Clashed
It was just after six in the evening when Naledi walked into the famous Red club.Having moved to Palmland only two weeks ago, she was now a bit settled in and familiar with her new job, and decided to check out the town’s entertainment attractions.
She turned down several advances from drooling men before reaching the bar. The reactions of the men around her was nothing she was not used to, but it made her to immediately regret her choice of attire.Her intention that evening was to let her hair down and not attract too much attention to herself. Unfortunately, her above the knee silky red dress brought out her best features while accentuating her fit sexy body. The low v neck showed a bit of cleavage but the thin silky layer over her sensual breast left those looking, wanting more. Her confident step sent out an intimidating aura, which, unfortunately did not do much to repel the man coming straight at her.
She quickly turned to the bartender, hoping to deter the man approaching her.
“Hey beautiful. I’m Darren, your bartender. Welcome to Red. What can I get you?”
She secretly rolled her eyes at how he accentuated his masculine chest while talking to her. “Men were truly show off’s,” she thought to herself before giving him her order.
“Tequila sunrise, please,” she responded with a smile, taking a seat. The bar area afforded her the opportunity to scan the room and make deductions about the people in the club.
“Coming up,” Darren skilfully tossed up the bottle to show off his mixing skills, but men trying to impress her was nothing new to Naledi. Having inherited her late mother’s supermodel features, she always stood out everywhere she went. Men drooling, women hating and some heartaches was all too familiar to her.
Darren was still trying to impress when his eye caught sight of the last man he expected that evening. His boss preferred private parties and scarcely showed up in clubs, except when he decided to explore and keep touch with the rest of the world. It seemed that day was one of those exceptions. He wondered if the rumours of his breakup was the motivation this time as he curiously watched him make his advances towards the bar.
“Good evening Sir, private room?”he asked, still shocked to see him in the general club section. His PA usually reserved the private room for him beforehand, but had not called that day.
“Hi Darren, no need. I will have what the lady is having.”
Naledi did not seem to pay attention to Cole, who had his eyes glued on her as he spoke.
“Right away Sir.”
Darren rushed to the back to get the finest of wines. He almost spilled the whole bottle trying to get his boss’s order ready fast.
Turning all his attention to Naledi, he flashed her with his famous breathtaking smile.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said charmingly, coming to sit close to her.
“Evening.”
Her uninterested voice caught him by surprise. Besides his wealth, his majestic stature, grey piercing eyes, smooth ivory skin, meticulously trimmed moustache and well toned masculine physique, Cole was the town’s eligible bachelor and he knew it.
“I’m Cole,” he said confidently. Maybe the gorgeous woman did not know him in person.
“Okay,”Nalediresponded with the same tone, not even looking at him.
“And?” he asked expectantly, wondering if she heard him. A lot of women melted at his sight, dreamt of having a conversation with him. Her reaction was confusing him.
She turned to look at him, her almond brown eyes focusing on his grey piercing ones “And what?”
He hesitated. “What’s your name?”
“Not interested,” she responded, cutting him off and breaking eye contact with him.
“I have not said anything yet,” he cried, caught off guard.Her reception was the first for him.
“No need.”
She wore her straight no-nonsense attitude like a glove.
“Seriously?”
Utterly shocked by her attitude towards him, but he was not willing to let her go that easy.
“Yep.”
“Your loss, I’ve been told that I’m a cash,” he teased, starting to enjoy the challenge. He was used to dealing with difficult business partners and board members and knew how to skilfully deal with them without breaking a sweat.
“They lied to you.” Her straight face and tone was something he was finding intriguing.
“Ouch. You are heartless,” he exclaimed while dramatically placing his hand over his heart.
“At least let me have the name of the woman who crushed my confidence,”he pleaded with a smile.
“Didn’t your mother tell you to stay away from women who crush your confidence so easy?”
His smile vanished for few seconds before gaining his composure again “Not really, she passed away when I was seven.”
“That sucks, I am sorry.” Her own mother passed away when she was ten years old and she was yet to heal from that loss.
“I’m gonna go now, good evening Cole,” she added before getting off her seat.
He heard her change of tone and noticed her expression soften, a change that made her more irresistible, but also brought his confidence back. He grabbed her left arm to prevent her from walking away.
“You don’t get to walk away before you tell me your name, Gorgeous.”
At a speed of light, her right hand landed hard on his face.
Clap!
Hiseyes widened in complete disbelief.
“You hit me!” he exclaimed while touching his cheek.
“I walk away whenever I feel like. You don’t get to stop me,” she responded with an icy cold tone. Her looks somehow made men believe that she was some kind of a softy. Many, like him, got to learn the hard way how wrong they are.
Cole remained at the bar and watched the woman who slapped him join the dance floor.
Loud music, lights changing in different colours and hundreds of bodies on the dance floor but his eyes were only focused on her. Her hips swinging from side to side in perfect rhythm to the music, she seemed oblivious to the chaos she created with man drooling over her, but none daring enough to approach her. They had just witnessed her slapping the owner of the club with no remorse, she was safer being an eye candy to them.
Cole touched his slightly sore cheek, gulped down his wine and off he went approaching her again. Naledi did not see him coming until he was right behind her. She could feel his movements behind her as he matched her dancing moves with his arms around her waist. To his surprise, she did not push him away but nor did she acknowledge his presence.
“Why do I get the feeling that you hate me?” He shouted next to her ear to overcome the loud music, his lips slightly brushing against her lobe.
“I don’t even know you,” she shouted back before leaving the dance floor.
“Why don’t you get to know me?” he suggested, following her.
“I’ll pass.”
“Why?” he asked, turning his head slightly to the right in an attempt to make eye contact with her.
“Why not?” she fired the question back at him.
“Are you always this difficult?”
“I know what I want and it’s not you.”
Hit him hard and escape while he is nursing his ego was her strategy which had never failed her when dealing with men who did not take no for an answer.
“You don’t even know me,” he cried, wondering if he ever did something to earn her attitude.
“You have the superiority complex and an aura to match it. You must be kind of powerful because Darrenover there trembled at your presence and gave you first priority. I believe that I have shut you down yet you had your hands on my waist.That means ‘No’ does not seem to register in your head. I think that’s enough for me to not want to know you.”
He looked back at her, speechless. No one has everhad guts to say half the words she uttered in her statement to him before.
“I am going home now, you shall not follow me,” she commanded, turned around and left him still in a daze.
“Yes, Ma’am,” he responded, defeated and turned to his bartender.
“Who was that?”
“I don’t know, Sir. It was the first time I saw her.”
“Call me when she comes back,” he instructed. No woman gave him attitude, slapped him and just walked off like that.
“Yes, Sir.”
