The Things We Do For Money Ch. 04

"So, Pam told me that you are still together with Lacey? That's incredible," Josh said, interrupting her somewhat nefarious thoughts.

"Yeah. Five years now. She's wonderful."

"I bet, if she has a girl like you."

Dawn blushed. "Stop. Flattery will get you everywhere," she teased, lightly pushing on his bicep. And what a bicep it was, solid like a rock. Well now, the alcohol was starting to get to her.

"Oh, really?" Josh arched a brow with a thoughtful and amused look on his face. "Careful, girl, I just might take you up on that."

Dawn looked at her empty drink, swirling around the alcohol in it. "I don't think our girlfriends would like that too much."

Oh, jeez, what a way to be a buzzkill but it was the truth. She shouldn't be flirting with him, even if it was just the alcohol clouding her somewhat foggy mind.

Josh bristled but recovered quickly. "Oh, come on. A little harmless flirting never hurt anyone. And that's all we're doing here."

Huh. Well, he did have a point. But flirting could lead to so much more. "I guess," she said, offhandedly. "Wanna come with me to get refills?"

He nodded. "Sure."

They both got up and walked over to the bar. She ordered another Long Island and Josh got a dirty martini. She wrinkled her nose. "That looks so gross, I hate olives."

He laughed as he sipped his drink. "Yeah? I love them. You sure you don't want to try it?" He teased, waving the drink in front of her face.

Dawn pulled her head back, laughing. "No! I just said I hate olives, ya jerk."

They were both laughing, enjoying their short time together. "Don't forget to get Pam and Chelsea their fancy ass drinks."

Josh called the bartender back over and ordered the citrusy drinks, sex on the beach. Pam and Chelsea loved those; they were their favorite.

They sat back at the table and Pam asked Josh to go dance with her. Dawn watched them go and Chelsea leaned back in her seat. "Are you having a good time, D?"

Dawn smiled. "Yeah. Josh seems like he's changed. Can't believe he was such a prick in high school and now he's like the perfect guy."

Chelsea chuckled. "I know, right? What a catch. If I wasn't Pam's friend, I'd be all over him like white on rice. He's hot as sin. Bet he's great in the sack too. I just have an instinct about those things. Pam's one lucky bitch."

Dawn didn't say anything, taking a sip of her tea. This was her third drink, so she was really feeling the alcohol now. She thought about what Chelsea said. If Josh was good in the bedroom, he really would be the ideal boyfriend. A part of her was jealous of Pam, but she knew she had no reason to be. She had just met Josh, and yet it felt like she had known him for forever. It was a strange feeling; one she wasn't used to. There was no doubt in her mind they were attracted to each other, they had just been flirting.

By the time Josh and Pam came back, Chelsea was ready to call it a night. They called her an Uber and that left Dawn with the two lovebirds. They were making out, and Josh seemed like a stellar kisser the way that Pam was responding to him so fondly. She really hated being the third wheel, so she got up and went to the dance floor.

She danced with a few guys and girls, but her eyes always went back to Josh. Even as he was kissing Pam, his eyes were open and he was looking at her. They couldn't stop their glances from going back to one another's. It made her heart pound in her chest with excitement. Was he thinking of her when he was making out with her friend?

She quickly scolded herself. Fucking hell. Don't think about that! Of course, he's not. But then why is he looking right at me as he kisses her?

Ugh, between the alcohol and the low-key flirting, he was the only one she could see in the club. Eventually, Dawn came back to the table, as she saw that Pam and Josh were finally just talking and laughing now, having a good conversation. She didn't want to just sit there and watch them make out with each other, but she could handle them being adorable and chatting.

"Shit, this alcohol is going right through me. Be right back, bathroom break. Dawn, do you want to come?"

Dawn shook her head. "No, I just went a few minutes ago."

Pam left and Dawn swirled her tea around in her glass. She didn't like the idea of being alone with Josh in her inebriated state. She felt very buzzed, possibly drunk.

"You're a great dancer."

She looked up and smiled. "Thanks. We go to a lot of clubs. I just observed and learned over the years."

Josh did the math in his head. "Didn't you just turn 21?"

"It's called a fake ID, dummy," she teased him, laughing. Dang, how could he make her laugh so much?

He laughed with her. "Oh, so you're a bad girl then. I always thought you were the stuck-up type that followed the rules."

