“Oh, there it is.” I’m not sure what her comment means as she moves to sit on the couch on the far side of the balcony. Normally I’d go in search of greener pastures at a party, but her pull on me this time is too much for me to resist.
“There is what?” I slide onto the couch next to her. She eyes me with leeriness. I’m not sure what I’ve done to make her wary of me, but I’m now obsessed with finding out. “Did I do something to offend you? Wrong soda?” She laughs.
“No, the soda is fine. The pickings must be slim if you’re attempting to turn your charm on me.” Ouch!
“Ouch,” I say, sliding a smirk on my face. We sit eating our burgers in silence but I can see her, out of the corner of my eye, watching me with her eyebrows knitted together. A slow smile spreads across my lips.
“I can see you staring at me you know. Maybe my charms are working after all.” I laugh as red creeps up her face. Then she starts to laugh. “So Lily’s friend, Maggie. What do you do when you’re not busting my balls?” Visibly relaxing, I see her tilt her head slightly studying me.
“I haven’t even started busting your balls yet.” She laughs and just like that, my erection grows noticeably. With a stealth attempt to arrange things below into a more comfortable position, I notice I’ve failed miserably when red spreads on her cheeks. I wouldn’t mind if I didn’t want her so bad it hurt. But, I can’t have her, so I do the only thing I’m good at, I prevaricate.
“Leaving my balls out of the conversation for now. Lily tells me you took a position teaching high school literature at my old private school.”
“Not exactly as exciting as a corporate lawyer, but I love it.” Her eyes light up the way they always do when she starts talking books. I know all about her new position, I was asked by the school for a letter of recommendation when Lily told them I was a personal friend. I guess graduating valedictorian had its advantages after all. I’ll never let her know though.
“At least you get to read Hemingway and Faulkner. I’m stuck with therefore and whereas.” I expect a laugh at my joke but instead she looks at me thoughtfully.
“I suppose you have a point. Right now, though, we’ve only made it up toBeowulfandLast of the Mohicans.” She stands abruptly wandering back over to the food table. Grabbing two brownies before returning she catches me staring at her ass. Clearing my throat, I quickly look back up at her face.
“Who do you prefer to teach?” My voice sounds like gravel, but I’m determined not to flake on her. I’m genuinely interested in knowing. I can’t remember the last time I actually held an intelligent conversation with a woman outside my family. Handing me one of the brownies, she looks up at the stars for a second before turning to me.
“I taught a class on female authors once. It was really interesting. I also taught one on famous authors that only wrote one book.”
“Like Harper Lee untilGo Tell the Watchman?” She tilts her head at me again, a slow smile tilting her full lips.
“So you’re not just a pretty face.” She grins at me.
“Just one of my better features.” She snorts out a laugh. “Do you have a favorite author?” I ask.
“I’m not sure it’s truly possible to have one favorite. There are so many amazing books in the world. Finding a new one that makes you rethink everything you know is like discovering a new species that no one has seen yet. It must feel like the moment Lord Carnarvon discovered Tut’s tomb.”
I watch her intently as her eyes glow with passion. I wonder if it’s the same look she gets at the climax of an orgasm. Shit, don’t go there! Too late, my jeans are tight enough now to cut off the circulation to my lower body. I have to keep reminding myself that she is one of Lily’s best friends. It’s the reason I’ve always stayed away from her. She’s smart, funny, and seems to be somewhat immune to my charms.
“Do you have a favorite book?” She takes another bite of brownie while she waits for my answer.
“I’ve always been partial toTheCatcher in the Ryebut probably not for the reasons you think.”
“Well, now you have to tell me. I’m intrigued.”
I’ve never told anyone this. “I always liked that, in the end, it was his little sister’s loyalty that saved him.” We sit in silence as I weigh the foolishness of telling her this revelation about me.
“I like that. I think the bonds between siblings should be unbreakable. It would be amazing to have that kind of relationship.” I don’t know why, but her opinion suddenly matters very much to me.
I settle back into the cushions placing my foot on my other leg. My arm lays on the back of the couch toward her. Most women lean toward me, but not Maggie. She stays resolutely on her side of the couch.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?” I ask her as if I don’t already know everything about her family. She’s the only reason I have any social media accounts at all. It’s hard to creep on someone if you don’t have access to it.
“No. I’m an only child raised by a single mother. She passed away my junior year of college.”
“I’m sorry. I knew that.” Now, I’ve proven I’m an asshole. I was at the funeral.
She rolls her eyes at me. “I stayed at your house that Christmas she passed. I remember you blowing through on the pursuit of your latest case or conquest. It’s no big deal, it happened years ago.” Had I really been so self-absorbed? That makes me as vapid as all the women I pretend to be better than.
“Of Mice and Men,” she says, bringing me out of my reverie with a simple, though confusing statement.
“Excuse me?”
“I think my book would be Steinbeck’sOf Mice and Men. It was the first classic book I read that really started me on my journey into the love of classic literature. I had always been an avid reader, but it was my first real “adult” book I guess.”
