Page 13 of Halloween Hottie
“And this is something you read often?” I ask, confused.
“Yeah, a lot of women do,” she tells me.
“If you know how it ends, why read it, especially if you’re going to be sad after?”
“Sometimes the good feelings are worth all the pain at the end, you know?”
“So it doesn’t matter where you end up, as long as you enjoyed getting there?”
“Exactly.” She nods with a smile in place.
I can’t help but feel pulled into her. I want to know her, know her story, know everything. This throws me off. I’ve never had this need to get closer to anyone. “So, why are you single?”
She laughs. “You mean, what’s wrong with me?”
I can’t hold back my own laughter. “No, not at all. I just meant that… you’re beautiful, you’re funny, seem easy enough to talk to. There has to be a story there.”
“I had a boyfriend, but things didn’t work out. He was always lying about… anything and everything. I could ask him if he went to a party and he’d lie. I could ask him if he ate my leftovers in the fridge and he’d lie. I figured if I couldn’t trust him with something that small, I’d never be able to trust him with the bigger stuff, so I broke it off.”
“Is this a new breakup?”
“It’s been a few months. He’s why I almost didn’t come tonight. I didn’t want to run into him, but you know Margo—she wasn’t letting me get out of it, so here I am.”
I smile and turn my barstool toward her a little more. “I’m glad she always gets her way. In this case, anyway.”
Elizabeth smiles as her eyes move up to mine. Her cheeks flush pink. “I’m going to find a bathroom that doesn’t have an hour wait and then grab another drink.”
“I’ll grab the drinks,” I say, standing up. “Divide and conquer.”
We walk out of the room together. I head for the kitchen while she starts down the hallway for a bathroom. I get in line for a beer, and I only have to stand around for five minutes or so. I get our beer and go back to the game room where we were sitting. As I wait for her to return, I glance around the room. A game of beer pong has been set up, and two teams are battling it out. Kev and Xander are still hogging the pool table and the Xbox has been forgotten.
I turn back and start watching the TV on the wall behind the bar, but it doesn’t keep my attention. I keep thinking about Margo and the way she insisted that I meet Elizabeth. I know she has higher hopes for us than just becoming friends, and as much as I want her to be wrong about us, I have to give it to her. Elizabeth has been fun to get to know. And I can’t deny that she’s gorgeous. While I’ve come to terms with letting Trish go, I never really thought about moving on with another woman. I mean, sure, I figured it would happen at some point, but I never gave much thought about it actually happening. I feel like I’m as adjusted as I can be in my position. I mean, I’m not still grieving—we had plenty of time to come to terms with it all and say our goodbyes. But knowing that one day you’ll move on and actually doing it are two different things.
I guess maybe I’m looking too far into the future. This is the first time I’m even meeting Elizabeth. Just because I feel an attraction to her does not mean that she’ll be the one I end up with. I just need to let loose and enjoy the night.
Chapter Seven
ELIZABETH
Iexit the bathroom and bump into Janet. She has tears in her eyes as she holds the phone to her ear. I mouth the wordsare you okay?She nods and ducks into the bathroom as I’m stepping out of it. I shrug it off, figuring she’s just drunk and thinking too much about her breakup. I feel bad, but what can I do? I’m actually having a better time than I thought I would, and that has a lot to do with Jake. I don’t want to give up the little time I have with him to listen to her cry out her feelings. She’ll come find me if she needs me.
I walk down the hall and to the kitchen where I expect to find him getting us drinks, but he isn’t in line. I head back to the game room, squeezing through bodies in the living room. I walk into the game room and he’s sitting at the bar, staring down into his cup. I notice he looks a little sad. I walk over and take my place beside him.
He looks up and smiles. “I think the keg is about empty. The beer is foamy.”
I pick up my cup and take a sip. “I guess we’ll just have to switch to liquor then.” I smile into my cup.
Jake sits up and leans in. “Is that why you’re dressed as a devil?”
I laugh. “No, I actually thought I’d be opposite, ‘cause I’m usually an angel.”
This makes him laugh.
“Why are you a vampire? Do you want to live forever?”
He shakes his head. “No, I had it laying around and wasn’t going to buy something new to come to this party.”
“So, what do you like to do for fun?” I ask, wanting to keep the conversation going. I don’t want him to get bored and move on.
