With a roll of her eyes, she turned away and sashayed off, calling over her shoulder, “Honey, you don’t ever tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her hair.”
I laughed, glad her sassy spark had returned. By the time she reentered the living room, I had my own shoes on and wallet, phone, and keys back in my pockets. When she smirked at me, her mouth looked extra shiny.
I shook my head. “Lip gloss, you little rebel?” Then I wiggled my eyebrows. “I think someone’s begging for a spanking from Colton tonight.”
With a laugh, she smacked my arm. “Baby doll, you only wish you had the privilege of placing your palm anywhere near my hind end.”
Wondering if it was wrong that I liked it when she stole my pet name for her and used it against me, I made a hungry sound in my throat and tugged her close, wrapping a hand around her waist before saying into her ear, “Challenge accepted.”
When my fingers snuck down her back and squeezed her ass, she set her hand on my chest and looked up at me, her face absolutely glowing with pleasure. “I really do have my hands full with you, don’t I, young man?”
“You really do,” I agreed. “So do you want to walk or drive?”
“Let’s walk,” she said. “I kind of like being out in the cool air sometimes with the breeze on my face, and I feel like being active tonight.”
“All right then. Walking it is.” I took her hand, and we left her apartment together, walking the seven blocks to Gusano’s. We laughed and chatted the whole way, and the late January air really did feel good against our faces.
Once we were seated in a dark intimate booth in the back corner with only the soft glow of a paper lantern over us, I reached across the table and took her fingers, rubbing my thumbs over hers because she said her hands were freezing.
“Tell me something good you remember about your mom,” I said.
She blinked, shaking her head in surprise. “My mom?”
“Yeah,” I encouraged, squeezing her fingers. “All I know is that she was a good mom, but I want details.”
“I…” Julianna laughed and her cheeks brightened. “I don’t know. I was so young; I just remember silly, simple things really. Like when we watched TV together, I’d sit on her lap in the big rocking chair in the front room while she’d wrap her arms around me and rest her chin on my shoulder.”
“That sounds nice.” I smiled. “What was your favorite show to watch together?”
“No way!” She giggled and ducked her face. “You’ll laugh.”
“I won’t. I swear.” I tugged on her fingers to get her to look up again.
Finally, she lifted her gaze, still looking rueful before she mumbled, “SpongeBob.”
“Shut the front door!” I widened my eyes. “I watched that too.”
Covering her mouth, she laughed before sighing out her pleasure. “Of course you did.”
“No, I did. Seriously. Caroline helped me be Patrick for Halloween one year.”
“Oh my God!” She pointed, her eyes going wide. “I was Sandy.”
I suddenly loved this girl. “Spacesuit Sandy or Bikini Sandy?”
She set her hands over her eyes as she admitted, “Bikini Sandy. I had the ruffled purple skirt and everything.”
Sweet. “What did you use for the tail?”
“My dad borrowed a real fox tail from my grandma.” When my mouth opened, she pointed. “Don’t ask. Please don’t ask.”
I lifted my hands in surrender, but still had to say, “So you used a real fox tail for a fake squirrel costume tail?”
Tears streamed down her cheeks she started to laugh so hard. “Yes. Grandma Cicely is kind of into hoodoo stuff.” She wiped at her cheeks before narrowing her eyes. “Don’t ever tell anyone I told you this, but I loved my tail. I wished it had been real.”
Imagining my Julianna as a little girl with a fox tail made me grin.
I winked. “Don’t worry, Sandy. Your secret tail is safe with me.” Then setting my hand over my gut, I rose from my seat. “I gotta hit the john real quick. I’ll be right back.”
After she nodded at me, I kissed her temple and went in search of the bathroom.
I was in there two minutes max before I returned to our table. But the laughing-so-hard-she-was-crying Juli I’d left only seconds before was long gone. She’d pulled her arms to her chest protectively and had scooted back to the darkest back corner of the booth.
As I sat across from her, she shot a glare toward another table.
“Everything okay?” I asked, glancing that way to find two girls at another table eating their own supper. When they smirked back, I blinked. “Do you know them?”
“Hmm?” She tore her attention from them and finally focused on me. “No, why?”
I shook my head confused. “I don’t know. Maybe because you guys keep sending each other killer glares.”
She sighed. But all she said was, “They started it.”
“Started what?” I glanced between her and the girls again. “The glaring contest?”
“Yes.”
Still totally lost on what I was missing, I arched my eyebrows. “Why would they glare at you if they don’t even know you?”