“Better be careful dancing like that out there squirt. You’re playing with the big boys now. You might just lose your V card if you keep dancing like that honey.”

HOLY FUCK! OH shit……..he did not just say that!

Jeff practically shouted it to Ari. Rebecca and Crysti started to laugh. I just stood there stunned. This was not Jeff. He would never purposely hurt anyone.

I looked at Ari. She just stood there staring at Jeff, the tears where slowly starting to build in her eyes. She looked over at the two bitches who were laughing still.

“Rebecca, knock it the f**k off or you can take your friends and leave.” I said as I walked in between Ari and Jeff. She looked like she was ready to knock the shit out of him. He just stood there smiling at her. After what felt like forever I saw Ari’s shoulders square off and she stood up tall.

“Fuck you Jeff! It’s not the first time I’ve played with the big boys and it certainly won’t be the last.” Ari turned and walked over to Jack. It looked like she was asking him to play a song.

I turned and just stared at Jeff. “Rebecca, will you and your friends give us a few minutes please?”

“Sure, I’ll be inside baby.” Rebecca reached up and kissed Jeff on the cheek. He briefly closed his eyes like he couldn’t stand the contact.

“Jeff, what the f**k is your problem? Why the hell would you embarrass Ari like that?” I pushed my hands through my hair….what the hell was he thinking? “Holy f**k dude that was a really douche bag move.”

Jeff just took a swig of his beer and shrugged his shoulders.

Next thing I knew, “I’m a Slave for You” by Britney Spear’s started playing.

Oh fuck….. this can’t be good. Just then Ellie walked back up and had a confused look on her face.

“What the hell?” Ellie said just as Jeff looked out to the dance floor. His jaw dropped. I didn’t want to turn around but I did.

Dammit……I shouldn’t have……

Ari was dancing with Josh. I mean she was dancing closely with Josh. There was some major grinding going on. I had never seen a girl move like how she was moving. There must have been at least a group of ten people standing around whooping and hollering. I saw her look over towards Jeff and the look on her face was sending a clear message.

“Gunner, do you know why Ari is dancing like she’s staring in the next dirty dancing movie?” Ellie asked over the music. Fuck….what was I suppose to say. She was going to be pissed at Jeff.

I looked at Jeff to see if he was going to say anything. Nope. He couldn’t pull his eyes away from where Ari was dancing. We just stood there…watching Ari. Amanda and Heather joined in on the dancing. Josh looked like he had died and gone to f**king heaven. Even I was getting turned on just watching Ari dance with Josh.

A slower song started to play, “Fall Into Me” by Brantly Gilbert. I shook my head at Jeff and looked down at Ellie.

“I love this song……will you dance with me Ellie?” I asked as I took my hand and ran it down the side of her face.

Ellie looked over at Jeff; clearly she knew something had happened, and then she looked over at me and smiled.

“Or course I’ll dance with you.”

I scanned the dance floor and saw Ari was dancing with Josh. I thought I saw her quickly wipe a tear away from her face but I wasn’t sure. Shit….Jeff f**ked up big time.

I took Ellie in my arms and held her close. I took a deep breath in and breathed in her smell. She would forever smell like daisies to me. She molded perfectly into my body. She was tense when we first started to dance but I could feel her relax more and more as the song went on.

I looked up to see Rebecca and Jeff dancing………and kissing. Jeff didn’t even have his eyes closed. It was almost like he was on auto pilot.

Stupid drunk bastard.

I was going to f**king kill him tomorrow. I kept Ellie turned away. I didn’t need her leaving me now to go bitch out her brother. I closed my eyes and pictured Ellie and I all alone just the two of us dancing.

The song ended and Ellie looked up at me with the most precious look on her face.

“Gunner…..you have a beautiful voice.” She said as she stared into my eyes.

I could lose myself in those beautiful blue eyes. If I had not known better I would think my knees were about to give out from under me. Wait……what did she just say? I had a beautiful voice? Was I singing?

“I didn’t realize I was singing out loud. I’m sorry!” I said with a laugh. “That must have been pure torture!”

Goddamn, there comes that smile I would die for. It slowly spread across her cheeks along with the blush that I have grown to love so damn much.

“No….it was……it was one of the most romantic things ever. It took my breath away.” Ellie said as she looked down and away from me. She looked back up with a weak smile.

“You’re going to make some girl very happy someday.”

Fuck. I had my work cut out for me. It was pretty damn clear she was sticking to this whole friend’s bull shit. She was just going to keep pushing me away. Patience is all I needed. If it meant ending up with Ellie the rest of my life….then I was going to have to learn to give her the space and time she needed.

Ellie and I danced together most of the night. I was pretty sure I didn’t see Ellie dance with any other guy. Not that they were not asking her to. I saw her turn down more guys tonight than I cared to count.

I stopped drinking after my fourth beer. I needed to have a clear head. Between keeping the vultures off of Ellie and her friends, watching dick head Jeff and trying to keep Crysti at bay, I needed to be as sober as I could.

