HANGING ON A WIRE - CONTINUATION
The two headed out the door and walked to
the club next door. The
words "Black Ice" flashed in large neon letters above
their heads. Nicolette took it to be the name of the club. She
hoped it wasn't too tough of a place, she was a quite girl and
didn't like rough crowds. But looking over at Howie, she felt a
strange feeling. Like she didn't need to worry, as long as he was
around. She chuckled to herself and pushed the thought aside. It
was silly to think some man she had just met would keep her safe.
Howie led her up to the bar and ordered a
drink for himself. Nicolette did the same and was pleasantly
surprised when Howie paid for both without a word. They found a
small table in a corner of the bar, away from the crowds of
dancing people.
"So tell me about yourself
Nicolette," Howie said with a charming
smile. She returned the smile. "What would you like to
know?" He sat back in his chair for a minute and thought.
"Well, considering the only thing I know about you is your
first name,how bout sharing some details about yourself?" He
then seemed to realize that this sounded a bit forward.
"...if you don't mind." he quickly added.
Nicolette was surprised to realize she didn't mind at all. She
was usually a cautious and reserved person, but tonight Howie
seemed to be bringing out a different side of her. That
interested her very much. "Well my full name is Nicolette
Paige Bridgewater. My birthday is July 17, 1977, which makes me
23, turning 24 in...a little over a month, since today is June 8.
I've lived here in Boston, Massachusetts for some time, but I was
born in Baltimore, MD. What about you?" she was still
shocked at herself for giving this man all this information about
herself. She hardly knew him, but she didn't stop to think
about her actions. For once in her predictable life she was
acting on
impulse. And she liked it.
"Well I'm Howard Dwaine Dorough, but you already know to
just call me Howie. I'm 27, but I'll be 28 on August 22. I was
born in Orlando, FL which is where I still call home. But lately
I've been hanging around Boston to see my sister. Besides, I like
it here. There are a lot of really nice people." he said,
smiling meaningfully at her. Nicolette blushed at his subtle
compliment. It wasn't much, but his words of praise gave her a
special feeling she couldn't ignore. She stared into his soft
brown eyes as he stared back into hers. He had never seen such
beautiful green eyes in his life.
They both instinctively leaned forward,
drawn to each other by some undeniable force. Nicolette felt her
lips burn as they ached for the touch of Howie's lips on her's.
She could see by the look on his face that he was experiencing
the same feeling. They leaned in closer, their lips now mere
inches apart. Nicolette closed her eyes and waited for the feel
of Howie's lips on hers. Suddenly the moment was shattered as a a
loud crash erupted a few feet from the pair. They both looked
over to see a large man being helped up from what
used to be a table. They both laughed when they realized that the
man had had a bit to much to drink and had collapsed on the
table, breaking it apart.
Howie and Nicolette both giggled like
high school kids, and Howie put his hand over Nicolette's. They
both stopped laughing as a tingle went
through both their bodies at the mere touch of the other. They
were both thinking the same thing at the time. This is
something special.
"It's getting late, would you like
me to escort you home?" Howie asked, not letting go of
Nicolette's hand. She smiled at him and nodded.
"I'd like that." They headed for the door of the club,
hand in hand
and were about to leave when Nicolette felt a large hand grab her
shoulder and yank her away from Howie. The hand spun her around
and found her face to face with the man who had fallen on the
table earlier.
"Hey baby," he slurred. "Whaddya say you come with
me, I gotta place nearby where we can have some fun." His
eyes roamed up and down her body, making her shiver with disgust.
His breath reeked of alcohol and made her sick to her stomach.
"Um, no thanks." she said, backing away. The man
grabbed her arm
roughly and pulled her back. He grabbed her around the waist and
pulled her up against him, his hands roaming over her body.
"You're not getting away that easy. You're coming with me,
whether you wanna or not." Nicolette began to really feel
frightened when she realized how drunk this man really was---and
how serious he was about taking her to his place to have his
"fun".
"Let go of me!" she spit at
him, struggling to wrench free from his grasp, growing more and
more frightened by the minute. Suddenly a hand flew by the side
of her face and made contact with the man's
nose. She heard a loud crack as his nose broke. He stumbled to
the ground, blood spurting from his nose. Looking behind her, she
realized her savior was Howie. He smiled at her and pulled her
close.
"Let's get outta here before this
guy gets his second wind." He whispered.
She nodded gratefully and hurried out, still a bit shaken, with
Howie's arm around her. But despite the scary situation that had
just taken place, for a moment she could only think of the way
Howie's breath on her neck had felt, the way it gave her chills,
and sent a tingle up her spine. And the way it felt to have his
arm around her now, protecting her from anything that would ever
try to hurt her.
Contents (wwyd)