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Thursday, April 11, 2013

A to Z Challenge 2013 - J is for Jive

I'm posting snippets from a story for this year's Challenge.
If you'd like to read the whole tale, please start with A.

J IS FOR JIVE

Laughter shook Danielle's body, and she nearly slipped off the edge of her stool. She gripped the bar with one hand as the other rested across her stomach. Erik assured her through his chuckles that the story was true, and she laughed harder yet.

The bartender shouted "last call," and Erik glanced at his watch, chasing off the laughter.

"I need to get home and relieve the babysitter. I didn't expect to stay out this late." His smile was soft, but not from liquor. Neither of them had anything to drink in the past hour.

Danielle wanted to ask him to stay for one more drink. Anything to make this night last longer. Instead, she nodded. "It was a lot of fun. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time."

"Me either," Erik said and rubbed his hands on his thighs. "We should do this again some time."

"Yeah, that sounds great." Danielle stood at the same time as he did, putting them inches apart. They held out hands to shake, but the closeness made it difficult. After a weird little hand jive, he slid his arms around her. Heat surged through her as she leaned against his hard body and wound her arms around his shoulders. Her heart pounded as she breathed in the fresh scent of his shirt and a hint of Irish Spring soap on his skin.

She wondered how long to hold the embrace. Should she pat him like a buddy or run her hands down his arms like a potential lover? Danielle nipped the inside of one cheek, wishing she had as much confidence in this department as she did killing monsters.

30 comments:

  1. I believe she'll figure it out.

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  2. Aw, it's great to see Danielle having a good time, even if there's still some awkwardness at the end! So curious as to what kind of story could've made her laugh so hard in the beginning. The last line is perfect!

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  3. I little bit of jive, cool. Hope she works it all out.

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  4. I love this and how things changed! (:

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  5. Fun...looking at the title I was expecting to read something about someone dancing. Hand jive...haven't heard that term in a long time.

    A-Z

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  6. Christine this just gets better and better. :)

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  7. Love this, Christine! Can't wait to read the post for tomorrow!

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  8. I was wondering how jive was going to fit into this. Awesome scene.

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  9. I was wondering how jive was going to fit into this. Awesome scene.

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  10. no i can't get that song out of my head--brilliant!

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  11. The Irish Spring was a nice touch.

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  12. I am loving your posts. I wondered how Jive was going to fit in. Hand jive, awesome.

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  13. Love the romantic tension between them!

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  14. This is a really great post about "jive". I liked reading this very much.

    www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

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  15. I love how she's so confident with the monsters but so tentative with him. Oh, and I agree: the Irish Spring was a great detail!

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  16. Fenn is going to be furious when she returns home.

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  17. Hello and thank you all! I'm happy that a lot of you are now fantasizing about Erik. BWUHAHAHA! Not that he's evil or anything. Nope. Not at all.

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  18. Love this snippet and the last line. I hope he helps her figure out which direction to go. :)

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  19. Go for it because if he ever treats her like a monster, she can just slay him. Lol!

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  20. I'm still liking this guy, Erik. A girl shouldn't have to fight monsters all the time.

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  21. That awkward moment - to pat the back or slowly caress? Been there... :)

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  22. Whoa! This was my first encounter with Danielle. The last sentence startled me. This isn't just a regular romance novel!

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  23. You're doing so great with the story...

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  24. Ohhh intriguing story. You got me hooked!

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  25. Read from A to J and love the story, nice to see it getting hot!

    Thanks for sharing, this is awesome!

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  26. Just goes to show how much of a turn on a sense of humor can be.
    Kathy @ Swagger Writers

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  27. Interesting to see Danielle isn't as confident around men as she is around monster. I suppose that figures, given she's a Fearless.

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