"Oh? You thought right." She laughed. "Well, I normally am. But that was one rule that I felt was okay to break. I love clubbing, it's fun as hell. Other than that, yes, I'm the stuck-up type that follows all the rules, I promise you."

He nearly choked on his martini he was smirking so hard. "Okay, you're seriously bragging about that?"

"Yup," she confirmed, sipping more of her drink.

Josh took the drink from her and set it on the table. "Maybe slow it down on the drinks if you don't want a hangover tomorrow."

She pouted. "I'm fine."

"Uh huh. You're totally drunk."

"Oh, whatever, what are you, the alcohol police?"

Josh snickered. "Something like that. You'll thank me in the morning, though."

She eyed her drink at the table, folding her arms over her chest crossly. "No, I won't, you won't see me in the morning." Maybe ever again. Unless he was going to be at every outing but she doubted that. Girls had to have fun with a girl's only night out occasionally.

"Unlock your phone and hand it over," he demanded.

Dawn eyed him suspiciously. "Why?" But she was already giving it to him.

"It's my duty as a true gentleman to make sure you get home safely. I'm going to text you in the morning to check on you."

She scoffed. "That's so not necessary, Josh. I'll be fine, I've done this many times, trust me. I know how to hold my liquor."

She could only watch helplessly as he put his number in her phone then set it next to her drink after sending his own phone a text. Having his number could be dangerous and she was debating deleting it already. But he seemed the stubborn type, he would probably just end up texting her anyways. And he knew her number now. She read a text to his phone that said, "you're cute when you're drunk."

Dawn looked at him and arched a brow. He was smirking and trying not to laugh. "I did not say that!" She defended, slapping his arm, but they were both suddenly laughing so hard it hurt her stomach.

Once she stopped, she felt she was going to either pass out or throw up. "Oh, yeah. I think you, the alcohol police, are right and it's time for me to stop with the drinks."

She pushed her drink aside as Pam came back. "You ready to get out of here, handsome? Come to mine?"

Josh sat up straight and looked up at Pam, who was standing over him. "As much as I'd love to, I'm pretty beat, and I have a project to work on tomorrow morning for work. I'll call you, though." He stood up to his full height and gave Pam a short kiss.

"Bye, babe. Bye, Dawn, nice seeing you again."

"You too," Dawn said, looking at Pam. She looked disappointed that Josh wasn't going home with her tonight. Dawn didn't blame her. He turned out to be a standup guy indeed.

"There's always next time," Dawn reassured her, reaching out to give her arm a firm pat. "I got to call it a night too." She was already opening her Uber app to order a cab.

"He was acting so weird tonight," Pam blurted out. "Like he was thinking about something else or his mind was elsewhere or something."

Dawn looked up as she tapped away at her phone. "Well, he said he has a big project. He was probably worried about deadlines. We know the stress those can bring."

Pam sighed. "I guess. I just felt like he was really distracted. I don't know, maybe it's the alcohol getting to me we know I get paranoid. I'll see you at work Monday, my cab is here."

"Already? Lucky bitch," she mocked, with a grin to show she was obviously joking. "Bye, Pam, see you Monday! I'm sure it's nothing. He's totally into you."

"You think? Oh, Dawn, you're the best. You're right. I'm probably just trying to sabotage things in my head. Lord knows if Jason cheated on me or not, but there were a hundred times I thought he did. I need to remember not every guy is like him."

"Exactly. You got this! He's good for you."

"Thanks. Bye!"

Pam rushed out and Dawn leaned back in her seat, looking at the text from Josh. It was a moment later she sensed someone standing over her as she was about to hit the pay button to order her Uber.

"Forgot my wallet," Josh said, pointing at the table beside her.

"Oh. Well, damn. I'd like to think I would have noticed but I had no fucking clue, sorry," she said, chuckling lowly.

He reached over her to grab it, careful not to spill her drink. This close, she could smell his manly cologne, and it was intoxicating. She found herself half closing her eyes and inhaling his scent, her lips practically touching his wide neck.

She composed herself as he pulled back and tucked his wallet in the back pocket of his slacks. "You want to dance?"

She blinked. "What? No, I'm about to leave."

"Oh, come on. You haven't ordered your cab yet. Just one dance."

"I thought you said you had important work to do tomorrow morning."

"Yeah, but being responsible is boring. What, are you too tired already? You're 21, younger than I am, live a little!"

