Chapter 3 ☺️There's enough to go round ☺️

As Ainsley and the man walked away through the back door, Jessie looked on, irritated at the two. Her disappointment and betrayal was clearly written on her face. This was the man she had brought to her friend's birthday party, and though they just met, she didn't expect him to act like a jerk. Wasn't it a few hours ago that he was jerking deep inside her? He sure had great stamina if he was going to take on her friend right after that. She was exhausted from their rendezvous all day.

Watching the two, she suddenly felt there had to be an intervention. And that was only coming from her as all their other friends were busy ogling the man themselves. It was so unlike Ainsley to trip all over herself for a man. But that was what Damian had reduced everyone to. Now, Ainsley; the bad flirty queen herself was drooling all over him. She was going to have to stop them. How was she to sit back doing nothing while she watched her man gets drained dry by another woman?

Your man? Her conscious self, smirked at her. He isn't even your acquaintance, she scolded. Fine! She admitted. It was true that she barely knows the man. But he was her date. She had invited him to this party. Didn't that count for something? The man had betrayed her in every way. He had been gentlemanly when they met earlier today. He bought her white wine and had listened as she ranted about the horrible things her boss did to her. This she did partly because the wine got her tipsy. She wasn't the type to rant over her miserable life to a total stranger. But the man had been so kind that even in comparison to Mark, her boyfriend, and the kindest man she knew, he won her over. He had paid attention as she explained how Mr. McCarthy constantly abused her verbally, including how this evening, he had called her to the office to tell her that horrible nonsense which had made her so angry and got her in this foul mood.

She had bared her soul as well as her body, and for a moment, she assumed they had chemistry. The sex had been amazing too. He kept going at it like he was some insatiable beast, all the while whispering how she was doing this to him. That turned her on more than anything. But the slightest chance he got, he ditched her. That she was angry was an understatement. She was furious with him. The clues had been there as they walked into the hall. His romping eyes had started to check out the ladies. And he smiled as they ogled him too. Whatever she had been thinking bringing him to the party anyway when she knew her boyfriend would be coming too. She had totally forgotten Mark would be here.

At first, all she felt was a pity for the women. They could only stare. She was there with him. She had the piece of art they so admired. Even when her friend Ainsley, who usually didn't get swayed by such men, had almost tripped when she introduced them, she knew she had hit the jackpot. This was the dream man. Not even the thought that Mark would be devastated when he found out that she cheated on him made her worried.

"Easy." he had said as he caught Ainsley quickly, so she didn't fall. Then he had looked at her amused. He knew that face. They had met at several events but never bothered with each other. They were okay to admire each other from afar. He let his eyes take in her sumptuous body. "Lovely." he said and held her hand.

Jessie looked at them both. Her friend; smiling like a fool at the man. Wait, is she drunk! The Ainsley she knew would never trip over a man. But then again, Damian was no man. He's a god! Screamed her flirty self. A being she never knew resided in her until now. I caught a god, she smiled. Turning to admire the god in flesh, she felt like hitting him. He was literally undressing her friend. The ease with which he quickly jumped in to save her friend made her raise her brow. Thinking of what to do to break this stupid lustful gaze on their faces, she moved towards them. And before she could introduce them, he smiled and did that himself.

"Don't I know you?" he said

She acknowledged it. They have indeed met many times. "I know you." she replied

"You're the celebrant." he said, looking at her like she was a fairy princess

Ainsley smiled and replied that she was, "Welcome to the party."

But he had kept on holding her friend's hand, and she looked from the hand to their faces as the two seemed lost in a locked battle of some sort. She had coughed and stylishly separated them by stepping in firmly between them. "Ainsley, meet..." and the lights went off before she could make a formal introduction. He left her side with some flimsy excuse then. When the lights came back on, he had moved to a corner in the room to sip his wine, while taking in the whole scenery. She wanted to go there and talk some sense into his brain, but she was too angry. Not trusting herself to be rational, she had gone in search of her friend to celebrate with her instead. Moreover, he really was just an acquaintance after all. There was nothing to get all pesky over.

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The MC mounted the stage then and called for a dance with the celebrity. As they danced, Jessie kept throwing daggers at the man. He was busy dancing with almost all the ladies in the most provoking way. As the night wore on, she found herself getting more and more irritated with herself for bringing him here. Finally, after a while, he had seen her and worked her into his arm. Their dance had been offending as she tried to leave his arms, but he kept pulling her back to his arms. "Hey." he whispered gently in her ears, his brows raised questioningly.

