Four pairs of eyes looked in Candace's direction with interest as they tried to figure out who the man was and what he was saying to Candace.
"I wonder what he is saying to her. Can anyone of you read lips?" Sonia asked hopefully even though she knew the answer to that.
"I can read body languages, and Candace's body language right now says she is uncomfortable," Jade said, and Lucy frowned.
"Perhaps one of us should go and bail her?" Lucy suggested.
"Harry should go," Jade said as she picked up her phone and dialed Harry's line.
Harry took out his phone when it vibrated in his pocket and turned to look at Jade, wondering why she was calling him.
"Pick up," Jade mouthed to him as she pointed at her phone, and Harry received the call.
"We think Candace is distressed. Can you find out if she is alright?" Jade asked as she jerked her head in Candace's direction and immediately Harry turned to look. He gave Jade a nod before hanging up.
Oblivious to everything else going on around her, Candace forced a smile as she looked at Sam and waited for him to say what he wanted to say.
"Can you please relax? You look really nervous," Sam pleaded when he noticed the beads of sweat on her forehead despite the air conditioner.
"I'm relaxed," Candace lied as she quickly drank from her champagne nearly choking on it.
"Is everything alright?" Harry asked as he appeared at her side, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Yes," Candace rushed to assure him, the last thing she wanted was for him to hear any of this here even if he knew about her past. It would be too embarrassing.
Harry looked at her for a moment and held her gaze to be sure if she wanted him to stay or to leave, and when she gave him a nod, pleading with her eyes that he should leave, he turned to Sam and gave him a warning look.
"It would be in your best interest not to offend her, Sam," Harry warned before returning to join the other guys.
"You seem pretty close," Sam said as he watched Harry leave.
"Why is Harry leaving without taking her with him?" Sonia asked with a frown.
"Perhaps she said she didn't want his help," Jade said as her gaze met with Harry's and he shook his head.
"Hey, friends!" Gemima greeted, drawing their attention as her and Matt stopped by their table.
Lucy couldn't help giggling at Gemima's attitude and Sonia's sour expression as she eyes her, "We are not your friends," Sonia stated.
"I told you she was the worst of them all, didn't I? Perhaps Bryan must have told her something unpleasant about me," Gemima told Matt whose gaze was directed across the hall in Candace's direction as was Jade's and Aurora's.
"Anyway, I was about leaving so I decided to stop by and say hello. I didn't want you thinking I left because I was threatened by you," Gemima said, and Sonia rolled her eyes.
"Good riddance. Matt, you're not leaving with her, are you? I think Candace might need your help," Sonia said, and this time Gemima looked in Candace's direction as well.
"What did you want to say?" Candace asked, feeling a bit more confident now after Harry had shown up.
"You are a law student, aren't you?" He asked, and Candace looked at him, taken aback by that.
Was that what he meant when he said she looked familiar? He had seen her in school?
"Yes. Have we met before?" She asked, and he smiled.
"I've seen you a couple of times during your lectures but I've never approached you. My mom is one of your professors and some times when I visit her I like to sit behind the class and watch her lecture. I'm a lawyer myself. I am part of the legal team here in I-Global," he explained, and watched as she visibly relaxed.
"Oh! I see. I guess your mother is Professor Ann Sullivan?" Candace asked and he nodded.
"Yeah," he said, and continued to watch her like he wanted to say something else.
"I'm curious though. Do you take note of all the students in the classroom or is it just me?" Candace asked, and he winced.
"What else?" Candace asked suspiciously, and he sighed.
"I hope this doesn't make you uncomfortable, I mean no harm. I actually took note of you because I've seen you before then. Twice. At the club once. And then another time during my friend's bachelor party," He confessed, and watched as she stiffened.
"No. Please don't panic. I'm not going to breathe a word of this to anyone. Not even Harry. I promise!" He said and Candace didn't know how to respond to that.
"If you recognized me every time you saw me in the past, that means you recognized me the moment I walked in, didn't you? You did not approach me because you were trying to figure out why I look familiar," Candace stated, and he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Yeah. You're right."
"Why then did you approach me? What do you want?" Candace asked as she straightened her back, and he shook his head.
"I suppose I'm just very curious about you. Seeing you here in the company of Harry and the others. You all seemed to be very close. I know it's not my business but I was just really curious to know you," Sam said helplessly, not knowing how to phrase his question.
