Sierra’s eyes were drawn to a group of people walking in the front door. Eight o’clock on Friday night seemed to be the time to go out based on the way Club Destiny was filling up. The noise level was increasing thanks to the hordes of people filing in, and the music had been turned up a few notches.
“Have you ever been here on a Friday night?” Sam asked, obviously noticing Sierra’s interest in what was going on around them.
“No.” Admittedly Sierra had never been big into the club scene, though she seemed to have developed a voyeuristic fascination with what was going on around her.
“If you watch long enough, you’ll see all sorts of interesting things.” Sam told her, turning her attention to the group of people Sierra was watching. “See, those would be the regulars, just coming in to have a good time. But see that woman over there in the corner?” Sam said, not out and out pointing, but damn near close.
“The one in the midriff red halter and the tight jeans?” The woman looked old enough to be Sierra’s mother, though her own mother didn’t look near that old.
“Yes. And believe it or not that outfit is one of the more discreet.”
The woman obviously worked out. She also probably spent one too many hours a week in a tanning bed based on the way her skin looked like leather. She wasn’t unattractive by any means, but Sierra got the impression the woman thought she was much younger than she was.
“She’s also one of the regulars. Her name is Barbara, but she goes by Barbie – no shit, I’m not kidding.” Sam grinned wildly as she took a sip of her drink. “She’s in here every Friday and Saturday night, and the woman sees more action than most college girls.”
“Is she a member of the club?”
“Not hardly.” Sam said, glancing over at the woman.
“Is that her son with her?” Sierra asked, noticing the more than attractive young man who was standing close by.
The question must have been funny because Sam laughed out loud. “No, that would likely be her date for the night.”
“Date?” Sierra couldn’t hide her disbelief. “But he looks half her age.”
“And that’s why she’s classified as a cougar.”
“Cougar? What the hell is a cougar?” Sierra dared to ask, wondering if she even wanted to know the answer.
“You know, an older woman on the prowl for a younger man. A much younger man.”
Holy crap. Sierra watched as the woman and the younger man cuddled up to one another, blatantly groping each other right in the middle of the club.
Thankfully Logan walked up behind Sam, wrapping his thick arms around her, deflecting Sierra’s attention from the way the older woman was sucking the young man’s tongue down her throat. Gross.
Sierra watched Logan, riveted by the way he looked exactly like Luke, yet the two men seemed so very different. A hint of jealousy coursed through her as she watched the way the two of them openly shared their affection for one another. The sight was so sweet, it made Sierra’s teeth hurt.
If Luke harbored even an ounce of the affection Logan did, Sierra wouldn’t be sitting alone at the table, feeling like a third wheel. Before she allowed her emotions to get the best of her, she downed the rest of her drink and made eye contact with Kane. He knew exactly what she wanted and nodded his understanding.
“Where’s Luke?” Sam asked the question Sierra was dying to ask, but couldn’t.
“He said he’d be down in a minute. He was talking to Cole in his office a few minutes ago.”
Cole? The mention of the man’s name made that jealous spark from a minute ago seem inconsequential compared to the rush that flooded through her. The way Luke had portrayed Cole as having been basically one foot into another relationship, she was under the impression the two men weren’t talking much. No matter how hard she tried, every time she thought about the two of them together, her thoughts drifted to that erotic shower scene she’d witnessed in Vegas.
Even though Luke was doing his best to convince her that Cole was actually seeing the daytime bartender, Lucie, she had yet to see evidence of it. And, no matter what, that didn’t mean Cole and Luke weren’t willing to cross that line.
The thought depressed her.
When Kane walked up and placed her drink on the table, Sierra was tempted to tell him that she was leaving. Subjecting herself to these types of things wasn’t in her best interest. Especially when Luke was managing to avoid her altogether.
“I hear that lawyer is giving you hell.” Logan said as he pulled up a chair at the table. “Sam tells me she’s one of those you just can’t make happy.”