Just a Little Flirt

by Renita Pizzitola

  “Nineteen.”

  He flipped on his blinker and cruised into the right lane.

  “How about you?” I asked.

  He stopped at the red light. “Twenty-one.”

  “So you’re a senior?”

  “Yep.” He turned at the light and pulled into the parking lot of a strip mall.

  “Do you have plans for after you graduate?”

  The corner of his mouth twitched. “Get a job and be wildly successful. That’s what we’re supposed to do, right?”

  “That’s what they keep telling me.”

  He sighed. “Now if only someone could hand me that job or point me in the general direction.”

  “I know.” I shook my head. “That’s why this internship is so important. I feel like if I don’t figure shit out now, I’ll have nothing.”

  Cade’s gaze shifted to me and I realized two things. Not only had I sounded way too much like my unfiltered self, I’d admitted one of my biggest fears to him. It just poured out. I hadn’t even shared that with Brinley. I pressed my lips together to avoid spewing anything else.

  He smiled. “I hear ya.”

  The store he’d chosen was Target. Which could be my second home, so I led him right to kids’ clothes.

  He stood on the edge of the little girls’ department with his mouth slightly agape. “This is a lot of clothes.”

  I laughed and looped my arm through his. “C’mon, it’s not that bad.”

  “How do you choose anything? It just goes on forever.”

  “What did your sister say? Be specific.” I released his arm and ran my fingers over a cute floral dress.

  “Size two. No exact matches. Summer clothes. Nothing slutty. Shorts. Dresses. No pants.”

  I turned and stared at him. “Wait, she said nothing slutty?”

  He chuckled. “I just threw that in to see if you were really paying attention. You kind of had that glazed-over storegasm look.”

  My lips parted. “Did you just say ‘storegasm’?”

  With a sheepish grin he looked down, then glanced back up. “My sister calls it that. I swear it’s not my word. Like when she walks into her favorite store or finds a sale, she says it’s better than…” He looked away. “I think I’m just going to shut up now.”

  “Huh.” I looked through the rack again. “I kind of like it. Storegasm.” Cade didn’t move as I repeated the word, testing it out for myself. “But don’t worry. I was listening. Trust me, you’d know if I was having a storegasm.” I glanced at him, then walked over to the next rack.

  When he didn’t follow, I looked over my shoulder at him. “You coming?”

  One eyebrow shot up.

  I bit back a smile and turned away.

  He cleared his throat and followed.

  I wandered to a shelf with folded shirts and picked up one with a butterfly. “See anything you like?”

  Cade’s gaze drifted over me then snapped to the shelf. He focused on the shirts and shook his head. “I’m leaving that up to you. Just pick out whatever you want.”

  I tapped my finger against my chin. “What I want? Hmm, that’s dangerous.” My arm brushed his as I reached for a different shirt. “I may not know when to stop.”

  His body stiffened next to me and I could feel his gaze locked on me.

  I couldn’t hold it in any longer. I burst into laughter.

  “Oh my God,” he said. “You were fucking with me. Here I was thinking I was such a perv for taking everything you said the wrong way.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I covered my mouth to hide my smile.

  He shook his head and yanked my hand down. “You’re terrible.”

  “Maybe you were the one having a storegasm.”

  “I was pretty close.”

  My mouth dropped open and he laughed. “Oh, so what, you can do it, but I say something and it’s a big deal?”

  He had a point. But he just seemed like such a good boy, and I was the kind of person who’d make up a word like “storegasm.” I shrugged. “Coming from you…”

  He and I both stared at each other and broke into laughter.

  “Oh my God, we’ve got to stop. Someone is going to hear us.” I tried to get ahold of myself while glancing around. “There are children present,” I teased. In reality the store was practically empty.

  “You started it.”

  “Me? You’re the one equating shopping with orgasms.” I elbowed him, but he caught my arm and spun me to face him. My laughing tapered as I stared at him, my body pressed against his.

  He brushed my hair off my face and stared into my eyes.