Man knew just what to say to taunt her into action. She sprang up from her chair, nearly falling over in the process. "For fuck's sake. Fine. I got to warn you, I'm kind of drunk though." Her coordination was going to be crap. "Sorry in advance for the pain your toes are going to feel."

He shrugged. "You're worth the risk." He held out his hand and she took it, feeling the heat of his skin against hers. Just that contact made her whole-body shudder and tingle. This was a bad, bad idea, but here we are.

They got to the dance floor and it was even more packed than it had been when she had danced before.

She was forced to move in close to Josh, so close their bodies were pressed tightly together. Regardless, she began to move her hips to the music, surprisingly sensual considering how intoxicated she was.

Josh seemed to move in perfect unison with her. The DJ had ditched the techno and was playing slower, downtempo music, which meant dancing in closer quarters.

His larger body felt so damn good crushed against hers. It had been so long since she had been in the presence of a strong, masculine male. Not only that, but his personality had also changed for the better. She felt he was a completely different man, in a very positive way.

When she turned her back to him, he placed his hands on her waist and pulled her backward to him, groaning into her ear as her hips swayed hypnotically to the music, and she unconsciously ground hard against his crotch.

It wasn't long before she was moving against his erection, feeling that large hardness flush against her taut ass.

His fingers dug into her hips and she could hear his heavy breathing in her ear. It was so fucking hot. He was so sexy. She knew it was wrong to feel that way, they were both in relationships, but she was lost in the music, in his scent, his touch, and the alcohol was clouding her judgment.

They began to move through the crowd to a dark corner of the dance floor. Her back was still to him, and she moaned as she felt his hand on her stomach, lifting her shirt up. His fingers were long enough to cover the entirety of her navel, and she gasped as his hand crept higher, moving toward her breasts as she felt his hot breath on her neck.

Lucky for her, she came to her senses and snapped out of her trance just before his hand got to its intended destination. She grabbed it and removed it from her body, stepping away from him, then turning to face him after reluctantly releasing his hand. "We can't, Josh. You're with Pam." And she was with Lacey. She finally was able to catch her breath enough to remember that they were both taken.

Josh sighed. "I know. You're just really fucking sexy."

Dawn straightened her shirt. She thought he was too, but like hell she was going to admit it. For her friend's sake, for Lacey's sake, she had to shut this down now. "I'm off limits, Josh. And so are you. We just got caught up in the moment because we're drunk. I'm going to head home and I hope we can forget this ever happened."

Could they? She couldn't, but she was proud of herself for not letting it get out of control. They hadn't even kissed, just a little harmless grinding and groping. His body had felt amazing, it was tempting to just grab him and kiss him. But even in her intoxicated state, she couldn't do that to her loved ones.

"I'm sorry, Dawn. I'm still going to text you, make sure you got home safe."

"Fine," she said, offering him a smile. "I had a great time tonight. Good night, Josh."

"Night, Dawn."

He surprised her by leaning in and placing a soft kiss on her cheek. It was meant to be harmless, but the way he smelled so damn good with that expensive cologne and hint of aftershave was criminal. She had felt his coarse stubble against her cheek, a feeling that she had missed from not having been with a man in forever. He was Temptation city and she was living in it.

But all good things must come to an end and she left the club, alone.

True to his word, the moment she got out of the shower and was crawling into bed, her phone went off.

Josh: Hey, I'm home. You make it home okay?

Dawn: I did, thanks. Glad you got home safe. We were both pretty drunk lol

Josh: Yeah, sorry about that. Can't say that I didn't enjoy myself. I really had a great time.

Dawn: Yeah, me too. Didn't expect you to have such good dance moves haha.

Josh: Always the joker!

Dawn: Nah, it's true. You're good! Fast on your feet.

Josh: You're not so bad yourself. Not feeling too hungover?

Dawn: Just took some aspirin and drank a shit ton of water. I'll be getting up like 10 times to pee, but it's better than feeling like shit in the morning, so it all works out lol

Josh: Hah, yeah, definitely. Glad you're gonna be okay.

Dawn: Thanks. I'm falling asleep. Appreciate you reaching out, Josh. You're a true gentleman, just like you said.

Josh: More than you know ;) You're welcome. Good night, sleep well, I am headed there shortly myself.

Dawn was glad he made no mention of what had happened between them earlier when they were dancing. It had been an intimate moment, one that couldn't go any further, even if they had wanted it to. But it wasn't wrong to fantasize about it.