The most interesting part of the night was when Ari stood right next to Jeff and Rebecca and danced to “Shut Up” by Christina Aguilera.

“Okay, what is going on with those two?” Ellie asked me while she watched Ari dance and never once did Ari look away from Jeff. He looked like he was going to blow any minute. I was just hoping that they didn’t rip each other’s eyes out.

I shrugged my shoulders and prayed that Jeff didn’t kick Josh’s ass since he was dancing pretty damn close to Ari and she had a shit eating grin on her face the whole time. Jesus those two were going to be the death of me tonight.

The party started to wind down around midnight. I was standing in the kitchen talking to Scott and Brad when I felt someone come up behind me and wrap their arms around my waist. I instantly knew it was not Ellie.

“Hey there handsome, what do you say to a dance with me?” I took the arms that were wrapped around me off my waist and turned around to see Crysti standing in front of me. She looked like she was wasted. Fuck, I wish her and her Barbie doll friends would just leave already. Rebecca had been clinging to Jeff damn near all night.

“Ah, no thanks Crysti…..you might want to start gathering up your friends. We’re shutting things down soon.” I said as I gave her a blank look. Last thing I needed to do was encourage her anymore.

“What the hell Gunner…..you have a few high school girls at your party and we all have to go to bed earlier tonight? I know who I want to go to bed with ……” Crysti said as she threw her arms around my neck.

Of course that would be the moment Ellie and her friends had walked into the living room. She was scanning the room. Probably looking for Jeff but he f**king disappeared about 30 minutes ago. She caught my eyes. She tried to keep her face natural but I was not stupid. Her whole body tensed.

I pulled Crysti’s death grip arms off of my neck. I held her arms and pushed her back slightly.

“Crysti that is enough, I already told you no and asked for you and your friends to start heading out. Party is over. Jack is packing up his stuff so there is no more dancing.”

Crysti looked like she was going to cry but then she started to laugh. What the hell?

“Oh. My. God……tell me you are not into that little girl? Come on Gunner….don’t you remember how good we were together? I bet she can’t make you feel the way I did.”

Fuck….Ellie was now just standing there listening to the whole thing. Could this get any worse?

I should not have asked……just then I heard Rebecca with her obnoxiously loud laugh. She and Jeff were walking out of his bedroom and down the hall. Rebecca was throwing her hair in a pony and Jeff was slipping a tee shirt on over his head.

Oh f**k no Jeff you didn’t……….

Ellie and Ari both spun around and looked at them. Then Ellie turned back around and looked at me.

“It’s time to go Crysti, and take your tramp friend Rebecca with you.” I said as I grabbed her arm and lead her into the living room.

“Hey…..take your hands off of me you dick.” Crysti shouted.

“Get out now Crysti.” I said as I looked around for Cooper. He was taking them all back to their sorority house.

Once I got all of them all out the door and gone I started to clear out the rest of the house. This party was over since Ellie was sitting on the sofa with a clearly upset Ari. Amanda and Heather were all surrounding Ari so I didn’t notice Ari crying until Amanda stood up to say goodbye to Brad. Did he just hand her a piece of paper?

Amanda and Heather walked up to me. “Thank you so much Gunner. We had a really great time. We would say thanks to Jefferson but we can’t find him.” Amanda said with a weak smile.

“You girls are more than welcome. I’m glad you had a good time and Heather you haven’t had anything to drink right? You’ll be okay driving home?” I asked as I looked over their shoulders at Ellie watching me talk to her friends. God this girl was my undoing….just a smile from across the room could bring me to my knees.

“Nope…I have not had a drop! Thanks again Gunner. Hope to see you around soon.” Heather said as they headed back over to Ellie and Ari.

“Um yeah sure! See ya around.” I said.

Ellie walked them to the front door. Everyone was now gone. I watched as Ellie walked back over to the sofa and sat down next Ari.

I decided it was time for me to find out where the f**k Jeff went and what the hell he was thinking. I walked outside and he was sitting in a chair just staring off into space. He was the only one outside, just sitting there alone.

“You want to tell me what the f**k has gotten into you tonight dude?” I asked as I grabbed a beer out of the cooler and pulled up another chair to sit next to him.

Jeff looked up at me and I had never seen him look so goddamn upset. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“You’ve got to know what an a**hole you were tonight, not only to Ari but to your sister as well. I can’t believe you f**king slept with Rebecca dude. What a stupid ass move man.” I took a long swig of beer and looked over at Jeff. He had his face buried in his hands.

“I don’t want to fuckin’ talk about it Gunner. I know I f**ked up okay? Just leave me the f**k alone.”

“I have never in my life been so goddamn disappointed in you Jefferson. NEVER!” I heard Ellie shout.

I looked up to see her standing in front of Jeff with her hands on her hips. She looked so f**king cute standing there all mad.