She glared at him. No, he wasn't going to make her spell it out. If he really didn't know what he did to make her get this angry, then he was a nitwit when it came to women. Refusing to say anything, but stuck in his tight embrace, she danced with him. All the while, she noted how the other ladies eyed them with envy, and she felt like screaming at them all. And when she thought she couldn't lose it anymore, he pulled her closer, tilted her head up and kissed her.

Whatever anger she had felt towards him melted with the kiss. She was swept into the mood instantly. Damian sure knew how to handle a woman was her last thought before she felt the silence all around them. He must have sensed it too. The music had stopped, and everyone was out of the stage. He released her gently, his eyes not leaving hers for a second. Then they both looked around to discover they were in the middle of the hall with every eye on them. They moved away partly because that spot was for the celebrant and to avoid the eyes. Not that any of them cared.

"Next, we will go for a lap dance for the birthday girl." Announced the MC in a bid to break the silence. That was when the issue had started. She had been put in charge of getting strippers for this particular episode. Between work, her boss and Damian, she had forgotten. A look at the time shows it was too late to get anything done. She rushed to whisper this to the MC, who herself was at a loss and didn't know what to do.

"It appears we need strippers for this pretty lady here." she announced finally as Ainsley walked up the stage.

"We have men here to fill in." shouted a man, who walked up the stage and flexed his muscle. "We can do it." he teased, twisting his waist.

"Yes. Yes." echoed the ladies in the room as five more men joined him on stage.

And just like that, the MC asked that the interested men should file out. Over twenty stepped forward. The screening for the single male dancer to give the lap dance began with the ladies eliminating the men they didn't like his physique. They were down to three when Damian decided to join. This was fun! He walked upstage with his shirt off, and there was an uproar. The ladies had screamed.

Jessie, who had been busy on the phone trying her last resort to call a client, looked up at the noise. She was shocked to see her date going onstage. And she watched as each man got eliminated, leaving just Damian standing. He won effortlessly. With a beaming smile, he pulled his trouser, leaving just his brief and sit down in the chair provided as instructed by the MC.

The MC seeing how the women wanted a piece of the man, herself included, threw the floor open. "Before the birthday girl can have her, I want the ladies to come out and admire him. Also to see if he's fit for her." The ladies were all out instantly, kissing him and touching him.

Jessie was shocked even as her friend quietly waited her turn. She wanted to scream at them all, to let them know this was her man. Her voice failed her. What got her infuriated further was the flirty look on her friend. Didn't she know this was the man she had been about to introduce to her earlier? Why wasn't she backing out of this? There is a girl code, isn't there? Why was she waiting her turn with her best friend's man? That was all she thought about while the ladies enjoyed themselves with the god on stage for the little time they had with him. She could have joined the lot, and have a good time too. But she was so out of it that she missed out on everything.

Ainsley couldn't even wait her turn. Once she was tired of waiting, she had walked onto the stage and claimed her prize. The ladies had instantly moved away, leaving her man for Ainsley like she owned the day. Well, technically, she does; her inner self chided her. But not the man! She screamed back. When Ainsley kissed him, she looked away, and though everyone wooed and wowed at whatever they did, she could not bear to look at them. When she did look, they were headed out of the room. Why? To do what?

She stormed after them, prudence and whatever it was called be damned. She was going to stop them from doing anything tonight. It was that time that the lights went off, leaving her temporarily blinded. What she didn't know was she had stepped on the socket in her bid to rush after them. The light out had been her doing. By the time lights came back on, they were gone. Foolishly, she kept on searching. How big could this place really be? Tired and angry, she gave up the chase. What was the point anyway? If she found them, they'd probably be tangled and naked, and she didn't want such an image stuck in her memory.

Fuming over whatever was going on with her friend and her man, she sipped her wine angrily. It was more of downing than sipping. In less than a minute, she had taken four shots. A guy noticing her obvious discomfort walked up to her, and she let herself be taken back to the dance floor. As she danced, her mind went over the rough day she's had. Her boss had called her back to the office to her that shitty idea of his. Not only would he be mounting pressure on her, she now had something even more significant to dread. Everyone started to leave the dance floor. Some were crawled in a corner with their man. Some were already sleeping it off. She had been too filled up tonight to ask for any drink. She walked to a corner and laid down quietly, looking somewhat disturbed.

