"Nights To Remember Ch. 4: Forever Burn~..."
Dahlia's gaze towards Jimmy was as singular as Jimmy's was to her. Even as she passed him a fresh beer of his own. Even when he took it with soft thanks & sipped from it.
Hers was starry-eyed, reverent & thrilled. Jimmy's gaze towards Dahlia was soft & tender. Kissing her hands before guiding her back inside.
Jimmy's gaze towards Robert was… less so.
Wary. Knowing. Almost accusatory. Jimmy very nearly bristled when Dahlia wasn't aware or looking in his direction. Brooding. Glowering. He'd only switch back to his sweet tenderness & warmth when Dahlia's gaze returned to him.
Robert shivered as Jimmy & Dahlia strolled over to him. Taking another sip of his beer to wet his parched throat - When did it get so dry? - he did his best to shake that off and think up a casual greeting. "Hey, mate! Glad you could make it! Was wondering when you'd get here?"
"Indeed." A Middlesex monotone replied. "I was just asking Dahlia here why she left so suddenly. Said you two had been discussing the merits between back at the Rainbow & here at the Chuco. She told me it was your idea to leave. Thankfully it was her idea to tell Peter to tell me. So I wouldn't worry. Isn't that right, my girl?" He emphasized the words "my girl". He always emphasized the words "my girl".
"Yes, darling." The word "darling" curled into the air like a plume of smoke from her lips. "Robert & I got bored & wanted to see how things were back home here. I didn't want to take you from the party since you seemed to be enjoying it. I also couldn't very well leave without you knowing." She cuddled closer to Jimmy, right arm around his waist, left on his chest. Right over his heart.
"I couldn't find you. Didn't even know where to even look. Not after you disappeared with Bonzo. Didn't want to worry you though so I made sure to tell Peter to tell you where we were & that I was safe. If anyone could find a way to tell you it was him. Peter made sure I was safe. As always. Safe with Robert & Magnet. He made sure you had nothing to worry about. See?"
"Indeed." A softer tone. Suburban Surrey sigh. Of relief. Of relaxation. Once again, he took her hand, lifting her left hand to his lips & pressing a kiss to her delicate little knuckles. Right by her ring. Dahlia giggled. In her girlish rapture, she was blissfully unaware however, of how Jimmy cut his eyes at Robert while doing so. His gaze remained severe as he rose back up & placed her hand back on his heart.
Diamond ring glinting in the light on her third finger.
Stately gold band shining on his.
Robert had to smirk & let out the tiniest breathless "hmph" of a laugh.
He never did anything by chance.
Just then, Dahlia's voice cut in, ending the stalemate.
"Do you forgive me, baby?"
Jimmy turned back to face her. His large left hand cupped her cheek. Ring still glinting. Pink lips curving from severe slit back to sweet smile. "Of course, my dear. There's nothing to forgive." In one swift move he leant in & claimed her lips as his, claimed her as his, again. "As long as I know you're safe. Nothing else matters. Nothing."
Dahlia's eyes glittered & shone in the pink light as he said that.
Now it was Dahlia that Robert saw being defined by the dj's choice.
"Hypnotized, you've got me hypnotized...
All it took was just one little look into your eyes...
I'll do whatever you say, command me and I'll obey...
In a magic spell of romance...
My heart is yours to command, and woah-oh...
Hypnotized, gee, gee I'm so hypnotized...
Just one touch of your fingertips...
One kiss from your sweet, sweet lips..."
"Though you did give me quite a fright." Jimmy admitted surprisingly. "Disappearing into the night like that. All I want is to know that you're safe. To keep you safe. And near."
Try as he might, Robert couldn't help himself. Maybe it was the beer. Maybe it was his usual brusque Leonine bravado. Maybe it was both.
"What's the matter, Pagey? Worried she was gonna run off with a blonde country boy? Much less yer lead singer?"
Dahlia's face fell. She gasped, turning to gape at him in surprise. She was truly stunned it seemed. Aghast. Clearly, she had no idea where this came from. Her eyes volleying back & forth from his face to the bottle in his hand telegraphed where she figured it came from though.
"No." Jimmy's response was terse & equal parts heated & cool. "What trash papers or cheap novels have you been reading? Honestly! Don't flatter yourself, Planty. I know well enough she would never do that. Never. We both do. We all do."
The gunslingers let their fingers cool on the triggers respectively. Each cooled their heels. Cooling themselves with a sip of their beers.
Until Dahlia spoke up again.
"Jimmy…" Both sets of eyes flew to her as she asked. "Let's go dance, huh? C'mon. I've waited all night."
"Waited?" Jimmy blinked in surprise. "Has Robert not led you on the dancefloor at all tonight?"
"No, baby." Dahlia shook her head. "He never even asked. It never even came up."
