A beautiful storm *COMPLETE*

New friends

DAMIEN POV

I paced outside of SANDbar. I wasn’t sure why, but I was feeling nervous. If my bosses didn’t like my personality, I would probably lose my job before it even started. Not to mention that they are both attractive women. Madeline caught my eye though. Something about her makes me want to know more. She seemed reserved, but not necessarily shy. When it comes to women, I don’t really think that much into them. I’ve never been the relationship type of guy. I’ve never settled down or had anything serious. A few girls were regular nighttime calls, but otherwise, I didn’t keep anyone around long. My thoughts were interrupted when Madeline strode towards me in the tiniest dress I’ve ever seen. To say she looked jaw-dropping would be an understatement. I smiled “You look amazing, Madeline. Happy Birthday.” She blushed, looking anywhere but at me. She tugged at the hem of her dress. I’m going to take a wild guess and say this isn’t something that she picked out for herself. “Thanks, you don’t look too bad yourself.” she returned. “I was hoping for sexiest man alive, but I will take it.” I said, winking at her. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. Gemma arrived, apologizing for her tardiness. The three of us headed to the restaurant.

We were seated out on the patio because of the wait inside. I like it better like this anyways. The fresh air coming off of the ocean was always better than the stuffy air inside of restaurants. Especially somewhere like this. The atmosphere just wasn’t my scene. Our waitress walks up to the table, speaking directly at me. I’m a little annoyed at her disregard for the ladies, but I plaster a smile. I hear Madeline clear her throat. She’s clearly displeased with our waitress. “Pretty shameless of her to be openly flirting while wearing a wedding ring.” she coughs as the waitress walks away. I tilted my head. I didn’t notice her wearing a wedding ring. Probably because I didn’t really care that she was flirting with me. I shrugged it off, acting like I didn’t even notice her flirting. We discussed the bar a bit. I explained to the girls that one of my favorite parts of bartending was creating new drinks. Gemma was excited to be a guinea pig. Her straightforward attitude was refreshing. Most people try and be who they think you want them to be or act how they think you want them to act. She has an ‘I don’t give a fu*k’ attitude about her. I think we’re going to get along great. I haven’t quite figured out Madeline. She’s still reserved, which I don’t particularly mind either. I just think that she needs to warm up and trust someone before she really opens up. “Where did you come from? Before you came here to Destin.” I asked Madeline. She looked nervous, almost sick at the question. I noticed her jaw clench, before taking a deep breath “I came from a small town in Alabama. Needed a fresh start and ended up here in Destin. "I chuckled “Running from the big bad wolf?” Her eyes went wide. “Excuse me, I need to use the restroom.” Well, sh*t. Her past is touchy subject. I will keep that in mind moving forward. A few minutes later, Madeline returned to the table, followed by the waitress with a gin and tonic. I don’t remember her ordering one, so she must have stopped on her way to the bathroom. As soon as she finished it, she ordered a second. I took care of the bill and tip. I hope I didn’t totally ruin the night.

The three of us walked over to HEAT. I’ve never seen it before, so it must be newer to the area. I felt really guilty about dinner. I decided to pull Madeline aside and my heartbeat quickened. “I just wanted to apologize for upsetting you earlier. I was trying to be funny, and clearly failed. Can we start over?” She smiled “You have nothing to apologize for. My life before here is just a touchy subject. You couldn’t have known that.” I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I smiled and nodded. “Madelineeeee, I hope that you don’t mind, I may have invited some people.” Gemma pouted. I could tell that she drawled out Madeline’s name for effect. She chuckled, but the laugh didn’t meet her eyes. “Of course not, the more the merrier. It’ll be a good time.” she shrugged. I stuck out an elbow for each of them “Shall we?” I asked, motioning towards the entrance of the club. We walked inside and I was blasted with the smell. Nightclubs smelled of sweat, s*x, and drugs. It practically oozed out of your pores in here. We walked up and ordered drinks, heading to a booth in the corner. It didn’t take long for Gemma’s friends to arrive. At the mention of a missing Josh, I felt Madeline tense up next to me. “So, who’s Josh?” I leaned in and whispered in her ear. She motioned my head down so she could reach my ear “Josh is a player and I’m the only game he can’t win.” She whispered. Ha, why am I not surprised. If his name wasn’t Josh, I’d think it was Collin she was talking about. Just then, Josh slips into the booth. I didn’t miss the way that he was eyeing me. Like I was the predator stealing his prey. “So who’s the new guy Madeline?” Josh asked very sarcastically. It took everything in me not to roll my eyes at him, but I don’t want to make Madeline’s night any harder. “My name is Damien. I work with Madeline and Gemma at SANDbar.” I smiled at him while shaking his hand. He seemed less tense afterwards, knowing that I’m just a coworker.

“DANCEFLOOR guys!” I hear Gemma squeal. I’m not much of a dancer, but why not? I walk out with everyone. They have all obviously done this before, because everyone seems to have a partner. Madeline looks towards me, noticing my hesitancy, and grabs my hand pulling me on the dancefloor with her. I can tell that the drinks have loosened her up. She spins around and dances her as* against me. It is taking every fiber of my self control not to get a hard on. My fingers are laced with hers. Her long black hair is swaying back and forth. I’m mesmerized by her. She’s your boss, dude, get a grip. I exhale, trying to rid myself of this feeling. My trance is interrupted when Josh comes over, asking to trade partners. Madeline reluctantly agrees. He has a smirk on his face like he’s won the prize. “d**k” I mutter lowly to myself. He trades her for a girl named Rebecca. She is overly sexy with her dancing and has that typical barbie look to her. This was the type of girl I would have wanted in high school, but it’s doing nothing for me now. I keep glancing over at Madeline. I see Josh walk towards the bar, bringing shots back. She downs one quickly, nodding towards the bar for another. Maybe she’s not too happy with her dance partner. I decide I might as well make the best of my dance partner and we begin moving more in sync. She seems like she’s having a good time now and not trying so hard. I look over seeing Madeline making out with Josh. Maybe I misjudged their situation. It’s not really my place, but I feel a twinge of jealousy. I wish her lips were on mine right now. I try to keep my mind on dancing with Rebecca. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Madeline fall. I stop dancing, focusing on her crumpled up on the floor. I can tell she’s screaming, but I can’t hear what she’s saying. The people around them have stopped dancing and started to form a small circle. Why is no one checking to see if she’s okay? I make my way over to her, leaving Rebecca and pushing my way through the now larger crowd. “GET THE FU*K AWAY FROM ME PETER” I hear her scream. I finally get to her, scooping her into my arms. “Shows over. Get the fu*k out of my way.” I seethe. None of these as*holes were planning to help her. They were all just gawking at her. I make sure to nudge Josh with my shoulder on my way out of the crowd. Shocked or not, he shouldn’t have just stood there staring at her. I look around, but don’t see Gemma anywhere. Madeline seems to have passed out, so I can’t ask her where she lives. I decide to take her back to my place and hope she doesn’t freak out when she wakes up.