I cross to the couch and pick up my jacket, checking my pocket to make sure I’ve still got my keys.
“You can’t drive,” Kalli says. I bristle a little, annoyed that she gets to pick and choose when she’s interested in me.
“I’m not planning on it. I’m calling a cab.”
I pull up the Internet on my phone to search for a cab company when Kalli says, “I can take you.”
I frown. I mean … don’t get me wrong. I like the idea of leaving with her, but I just don’t get why. This girl twists my head around so good, that I’m surprised it hasn’t popped off yet.
“You’ve had nearly as much to drink as I have.”
She shakes her head. “I’m fine. I’m not drunk.”
I raise an eyebrow. “That again?” Unbidden, my eyes drop to her socked feet, and her lips quirk in a smile.
“It’s just as true this time as it was last time.” She climbs to her feet, and starts heading toward me. The closer she gets, the harder my heart beats, like it’s trying to leap right out of my chest to get to her. She slips past me and bends down to get her boots. Right in front of me. Her perfect ass is just there, and I really don’t have the willpower right now not to look.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jack cuts in, standing from his chair. “Just let the guy take a cab.”
“Really, Jack, I’m fine.”
Still standing, she lifts a foot to slip on her boot. She teeters a little, and I grab hold of her elbow to steady her. As much as I hate to admit it … “Maybe Jack is right.”
“That wasn’t because I’m drunk. That was because I’m standing on one foot trying to put on a shoe. I promise that I am one hundred percent okay to drive. I don’t feel the slightest bit drunk.”
She does seem sober. She stands with her hands on her hips, looking up at me, and her eyes are clear, focused. I’d been determinedly not watching her for the last hour or so. Maybe she’d been cutting back, and I hadn’t noticed.
“Touch your finger to your nose,” I say.
She rolls her eyes, but does it.
“Now switch and touch it with the other finger … now switch back and forth.”
“Is this really a thing?” she asks between touches.
“Faster.”
She scowls, but obliges, her eyes boring into mine as she alternates touching her nose with her right and then left hand again and again. She never misses a beat, her movements perfectly in control.
“Are you even human?” I ask. She stiffens and stops touching her nose. “You must have an incredibly high alcohol tolerance. Or lightning fast metabolism.”
“Something like that.”
I take in her face. There’s no hesitation. She doesn’t seem like she’d be doing this out of pity or for some other reason I can’t pinpoint. “Sure. Okay. If you don’t mind, a ride would be great.”
She nods and turns toward the door. I give Lennox a quick nod, and then a silent wave for the rest of the room. “Thanks for inviting me, Len. I had fun.”
“No problem, Dazzler. You’re welcome back anytime.”
I glance at Kalli to gauge her reaction to that, but her back is to me. I take a few steps toward the door, catching up with her, and rest a hand on her back. I’m about to murmur a thank you, but her steps falter and she sucks in a breath. “You okay?”
She steps sideways, sliding away from my touch, and adds, “Um … give me just one second before we leave.”
I drop my hand to my side, and her gaze scans the room. She’s looking for something, but I’m not sure she knows what it is. She skips past a sleeping Mick, and Lennox, and the other girls. Finally her eyes land on Jack, and he’s staring right back at her, still standing from when he’d protested earlier.
She squares her shoulders, and moves toward him, and for a moment I’m entranced by the sway of her hips. I’d enjoy the sight a lot more if she weren’t moving away from me and toward him. I can’t hear what they’re saying as they talk, but he’s got his head bent low toward hers, and they’re entirely too close for casual conversation. I watch them, and I swear my spine feels like steel and my skin actually starts to itch with impatience as their conversation stretches on. This isn’t some simple goodbye or a quick word. They’re having a full-fledged discussion, and when Kalli reaches out and lays a hand on his arm, I have to close my eyes to keep my cool.
Once again, she’s driving me fucking crazy with her mixed signals. She volunteers out of nowhere to take me home, and I think … maybe … but damn it. She’s still touching him, and I skip from impatient to furious in seconds. I get that she’s got issues. I’ve not exactly been looking to date anyone since the disaster that was Hurricane Bridget. But I don’t get the back and forth, and I don’t have fucking time for these kinds of games. Not even for her.
She’s still touching his arm, nodding as he talks, occasionally opening her mouth to reply. Then he smiles, slows down, and lifts a strand of hair from her shoulder. And that’s the last straw for me. I grip the doorknob and haul the front door open.
“I’ll be outside,” I say to the room in general, and then I bolt. My feet pound against the creaky stairs on my way down, and I’m sure I’m waking up everyone who lives below Lennox.
You twist me up, twist me up so good