"You mean you want to know why a law student like me who is close to someone like Harry works as a stripper?" Candace asked, and he shook his head as he looked at her apologetically.
"No. I'm sorry…."
"Well, if you must know, I'm no longer a stripper. I did that to get by during a tough time. They're my friends and family so they know all about it. I believe that's all you need to know. Now if your curiosity has been satisfied, I'd like to be excused," Candace cut in coolly and as she turned to leave, she bumped into someone, spilling her drink on him.
"Oh, shit! I'm sorry," she said as she looked up to see who she had bumped into, and almost laughed when she realized it was Matt.
"Candace, I'm really sorry. I did not mean to be rude," Sam said, and Candace shrugged.
"I'm not offended, just done talking with you," Candace said dismissively before looking at Matt.
"I'm sorry. What were you doing behind me anyway?" She asked in amusement as she reached into her purse for her hankie to dab off the stain while Sam walked away, feeling embarrassed by her dismissal.
"Rescuing you. Sonia and the other ladies. I can see why Bryan is terrified of them. They all insisted you looked like you were uncomfortable and asked that I come save you by asking you to dance with me," Matt said as he took the hankie from her.
"And what did you tell them?" Candace asked as she looked in Sonia's direction, and noticed they were no longer seated. She looked around and saw them dancing with their men.
"Well, even though I wanted nothing more than to interrupt whatever you were both discussing, I refused as I was supposed to. And Sonia kept talking about how I was being a jerk and how she would never talk to me again, and the others joined her and when I couldn't take it anymore I decided to come to you," Matt said, and Candace shook her head.
"Well, as you can see, I didn't need help. You shouldn't have budged. They're never going to stop trying to matchmake now," Candace said.
"Who was that guy? What was he saying to you?" Matt asked curiously.
"Why? Did it upset you?" Candace asked sweetly.
"No, it didn't. You didn't seem to be enjoying the conversation so I had no reason to be upset. But it had me concerned," Matt said, and she shrugged.
"He recognized me. He said he has seen me at the club before," she explained, and Matt looked at her with concern.
"Did he say anything improper? Do I need to break his nose?" Matt asked, and Candace surprised him when she laughed out loud.
"No, thanks. He wasn't rude," Candace assured him.
She had no idea where the courage to respond to Sam in that manner had come from. Perhaps it was just the part of her that hated having nosy people in her business, or perhaps it was because she knew deep down that she had family and friends in the hall with her who would stand by her regardless of her past. And Matt had proved just that.
"Where is she, anyway?" Candace asked, referring to Gemima.
"She left already. So you don't have to flirt with anyone. So? Will you dance with me?" Matt asked as he took her wineglass from her and led her back to the table to drop it.
"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Candace asked, and Matt shrugged.
"I don't think they would think much of it considering they believe they forced me into asking you to dance," Matt said.
"Maybe. As long as you don't enjoy yourself too much. We have to try to look uncomfortable and uninterested else they're going to think their plan is working," Candace said as she let him lead him to the dance floor.
"That might be difficult. I want to move my hands over your body," Matt whispered to her as he took her into his arms, and butterflies fluttered in her belly.
"You're an actor, Matt. Act like it," she said, reminding him of what he had said earlier as she pressed her boobs against his chest.
Well, maybe she might not really flirt with anyone else as she had threatened, but she could torment him with her body and remind him of what he was going to lose out on if he fucked up one more time by showing up around her with any girl.
"You said try to look uncomfortable and uninterested yet you grind your body against mine in this manner and expect me not to have a reaction," Matt muttered under his breath.
"You do sound uncomfortable," Candace said in amusement.
"We are still on tomorrow, right?" Matt asked hopefully.
"You bet," Candace said with a smile which she quickly covered up with a scowl when her eyes met with Jade's who was dancing with Harry some steps away from them.
Jade smiled, "I wonder when they're both going to stop deceiving themselves. Anyone with eyes can tell they're very much into each other," Jade whispered to Harry.
"When they're ready they will. Until then, can you focus on me?" Harry asked, and Jade rolled her eyes.
"Why should I when you abandoned me all night long and chose to go have those boring discussions with the guys?" Jade asked, and Harry looked down at her.
"You ditched me from the moment we walked into the hall, remember?" Harry asked, and Jade flashed him a smile when she remembered she had walked away from him the moment she saw Aurora.
"Let's talk about something else," Jade said, and Harry chuckled at her tactics to change the subject because she was guilty.
