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She looks horrified and grabs my bicep while putting her other hand on her chest. “Oh my God, no. I didn’t mean it like that.”
Right now I don’t care how she meant it; the feel of her hand gripping my arm is doing weird things to my body. “It’s all good. It’s probably good for my ego to not be someone’s first choice.”
She scoffs and removes her hand, leaving my arm feeling cold where her hand had been. “Right, because your ego is so huge,” she says sarcastically. “I almost forgot you’re a famous rock star who’s used to getting any woman he wants.”
Well, maybe not every woman. There’s one in particular who’s looking pretty good right about now.
Shit, I really need to pull my thoughts out of the gutter.
She rolls her eyes but lets out a light laugh. “Come on. Let’s go grab our seats.” She leans down and grabs a beach bag I hadn’t even noticed resting at her feet.
“What’s all that?”
“Oh, just blankets for when the sun goes all the way down and it gets chilly.”
“Smart thinking.”
She flashes me another smile and then we make our way up to the rooftop screening area. There are rows of adjustable deck chairs facing a large screen with a three hundred sixty-degree view of Los Angeles. Strings of Edison lights hang around the space to offer some mood lighting, and there’s a bar and catering section that even from this distance smells amazing. Another area has a bunch of different games, including giant Jenga blocks. I’ve never actually been here before, but I love the setup.
We grab some food and drinks and then head to our seats. I notice a handful of people glancing at us and pulling their phones out. No doubt pictures of Becka and me will end up online somewhere. I look back at Chris and he nods, already aware of the people he’ll likely be talking to if they continue to take pictures. Apart from that, the only real downside to this place is that they provide personal headphones for every moviegoer, which wouldn’t be such a bad thing, but I find it doesn’t really allow for Becka and me to talk much or for me to hear her reactions.
While the headphones allow me to be completely immersed in the movie, I find myself glancing over at Becka just to watch how her face lights up at certain scenes. I enjoy seeing the way her lips quirk up at the corners and her eyes get soft during the part where he talks about his girl, or when something funny happens and she laughs, or when her expression gets serious and her lips move as she recites the line from memory.
By the time the movie’s over, all I can think about is Becka. Everything feels like it revolves around her—what can I say to make her laugh? What can I do to get her to put her hand back on my arm?
As we quietly make our way back down to the street, I rack my brain for ways to draw out this night with her.
“Do you want to grab a drink or something?”
She smiles up at me, and my heart does that pitter-patter thing it’s been doing all night when she looks at me. “Sure. That’d be great.”
“I know of a great place just down the street that serves all these old-fashioned mixed drinks. I haven’t been there in about a year, but it was great last time I was there.”
“Sounds perfect,” she says.
We wander down the street and while the silence feels deafening to me, Becka doesn’t seem bothered by it in the slightest. I glance back to see Chris behind us, like he’s been all night long. I look back over at Becka, but she doesn’t seem bothered by his presence.
But for the first time in a long time, I am. I’m bothered that I can’t be just a guy here with her, but someone who needs protection. Once again, the longing for normalcy hits me like a punch to the gut, but before it can suck me down into its depths, her hand grazes the back of mine as it sways softly against her side.
“Oh, sorry,” she mumbles.
“It’s all good,” I say softly while I wonder how I can make it happen again.
“So, when did you move to LA?” I ask her, needing to hear her voice to keep my mind from spiraling with thoughts I shouldn’t be having. I don’t know much about her life since Texas, or even what brought her out here to LA, although I can guess.
“When Will got drafted by the Wolves straight out of college. He’s been lucky to play with them so long and not get traded as many others have, but he and Jack Fuller, the quarterback, are such a power duo that the team has worked hard to keep him. I’m grateful for that because now that I’ve lived here for so long, I’d hate to leave.”
“Did you go to UT like Will?” Will graduated from the University of Texas in Austin, but I realize now he never once mentioned if Becka went to school there with him.
“I did. I loved it there, and it was nice to still be able to be close to my family. That’s the one downside of living in LA. I’m so far away from my mom and Elise.”
“Where did Lainey end up?”
“She’s here too, well, sorta. She lives in Laguna Beach, so she’s not exactly close, but she’s not too far either. About an hour and a half if there’s no traffic.”
“Do you get to see her often?”
“Yeah, we have a girls’ brunch regularly with two of our good friends.”
