Page 31 of Beautiful Lies
8
Connor
Ava ordered enough food to feed a small country. Like China. “I’ll have what she’s having,” I told the waitress.
When she left our booth, I fed coins into the table jukebox and flipped through the music, punching the buttons to make my selections. I loved this thing. It still took quarters and the music hadn’t been updated in decades, a lot like this old diner. A Formica-topped table separated me from Ava and silver duct tape patched the tear in my red vinyl seat, but the food made up for the shabby decor.
My first selection started playing—Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line” and Ava groaned like it was truly painful.
“You’re really going for it, aren’t you?” she asked.
“Go big or go home, sweetcakes.”
She held out her hand and wiggled her fingers. “Hand over the quarters, beefcake.”
I held up my empty hands. She shot me a look that sent me right up to the register for change. What a chump, I thought, as I came back to our booth with a handful of quarters for my little princess. She rewarded me with a smug smile, and I wondered if she’d choose the same songs she used to. There was always some Elvis, “California Dreaming,” the Beach Boys, “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” and a Tammy Wynette number, “Stand by Your Man.”
“The usual?” I asked when she leaned back in her seat, satisfied with her choices.
“I mixed it up. No Tammy.”
I gave her a little smile. “Maybe next time.”
“You’d need to earn that.”
“Tell me how.”
“We need to set some ground rules,” she said, all business now.
“Shoot.”
“No sex. If I get drunk and call you, don’t cave, even if I beg you to have sex with me. I won’t know what I’m talking about and I’ll regret it the next morning.”
I smirked as the waitress served our papaya juice.
When the waitress left, Ava said, “Wipe that smirk off your face. No sex. I mean it.”
“Oh, I’m sure you do.” The fact that she felt the need to bring up sex meant she was tempted. She should have known better than to set herself up like that. “Even if you beg me for sex when you’re stone-cold sober, I’ll say no. I’m not that kind of guy.” I pointed to myself and then her. “What we’ve got here is a friends-without-benefits arrangement. If you choose to honor that, then we’re good to go.” I puffed out my chest. “You can’t use me for my body. In fact, I’m offended that you would insinuate such a thing.”
“You’re annoying.”
“You’re adorable.” I stared at her plump pink lips, her delicate nose, and those wide gray eyes that could turn from icy to stormy in a heartbeat. God, I loved her face. I loved her everything.
She huffed out a breath. “At least we got that straight.”
“Absolutely. No sex. Not even if you beg me.” I leaned back in my seat and spread my arms along the top of the booth. “Anything else?”
“If you say you’re going to be somewhere, you need to be there. You’ll get a fifteen-minute grace period, but if you’re late, or if you haven’t called with a valid excuse, I won’t be hanging around waiting for you. I need to know I can rely on you.”
“Done.”
She drummed her fingers on the table. “No lying. No empty promises.”
“I only made empty promises when I was using.”ButI’m still a liar.
“I know.” She leaned in, resting her folded arms on the table. My gaze wandered down the column of her neck to the scoop of her black sports tank, exposing her creamy skin and a hint of cleavage. She snapped her fingers to draw my attention back to her face. “If I ever find out you’re doing drugs, I’ll never speak to you again. There won’t be any more chances. Not as friends or anything else. I just … I can’t go back there.”
Icouldn’t go back there. I had too much at stake to lose the fight now. “I know. And I’d never expect you to.”
