Page 3 of Mixed Connection
We tried to text and call while she was away but life happens. Janelle went into the military after graduating and I was still struggling with the loss of my parents while starting university classes. I blame life circumstances on all the time we missed, but being here now—my chest warms recalling all the sleepovers Janelle, Paloma, and I shared.
We would pick whose house we would all head to Friday after school, stuff ourselves with junk food, and stay up far too late singing ourselves hoarse to music videos. Saturdays during the summer were spent at her parents’ pool. Paloma sunburned so badly one year, I thought she might turn into a tomato. I scrunch my nose up remembering the scent of aloe vera gel.So much aloe vera gel.Curling my lips into themselves I hold back a laugh. Being here with Janelle now makes me realize how much I missed her, we may have to do a real-deal girls’ night while she’s here.
“I know, it’s been a lifetime.” I return her smile, giving her arms a squeeze before letting go.
“It really has been, how is everything? Come sit with us,” she says, ushering me toward the back corner of the room. There is a grouping of chairs I didn’t see, hidden behind a large plant andsheer, ruby curtains. Crossing the space, we catch up on some of the last decade. I tell her all about Shaken Tropes and why I decided not to move out of state like so many of our classmates. We each pick a plush chair to sink into as she begins to fill me in on her life.
Janelle has been active duty in the military since graduating. She reminds me that her entire family is either retired or still in one branch or another. “Growing up it felt like I didn’t have any other choice, it felt like it was expected of me, and in some ways, I guess following the legacy of my parents and joining the military was a hope that, someday I would, you know?” I shake my head at her as I sip my drink, but stay quiet so she’ll continue. “Over the years, I learned that I really love the Army. Now, I can’t imagine doing anything else.” She has a soft grin that stretches across her cheeks, it lights up her face in a way that I know she truly loves what she does. “I’m going to be in town for a little while. I can’t wait to experience this book boyfriend pairing at the bar, tell me, are they only fictional?” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively, but my words get caught in my throat and in place of them, I laugh-snort, unable to hold back; Janelle joins in with her own loud and joyous laugh.
She nudges me with her shoulder before her gaze leaves my own and her grin grows wider as she stands to greet someone. “Jameson! I was wondering where you ran off to, or with whom. I swear you’re never a stranger no matter what room you’re in.”
All of a sudden, the same rich bourbon smell from my run-in with Vanessa hits my senses. The handsome bulldozer stands with the same confidence from earlier, he was definitely the stranger walking away from the bar. My fingers twitch as I eye his wide shoulders, putting his broad and muscled chest on display. I’ve never been more glad for Janelle to be a social butterfly than I am at this moment.
2
*sends picture* Blast from the past!
Lo
Who’s the guy in the background?
Is this eye candy *eyes emoji*
“It’s been too long,” Janelle says, greeting Jameson. Genuine interest dances across his face, along with something else I can’t put my finger on. His eyes meet mine, his gaze burns with mischief and intrigue, so much so that I want to reach out and touch him. The way he looks at me makes me take a sharp breath, he eats up my form like it is his first and last meal—a starved man that has finally found his nourishment.
Or he could be eyeing my body for completely other reasons, you get used to that mindset when you are a fat woman… a fat kid honestly. Though with the way this man is looking at meright now, I can tell it’s the former. I straighten my shoulders, remembering that I stopped placing my value in other people’s opinions of me and started focusing on what I thought of myself. But I can’t take my eyes off him, allowing him his perusal of my full figure. Who doesn’t shiver beneath a wanted gaze?
“J-Dog!” Jameson breaks eye contact with me, I fold my lips in to stop myself from laughing at the nickname he’s given to one of my oldest friends. “What’s up girl?” he says, pulling her in for a hug.
I take a moment to peek at this bulldozer’s face, his cool umber skin reminds me of brown quartz beneath red and orange mood lighting. He has a thick, but manicured beard that enhances his pronounced cupid’s bow. I can tell he left the barber’s earlier today by how sharp his line up is, and I also catch the glint from the small, gold hoop earrings he has in his ear—one at his earlobe and two more at the very top of the same ear. That alone has me crossing my legs. I love a man who takes care of himself and shows pride in his appearance.
Cocking my head to the side a bit, I look a little deeper at his handsome face. My eyes widen further when I realize who he is and an excited flutter fills me. I watch as a slow smile spreads across his face, the action forces my gaze away from his lips and back to his almond-shaped, hickory eyes. Eyes that are focused back on me. The intensity in the way he looks at me quiets the surrounding noise, even if just for a moment.
“You are a fool, you know that?” Janelle playfully taunts, her laugh is infectious and has my own lips turning up into a soft smile. “Jameson, this is my friend Cassidy. Oh wait…Do you guys know each other? This isourreunion after all.” I smirk at her, she rambles when she’s excited. Glad to see nothing has changed.
As I begin to say we don’t know each other, Jameson reaches out his hand, lowering his voice a bit as he leans in toward me.“Pleasure to meet you, officially, Cassidy. I remember seeing you around the halls here and there but I don’t think we have ever been properly introduced.” I stand to take his hand, but instead of shaking it, he holds it a bit, rubbing his thumb over the back of mine. “It’s a shame we didn’t meet sooner.”
Biting the inside of my cheek, I meet his focused gaze with my own and internally squeal, like we’re still in high school.
“It really is, but it’s nice to meet you all the same now,” I respond. I find I don’t want to pull away, enjoying the warmth of his hand on my own. “Officially, of course.”
My hand remains in his a few seconds longer before Janelle interrupts whatever moment we are lost in. “Do you guys want to get refills on the drinks and dance a bit?”
This would be my cue to step back and sit, protecting myself in the comfort of the chairs, in the guise of some fake truth. My phone chimes at that moment and in the spirit of “saying yes” more often, I surprise myself by agreeing quickly and excusing myself to grab my clutch from our cluster of chairs.
Lo
Just checking in on you babes
Hey babes, I’m having a really great time, actually!
OMG! Guess what?
Lo
As you should be! Any eye candy there?
Of course she wants to know about the eye candy, her question urging me to lift my eyes to find a certain man on the dance floor. She’s right, he sure is yummy. My best friend has alwaysbeen a serial dater, her focus has been on building skills and not on finding Mr. Right when Mr. Right-Now suited her needs just fine. She met someone before going for her MBA who I thought may be something more than a fling. I remember crawling up on the couch with her and wrapping her in my arms as she sobbed after she made their breakup final. Right person, wrong time, and too much trauma mixed together. Since then, she’s gone back to being a singleton,enjoying lifeas she puts it, and I’m here for her finding what she wants. I only want her to be happy.