She frigged herself to an incredible orgasm thinking about Josh pounding his huge cock deep into her body right there on the dance floor, in front of everyone. She imagined him fucking her for what felt like hours, bringing her to countless orgasms with that delicious tool of his.

She came hard as she pictured him jerking his cock off above her, spraying a huge load of cum into her mouth and all over her forehead and eyes until her face and chin were covered with his copious semen.

Fuuuuck. That man was going to be a problem. But that was for another time. She fell into a deep sleep a few moments later.

Dawn woke up the next morning and thanked the lord for Tylenol. She took a few more with breakfast as Lacey peacefully slept in their bed. She would be out for a while; she didn't get home till 7:30 am and it was 11:30 now.

She turned on the tv as she drank her coffee. Today was one hundred percent going to be a stay on the couch wrapped up in a warm blanket kind of day. It was cold as balls outside; the winter weather was starting to rear its ugly head. It felt nice, though.

Her phone vibrated in the middle of her show, and she picked it up. It was Josh. Damn.

Josh: Good morning, sleepy head. How'd you sleep last night? I slept like a baby but have a slight headache this morning. Nothing some aspirin and bacon won't fix :)

The text was innocent enough but she was hesitant to answer. She wanted to make him stew, so she waited a few minutes to reply.

Just as she was about to type, her phone buzzed again in her hand, reminding her she needed to answer the incoming text. Alright, already! Here we go, I guess. It's innocent enough, right? He's dating Pam, of course he's not interested in you in that way!

Dawn: That's so thoughtful of you, Josh. I'm fine, I promise. Hope you feel better soon!

Josh: Thanks, I'm sure I will. I'm a very thoughtful guy, you know ;)

Dawn: Yes, I can see that :)

But damn why was he so freaking nice? Checking in on her was sweet. Pam was a lucky gal, that was for sure. It should be her he was texting, checking up on, but she was almost positive that she had probably heard from him already.

Josh: Btw, Pam invited me to the holiday party next Friday.

Oh, Christ. That was happening already? For real, it was almost Thanksgiving. How could she have forgotten? Lacey's parents were coming from California next weekend so things were going to be interesting. It would be the first time that Dawn was seeing them face to face since they left to come live here in New York.

Dawn: Damn it, I forgot about that. Prepare to be bored. It's nothing special, I promise you.

Josh: Are you coming?

Dawn: Sadly, yes.

Josh: Oh, come on, Dawn. It can't be that bad. After all, I'll be there suffering with you. We can suffer in silence together :)

Dawn: OK, one good thing. Seriously, though, it takes place in the cafeteria of work. There's a punch that somehow always ends up getting spiked. That's pretty much the biggest highlight of the party. Oh, and karaoke. That can be pretty fun, too :) Guess I'll see you there.

That seemed as good of a place as any to leave their conversation. She didn't want to be texting Pam's boyfriend all day every day. But her phone dinged again, evidently Josh did not want their conversation to stop there. Sheesh, I'm treading on dangerous ground here...

Dawn: Well, have a good day, I'm going back to my show now.

Josh: :( I see how it is lol

Dawn: lol byeeeeeeeee

Josh: Girl, bye :)

Dawn: You're a weirdo, confirmed :)

Josh: Whatever, ya like me :)

Dawn:...

Josh: Come on, admit it. You know you want to :) you know you do!

Dawn:...Maybe just a tiny bit :)

Josh: Good. I like you too :)

Dawn: Thanks :)

Josh: No problem, boo :)

Boo? Was he serious? Ugh, it was at least a little cute, though, him calling her that. Dawn bit her lip. Even in text, they were semi flirting. She should have stopped their little chat there, but she couldn't resist the magnetic pull to keep their slightly provocative discussion going.

Dawn: OK, I'll bite. How much?

Josh:?

Dawn: How much do you like me?

Josh:...A lot.

Dawn's cheeks flushed bright red. She knew Lacey was passed out cold in bed in the other room, oblivious to the world. The way Josh made her feel, just through text, it was intoxicating. But she couldn't let it go too far. Just some simple, innocent flirting. She kept telling herself it wouldn't hurt anyone.

Dawn: Me too.

Josh: Good.

Dawn: For real, you've changed a lot since we saw each other last.

Josh: Yeah. Wait. For the better?

Dawn: For the much better, yes :)

Josh: Glad you think so.

Dawn: I do.

Josh: Damn, girl, you're really good at distracting me from work... :)

Dawn: Oh, you didn't know? That was my devious plan all along :)