Fiery Nights Read Online Free

an elementary school and we
had a visit from a Cub Scout troop, in addition to the usual calls.
    Every night I wanted to go back to Vamps. Would I still feel
that excitement that welled up when I was around him? The one that made me
hyperaware of my sexuality?
    I thought about him walking around the perimeter of the
club. I checked the website once to see what was going on. Okay, three times.
Any live bands playing? Maybe some band I was dying to see that just happened
to be playing there tonight so naturally I would go there to see them. I
definitely was not there hoping to see the new owner of Vamps who just
happened to be ridiculously attractive.
    What about all the women parading around in their tiny, sexy
outfits? Usually I loved checking out what everyone was wearing. I never went
to Vamps to date so a jealous thought never entered my mind. But now I pouted
thinking of all those hot women who would just love to sleep with the new
owner.
    Damn sluts!
    Stop it, Maya! What’s gotten into you? You sound like
some jealous stalker!
    Obviously I needed some distance because even in my head I
was already going crazy over this guy. If I stayed away, maybe I’d forget him.
    At times like this, I wish Nike was still around instead of
gallivanting around Europe doing whatever she was doing with Mr. Fancy Pants Michel ,
who pronounces it so perfectly in his ooh-la-la French accent.
    I mean, come on. Who else could I talk about this with? I
was certainly not going to talk about it with the guys at work.
    Woe is me , I thought, knowing I was being dramatic. I
put the back of my hand against my forehead as I looked at myself in the
mirror.
    “How sad are you right now?” I said to my reflection.
    Settling into my sofa, I grabbed my iPad to compose an
e-mail to Nike. I hadn’t sent one to her since she’d left since I was hurt
about her minimal communication, but I needed someone to talk to and Nike was
still my closest friend, even though she was across the ocean or wherever the
hell she was these days.
     
    Hey Nike,
    How are you doing? I haven’t talked to you in so long and
it sucks. I miss you big time.
    How’s it going with Michel? (Note how I resisted adding
ma belle after his name. Yeah, I know it’s a guy’s name. Don’t I get maturity
points for holding back?)
    Are you getting it on all over Europe? On the Eiffel
Tower? Leaning off the Tower of Pisa? (Okay, maybe I’m not that mature yet.)
    I can’t believe I haven’t seen you since the night of the
fire! I went back to Vamps recently for the first time. Byron was there at the
front door. He asked about you and says hi. The new owner rebuilt it well. He
kept much of the old charm, but rebuilt the stages differently so they can have
live bands now. That’s pretty cool, I think. Anyway, thought you’d be
interested in our old haunt. And Michel would be interested in his old club.
    So I met the new owner. A guy named Tristan Stone. Tall,
dark and staggeringly handsome stranger. Totally my cup of tea. I hate to admit
it, but I think I’m smitten. Ridiculous after just one conversation, isn’t it?
Go ahead and slap me back to reality.
    But it’s not only his looks that draw me to him.
Something about him just—I don’t know how to describe it—but it’s as if we
connected. I can’t stop thinking about him. Whenever I close my eyes, I see
him. It’s awful! I know, it sounds cheesy. But maybe you know what I mean. You
turned into jelly whenever you saw that Michel guy, not your normal “I’m not
dating anyone I meet while wearing a schoolgirl outfit” tough-ass self. What is
it about us and owners of this club making us forget all reason? Does an
irresistible love potion come with the deed? Ha ha.
    I don’t know if you’ll even get this. If you have access
to e-mail doing whatever it is you’re doing over there. But I just wanted you
to know I miss you. And you were the one person I could talk to about things
like this.
    And to let you know I feel like