She suddenly remembered her boyfriend. Where was he, and why wasn't he here? Was he still waiting for her? She started looking for her phone in a bag.

"Jessie"

Jessica looked up to see the lady who had caused her mystery coming out of the room just behind the stage. She didn't know that was where they'd gone to. She had been looking for them in the opposite. The tear that dropped on her face had nothing to do with stress, she was mortified as her friend walked back in with Damian in tow, and the look on their faces said it all.

Jessica Gilbert had never been so angry. She stood up to her friend for the first time in years, and slapped her. "How could you?" she screamed

"What was that for?" Ainsley rubbed her cheek. "It stings"

Smirking, she approached her friend with a menacing look, "You really don't know?" she asked, looking every bit as mad as she felt. Pointing at Damian, who was at the bar stand pouring himself a drink, ignoring them. Maybe even enjoying the show "I brought him here."

Still rubbing her cheek, Ainsley answered, "But he's not your man. We all know your loser boyfriend". Now, she was every bit as angry as her friend.

Jessie felt like slapping her even more. She knew she should be angry that she called her boyfriend a loser. But she wasn't mad over that. What annoyed her was the fact that her date had been stolen, "Even if he wasn't my boyfriend, he's my date." she retorted angrily. "Didn't I introduce you two earlier?"

She stepped back, "Oh, did you? Isn't he the stripper replacement?" It was a lie. She knew exactly who he was. She had seen them both when they walked in. And though she knew he wasn't her boyfriend, she had somehow guessed he came with her. But how was she to know they had a thing going? They were besties. Besties share their secrets always. This secret, the one with Damian in it, had never been told. They even spoke this morning, and no secret admirer or date had entered the conversation. That meant they just met, and he was just a fling. It couldn't be anything more. Jessie had her own man. Why was she fighting over Damian? Did she even know who the guy is?

The man who started this war walked up to the two ladies, holding a drink in hand. "What's going on here?" he asked, smiling sheepishly. The two friends turned on him and shouted, "No one's talking to you". He backed off immediately and went back to the bar. Some of their friends had gathered around now. The MC was particularly dazed. She had warned Ainsley about this.

"Look, I know him. We met..."

"I don't want to hear it." Jessie shut her off, "You're just some spoilt, rich kid who can't stand the world not revolving around them for one."

"Hey"

Jessica and Ainsley turned angrily at the interruption. It was Mark, Jessie's boyfriend.

"I'm sorry, Ains, for coming in late. Work" he apologized and brought out a gift box he had gotten on his way here. He didn't notice the tensed situation he had walked in on. "Happy birthday." he said cheerfully and stretched out his hand to give her the gift.

Ainsley looked at him and scoffed angrily. She didn't collect the gift as she stormed off. "Nerd." she murmured, walking away.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked Jessie, whose back was turned to him.

Jessie turned to him, looking guilty. She had totally forgotten all about him. They had plans to come to the party together. His car was faulty, and she was supposed to pick him up. How did she even forget that? Mark Davies was a good guy and didn't deserve all she had done tonight. "No, forget about her."

He held her and tilted her head to look at her face. He was a short man. "Did you forget me then?"

"I'm sorry, I had so much to deal with today." she lied. Of course, you didn't. "There was the situation at work, Damian..." she shook her head, trying to get herself together

"Are you okay?" he asked gently.

His gentility only made her want to cry. He really doesn't deserve this. "I'm fine. How did you get here?" she asked, "Your car broke down, and I was to pick you up, but I forgot."

"I ran." he said

And that was when she noticed his uneven breathing. "I'm sorry." she apologised. She knew he didn't understand what the apology was for, but she said it anyway, "Let's leave."

"Did I miss something?"

"Never mind." she told him, "I'm not done with that bitch."

As they walked out of the hall, Ainsley Jones hissed at her friend. Everyone knew she was not one to hang onto a man. Men to here were like toys he played with and discarded. He had no use for Damian aside from what they had just done. But Jessie had slapped her over a man and almost ruined her party. She was going to pay for it. With that singular decision, she had just declared an open war with her best friend.

To understand how these two besties got here, you'd have to know what happened a few hours earlier.