* * *
"Wanna dance?" Carmen asked as she and Madeline tapped their feet
to the music on two barstools. Mary Ellen still hadn't arrived and Carmen
was feeling restless. Besides, it was a shame to waste such good music.
"Sure," Maddy complied, following her out to the floor. They joined
some other assorted single women in freestyle movement as the deejay
kept the upbeat tunes coming. Nearby, Ken's friends offered a dare. He'd
been admiring Carmen from the moment she caught his eye. A little
skinny, perhaps, but quite attractive. And he was drawn to dark, exotic looks
for some reason. Maybe it had something to do with contrast; being a
blue-eyed blond, he wanted something different in a woman.
"Will you just go buy that gorgeous brunette a rose," his friend Tony
insisted. "You gotta get back in the game here, son!"
Lost in the music, Madeline never saw it coming, but suddenly she
looked up to see a hand holding a long-stemmed rose in front of Carmen;
a little red devil was attached to it. Then Maddy caught a glimpse of the
rose's buyer and her heart skipped a beat-too bad he was interested in
her friend. It seemed so unfair since Carmen already had a date for the
evening, unbeknownst to this handsome stranger. But despite her
disappointment, Madeline laughed right along as Carmen accepted the
gesture and began to dance with her new suitor.
Maddy made her way back to the bar and ran straight into Mary Ellen,
a petite blonde who looked like she could use a few good meals. Her face
was heavily made up and in her hair she wore a leopard headband that
matched her micro-mini skirt and tight knit top. She greeted Madeline
with a look of hostility, as if someone had gravely injured her.
"What's she doing with that guy?" Mary Ellen demanded.
"Oh, he just bought her a rose and I guess she feels like she should
talk to him," Maddy replied nonchalantly.
"Did you know we already have dates coming?" she sniped.
"Yes, I am aware of that, although I'm not sure he is," Maddy replied
teasingly, nodding her head towards the dance floor. Mary Ellen in a huff
was quite an amusing sight.
"Come with me!" She grabbed Madeline by the arm and led her into
the ladies room before Ken and Carmen could make their way back to the
bar.
Once inside the safety of the lavatory, Mary Ellen threw a hissy fit.
"You have to get her away from him! Our dates will be here any minute
and I don't want them to catch her with another man!"
"Well, what would you like me to do, throw myself at him?" Maddy
asked sarcastically.
"Whatever it takes!" Mary Ellen threw open the door and stalked
back into the club. With a roll of her eyes, Madeline followed. Both girls
came upon the somewhat entertaining scene of Carmen and Ken fighting
as she explained her pre-arranged plans for the evening. The two Iranian
guys had shown up, and also seemed pleasantly intrigued by the unfolding
dialogue. Mary Ellen quickly slipped her arm into her assigned date and
whispered something in his ear. Maddy watched as the foursome headed
out to the parking lot, with an undeterred Ken close behind.
"If you had a date, you damn well should have told me!" Ken scolded
Carmen.
"Hey, you were the one who took a chance, buying me a rose," she
replied unapologetically. "I didn't want to be rude, so I danced with you.
What's the big deal?"
Tentatively, Maddy interrupted, wondering what was to become of
her evening. "Carmen, you guys go to Atlantic City without me. I don't
want to go."
"Why not, Mads?"
"I told you I wasn't going to be a fifth wheel," Maddy reminded her.
Although she feigned disappointment, she was thrilled that the third guy
was MIA; even if she ended up walking the Ocean City boardwalk alone,
that was a far better alternative than hanging out with long-haired hippie
types.
"Well, it's only ten o'clock. What are you going to do? You're not
gonna go home are you?"
For whatever reason, Ken stood nearby listening to their
conversation. He hadn't realized how cute Carmen's friend was, but his
pride was still smarting too much to care. As Carmen and Madeline went
back and forth, Mary Ellen and the guys honked the horn impatiently,
while Ken opened the trunk of his car and pulled out another top. As they
stared, he unbuttoned and removed his teal shirt, briefly revealing his
masculine upper body before pulling the new white tee-shirt over his
head.
"Wow, that's a great idea; I've never seen anyone do that!" Maddy
complimented.
"Well, I love to dance and it gets hot," Ken explained to her with a
smile and a shrug. Wow, she's really cute. Why is she hanging out with someone like
Carmen?
"Maddy," Carmen asked again, "What are you going to do?"
Feeling strangely emboldened, Madeline announced, "I'm not going
with all of you. I'm staying here and hanging out with Ken!" Then turning
to him, she asked softly, "Is that ok with you?"
"Yes, that's fine with me," he agreed, giving her a high-five. Maybe the
night's not lost after all, he surmised. She's seems truly adorable. It won't hurt to spend
a few hours getting to know her.
"Ok, but you better be nice to her," Carmen warned Ken as she
stepped into the back seat of her entourage's Lincoln Continental.
"Bye, Carmen!" Madeline waved. "You have a key, so don't worry
about what time it is when you get back."
"Bye, girl. Have fun!"