Chapter 18

Nathaniel was getting worried. Upon entering the building, he was told his ticket gave him access to a VIP lounge, but he didn't expect Paige to be there. That would be far too easy. The building was really a gigantic warehouse that had been converted into a club. There were about a dozen raised platforms that people could dance on and some balconies that he supposed were the VIP lounges. It was relatively dark, but there were black lights that illuminated everyone's glow sticks and clothes. He could make out faces, masked or not. That meant that his fail-safe would work if he needed it. There was loud dance music playing and Nathaniel couldn't hear his phone or anyone's voice unless they shouted. There was a DJ that was pretty talented arranging the music, but Nathaniel was too focused on finding Paige to notice.

He had his security guard check to see if Paige's car was there as moved around the venue, looking at every person to see if they were Paige. Maybe she'd snuck past him? He felt his phone in his pocket vibrate. He looked at the message that his security guard sent him saying that Paige's car was in the lot and she was not in line.

Nathaniel looked around the crowd and talked to a few girls he thought might be Paige. There was a girl dressed as a sexy Cheshire cat, a girl dressed like Alice and a Mad Hatter. They each turned out not to be Paige upon closer examination, and he had to politely decline their advances afterwards, which took some time. The crowd was just a giant mass of bodies moving around and it was pretty difficult for him to move through it. Nathaniel decided that he needed to get to the balconies to see if he could spot her. He walked over to the stairs to the VIP lounge to get a better view of the crowd.

Nathaniel reached the balcony and scanned the crowd. He had used up about an hour and a half of his time to find Paige so far. He was hoping that he'd see someone and maybe be drawn to them and that person would turn out to be Paige. It was silly, but he was choosing to believe in destiny. There was a reason that he liked Paige and was drawn to her. So, he scanned the crowd whilst politely declining dance invitations from a few ladies. His eyes focused on a woman wearing a red, black and white corset and tutu. She had a crown atop her head and her hair was up. She was dancing through the crowd like a little fairy. 'That's her. It has to be.' He almost leapt off the balcony after her, but instead, focused on the direction that she was heading and then climbed down the stairs after her.

Nathaniel made his way through the crowd in the direction of the woman that he thought was Paige. He had this surge of adrenaline and felt like he was closing in on her. He saw a glimpse of her dancing and then she disappeared through the crowd again. He was getting closer. He kept moving in that direction, trying to catch her. She disappeared behind a platform where a couple was making out and he headed there to see if he could catch her. He was going to get her.

Paige danced her way around the crowd. She never lingered in one spot too long because men would try to dance with her and she just wanted to have a good time on her own. She had made a decision to have a great time tonight, regardless of the outcome. She grabbed her phone out of her chest and looked at the time. 11:50 pm. She put her phone back and looked around and made a decision to get up on one of the platforms. Nathaniel probably wouldn't look for her up there, anyway, thinking she's too reserved for that. She danced her way to a platform where a couple was making out and looking like they were about to get off to go somewhere private. She got to the edge and the male hopped down and caught the female as she sat on the edge and scooted into his arms. Paige climbed on the platform and pressed the button for the cage to come down over her so she didn't have to worry about anyone joining her. 'Anyone except Nathaniel' she thought. 'I'll dance with him if he finds me.'

The cage was slowly coming down and there were 2 guys trying to come up onto the platform with her. "Hey guys, I'm just wanting to dance by myself," she shouted, shaking her head. One of the guys gave her a thumbs up but the other came onto the platform. He was dressed as a Cheshire Cat. Paige shook her head and as he was leaving, a third guy leapt from the floor into the platform. It was about 4 feet off the ground.

Paige stared at him, stunned. He was wearing an outfit that was mostly silver and red, with king of hearts cards on his mesh shirt and knees. She shuddered, and she slowly walked closer to him. 'Is that Nathaniel?' she thought, praying it was. Something inside her told her that it was him.

"Caught you," Nathaniel shouted to her, coming closer to her. They circled each other. Paige was trying to determine if it was Nathaniel. She had never seen him dressed like this. She twirled around the platform as she circled him. She was behind him and decided to grab his waist and ask him a question to remove any doubts in her mind.

"Say my name," she shouted by his ear.

Nathaniel was incredibly pleased with himself that he had found Paige. He had seen the other two guys trying to dance with her and how she rejected them, which made him even more certain that it was her. If he had to describe the feeling, he would equate it close to euphoria. He smiled, spun around and grabbed Paige's waist, leaned into her and answered her question.

"Paige, my queen," he said loudly turning around and bowing to her. Paige's smile at his answer lit up the entire club. He was absolutely mesmerized by her. Also, she looked extremely adorable and sexy in her costume. He was seeing a whole different side of her and he loved it.

"Dance with me, Nathaniel," she shouted, starting to move her hips to the music.