Page 15 of Breakaway Heart
Randall was in front of me, staring like I was half-insane. Then he grinned when he saw my dilated pupils and trembling lips.
“Oh, Randy already knows how to make you quiver.”
“Please don’t, Randall.”
“Hey, you can moan if you want to,” he winked at me.
“Fuck. What smells so good, though?”
He wiggled his eyebrows annoyingly at me. “Welcome to Randy’s! Best French, Asian, and American cuisine in town.”
He blinked for a moment at hearing his own words and scratched thoughtfully at his chin. “You know, it probably is too.”
I stood there in the entranceway watching him, awkwardly unsure where I was supposed to go.
“Go grab yourself a beer from the fridge. If you can figure out how to get the football on Spanish TV, then that would be great. I’ve got to get back to it.”
Okay. This was not how this evening was going to go. He wanted a ‘Love Guru’, that’s what he was going to get.
“Randy.” I barked. “Stop.”
He paused mid-turn.
“We’re doing this again. And this time I’m yourdate, okay?”
“And…” He stared back quizzically, not understanding.
“This time, when you open the door, you say something nice like‘Wow, you look great!’. Offer to take my coat. And don’t just throw it on the fucking couch, actually take it off my shoulders and go hang it up somewhere.”
He looked at me reluctantly.
“That sounds like work. Can’t we just hang out and fuck around?”
“No.” I shook my head. “You asked for this, remember? I’m not one of your buddies who’s come round for beers and football. You don’t wanna treat me like a lady? Then I’m out.”
“Okay, okay! Sure, I got it!”
“Offer me a seat. Offer me a drink. Make me comfortable. Ask me how my day was. Got that too?”
Randall looked at me doubtfully. “It just doesn’t sound very…Sexy.”
“Trust me, it’s sexy. You’re gonna show me you’re a gentleman, that you respect me and want to treat me right, that you give an actual fuck, and you’re not a complete bum.”
“Yeah, okay. Jeez, I got it!”
“I want you to show some interest, Randall. Make me feel like an actual desirable woman and not just another… What is it?Fuck rabbit?”
“You mean puck bunny?”
“Yep, that. Also, sweatpants and a hoodie? You think that makes a girl feel excited and like you made any effort?”
Randy looked down, thought about it for a moment, frowned, and then nodded in agreement. “Give me five minutes, okay?”
“You got five minutes to shape up.”
I went back outside and sat down on the front steps, feeling mildly pleased with myself for taking control. Maybe this would be more fun than I thought.
The sun had fallen behind the hills, and the night was quiet and humid. Crickets called to each other while a cool breeze ran through the trees, softening the heat of the day.Above me, the sky was free of clouds, and the early stars shone more brightly than I’d ever seen back in the city. A cascade of distant glowing lights looked down as I watched them sparkle back at me and breathed in the clear air.
