Bound, An Arelia LaRue Novel #1 YA Paranormal Romance by Kira Saito Read Free Book Online

him and hurried off to deliver it to Ben. I
sensed that someone had an agenda to make my time at Darkwood a
living nightmare.
    Back in the ballroom, the party was in
full swing. The music had gotten louder, and the guests livelier. I
skimmed the room for Sabrina since I could see Mr. Dumpty arguing
with the cocktail waiter who Mrs. Dumpty had been flirting with.
When I finally spotted Sabrina, her head was thrown back like
someone had told her an infinitely hilarious joke and her right
hand was on the shoulder of the guy beside her. I bet she was
flirting with another guest.
    I started to walk towards her, but
stopped dead in my tracks when I saw the profile of the guest. It
was him. It was the shirtless guy who had seen me in my towel only
he was wearing a shirt and a black, tuxedo jacket. I felt my face
getting hot, and my mouth parched thinking back to what had
happened. The black jacket outlined the broadness of his shoulders
and his toned waist. His dark, shaggy hair glistened as it fell
below his ears and flipped out slightly at the ends. What was wrong
with me? It was just a guy, and besides he was obviously interested
in Sabrina.
    I stood there frozen like an absolute
idiot. Not because I thought he would recognize me, but because I
didn’t want to interrupt Sabrina. I knew she would pout if I got in
the middle of her flirt fest with formerly-shirtless guy. Besides,
I had to get back to Ben. Unfortunately, Mr. Dumpty interrupted my
thoughts. “Hey there pretty lady, do a fat guy from New York a
favor and dance with him?”
    “ I really can’t,” I replied
quicker than I should have.
    “ Please,” he was starting to
brazenly beg, “have some pity on me. My wife is flirting with a
cocktail waiter.”
    “ I can’t dance,” I attempted
to get out of his offer. It wasn’t a complete fabrication. I was
the worst dancer ever. I had absolutely no rhythm and was prone to
tripping over my feet. Given the fact that I was in a massive ball
gown, it would only make matters worse.
    “ It’s not so tough, I’m sure
you’ll catch on.” Mr. Dumpty’s drunken voice was so loud that the
entire room was starting to stare.
    “ Fine,” I mumbled. I placed
the can of Coke on a nearby table. Mr. Dumpty put his arm around my
waist and practically dragged me onto the dance floor. I held my
breath praying that I wouldn’t have to smell the gumbo/Hurricane
fumes that were radiating from him.
    “ See, it’s not so hard now
is it?” Mr. Dumpty was trying to encourage me as he dragged me from
one end of the dance floor to the other. I felt like a helpless rag
doll in his arms as he swung me from side to side. He started
humming along with the music and brought his hand dangerously close
to my butt. Repulsion filled me as he tried to peer seductively
into my eyes and puckered his lips. I heard some of the guests
starting to snicker as I struggled not to get bounced back and
forth by his enormous belly. I was mortified as he picked up the
pace and I almost tripped over my gown. My face started to flame
with embarrassment. I prayed that somehow I would become
invisible.
    “ Would you allow me to cut
in?” Formerly-shirtless guy swiftly tapped Mr. Dumpty on the
shoulder.
    “ I don’t know. I’m having a
great time.” Mr. Dumpty was determined to keep torturing me, as he
gave me another dramatic twirl. I felt the room spinning, as the
faces around me took delight in my humiliation.
    “ I’m sure there are plenty
of other guests that would love to dance with a fine dancer such as
yourself.” Flattery obviously worked on Mr. Dumpty as he stopped
swooshing me around and let formerly-shirtless guy cut
in.
    I immediately pulled away. “I don’t
feel like dancing anymore!” I snapped at formerly-shirtless guy and
hurried away. I know I was being childish and should have at least
thanked him for stepping in and rescuing me from Mr. Dumpty, but I
was mortified over what just happened. I took a few minutes to
compose myself