  This was a really dangerous game we played. But today it was my fault too. I’d started the flirting. Unfortunately, it was something I couldn’t finish, which was shitty of me. My throat dried. What was the best way to get us back to neutral ground? I gnawed my lip. Should I just walk away? Or would that seem like I was still playing games?

  His gaze zeroed in on my mouth.

  Maybe straightforward honesty was the best approach. “I’m sorry. I was just messing around. We’re here to find a gift.”

  “A gift.” He nodded. “For my nieces.” That very sobering thought seemed to be enough to pull him out of it as well. He turned me around and pushed me several feet forward. “I think I’m instating a yardstick rule.”

  I gave him a questioning look.

  “Like at middle school dances. I need three feet between us at all times.”

  I bit back a grin. “I’ll be good.”

  “I didn’t say you had to do that.” He smirked and scratched the back of his head. “But I am eager to get out of here, so maybe it would be a good idea…just until we find a gift.”

  Get out of here? Because he didn’t like shopping…or he thought something would happen with us?

  Regardless of how date-like it was, we definitely had to do dinner after this. We needed a cooling-off period. A friendly dinner with a table wedged firmly between us.

  He gestured to a rack of summer dresses. “Let’s just pick out two outfits for each of them, grab a card and get out of here.”

  “Okay. How about this?” I lifted the dress that had originally caught my eye. The floral one.

  “Perfect,” he said. Though I don’t think he truly had an opinion.

  The same pattern came in different colors, so I selected two shades that complemented each other.

  I went back to the table of shirts and grabbed the purple one with the pink butterfly and the purple one with the heart. I found a matching pair of shorts for each and turned to Cade.

  “Love them.”

  I smiled and shook my head, knowing full well I could be holding up two tiny brown sacks and he’d have the same reaction.

  “I guess we’re done then.”

  “That was quick. Okay, now to the cards.” He started walking toward the main aisle but paused. “Oh, we have to get these.”

  We’d cut through the boys’ section, and he was staring at a gray vintage tee with the words “My uncle rocks” and a guitar. It was seriously adorable.

  “My sister’s going to kill me for getting boy shirts for the twins.” He searched the rack for the size he needed.

  “They are sort of gender neutral.” I shrugged.

  “Wait until you see the way she dresses them.” He chuckled. “But really, how could I not get these shirts?”

  “You have to. They speak the truth.”

  He laughed and grabbed two shirts. “Exactly.”

  After paying, we walked down the strip to the Mexican restaurant. Once settled into a booth, a young guy came to get our order.

  “Cade Ryan. Haven’t seen you in a while. How’s it going?” the waiter asked.

  “Hey, Josh. It’s going well. How about you?”

  “Not too much going on this summer. Just been busy working.” He shrugged, looked at me then back at Cade. “You want some drinks?”

  “Sure. I’ll take a beer and a…” Cade gla
nced at me. “Margarita?”

  I nodded.

  “A beer and a margarita.” The waiter nodded. “I’ll grab your drinks then be back to take your order.”

  “According to my ID, I am old enough to drink, you know. My name is also Ashley.”

  With his elbow on the table, he placed his chin in his palm. “Ashley.” He sort of scrunched his nose. “That’s not right at all. You need something original. Unique. You aren’t an Ashley.”

  I’d always thought Ashley suited me. It was my cousin’s ID, and though we looked nothing alike besides our blond hair, we could both be Ashley. It just seemed like a name to fit anyone.

  Cade leaned back and raised his menu. “Nope. You’re definitely a Fallon.”

  He did it again. He made my name musical. It rolled off his tongue while I just watched his mouth. And what I wouldn’t give to hear him whisper that during…I shook my head. Friend zone. Stick to the plan.

  “So what’s good here?”

  “Everything, but I like the combo plate. Comes with a little of everything.”

  “I’ll give it a try.”

  I closed the menu, really not caring what I ordered. My mind was preoccupied with ways to direct our conversation back to neutral ground.

