Moon Dance . Amy Blankenship

She hadn’t meant to. Jason had been and still was one of her favorite people in the whole world; the last thing she ever wanted to do was screw that up by sleeping with him. She loved him too much for that.

      “Last time I checked, he was taking the trash out,” Jason sighed when she pulled back from him. He placed his fingers under her chin and raised her eyes to his, “Trevor doesn’t deserve you.”

      “Chad didn’t really arrest him did he?” Envy asked, grabbing Jason by the hand and leading him toward the steps. She’d avoided this conversation for years and she wasn’t ruining her track record now.

      “No, I think being tasered was enough punishment… that and losing you. Chad was just making sure he found his way to his car,” Jason smirked. At the top of the stairs he noticed Chad was standing at the bar next to the door waiting on them. Keeping Envy’s hand in his, he led her in that direction.

      The guilt was making Envy’s chest hurt. She really wasn’t a mean person at heart, and what she’d done to Trevor had been a very bad thing. It had only felt good for a moment and now that moment was gone. She kept her eyes lowered, too ashamed to even look at her brother.

      Chad took one look at Envy and knew it was time to take her home. “You ready?” he asked, taking a step away from the bar.

      “I can take her home,” Jason offered, then quickly added, “If she wants to stay with me for a while.”

      Chad could see the hope flare in Jason’s eyes and wondered if he was doing the right thing or setting their dearest friend up for a fall. He felt his phone vibrate on his hip and held up his hand, “Hold that thought.” Seeing that it was the police station, he worked his way toward the door so he could hear more clearly.

      Envy blew her bangs out of her eyes, knowing as bizarre as this night already was, she had a feeling Chad had just been called into work. She watched him pocket the phone as he walked back toward them.

      “Will you be okay with Jason?” Chad asked. When she nodded, he placed his finger under her chin and lifted it. “You did the right thing with Trevor so chin up. I probably won’t be home until the morning, so don’t wait up.”

      Envy gave a small smile as he walked away. They had both touched her chin in the same way and told her that this was Trevor’s fault and not hers. She loved Jason because he was just like Chad and that’s why she would never give into the knee-jerk need to date Jason for real.

      Just as Chad left through the front doors, Jason’s cell phone started buzzing. She turned and watched him as he answered, then frowned as his face turned serious. She knew he was on call this week and silently wondered if it was the rangers needing him in the middle of the night. In her opinion, that couldn’t be a good thing.

      When his eyes locked with hers, she could see his shoulders slump in disappointment.

      “Envy I’m sorry, I gotta head out. Come on, I’ll take you home on the way.” Jason shoved the cell phone back into his pocket like it had become the enemy. He’d hoped to get a few minutes of alone time with Envy one way or the other.

      Envy frowned because she knew that home was probably not the direction he was heading. “Thanks for the offer Jason, but I think I’ve caused enough problems for one night. Besides, I start working here tomorrow so I’m gonna hang out and watch the bartenders.” She shrugged and pasted an excited smile on her lips that made her face hurt, “Who knows, I might even pick up a few tips while I’m here.”

      Jason nodded reluctantly knowing he needed to hurry, “Okay, but you’ve got my number if you need me.”

      Envy waved her hand at him, “Yes I do. Now go to work. Work hard, make money, and take me out clubbing soon now that I’m single.”

      Jason smiled brightly at her and quickly made his way out the door.

      Envy let the numbness filter in, as her smile faded, then turned back toward the dance floor, looking it over again before heading to the bar. She slid onto one of the soft cushioned stools and leaned her elbows on the bar top.

      She sat there staring down at the bar for several minutes before she noticed the clear surface rimmed with neon lights changed colors periodically. There were bits of some gray colored stones embedded in the thick Plexiglas that shone like they were covered in glitter. The ‘glitter’ was mixed in with the Plexiglas in such a way that, if the lights were black, they would have looked like stars against a twilight sky.

      A glass suddenly appeared in front of her with a long-fingered hand holding it. The nails were painted a pretty shade of red, with black slashes along the nails of the ring fingers, that looked a little like claw marks.

      Envy looked up in surprise at the woman in front of her. She had long, slightly curly black hair and an exotic look that made Envy blink. She was beyond beautiful. Her skin was a warm bronze and her eyes were an odd shade of blue. Not the striking blue she’d seen on Devon, but very close.

      “It’s on the house.” Kat said and pushed the drink a little closer. “All bartenders get free drinks and my brother just hired you, right?” she smiled, wanting to get to know the girl that had turned her brother's head so quickly. It wouldn’t have been that big of a deal, but Devon never took girls seriously because he was surrounded by hundreds of them every night. But this girl had rattled his cage.