Shit, Robert thought. She was right. They were here all that time. Together all that time. Alone all that time. And he'd never once asked her to dance. Unlike before. He usually always got a dance in with her here. All that time. All that wasted time. And he'd never once gotten her in his arms. Now he knew his time was up. His chance had run out. Jimmy was about as likely to give him a chance to dance with her that night as he would give him a chance to play his guitar! Goddammit!
"Really now?" Jimmy quirked a brow, a smirk curving at his lips. "That's so unlike him. He usually jumps at the chance to."
"C'mon, Jimmy." She took his hand & pleaded. "C'mon, baby. It's been so long since we've been here. I missed it so. Didn't you miss it too? Remember all the fun we used to have here? All the other dances? In here? In the parking lot? Under the streetlights? Under the moonlight?"
"Aww, my darling." Jimmy's smirk then softened into a legitimate smile. His large left hand came to cup her cheek, guiding her into another kiss.
She gave herself willingly, fully into the kiss. But clearly, she was still on edge. Still willful. Still wanting.
Pulling back, Jimmy took & pressed another kiss to her left hand again. "Of course I remember, my dear. How could I forget. We've had such wonderful times here before. For years! Perhaps it was meant to be that led you to lead me here again. A welcome little change. A delight. A delightful surprise. Fate."
He smiled his best eye-crinkling smile, leading her to beam up at him in kind as he cupped her face in both hands now & pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Very well then. Whatever you say, my love." Then placing his now drained beer on the bartop besides Robert, using the clink to punctuate his words with a bit of finality, he nodded. "C'mon, Dahlia, my girl. Let's go dance."
"Wait, really?" Dahlia gasped. She knew how shy Jimmy could be. How reticent. Especially with the ever-growing weight of his & the group's name in the public eye. But when Jimmy nodded, she knew better than to question it. There'd be no looking a gift horse in the mouth from her. No second guessing.
And so it was that Robert saw them recede onto the dancefloor as the song yet again narrated what he saw before him; albeit with the tiniest mistake in getting the month wrong.
The stars were bright above...
I'll hope and I'll pray...
With all of your might...
In the still of the night..."
Robert ambled over to the wall by the door, reclining against it. One leg bent, foot against the wall behind him. Beer in hand.
As he stood there, he heard the music playing from the outdoor patio. A different set of oldies were playing for the kids to dance to or chill to under the streetlights. A double soundtrack for Robert to sit - or stand - and contemplate.
"Devil or angel, please say you'll be mine...
Love me or leave me, I'll go out of my mind...
Devil or angel, dear, whichever you are...
I need you, I need you, I need you...
You look like an angel...
But you keep me guessin'...
Will you ever be mine?..."
Still, his eyes never left them as they swirled about the floor. Her eyes lit up by more than the pink light. Jimmy's glittering in kind. Both locked in a shared ecstatic grin amidst secret hushed words & giggles as the music continued to narrate.
"My love must be a kind of blind love...
I can't see anyone but you...
Are the stars out tonight (sha bop sha bop)...
I don't know if it's cloudy or bright (sha bop sha bop)...
I only have eyes for you dear...
Robert watched avidly. He saw how the "stars" that night shone in her eyes. How they dazzled. Dazzled him. How they were dazzled. By Jimmy.
At the same time, the outdoor soundtrack of sorts weaseled its way into his ear. It read him as well as anything playing that night. Needling him. Seeing him. Seeing deep within him. Seeing all. And laying it bare.
"Each day through my window I watch her as she passes by...
I say to myself, "You're such a lucky guy"...
To have a girl like her is truly a dream come true...
Out of all the fellows in the world, she belongs to me...
But it was just my imagination...
It was just my imagination...
The Temptations. Despite himself, a wry smile curved his lips. Both from how fitting the name of the group was & how well it fit with the Dells' song playing as Dahlia & Jimmy waltzed in the center of the dancefloor.
"I won't forget all those things...
Won't let me forget your love...
Oh, what a night (to love you dear)...
Oh, what a night (to walk you dear)...
Oh, what a night (to kiss you dear)...
That's why I love you so...
Can I walk you home one more night?...
I wanna make love to you one more night...
I want you baby, I need you baby...
I love you baby, one more night..."
Watching Jimmy waltz so effortlessly. With Dahlia in his arms. Beaming up at him. Whispering to him. Kissing him. Robert couldn't help but brood a bit.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of another petite lovely. Dark hair, dark eyes, dusky skin… And unlike the one he had centered in his sight… The one he usually had his sights set on… She was signaling her interest in him. Finger curling in the end of a lock of hair. A soft smile curling her lips. A twinkle in her eye.
His eyes flicked over to her from time to time. A grin tossed in her direction. An effortless wink. Hell, even the occasional blown kiss. It came easy to him now. She wouldn't be the first he picked up at the Chuco. Hell, she might not even be the last.