  His nieces had done the trick earlier. Maybe that would work now too. “I’ve never been to a kid’s birthday party. Anything I should be prepared for?”

  “Not really. If it’s like last year it’s just a lot of standing around. I love my nieces, but the other adults there…It’s like all they can talk about are their kids. Last year it was all, little Jack took his first steps. Little Sophia said her first word. But there’s this weird vibe of competitiveness.” He shook his head. “Two hours of that is more than I can handle alone. But I can’t miss it. My sister would kill me.”

  The waiter appeared with our drinks and we ordered two combos.

  “So what are their names?” I asked.

  “Ava and Mia. Mia is a little shy. Ava is a bit bossy.”

  “Let me guess. Ava is older.” I grinned.

  He chuckled. “Yep. By two minutes.”

  I sipped my margarita. “Oh my God, this is good.”

  “Right? The bartender here makes a damn good drink.” He tilted his beer bottle to his lips.

  “Okay, Ava and Mia. And your sister’s name?”

  “Addison. And her husband is Michael.”

  “The initial thing?”

  “Totally planned.”

  Wow. They sounded like the perfect little family. I came from one of those perfect little families too. I knew the drill. One slipup and I’d ruin the image. I’d have to be careful.

  Our food arrived just then. We thanked the waiter and I unrolled my silverware.

  “What about your family? Do they live around here?”

  “No, I’m from Brighton, Colorado, but my dad grew up in Texas. Went to college here at Sutton, then moved to Denver where he met my mom.”

  “So you’re following in your dad’s footsteps. Bet he’s proud.”

  “I grew up wearing Sutton green. I’m not sure there was another choice.” I laughed, though really I always had the choice to stay in Colorado. “But, yeah, Dad thinks it’s pretty cool I’m attending his alma mater.”

  Cade smiled. “So you said you were the oldest. Brother? Sister?”

  “One sister. Amber. She’s seventeen.” And probably screwing my ex as we spoke.

  “Do you get along?” he asked, scooping up rice.

  I relaxed my expression, careful to not give away my current frustration with her. “Yeah. She’s just a typical seventeen-year-old. She’s a cheerleader. Perky. Popular. College will be a life-changer. It’s hard to be one face in a sea of people when you’re used to being the center of everything.”

  He nodded. “You think she’ll come to Sutton too?”

  “No. She’ll stay in Colorado. Go to school somewhere near my family. And her new boyfriend,” I grumbled.

  “Ah, so it’s the boyfriend you don’t like.” He grinned and took a bite of enchilada.

  So much for hiding my feelings. I shrugged and poked around my plate.

  “What is it? No good? Too serious?”

  “My ex.”

  His mouth dropped open. “Your ex?”

  “Yep.” I stabbed my enchilada, shredding the corn tortilla.

  “That’s…interesting.” Sitting back, he sipped his beer. “How long were you together?”

  “Three years.”

  He sputtered his drink. “Three?”

  I nodded. “We started dating when we were fifteen. Broke it off before I came to college. Now he’s dating Amber.” I shrugged. “I don’t care if they date.”

  “But you have every reason to.”

  I glanced up. “My mom says they’re in love.”

  He raised an eyebrow and made a humph sound. “Do you have a picture of your sister?”

  I nodded and pulled out my phone. I scrolled to an image of us together and handed it to Cade.

  He laughed and handed me my phone back. “She looks just like you.”

  There was no denying we were sisters except that she was taller than me. “Everyone says that.”

  “Let me guess, he also tried to get back together with you before hooking up with her.”

  Actually, he had. When I went home to visit during spring break. I hadn’t taken him too seriously though. He’d been kind of drunk and probably just figured I’d be an easy target for ex-sex.

  Cade let out a humorless laugh and shook his head.

  I pushed my rice around my plate. “He’ll probably screw her over.” Amber was too young and naïve to see Cameron for what he was worth, but if I even tried to tell her, she’d say I was jealous.

  “Doesn’t common sense say, never date your sister’s ex?”

