Dino by Jaime Lewis

CHAPTER THIRTY

Arianna bounced her leg up and down nervously. The charity lingerie show that she and other ladies put together was due to start in ten minutes. Enzo had come through huge and had over fifty pieces of his collection delivered to her. When she called him a few days ago and explained what she was planning, he hadn’t batted an eye and told her that he’d be more than happy to accommodate her though he would be sad that he wouldn’t be able to see her in them. She hadn’t told him, but she asked a friend who was a photographer if she could take some pictures during the show. Once she got the prints, she’d pick out a few and send them to him.

“Will you stop.” Alex scolded her.

“I can’t help it. I’m a nervous wreck right now.”

“You’re nervous? How do you think Tenley, Autumn, Bailey, Mia, and I feel? We’ve never done anything like this before.”

Arianna waved her off. “You’ll be fine. Like I said, with all of the bright lights shining in your face, you won’t even be able to see anyone looking at you.”

Arianna looked around. It was a packed house. They had made thousands from ticket sales alone. She hadn’t even begun to count the numerous donations that came in, but she suspected they were in the thousands as well.

She smiled as she recalled the other day when she told her dad what she had planned. At first, he thought it was going to be a fashion show with actual clothing. When she explained that it was lingerie, he had told her that he was glad he was in the hospital and couldn’t attend because there was no way in hell, he would watch her parade around in underwear. She had laughed at him, and that only riled him up more.

All of the logistics were handled, and everything seemed to be ago. All that was missing were the guys. Alex said she heard from Ace and that they had arrived home a few hours ago. They said they would get there as soon as they could. She chuckled to herself. They had no clue what type of show this was. Boy, were they in for a big surprise!

She was anxious and excited to see Dino. She hoped they could continue where they had left off on the dance floor. Even though he hadn’t come right out and said that he loved her, he still acknowledged it when she asked him if he loved her. That was enough for her to know there was hope for them. It was a moment that she would never forget.

Alex nudged Arianna’s arm. “I think Nick is trying to get your attention.”

She looked up towards the stage area, and there he was, waving to her. Nick was one of the bouncers they used on the weekends when it is more crowded. He was going to be serving as the MC for the evening. She got up from her chair.

“I guess I better go check and see what he needs. I’ll meet you and the others backstage in just a minute.”

After she got Nick all set, she headed backstage to get ready.

◆◆◆

“Why are we here again?” Frost asked Ace as everyone from the team walked into Bayside.

Dino looked around and was shocked at how many people were there. Every chair was filled, and there was barely any standing room left.

“Because Alex said so. All the proceeds from the event are going towards Paul’s medical bills,” replied Ace.

“Okay, but a fashion show?” asked Frost

Diego grinned. “I’m all for it.”

Dino noticed Skittles seemed preoccupied with someone or something across the room.

“Hey man, everything okay?”

“Yeah, sorry, I just thought I recognized someone.”

“Who?” Dino asked as he glanced in the direction Skittles was looking, but there were so many people he couldn’t tell who the kid was looking at.

“There was a blonde over there.” But then Skittles shook his head. “You know what, never mind. It wasn’t her.” He went and took one of the empty seats the ladies had reserved for them. Dino sympathized with the guy. He wished Skittles could get closure on his missing friend.

The lights in the room started to dim, and Dino figured that meant the show was getting to start. He took the open seat next to Ace.

Stitch leaned forward. “Hey, have any of you seen any of the ladies?”

Before anyone could respond, a gentleman dressed in a tuxedo appeared on the stage.

“Good evening and welcome! Tonight, we’ve got a line-up full of beautiful models that will be showcasing some of Europe’s finest lingerie.”

Everyone started clapping, and many of the men in the room began to whistle and make catcalls.

“Lingerie?” Potter and Ace both said at the same time.

“Now we’re talking,” Diego said, rubbing his hands together with a massive smile on his face.

The lights went lower, and spotlights were directed at the stage. Moments later, music began pumping through the speakers, and the spotlights changed colors.

The silver curtain at the far end of the stage peeled back, and one by one, a parade of women started down the makeshift runway. The crowd went crazy.

“What the fuck?”  Ace blurted out when his eyes landed on Alex wearing a royal blue sheer chemise with what appeared to be matching panties underneath. Thank goodness her breasts weren’t showing.

“Oh, hell no,” Potter said next, followed by gumbles and growls of displeasure from Stitch and Frost as Tenley, Mia, and Autumn appeared on stage.

Tenley wore a lavender lace cutout bodysuit. Mia donned a black bra and panty set, overlayed with a black short, sheer robe, while Autumn modeled a silk, emerald green, flowy babydoll nightie.

Irish was the only one sitting there was a smile on his face as he watched his wife show off the baby blue, long lace maxi gown she donned.

When Dino looked up, he was so focused on the woman leading the pack toward him and the guys down the runway.  He wasn’t paying a bit of attention to his friends’ moaning and groaning at seeing their women strutting their stuff.

He couldn’t pull his eyes away from Arianna’s beauty and grace. Her movements were fluid and natural as she turned on the stilettos she wore. She was in her element, and he could see why she was sought after in Europe. Her focus never wavered, even with all of the guys whistling and making comments. Not to mention all of the camera flashes directed her way. The red, strappy one-piece she wore was classy yet sexy and left little to the imagination. However, he didn’t have to imagine. He knew first-hand what was beneath the silk and lace garment. He reached down and had to adjust himself to make room for his growing cock.

As he looked down the row of chairs at his friends, he knew exactly how they felt. What a great feeling it was to say that one of those women up there was his!

◆◆◆

After the show concluded, the majority of the people had stuck around for the party afterward. He had waited a few minutes for Arianna to appear from backstage, but one of the other models told him that she was getting dressed and then packing up some of the props and equipment.