"What do you want to talk about?" Harry asked and Jade shrugged.
"What's your plan for the weekend?" She asked, and Harry raised a brow.
"I heard you girls were spending Saturday together."
"That's our plan. What's yours? Am I seeing you?" Jade asked, and Harry shrugged.
"I'd love to see you. Besides, you're my girlfriend. So, it's also your call to make. If you ask me to cancel all my plans to spend time with you, I will," Harry said, and Jade grinned.
"You always know the right things to say. A man after my heart," she said as she rested her head on his chest and they both swayed to the rhythm of the music.
Few feet from them, Sonia's gaze swept across the dance floor as she danced with Bryan. She couldn't help noticing that everyone seemed to be doing more of talking than dancing.
She smiled in satisfaction as her gaze settled on Candace and Matt. She had nothing personal against Gemima, but as far as she was concerned, Gemima was an unwanted distraction in this romance. Perhaps it was the writer in her that made her believe those two were meant to be together.
"Candace and Matt look so good together, don't they?" Sonia asked, and Bryan nodded agreeably.
"Yeah. They do."
"I suppose the next time we would all be gathered together this way will be at Jade's wedding," Sonia murmured. She had enjoyed being with everyone this way tonight even though Gemima's presence had put a damper on the pleasant mood.
"Why do you think so?" Bryan asked, and she shrugged.
"Because it's the next social gathering after now. Remember, she said Harry would be proposing in six months," Sonia said reasonably.
"What if Tom and Lucy decides to get married before then?" Bryan asked, and Sonia shook her head.
"I don't see that happening… anytime soon," she added so that Bryan wouldn't ask her what she meant about not seeing it happening.
"And what if we get married before then?" Bryan asked jokingly and Sonia giggled.
"The both of us? That's highly unlikely," Sonia said with a shake of her head.
"Why do you think so?" Bryan asked with a slight frown.
"Why? You suddenly want to get married?" Sonia asked with a teasing smile.
"Don't you want to?" Bryan asked as he stopped dancing while looking at her seriously.
"Why wouldn't I want to? I'd marry you any day and time. I'm just saying I don't see it happening anytime soon," Sonia said, and Bryan relaxed.
"So, if we were to get married, when do you think would be the best time?" Bryan asked, and Sonia grinned.
"I just told you I'd marry you any day and time. If you asked me to marry you right now, I will," Sonia assured him, and Bryan chuckled.
"Not so soon," he said, and she grinned.
"See? I told you," Sonia said, and giggled when Bryan kissed her.
He would love to see her reaction when he popped the question to her on Sunday.
A couple of feet away from them, Lucy and Tom gazed at each other as they danced, "Are you enjoying the party?" Tom asked, and she laughed softly.
"I don't think there is a right response to that question. You have no idea the number of people who have said hello to me tonight. I've spoken with more people tonight than I have done in years. And I don't even remember ninety percent of the names of those you introduced me to earlier," Lucy confessed and Tom chuckled.
"There is no hurry. You will eventually get to know the very important ones," Tom assured her and she sighed softly.
"What about you? Are you enjoying the party? I know it's your first time being here like this," Lucy said, and Tom shrugged.
"I think I'm okay. I know most of the people in the hall even though they didn't know me until recently. I've received a lot of invitations to various events. I have a feeling I'm not going to be able to keep a low profile for much longer," Tom said, and Lucy nodded in understanding.
"Don't worry. I will try to always accompany you to such events so you don't feel too uncomfortable," Lucy assured him, reminding herself that he had exposed his identity for her sake and this was all part of the consequence.
"Really?" He asked as he watched her with a curious smile.
"Of course. Why should my man attend such social functions without me by his side?" She asked with a raised brow and he grinned.
"I love the sound of that," he said, and she smiled.
"You should. By the way, how much space would you like me to create for you? I plan to clean out a drawer for you when I get home tonight," Lucy said, and Tom's grin widened even more.
"So soon? Why not wait until tomorrow? You would need to rest," Tom said and she shook her head.
"Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. I have to clean the house and do my laundry after my parents leave. And there's the hangout with the girls. I want everything go to be organized before you come," Lucy said and he smiled at her as the music stopped.
"I think I'm ready to call it a night. Ready to leave?" Tom asked, and Lucy beamed a smile at him.
"I've been waiting to hear that since the moment we arrived," Lucy said happily, and Tom chuckled as he led her away from the dance floor.
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