Love at First Sight

t was spring break and I was in a club full of drunk college students. Every sofa and table harbored mini crowds of people who signaled each other with waves and arm movements that cut through the music. The new DJ was awesome and people moved to the beat on the dance floor.

Lights danced in streaks of color across the dim floors and walls in moving flashes. The smell of alcohol mixed with perspiration hung in the stale air. Everyone was drinking through straws or bottles.

Everyone was having a good time but I would never be the same after this night.

I’d never been to this club before, but my friends heard that it was the place to be. They were right, and I was having a blast, moving to my favorite song on the dance floor.

Suddenly, I caught you staring from across the room. People were dancing all around us, but when a gap formed, your eyes were still on me.

My heart beat faster.

I moved around two of my friends, but your eyes kept trailing me. You smiled and winked. I smiled back but didn’t know what else to do.

I kept dancing. Moving to the rhythm and feeling drunk and alive as the base coursed through my body. I let my long hair float free as I moved, lost in the music.

A new song started up and I secretly took in your features.

Handsome. Cropped brown hair, clean shaven with a rounded face and a dimpled smile. A slim body. Broad shoulders. Tall.

There was an air about you that I couldn’t put my finger on.

You were different.

You were well-dressed in a blue shirt with rolled up sleeves and white pants. You didn’t seem to belong with the rest of us students. Maybe it was the shirt, but something told me it wasn’t your normal hang out.

My friends noticed you looking at me and started teasing.

A man towered behind you and gave you another beer bottle, which you accepted with a smile. You put your empty one on a shelf and said something in his ear. Both men stared in my direction. The taller man found me in the crowd while I was looking back at you. He nodded with white toothed smile at you.

A seal of approval.

You signaled me over, with your finger tip — like calling a waiter over for the bill. I was being beckoned.

I swallowed and my stomach knotted. Was it too late to sink through the floor?

My traitorous friends gave me a gentle shove towards you. I giggled a nervous laugh. His friend vanished into the crowd. There was something in your eyes that caught me off guard.

I couldn’t look away. The room fell silent. Everyone vanished.

It was just me and you.

Our eyes held.

You drew me towards you like an invisible force. Reeling me in. The pit of my stomach clenched. My mouth suddenly dry like the Sahara desert.

Yet, I couldn’t look away.

What’s happening to me?

What do I say?

Before I knew it, I was standing in front of you. A hint of cedar from your aftershave, cut through the alcohol. We gazed at each other as an instrumental song reverberated through my body.

Bam!

I felt… Something stir within. I couldn’t put my finger on it. The feeling was new and spreading, like warm sunshine from within my body.

“Can I get you a drink?” You asked with your hands, and I nodded as you led me to the nearest bar. I liked your voice and slight southern drawl. A gentle arm appeared on the small of my back between my top and mini skirt.

Just one touch. Your hand on the small of my back.

Goosebumps puckered my skin and ricocheted like fire through my body.

My heartbeat raced. The music ramped up. I sighed.

You got the bartender’s attention and ordered. While we waited I discovered your name.

Your eyes were brown with speckles of light in them that shone in the dim club. There was something about you that intrigued me. I knew I was drunk but in that moment I felt as sober as a church mouse.

We donned our drinks and you led me to a quiet corner where I could hear your voice over the music. I liked your accent as you told me about your world. A Navy officer on temporary shore leave.

Oh boy!

We talked until the club closed for the night.

You wanted to see me again. We swapped numbers and you got me an Uber to take me home.

You kissed me goodnight. Hungry lips exploring mine with featherlight touch. It was over before it began, leaving me wanting.

You texted me before I went to sleep that night, asking to meet you after work the next day.

I agreed.

The butterflies stopped me from sleeping. All I could think about was your smile and the way you made me feel.

Tender whispers in my ear from your lips.

Turns out it was your birthday and your mates had taken you to every bar in town until you came to the club. Your brother knew the DJ and that’s how you got in without queueing.

We both fell in love that night.

Our love didn’t last but when I hear that song, I think of you. The man who stole my heart for the first time.

My name is Lizzy. I’m a trauma survivor, a wife, a mom, a teacher and an author.

For more about me: www.elizabethwoodsauthor.com

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Book 5: Restoring Hope from the Cedar’s Port thriller romance series is coming in the New Year. If you haven’t read the series, here’s the link:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQRNST2B?binding=kindle_edition&ref=dbs_m_mng_rwt_sft_tkin_tpbk&qid=1764452723&sr=8-1

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