  “She lacks common sense.” I half-smiled. “She’s entering her senior year of high school. Knowing her, she’ll have a new boyfriend before the end of first period. Let’s hope anyway. If I have to go to their wedding…” I shivered.

  “Well, if that day ever comes, I’ll owe you one for the birthday party.” He raised his beer and tilted it in my direction. “Awkward family functions can be our thing.”

  I bit back a smile. I kind of liked having a thing with him, even if it was of the awkward variety. “I’ll hold you to that.”

  Chapter 9

  Flirting had clearly been on Cade’s agenda. The margarita had loosened me up, but by no means got me buzzed enough to start flirting back. I’d laughed along but tried not to encourage it.

  After dinner, Cade and I drove back to his apartment. When we pulled into the parking lot, he turned to me before I could head to my car. “Scout’s been cooped up since we left; want to take him to the park with me?”

  That was harmless enough and it was far away from his couch, bed or any other flat surface we could end up on.

  “Sure.”

  He smiled. “Great.”

  The park sat central to the surrounding block of college apartments. And it was always flooded with students. The sidewalk made for a nice running trail, the disc golf a fun way to spend an evening, the grills convenient due to the apartments’ restrictions on porch grilling, but I had yet to venture across the street since moving in.

  We walked to an open grassy area. Cade unhooked Scout’s leash and tossed a red ball.

  The ball went soaring and Scout went running. He fetched the ball then dropped it at Cade’s feet, eager to go again.

  Cade picked the ball back up and hurled it through the air. “He could do this all day.”

  My phone buzzed in my pocket and I glanced at the screen. It was Mel asking me to go out. I slid it back in my pocket. But it buzzed again. This time it was Brinley, so I actually answered the text, letting her know I couldn’t go out tonight but I’d be home later.

  Cade glanced at me as he picked up the ball. “Popular. Aren’t you?” I knew he was teasing but I also sensed some curiosity.
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  “Of course,” I teased back. “It’s Friday night.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think about it. I’m keeping you to myself and you probably have somewhere else you need to be.”

  Interestingly, I hadn’t minded. “It’s best I don’t go out tonight. Don’t want to be all hungover for the twins’ party.” I smiled.

  “So what is a normal Friday night like for Fallon?” He arced the ball and Scout dashed off.

  “A party. Night out. Something like that.” I shrugged. “What about you?”

  “The same. But sometimes I like to stay home. Scout gets lonely.”

  I laughed. “Sometimes I like to stay in too.” Not often. But occasionally. Staying home bored me, and Brinley was always with Ryder. I needed somewhere to go.

  “That almost sounded like you meant it.” He grinned.

  “My roommate has a serious boyfriend. I just don’t have much to do if I stay home.”

  “You know, considering we’re neighbors and all, you could always hang with me.”

  Shit. As much as I hated to, I had to remind him we’d never have more. “It would be nice having a friend in walking distance.”

  But Cade didn’t seem fazed as he threw the ball for Scout. Maybe he didn’t mind staying friends either. But what had all that kissing been about? It was so dumb on my part, and though I knew I couldn’t get involved, I kind of wanted him to like me. Having a guy like Cade like me…what could be more flattering than that?

  “Hang on. Scout can’t find the ball. I think it’s in those bushes.” He jogged away, looking damn good in the process.

  “Fallon?”

  I turned in the direction of my name. It was the same guy I’d run into when I first moved in. Apparently he’d finally remembered my name, but I still couldn’t recall his. Something with an A maybe? Andy? Alex? Shit if I knew.

  He reached over and pulled me into a sloppy hug.

  I slipped free, picking up hints of beer on him.

  He stumbled a bit and pointed over his shoulder toward the picnic tables adjacent to the basketball courts. “Some friends of mine are grilling burgers. You should join us.”

  Considering the night we’d hooked up I’d been all over him, I saw where he was coming from. Problem was, that had been a one-night thing. And he didn’t seem to get that. “I can’t—”