He didn’t want to bother her while she was doing all that, plus he didn’t want to barge backstage knowing there were still some of the other models back there changing. Since the room was crowded, he decided to head out to the patio and get some fresh air.

He hadn’t been out there for five minutes when Alex came walking out.

She offered him that bright and cheerful smile she was known for. “Hey. What are you doing out here?”

He turned around and leaned his backside against the railing. “Just came out for some fresh air. How about you?”

“Same.” She walked over and stood next to him.

“You and the rest of the ladies looked beautiful tonight. It looked like it was a great turnout for Paul.”

“Thank you.” She laughed. “I’ve done a lot during my career in the operative world, but modeling was never one of them. As for the event itself—that was all Arianna’s doing. She pulled this off. Speaking of Arianna, you want to talk about why you’re out here while she’s inside being swooned over by single men?”

He saw the twinkle, coupled with the mischievous look in her eyes, and knew she was trying to rile him up.

“Last I checked, she was still backstage.” He replied. “I just needed a minute.”

“Everything okay?” She asked.

“Let’s just say a bad mission managed to turn my life around, and it has my head all screwed up.”

“That’s understandable. Been there before.”

Alex was a blessing. He loved her and was so fortunate she had dropped in the team's lives during the mission in Afghanistan a year and a half ago. She understood the sensitivity of their jobs and knew not to ask questions but, at the same time, was supportive.  Ace was a lucky man to have a woman with as much love and devotion that Alex had, which brought him full circle around to his current dilemma with Arianna.

“You know when I was kidnapped in Afghanistan, there was a moment that I just wanted to die.” She told him.

His head snapped up, and he looked at her. She was staring out at the ocean, but then her eyes found his.

“Alex…”

“No, I’m okay talking about it.  I’m glad you guys were there.  There is no one else I can talk to because of its classified nature.”

He nodded.

“Anyway, I wanted to give up. And I almost did, but I didn’t want to have regrets. I knew I was stronger than what my mind was starting to believe. I held on. But doing so gave me the strength to fight. I wanted to live.”

“I don’t want to get into it again, but I talked with Ace on the way home. He knows what happened and why I’ve chosen to keep my heart guarded for the last fifteen years. Until now.”

“How do you feel now that you’ve told someone?”

He half-smiled. “It feels really good. It feels freeing, especially knowing what I have in front of me. I was so afraid of history repeating itself, but over the last twenty-four hours, I’ve realized that I can’t dwell on something that can’t be reversed. And that there is so much the world has to offer me.”

She placed her hand on his forearm. “I can assure you that Arianna would never hurt you, at least, not intentionally.”

He smiled. “I know that.”

Before they could continue, Ace appeared and walked over. He stood behind Alex and rested his hands on her shoulders. She looked up at Ace, and it suddenly hit Dino. He wanted that connection. The way Ace and Alex expressed their love for each other was a prime example of what he was missing out on.

“I’m going to head back inside,” Alex said before looking at Dino. “Follow your heart.”

Dino smiled. “I will.”

Both Ace and Dino watched Alex go back inside.

Dino glanced at Ace. “You hold on to her tight, man. She is one in a million.”

“You don’t have to tell me that. Sometimes though, I’m worried about her running herself down. I mean, I’m so fucking proud of her and what all she has accomplished, but she has to slow down sometime and take a breather.” He paused and stared out at the water. “There is speculation that a group out in San Diego may be calling to talk to Alex about expanding.”

“Holy shit!” Dino exclaimed.

“Yeah. It’s great. Her organization is helping so many veterans and military personnel and their families, but I’m afraid that one day she is going to crash.”

“Her dad was her life, Ace. Alex cannot just sit around and do nothing. She always has to have her hands in something. Is there someone at the foundation—like another volunteer who she could delegate some of her workload to?”

“She was interviewing a few candidates for a management position.”

“Any leads?”

“There is one that she said she really liked and could see herself working with. The woman’s brother was a Marine, and he went through a rough patch when he was medically discharged. He ended up taking his life.”

“That sucks.”

“It does. But this girl became an advocate for suicide prevention.  Alex thinks she’d be a really good fit.”

“That’s awesome.”

“Yeah, it is. I just hope it works out.” Ace lifted his beer to his lips and took a swig.

The door behind them opened, and when Dino turned, he felt his body come alive at the sight of Arianna standing there. She had changed into a pair of jeans and a green sweater. She had washed all of the makeup off her face, and her skin looked radiant.

Ace told him he’d talk to him later, and he went back inside.

Arianna walked toward him and stopped directly in front of him. “Welcome home.” She said.

“It’s good to be back.”

“Why is that?” She asked with her head slightly tilted to one side.

He snagged her around the waist and pulled her closer. The wind picked up and blew her hair into her face, and he brushed it back. He knew she was waiting for him to make the first move.

He lowered his head and positioned his lips over hers but not touching them. The warmth of her breath could be felt against his lips.

“Because I missed you.” He told her before his lips lightly brushed against hers. She tasted like vanilla as he deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue inside her warm cavern and exploring. He moved his hand to the back of her neck, cupping it to pull her in closer. He couldn’t get enough of her. Her hands found their way under his t-shirt and swept along his rib cage, sending an electric current racing through his body. He had to pull away; otherwise, he’d end up taking her right on the deck.

They both panted for breath while still embracing each other. He kissed the top of her head, and she leaned back so she could look up at him. Her eyes were bright and full of desire. He smiled.

“What do you say we get out of here?”

“Where do you propose we go?”

“Home,” he told her. “Because I believe that there is a long-overdue conversation that you and I need to have.”