Hunter's Moon

Chapter 11

            Juli picked up her ringing phone off of the bar and looked at the caller ID. She snorted in disgust at what she read. She hit the “Decline Call” button.

            “Don't tell me he's still trying to call and make up?” her best friend Ed asked her, drink in hand.

            “Apparently so . . .” Juli said, “He always was one for denial. I guess he's just not willing to admit to himself that I'm not going to be cheated on. I mean, really, men can be such pigs!”

            “Oh, I agree.” Ed replied with a devilish grin. “Oink oink, Jules.” he laughed and then winked.

            “Bwa ha ha ha” Juli laughed, “No, no . . . You're different Eddy. I mean, you don't have to deal with the over-inflated macho egos that most women have to deal with when trying to find a good man.”

            Juli heard her phone again and sighed, grabbing it; she hit the power button and shoved it into her pocket.

            “Well, no. I don't have to deal with those men, but I've run into my fair share that really should have listened to their mamas more,” Ed said.

            Juli leaned against the bar and looked out at the dance floor in the club. She had decided that after the past few days cooped up fuming about her ex-boyfriend, she needed to get out and do something spontaneous. Going out with Ed had been just that. She wanted a night where she could just relax and forget about relationships and men in general.

            “Hey, that's it.” She turned around, ordered a shot, and raised it high. “Maybe I just need to swear off men altogether.” Juli knocked it back before Ed could reply.

            “Oh really? Swearing off them for good?" He then pulled the strawberry out of his empty glass and bit into it with a smirk. "Does that mean more for me?”

            Juli burst out in peals of laughter again and smiled. “Honestly . . . yes. As of right now, I refuse to let myself get into relationship, bad or otherwise.”

            Ed took her around the shoulder in a side-hug, “I'm sure there's someone out there for you Jules, . . . just not anyone you've met yet, apparently. You'll find him. I'm sure of it.”

            “Yeah, Mr. Right is out there. But I'm not even looking for Mr. Right Now tonight.” Juli got up off the bar stool and pulled her friend toward the dance floor. “Come on, 'Mr. Not Ever,' let's dance!”

            “Hey, hey, hey, watch it with the names there Missy. I'm only ‘Mr. Not Ever For You.' I'll happily be Mr. Right or Right Now if the right guy were to show up.” Ed taunted as they moved onto the dance floor with the pulsing, gyrating mass.

            From the far corner of the room a tall figure smiled as it watched Juli and Ed walk to the dance floor. It had chosen its prey for the night.

            A short time later Juli was walking off the dance floor, covered in sweat and deeply out of breath. She sat down at a small table, from where she could clearly see Ed dance away with reckless abandon and no shame whatsoever. She pondered for a second if she would have ever considered Ed as boyfriend material, if he weren't gay, that was. He was maybe just under average height, and just a touch of a belly on him. It wasn't so much that he was out of shape, just he wasn't in shape either. Juli watched as Ed and another dancer slid their bodies against each other, his brown eyes locked in the gleeful frivolity of the moment.