Trying Not To Love You

Part Twenty Six

Chapter Twenty Six

After a couple of drinks Sonny wandered into the conservatory, the real heart of the ball, people were dancing, drinking, and tucking in to the awesome buffet that Tom had provided from the restaurant. He'd never seen the place look so full. Looking around he waved to Carl, stood at the bar talking to Eamonn, as he was about to cross the room to speak to him, he spotted Lucy, sat with her cronies near the edge of the dance floor. She gave him a scowl, but Martha was right, there was more humour than venom in that look these days. He'd won her over.

Smiling at that, he turned towards the dance floor and almost tripped over. Stood talking to an impeccably suited James was Martha, and she looked devastating. She was wearing a long blue dress, strapless, billowy, yet clingy and sexy. Never had he felt his body heat up at the mere sight of someone. Her elegant neck and creamy shoulders were bare, revealed by the dress, and he'd never been so tempted to walk up and run his tongue over that flesh, bed his teeth into the contour of her neck. Shaking his head he met her eyes.

Martha couldn't believe how devastatingly good Sonny looked, it was no secret that he was attractive, she'd long since given up on fighting that realisation, but in the ice white shirt, crisp yet moulded to him, and the contrast of the black well cut tuxedo, he was traffic stopping.

He looked pained, as though something was wrong, so she offered him a tentative smile, after all nothing could be that bad. As the corners of his lips turned up into a smile, a hand wrapped around his arm, and a face pressed up against his shoulder. Jade.

Martha sighed; there was nothing she could say. She'd pushed him away, she couldn't expect him to be single forever, but she wasn't going to enjoy seeing him with any of the local women, none of them were good enough for him. And you are? She asked herself. Eyes still on his, she watched as he greeted Jade, she was all legs and boobs in a dress that supermodels couldn't carry better. Who was she kidding?

Sonny's eyes dropped from hers to hear something that Jade was saying, and she used that moment to escape. Mandy and her husband had arrived, and she wanted to make sure that the woman who'd created the evening enjoyed things.

In the bar people were still arriving, and Martha insisted that both Helen and Mandy move into the main room and circulate. She stayed at the door doling out champagne to the latecomers and greeting people for a little while, until one of Helen's friends came to relieve her. At the bar she grabbed a glass of wine, then headed into the swirling lights and pounding music of the party.

The light had gone out when Martha left the room, but all too soon, Sonny found himself in the middle of a battle between Gemma and Jade. They were both vying for his attention, and it wasn't the most attractive thing. Sighing he headed to the bar, Eamonn and Carl were permanent fixtures there, stood chatting, and both looked up and smiled as he arrived.

"You the prize?" Eamonn asked nodding towards the two girls who were having some form of dance off.

He rolled his eyes and ordered another drink, and refills for the two older men, at that moment Martha glided back into the room and she took his breath away. Her dark hair was pulled up into some sort of loose style, the dress clung to that body, the body that haunted his dreams every night, she looked like a Greek God, Aphrodite. Gulping he turned back to the bar, glancing at Carl he saw the pride in his eyes at the sight of his daughter.

"She looks amazing!" Eamonn offered, "doesn't she Sonny?" He nodded awkwardly as the older man added, "forget sometimes that she's a proper lady, million miles from wellies and oilskins hey?"

Sonny gave an awkward smile, then turned back to the bar.

When he finally had control, he turned back and was furious; she was dancing, with James. The chinless wonder had his hands all over her and it instantly rose his heckles.