Love at the Electric (A Port Bristol Novel Book 1)

by Jenn Hughes

  Now, when he needed Ravi the most, the man-child couldn’t even wear a damn bow tie to a party for him. Year after year they’d argued over it. But Sam had finally had enough.

  It didn’t matter anymore. Parties didn’t matter. Arguments didn’t matter. Appearances didn’t matter.

  “You know what?” Sam let out a held breath. “You’re right.”

  Smack. Ravi’s colossal gum bubble popped and covered his lips. “Uhhhh, that’s a first, coming from you. So . . . what does it mean if I’m right?”

  Sam propped his elbows on his desk and smiled. “It means you can wear whatever the hell you want to wear tomorrow night. So can everyone else. Next year, we’ll do a theme. Superheroes, Greek gods. I don’t care about the dress code, as long as it’s fun.”

  Ravi pulled a string of gum off his lips and asked, “Are you dying? I mean, is something wrong with you? Because you’re freaking me out right now.”

  “I’m fit as a fiddle, but I’m trying to make some changes in my life. I spend so much time trying to be Sam Owens, I’ve forgotten how to be me. From what I can remember, I used to like a good theme party.”

  Ravi brushed his dark hair from his eyes and nodded. “Changes are good.”

  “Yeah. Listen, I know Origin was supposed to be you and me, designing great software. Not you designing great software, and me giving interviews and sleeping with models. It’s time I let go of some things and change.”

  “Nothing wrong with sleeping with models. I’d be willing to step into the breach on that. Add it to my list of duties.”

  “Okay, sure. You’d have a total of one. It would also mean you’d have to leave your office and stop tinkering with Thrones of the Guild Planets for at least an hour,” Sam countered.

  “Can’t legally use the title Thrones of the Guild Planets. I’ve codenamed it Cowboy Thunder Laser for now.” Ravi paused. “I’ll get back to you on the model thing. I want some time to weigh the pros and cons. So why all the changes? Is this about Lillian Walker?”

  “How do you know Lillian’s last name?”

  “Cedric,” Ravi replied, popping another bubble. “I asked what he knew about her, and he told me her last name and where she works and that you bought flowers for her. Etcetera.”

  Big-mouthed binary bastard. No loyalty whatsoever.

  “Right. Well, yeah, a lot of this has to do with Lillian but . . . It’s complicated. I kinda screwed things up a little, so I’m trying to—”

  “Sam?” Cedric interrupted over the room’s surround sound.

  “Yes, Cedric?”

  “You asked me to notify you immediately of any incoming texts from Hot Hellion Walker. One has arrived for you.”

  Sam’s heart sucker-punched his spleen. “Yeah, and? What did she say?”

  The text appeared on Sam’s monitor.

  Hot Hellion Walker: Okay.

  “Okay? That’s it?”

  “Yes, Sam,” Cedric replied. “Would you like to send a reply?”

  “No . . . ” Sam frowned.

  Okay? What does okay mean?

  Well, for starters, it isn’t a no.

  Okay was good. Okay was fucking great. It meant she would be at the party. And she deserved to arrive in style. “Wait, Cedric. Schedule a limo to pick Lillian up at her apartment on the night of the party. Eight o’clock sharp.”

  “Yes, Sam. The limo has been scheduled.”

  Sam put Cedric into sleep mode. Then he remembered Ravi, seated across from him and continuing to pick gum off his face. Sam gave him a big grin. “As I was about to say, I screwed things up. But now I’m fixing them.”

  Ravi kept quiet. He had this slightly annoying habit of missing conversational cues, leaving people hanging and wondering if he heard them. Or had zoned out. Or didn’t care. He had a long lag time with human interaction, and his brain gave little thought to common courtesy in conversation when there were far more important things to think of—like Cowboy Thunder Laser.

  Finally, after a good minute of staring out the windows, Ravi slapped his hands on his knees and stood up from the chair. “Catch ya later.”

