I placed the barren plastic back into his limp hand, and I knew, by the rosy hue that tainted his cheeks, I’d bruised his ego. I walked off, leaving him scratching his head as his waiting fan club looped their arms through each of his.
Still moving at a clipped pace, I approached the traitorous, open-mouthed duo who looked at me as though they were in the presence of royalty. “I thought you guys were right behind me.” I cranked my head from left to right, loosening my neck and rolling my shoulders, trying to pull myself from the bad place my mind was headed. I stopped when they didn’t respond. “What?”
“You realize that was Eric Matthews, right?” Jessie’s eyes were wide.
“Does that mean something?” I pulled my hair over my shoulder and peeked back at him.
The girls looked back and forth at each other. Sandra clarified. “You just left him speechless. That doesn’t happen.”
“You know him?” I asked.
“Um, everyone knows him. Do you live under a rock?” Jessie’s voice squeaked.
“Maybe.” I shrugged, shaking out my hands at my sides, attempting to still them before someone noticed. “I just rattled him a little bit. It’s no big deal.”
Sandra shook her bright red head in wonderment. “Whatevs, man. You’re a goddess. You’re going to have to teach me how to do that.”
“Do what?”
“I don’t know. You’re just so confident. People notice you no matter where you are and you’re not fazed by it. I’d probably be a stuttering mess and trip and fall or something.”
My subconscious scoffed at her assessment of me. But, I couldn’t blame her. She could only see what I allowed her to see.
Everyone knew me, but no one knew me. No one knew what I thought or how I felt or what was really inside, bottled up and waiting to explode like a shaken up can of soda. And I preferred it that way. Let no one in—ever.
Standing at five foot, one inch, I didn’t don the most dominating appearance, but when I walked into a room with my head held high, I gave off the vibe I was strong-willed and couldn’t be messed with.
If they only knew how weak I really was . . .
“People smell fear, San. They’re animals by nature. You just have to douse yourself with enough perfume to make them sniff you and walk away. Confuse them. There’s nothing to it.” I shrugged. “Now, come on. These bitches are drinking my beer.”
An hour later, I was toast. Well, not completely toast, but I closely resembled the jelly smear. I felt good. Numb. Turned off. Relaxed.
First mistake.
“Jace, can you feel your teeth?”
He sucked on his pearly whites. “Sure can. My legs though, not so much.”
“Attention! Attention!”
My head whipped around in the direction of a strong voice shouting through a bullhorn. I groaned inwardly at the familiar face. Eric’s lips grazed the plastic mouthpiece as he spoke. “Time to get the real party started. We’re gonna have us a bit of a game, boys and girls.” Short pieces of rope dangled from his hand, and my breathing hiccupped in my throat.
“I know you’ve all been trying to get closer to the opposite sex all day, so now’s your chance.” A smile lit his face as he relayed the rules of the grown up version of a three-legged race. “You’ll be tied at the thigh and have to make it around those cones for three laps. Every time you reach a marker, you’ll have to do a shot. Losers chug. There’s only one rule—no same-sex pairings . . . Unless you like that sort of thing.” He winked and the crowd electrified, hooting and hollering, grabbing at each other’s hands, claiming partners.
Jace licked his lips. “Please, someone tie me to that boy.”
I set my drink down and started to walk away. “That’s my cue, Jace. I’m outta here.”
He did a double-take, and then grabbed me by my elbow, forcing me back. “We’ve been over this. It’ll be fun. You need to do these things if you want your life back, Eva.”
“And get tied to some random guy? Not happening.” I tried to leave again, but he held me firm.
Rubbing a smooth cheek, he clucked his tongue ring at me. “I’ll be your partner, bitch. I don’t wanna be tied to some messy slut anyway. Don’t make a big deal.”
“Fine,” I relented.
We approached Eric, hand-in-hand in an unbreakable bond, and asked to be tied to one another.
“Didn’t you guys come here together?” Eric asked, holding the rope tight to his chest.
I squared my shoulders. “Yeah, so?”
“So maybe I wasn’t clear enough with my instructions. You have to be tied to someone of the opposite sex . . . who you don’t know.”
My breathing caught, and the hair on my arms bristled. I shook it off and stood up straighter. “I have a boyfriend.”
A broad smile spread across Eric’s face. “Thems the rules, sweetheart.”
I waved my arms. “Forget it. I’m out.”
Jace grabbed me yet again and, for the second time today, I wanted to cause him bodily harm. He was really testing the limits of our friendship. My eyes popped out as far as they could go as I stared him down.
“Let’s just do it,” he coaxed.