Page 116 of Fifty First Times (Sharing You 0.40)
Any place that has five streets crossing the same intersection with bars on every corner is bound to be. I luck into a parking place beside a handicapped spot. I’m not overly anxious about my car, but I’m not reckless, either.
Liza hands over my phone. “Rosie isn’t answering, so I’m guessing the hangout for tonight is less pool hall, more dance place.”
I pull at the neckline of my T-shirt. “Where do they usually go? When they’re in the mood to dance?”
“Trippy’s.” When I swear, she steps in front of me. “No. Please tell me no.”
I shrug. “We leave to go on the road tomorrow. They’ll sleep it off on the bus, so, yeah, probably.”
“I’ll go in by myself.”
Frustration and jealousy compete for purchase in my gut. She doesn’t want to be seen with me, and if the players are at Trippy’s, she’ll be seen alone. No one will let her get by without making a pass, or worse, copping a feel.
“No, you won’t.” The words sound more like a demand than a request. I don’t care.
“Do you want people to think we’re together?” she asks.
“Yes, actually.”
She blinks.
“You’re the one who doesn’t want to be seen with me. I’d be more than proud if someone thought I was with you. And I am, if only because you don’t have a car, a phone, or a key.”
She looks sheepish. “I do appreciate you bringing me here.”
“I don’t need appreciation. If you think back,” I say, “I’m sure you’ll remember that I’ve been a perfect gentleman.”
“You have.”
“I’ve never even sworn in front of you.”
“No, you haven’t.”
“I’ve carried things for you, opened doors for you, let you go first in line.”
“All that’s true.”
“And on Superhero Night at the ballpark, I didn’t look at your behind once in that Wonder Woman outfit.”
She pulls her head back. “Then how did you know about it?”
“There was talk.” So much talk. Dirty, dirty talk.
“I’m not embarrassed to be seen with you.”
“You aren’t?” I stop dead.
“No.”
Not the answer I’m expecting. Usually I only get arguments from her. She pulls me into the doorway of an antique shop.
“I’m not. I am grateful that you brought me here. And I’m sorry if I’m acting like a shrew. Okay?”
“Okay.” I have no idea what to do with this nugget of info. No idea why she stopped me to pass it along. Other than the fact that she’s staring at me, into my eyes, like she’s seeing me for the first time.
Liza
WHO THE HELL am I