Still, Robert's eyes couldn't help but be pulled to the same set of familiar glittering eyes that shone up at his guitarist friend as Otis Redding called into his ear from outside. Reading him once more from the great beyond. Searing into him.
"These arms of mine, they are burning...
Burning from wanting you...
These arms of mine, they are wanting...
And if you would let them hold you...
Oh, how grateful I will be...
Come on, come on, baby...
Just be my little woman...
I need me somebody, somebody to treat me right, oh...
I need your arms, loving arms to hold me tight...
And I, I, I need, I need your, I need your, tender lips, to hold, hold me...
Tell me when I'm right now, baby..."
In the blink of an eye it seemed Robert was no longer alone.
Looking towards the source of the hushed greeting, Robert found the young petite beauty had spirited her way next to him. "You alone, handsome?"
"Not for long." He grinned, snaking an arm around her waist as her hands went to his chest. "S'yer name, luv?"
"Paulina." She cooed, nuzzling him as she asked. "You in town long?"
"Mmmm… Pleasure to make your acquaintance, luv." He nuzzled back, one large hand gripping her hip. He heard her gasp softly, drawing an even wider, dimple-popping grin from him.
"What brings you to these parts, Paulina, my dear?"
"Well, at first it was the music… But now…" She rubbed her nose against his in a soft little, teasing Eskimo kiss. "You…" Her eyes flashed up at him, searing him in her own way.
"Smart girl." His grin now widened to a face-splitting Cheshire cat level.
Another gasp sounded as he then stole her lips in a sudden hungry kiss. She responded in kind instantly. Though, gathering as much of her own barely checked ardor & need as she did, she still struggled to match his passion & fervor.
Breaking the kiss just as Paulina began to swoon, Robert began kissing his way down her throat, sucking a mark onto her tawny skin.
Though even as he mauled the young Paulina so, his eyes still rose. They still lifted. They still moved across the room & locked onto the sight of another dark beauty. He couldn't help it. The same one as ever. Her and her dark lord. The two were still making a striking sight as they swirled & whirled about the floor. Only this time, they two were beginning to neck as well as Etta James sang.
I pray your answer's yes...
I'll be there by your side...
Oh, I pledge my love to you...
Oh nothing, nothing, nothing in this world...
Unh, my dearest darling...
Dahlia's arms tightened around Jimmy's shoulders. Jimmy's hands sliding up & down her back. Jimmy's head craned into the crook of her neck in between his mauling her with kisses. Her eyes closed & head tilted back as she giggled & smiled rapturously.
The sight still stung a bit. The beer dulled it a bit. And the presence of a curvy beauty in his arms helped to soothe the rest of the sting.
The music pumping from outside continued to needle him, however.
"Sincerely, oh yes, sincerely...
'Cause I love you so dearly, please say you'll be mine...
Sincerely, oh you know how I love you...
I'll do anything for you, please say you'll be mine...
Oh Lord, won't you tell me why...
But I'll never never never never let her go...
Sincerely, oh you know how I love you...
I'll do anything for you, please say you'll be mine..."
Robert did his best to brush those needles off. As his hands slid up & down Paulina's back, he tried to ignore how they paralleled the movements Jimmy's hands made on Dahlia's back. The barest thought of it, the merest thought, made him crave to feel how it'd be to have his own hands running up & down Dahlia's back. Feeling how she'd react. How she'd respond to the very things that had Paulina purring & nearly coming apart in his arms.
That thought was the straw that broke the camel's back for him.
Unlatching his lips from her neck, he glanced down at her. Eyes closed. Sweet smile. In rapture herself clearly. He grinned, rubbing his thumb over the soft bruise he'd already drawn into her skin.
Try as he might, he still had Dahlia on the brain.
He sucked the mark deeper into her skin & gazed at her.
He gave Paulina his own version of mauling kisses & gazed at her.
He pulled back from the passionate kisses & gazed at her.
Dahlia, for her part, was still lost in her own world dancing with her beloved shimmer suited Jimmy.
And as he grabbed Paulina by the hand & guided her out the door & out into the car, the vision of Dahlia, rapturous, smiling, dancing whirled in his mind along with the words to the song they were dancing to - the only song that was playing both inside and outside - rang in his mind.
"Forever my darling our love will be true...
Always and forever I'll love only you...
Just promise me darling...
May this fire in my soul dear...
My heart's at your command dear...
To keep, love and to hold...
Making you happy's my desire...
Keeping you is my goal...
for the rest of my days...
I'll never part from you...
Just promise me darling...
May this fire in my soul dear...
My heart's at your command dear...
To keep, love and to hold...
Making you happy's my desire...
for the rest of my days...
I'll never part from you...
Just promise me darling...
May this fire in my soul dear...
As ever, this is forever under construction~
theartofmadeline
baratheonpilled
turnnoffyourmind
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