Surrender 01 - Surrender

threatened their lives if there were any more roofie incidents.
    “Let’s go. Miley and Shelly are already in the car. My husband took the kids to a movie, so my house is where we’re getting ready. I have the perfect outfit for you.”
    “No way are you dressing me ‘slutty,’ Amber,” Ari yelled as she chased after her friend. She had to protest even though she knew she would lose in the end. It seemed to be the story of her life.
    For the entire half-hour’s drive to Amber’s place, the girls chattered on about how amazing this club was. Ari had to admit, if only to herself, that it did sound rather fun. She’d ignored the messages from Rafe all week, and tonight was a good time to see whether she could find a man who’d spark her interest as much as he did.
    Heck, for that matter, she’d be satisfied if she could find a man who sparked even half that much interest. She refused to believe he was the only man alive who could turn her knees to gelatin.
    “I’m on hair duty,” Miley called as she walked in the bathroom and grabbed the curling iron, flatiron and several bottles of hairspray. Ari cringed, knowing how long it was going to take her to get her hair back to normal.
    “Cool. I’ll do makeup,” Shelly said as she grabbed the beauty bag.
    “That leaves me to pick out the outfits,” Amber said with far too much enthusiasm.
    “Sit,” Miley ordered as she led Ari to the table. Within seconds she was twisting Ari’s hair into a series of tight loops and pinning them to her head. Once her hair was off her face, Shelly started applying makeup.
    “Don’t make me look like a hooker,” Ari insisted.
    “We’re just trying to help you get laid. Be grateful,” Miley snapped as she tugged on a strand of her hair.
    “I don’t need help,” Ari grumbled.
    “That’s where you are so wrong. If anyone has a stick higher up her ass, I don’t know where to find her. Relax. We’ll have fun tonight.”
    “Why does it seem to be your mission to hook me up?”
    “Isn’t it obvious? We’re all in marital bliss and we want to spread the joy,” Amber said as she joined them. The three women burst out laughing at her joke.
    “It’s more like we’re trapped in suburbia and we get to live vicariously through you,” Miley admitted.
    “Are your marriages that bad?” Ari asked with concern.
    “Oh, honey, you know we’re just kidding around. We all love our husbands and our kids, but honestly, each of us got married too young and didn’t get to play as much as we wanted, so it’s fun to have a single friend we can pimp out. Not one of us would cheat on her husband, though. I promise you that,” Amber said solemnly.
    “OK, fine. You win. Do what you want, but I’m warning you that I have two left feet. No matter how good you try to make me look, it won’t matter when I step all over some poor schmuck’s toes.”
    “Ari, you’ll look so smoking hot, he won’t care what part of his body you’re stepping all over, just as long as he can touch you,” Amber said with a whistle.
    By the time they left the house, Ari was almost too embarrassed to be out in public. The dress she was wearing hugged her curves like a second skin, from her cleavage-showing top to her hips. There, the bright red material flared out until it ended at mid-thigh. As if that weren’t bad enough, there was a slit in the side that would show the world too much of her goodies if she turned wrong.
    “Quit fidgeting. It ruins the siren effect,” Miley snapped.
    Ari did feel sexy, she had to admit. Never had she owned anything so daring. Her feminine assets were on display, but since the other women were dressed almost as sexily, she didn’t feel out of place. Besides, they had connections at the club, a personal bodyguard, so what could go wrong? Nothing. That was, nothing could go wrong unless your friends advised the bodyguard to let you get a little action on the dance floor.
    “OK, we got here early enough for the dance lesson. I hope it’s a good one tonight,” Shelly announced as she climbed from the vehicle.
    “No one said we were taking dance lessons. I’m afraid even to move in this dress, let alone swing about,” Ari gasped in horror.
    “Ari, you promised to be a good sport. If you go back on your word, then we won’t lay off you all month. If you just go with the flow tonight, we’ll leave you alone forever,” Amber said, with her fingers crossed behind her back.
    “You swear?”
    “Of course. I