Page 53 of Tuxedos and Tinsel
“Smells like spring,” Susan said.
Indeed. There was definitely a hint of fresh dirt to the air. A sharp contrast to the cold night air.
The coat check was in the corner, marked by a pair of ferns decorated with tiny Christmas ornaments. If he hadn’t been looking for it, he might never have found it. He turned to Susan intending to help her with her coat only to find she’d already slipped the garment from her shoulders. His breath caught at the sight of her. She’d been waiting on her steps when he picked her up, so this was the first time he’d had a chance to see what she was wearing and the sight took his breath away. At the wedding, she’d gone for a retro look: black, white and tight. Tonight she had a more graceful look. Her pale pink dress had a gathered bodice and long flowy skirt. While the dress didn’t hug her curves the way the dress at the wedding had, the outfit fit tightly enough to let people know she had a shape while the V-neck showed off her ample cleavage. He liked that her breasts were soft and natural looking too. He’d seen enough enhancements in his life to actually find them boring. In fact, he liked how everything about her looked soft and natural, right down to her hair which she let curl around her shoulders.
“You look great,” he said.
Her skin turned the color of her dress. “Thanks. I don’t go to a lot of formal events so I wasn’t sure if this would work. I was afraid this might be too…” She paused as a woman in a sequined minidress and with mile-long legs sauntered by. “Dowdy.”
“Nonsense. It suits you.” Shoot. That sounded like he was saying dowdy suited her. “I mean, not everyone is the sequined-mini type.”
“I’m certainly not, that’s for sure,” she said before adding in a lower voice, “Think I’d catch a cold baring that much skin.”
“Skin is overrated. Seriously.” She was giving him a look of disbelief. “I’m not saying I don’t appreciate a miniskirt as much as the next guy, but there’s something to be said about maintaining a little mystery, know what I mean?” He handed over their coats and waited for his claim ticket.
“Really? I always got the impression men wanted to get down to business as quickly as possible.”
“Obviously, you’ve been hanging around the wrong type of man.”
She blushed again. This time the color went past the V and the effect hit him square in the gut. He meant what he said. It was much more fun wondering how much of her very white skin was capable of blushing than seeing it from the start.
He reached out and twirled one of her curls around his index finger. “Trust me, luv. You look as good as anyone here. More so, even, because you’ve got class.”
“And you are a very smooth talker, Mr. Matolo,” she replied with a smile. “If things don’t work out in the broadcast world, you can always get a job selling used cars. Come on, we’ve got mingling to do.”
Lewis watched as she started along the leafy walkway. She didn’t believe him, but it was true. She projected a level of class that came from years of breeding. Even when drunk at the wedding, she’d held herself with refinement. Lewis could barely muster it when he was sober. Sure, he had looks and charm, but at his core he was the little street kid being kicked from home to home. The one whom, if he hadn’t been able to block a ball, wouldn’t have been looked at twice by the people in Susan’s world. The one who didn’t belong…
“Are you coming?” Susan asked.
“One minute. Thought I’d enjoy the view a moment, first.”
Score blush number three, although she tried to cover it with an exasperated eye roll. “Now you’re just trying to get a rise out of me. If you really want a view, come check this out.”
It was a Christmas jungle. In addition to the tropical plants, strategically placed Christmas trees dotted the walkway intersections. Each was decorated with a different color of the rainbow. Red. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Violet. Only they weren’t covered with traditional ornaments. Instead, silk butterflies and flowers mixed with the lights.
It wasn’t the Christmas display that captured his attention, however. It was the dozens of men and women clustered around the display. All dripping with money and status. A couple close to them turned in his direction, their gaze subtly looking them up and down. Judging. Whispering.
Suddenly he was that little boy again, waiting to be told he didn’t belong.
“I need a drink,” he said. He headed to the bar.
CHAPTER FIVE
DIDHESAYhe was getting a drink? Susan hurried after him, wishing her legs were longer so she could keep up. Amazing how the man could cut through a crowd like butter.
She finally caught up with him—nearly collided with him, actually—when he stopped cold about a foot from the bar. “What are you doing?”
“I—I…” He washed a hand across his lips. “Something stupid.”
Exactly what she’d feared. The question was why? After all his talk about reforming his image, why would he risk sabotaging himself right as his plan was taking off?
There were too many people around to have this conversation. Lewis’s arrival had most of the room starstruck. She could see people all around them sneaking glances.
Grabbing his hand, she moved past the bar and down the back pathway where she spied a water display in the far corner. The splashing water from the falls discouraged most people from standing too close. They would have privacy there.
There was only one other couple lingering by the water’s edge. The pair shot them a look upon arrival, with the woman, not surprisingly, looking a bit incredulously at Susan. Ignoring them, Susan pulled Lewis off the walkway and into the foliage. There was only a small spot of bare ground, but if they stood close together, they wouldn’t trample anything. “What are you doing, Lewis?” she hissed, just loud enough to be heard over the water. “I thought you were a ‘changed man.’ Pretty sure making a beeline for the bar isn’t one of the sobriety rules. And don’t try to tell me you meant to grab a glass of water, because I saw the look on your face.” It was like a mask had dropped over his features. The muscles by his jaw began to twitch.
He wore a different expression now. Eyes lowered, his brow drawn together. “I know. It was stupid. I wasn’t thinking.”
