Page 37 of The Other Side of Paradise
“Not even the tiniest little bit. It was cute when you were all—” She imitated my scrunched-up face, and I made it back at her.
“You’re a nightmare.”
“And proud of it.”
I shifted off of her, my head pounding with awareness at the brush of her skin on mine, her thigh so… soft… Jesus Christ. I sat on the sand next to her, and she sprawled out, making herself comfortable lying down beside me. I pulled myself together enough to ask in a voice that I think still came out a little shaky, “So, when’s the date? I assume you’re waiting until hunky Mr. Lifeguard is off his shift.”
She snorted, but there was something there in her voice, looking away. “I love the way you sayhunky Mr. Lifeguardlike it’s the most painful construction of words in the language.”
“Hunky Mr. Lifeguards aren’t really my thing…” Which was true, butnotwhy I didn’t like this man.
“No date. He didn’t ask.”
Hallelujah. Still, I frowned. “And you didn’t, either?”
She shrugged, sitting up now, hunching over herself. She fussed with the band on her bikini bottom, picking sand out, clearly just looking for something to do with her hand but—well—Stella in a swimsuit slipping her fingers under the band wasn’t really good for my, uh, concentration. “I dunno, that would feel weird.”
“Uh… because you don’t want a date?”
“No. Just, you know. It’s like I was telling you about.” She put her hands up. “I want a guy to make the first move.”
Right. Straight as they came, despite what Jessica may have thought. I plastered on a thin, awkward smile. “Have you ever asked a guy out first?”
“Nah. I’m not that cool,” she laughed, her voice a little weak. “I dunno. Maybe I’m doing something wrong here. I thought I was giving clear signals. Maybe I’m just not his type.”
Maybe if he was gay, but outside of that, I couldn’t see one situation in which a guy wouldn’t be into Stella. She looked so achingly perfect like this, the late-evening sun lighting the brownish-blonde in her hair into a warm golden color, and impossibly, I wanted to run my fingers through it. “Sorry it didn’t work out,” I said, about as sorry as she was for throwing water on me.
“It’s whatever. I’m sure I’ll get something next time. I dunno, maybe I’m not hot enough.”
Jesus Christ. It took all my willpower to not gush about how she was the most beautiful human being alive. I opted to nudge her side instead. “Sure you are,” I said. “Why else would I have been hitting on you all this time?”
Once again, thankfully, she didn’t seem to realize I was fully telling the truth. She laughed. “Maybe you just have bad taste.”
“Nah. Denied.”
“I mean, based on the girls you’ve been with before… you said they were both examples of bad taste.”
“I said I’ve been with two before. And you know what they said about the third time.”
She laughed, nudging me back. “Hey, you are getting better at flirting. Speaking of which, how’d it go with your new girlfriend?”
I’d been soaring high for a second there, and I crashed hard. “Not my girlfriend. I’m pretty sure she’s straight. And I’mnot really… I mean, she’s pretty, but I’m not really interested in her like that.”
“What? You so are. You were chatting up a storm with her. Couldn’t take your eyes off her.”
I couldn’t take my eyes off her when I was around Stella because it was much easier to look at Jessica than it was Stella. I laughed awkwardly. “Yeah, because… we were having a conversation. Sorry to let you down, but nope. Not happening.”
“I dunno. I saw her making some suggestive faces at you.”
Oh, god. Yes… she had been. She’d been making suggestive faces along the lines ofdamn, Stella’s flirting with you,after me having told her how I had a hopeless unrequited crush on Stella. But I couldn’t say that to Stella herself. “She’s just… uh… she just has expressive eyes.”
“Uh-huh. I’m sure you’ll be enjoying seeing those eyes half-lidded whileexpressingall kinds of things soon.”
I swallowed, my pulse picking up, face prickling. Stella talking to me about… that kind of thing… gave my body a reaction that she completely misinterpreted, grinning at me.
“Oh, god, you’re really into that, huh? So, what, you’ve got a thing for eye contact?”
Jesus Christ. What was I supposed to say now?No, no, that reaction was me getting turned on listening to you talk about giving me bedroom eyes?I let out a deep, spiritual sigh, staring out into the horizon, ocean waves meeting the sky, and I opted for a different truth I didn’t want to have to admit. “Uh… yeah.”
