Page 9 of Legal

She ushered us to stand in front of the cart as it swung up behind us. We fell back into the seat, and the bar closed down onto our laps. We began to move upward and, as an afterthought, I removed my flip-flops. I didn’t need them landing on some poor person below.

I crossed my legs at the ankles, my cheeks blazing when I glanced over and saw his eyes on my thighs. I’d stopped paying attention to my material-challenged dress… until I caught him staring. Unapologetically. Holy fuck, he didn’t even try to hide it; he just dragged his gaze up until it held mine.

The answer to the gay/not gay question just torpedoed me. It felt like my entire head had been blasted off.

I sucked in a breath and looked away, spotting the restaurant famous for its fried eggplant. It was my favorite; I definitely had to get me some of that before I left. Nope, couldn’t walk out before scarfing down a full order.

“What bands have you seen here before?” he asked.

“Way too many to list.”

“How about the last one then?”

I paused. Why did I suddenly have such a difficult time speaking? It’d been no problem before. Whatwasthe last band I saw? I could concentrate on that and stop being so ridiculous. I wasn’t about to let this boy trip me up.

I scanned my brain. It’d been so long. Smashing Pumpkins? No, that was before Daniel. The last time I was there, I’d brought him with me during the day and managed to come back later that night. “Violent Femmes,” I said, remembering.

“The magic prize is in your thighs.”

“Excuse me?” I glared at him. His eyes looked electric green up here.

“The Femmes. I was at that show too. We probably passed by each other without even knowing it.”

Seriously? I opened my mouth to make some crack about him passing by in a stroller but shut it when I recalled they played there all the time. He didn’t know which show I was referring to, and he really could have been there. Still….

“Why did you ask me to come on this with you, to leave the party?”

It made little sense to me. Did he think I was easy pickings? A hard-up, desperate woman begging for a little attention? But there was no possibility of him not finding someone else’s company. He had to realize that. The way he handled himself on stage, the panty-wetting looks, the… everything else. He’d have no difficulties.

“I think you’re interesting.”

God, what is with those fucking eyes?The way they got to me just pissed me off. I could feel them burning into my skin, orbs of flames licking their way through me. I shook my head sharply.Let the little fucker think you have a psychotic seizure disorder. Maybe he’ll stop looking then.

“Among other things.”

Now, what wasthatsupposed to mean? Interesting, I could understand to a certain extent, but what exactly were ‘other things’? Perry was right; I reallydidneed to get out more.

Obviously, I hadn’t repelled him enough to stop leering. Maybe not leering—that word had connotations of a dirty, old man. He was definitely not old, and I didn’t feel dirty. Well, not dirty in a slimy way, more like dirty in a fucking turned-on way.

What the hell is happening here?

My pulse had gone and hitched a ride with a runaway tank. I squeezed my legs together more tightly, trying to convince myself that I needed to keep my shoes from slipping. Until I remembered my fist was clutching them for dear life.

Up, up, up… I focused on the festival below me, taking a great fascination in the roofs we passed over littered with dropped items, and the tree leaves I could almost touch. The ride was already a quarter over. It was a beautiful view. I wouldn’t let some laddie affect me. I could do this.

I hummed “Wild Horses” as I looked around, not knowing what to say. Its melody calmed me, and I needed that to cut through the awkwardness. The conversation had been so free-flowing before; it was one thing to speak music with him, quite another to be the only two in a small airborne container. His closeness sparked my nerve endings to the point it was painful.

“Are you seeing anyone?”

I yanked my head to the side and faced him. Did I honestly think it was awkward before? Time to get real. I took the opportunity to study him while keeping my hormones in check. Maybe I was just lying to myself, but he suddenly appeared a bit older. If I tilted my head just so, and we weren’t directly under any lights, I could pass him for Perry’s age. Maybe.

Hmm…. Could I then push him up to thirty? Or put a bag over his head? Then he could be any age I wanted him to be.

Argh. What the hell is wrong with me?“No, I’m…” I was about to say divorced, but that was hardly his business. “Look, Chase, I don’t want to give you the wrong idea here. I think you’re interesting too,”—among other things—“but I don’t date younger men.”

“I didn’t say anything about dating.”

His eyes roamed back down to my heated, bare skin, revealed thanks to my dress riding up my thighs, and that’s when the frickin’ ride stopped. We were dangling up at the highest point, stuck together, and I thought I’d combust. Why was I the one sweating wearing next to nothing when he was in jeans, looking so cool?

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