin vanished, his face draining of color.
Dawson didn't wait for an apology. He kicked the heavy leather chair out of his way and stormed out of the booth.
He took the spiral staircase down to the main floor, taking the steps three at a time. He moved like a predator tracking its prey.
He shoved his way through the sweaty crowd on the dance floor, his eyes locked onto Charlene.
Down on the floor, the man in the blue suit smiled at Charlene and reached his hand out, aiming to wrap his arm around her bare waist.
Charlene shifted her weight, preparing to spin out of his reach.
Suddenly, a massive, vein-corded hand shot out from the darkness. It clamped down onto the man's wrist like a steel trap.
Dawson twisted the man's arm viciously and shoved him backward. The man stumbled and crashed into the crowd.
The man opened his mouth to curse, but he looked up and met Dawson's murderous glare. The words died in his throat. He scrambled backward and disappeared into the crowd.
Dawson turned slowly. He towered over Charlene. His chest heaved, his suit jacket ruined, his eyes burning with a possessive rage that threatened to consume them both.
The heavy bass continued to pound around them, but in that small circle, the oxygen had completely evaporated.
