Page 32 of Flirting Lessons

Of course she did.

“Yeah, sure,” Avery said. “Gin and tonic, please.”

Taylor strolled over to the bar, and Avery bit her lip. Should she have ordered something else? Was a gin and tonic too much of a straight-girl drink? Should she have gotten something with bourbon or a beer or even a cider instead? Was the bartender, the one with the ripped T-shirt and tons of tattoos, whom Taylor was talking to right now, going to roll her eyes when Taylor ordered it and say,Why are you here with someone who would order a gin and tonic?

Well. Then Taylor would just say,I’m notherewith her. We’re just friends.And the bartender would laugh and say,Obviously, I should have known.

Avery looked away from the bar and tried to shake her insecurities off. She was here because she wanted new experiences, remember? She was at a burlesque show at a lesbian bar! Those were both brand-new experiences!

She looked around at the crowd. She felt kind of nervous, sitting up here at a table in front all alone, but it was excellent for people watching. Some people here were casually dressed, but she could tell that quite a few had dressed specifically for this event, in outfits they wanted the world to see. They’d put care into what they were wearing, matched their pink lipstick with their pink highlights just so, put on that cute pair of shoes they’d been waiting for a chance to wear. The women in these outfits had clearly chosen them to give themselves a boost, to make themselves happy, to feel good in that dress that showed all that cleavage, inthat peacock eye makeup that they’d watched dozens of tutorials to figure out how to do, in those studded combat boots they’d saved up for and finally splurged on.

Did she ever dress like that? Just to please herself, to show off a part of herself that she liked, to make herself feel attractive, to pump herself up? She had her various self-imposed uniforms that she wore for work, but that didn’t count; that was all to make herself feel professional and competent, or make her clients trust her, which usually worked. But outside of work, her clothes were mostly boring, conservative, to make herself blend in with the world. This sundress was as adventurous as she usually got, and this was the first time she’d unbuttoned it at all. She should really buy some more fun clothes.

“One gin and tonic, with a lime,” Taylor said as she set Avery’s drink in front of her.

“Thanks,” Avery said. She took a gulp of the drink, partly because it was hot in here and the drink looked refreshing with that ice, and partly because she was still nervous. “Um, when does the show start, do you know?”

Taylor sat down with her own drink, which was also some sort of tall, iced thing, with lemon instead of lime. Avery didn’t know if Taylor had ordered her own straight-girl drink just to make her feel better, or if that’s the kind of drink she always ordered, but either way, it made her feel better.

“Technically in about five minutes, probably more like thirty minutes or so. We made surprisingly good time; I thought we’d get here just as the show started, but now we have time to relax.” She grinned at Avery again. “And we had time to get good seats.”

Avery narrowed her eyes at Taylor.

“I’m not sure if I like that look on your face. What is it about these seats? Is something bad going to happen to me?”

Taylor laughed.

“I love how suspicious you are. Can we please let the record show that you’re the one who wanted this table, not me? Anything that happens as a result of this is NOT my fault.”

Avery just put her head in her hands, and Taylor laughed harder.

“Okay, but no, really,” Taylor said, the laughter gone from her voice. “There can sometimes be an…audience participation element when you’re up front. If you don’t want to deal with that, which I imagine you don’t, we can move. It’s no big deal.” She patted Avery on the shoulder. “I promise.”

Avery was touched by the serious expression on Taylor’s face. She knew that Taylor meant it, that they could move to a table in the back, that Taylor wouldn’t make fun of her, would never bring it up again. She sat up straight.

“That’s okay,” she said. “Let’s stay here. If I’m going to do this, I’m going to do it all the way.”

Taylor’s hand slid down her shoulder and gripped her upper arm. She looked at Avery and smiled slowly.

“That’s my girl.” She dropped her hand, but the imprint of it was still on Avery’s skin. Avery smiled back at Taylor and felt a little burble of pride in herself.

“Also,” Taylor said. “This table is a great people-watching vantage point, and we need to take advantage of it. Let’s decide on who we think the hottest people in this room are—other than the two of us, obviously. Oh, and what our favorite outfits are tonight, because there are a lot of great ones.”

“Before I answer that first question, I need to know: Are you going to make me flirt with whoever I say the hottest people in the room are?” Avery asked.

Taylor shook her head slowly.

“Avery. When are you going to realize that I’m not going to make you do anything that you don’t want to do?”

Avery let out a sigh.

“No, I know. I do realize that. I’m just…paranoid, that’s all.” She tried to make herself relax and answered Taylor’s question. “Okay, your bartender friend is definitely one of the hottest people in this room.”

Taylor grinned knowingly.

“Roxy? You’re correct about that one. Okay, yes, she goes on the list. What do you think about Polka-Dotted Crop Top over there?”

Avery turned to her left and saw a woman with long, multicolored hair, wide-leg jeans, and the aforementioned polka-dotted crop top lean over and kiss another woman on the cheek. She tossed her hair back and laughed, and her friends laughed with her. She had a round little belly that poked out between her crop top and her jeans; Avery envied her whole attitude.

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