  Sam rolled his eyes as Ravi stumbled around the chair and then walked to the office door. He fully expected Ravi to leave without another word, but the kid stopped.

  “So I can wear anything to the party?” Ravi asked quietly.

  “Sure.”

  “Anything?”

  “Don’t push it, Ravi,” Sam growled. But the irritation only lasted a second, since he continued riding the high from Lillian’s okay text. “Don’t wear anything that’ll get you arrested. Deal?”

  Ravi turned and grinned. “Deal. Can’t wait to meet Lillian. I can thank her for bringing the old Sam out to play. And I can tell her about the time you beat that horde on ShieldQuest with your arm pinned behind your back. That’s impressive. She’ll like that.”

  Chapter 28

  His Girl Lillian

  Sam leaned against the bar set up in Origin’s twenty-seventh-floor double-level common area. He counted two trolls, four superheroes, six or seven cartoon characters, and Santa Claus mingling amongst a sea of tuxes and evening gowns. Another sip of bourbon and he spotted one more Santa dancing with what appeared to be a vampire, fake blood dripping down her chin.

  Regardless of the attire or lack of cohesive theme, this year’s Origin Christmas Party appeared to be a massive success. The DJ kept the dance floor packed with a perfectly coordinated set list of new and old hits. Everyone had a drink in their hand and a smile on their face. Nearly everyone . . .

  Sam turned around to concentrate on the outstanding view of Port Bristol through the common area’s thirty-foot-high windows. Christmas lights twinkled all over the city. The headlights of cars crawling through the streets reminded him of currents racing through circuit board traces. Down on the right, the docks stretched along the coastline and nearly out of sight around Fletcher Point further north.

  Port Bristol glowed warmly, despite the movement of the city council to replace all of the old incandescent bulbs and gas lamps in downtown. Most of the shopkeepers had refused to part with their little pieces of history. Sam didn’t blame them. Not anymore.

  He caught his reflection in the glass and managed a slight smile. He looked impeccable. Tux tailored to perfection. Hair combed and neatly parted like a dapper fifties movie star. Too bad the only person he wanted to impress had yet to show.

  No texts or calls. No word from the limo driver sent to pick Lillian up from her apartment. Sam had a bad feeling, and it had nothing to do with all the bacon-wrapped shrimp he’d eaten before his glass of bourbon.

  “How can you look so bummed when Santa Claus is making out with a vampire ten steps away?”

  Sam glanced over at Ravi, who’d silently sidled up next to him, and then back over his shoulder at the dance floor. “Oh. Yeah. Impressive.” Then he took a better look at Ravi. “Well, that’s sorta black tie, I guess.”

  Beneath a tailored tuxedo jacket, Ravi wore a printed-on tuxedo T-shirt and an LED bow tie slowly cycling through a rainbow of colors. The left pocket of the coat bulged out, and Sam didn’t even have to ask why. Ravi slid his hand down into the pocket, deftly pulled out a chocolate chip cookie, and then took a bite out of it.

  “Nothing illegal about it,” he mumbled, cookie crumbs tumbling out of his mouth.

  “Isn’t the T-shirt a little redundant?”

  Ravi held up a finger and swallowed his mouthful. “It’s ironic. And you know I hate dress shirts with cuff links. Makes my wrists feel—”

  “Like they’re suffocating. Right. I know.” Sam turned back to the window and took another sip of his drink.

  “Where’s Lillian?”

  Sam tugged on his bow tie. “Not coming, I guess. It’s after nine, and no
t even the limo driver will text me back, so she must have changed her mind.”

  A normal friend might have slapped him on the back and said, “Sorry, bro,” or something similarly empathetic. But if normal was a single color, Ravi was an LED rainbow. Sam looked over at him. They stared at one another for a few seconds. Ravi took another bite of his cookie, and twisted his mouth into an uncomfortable frown.

  “You should leave,” he finally said.

  “What? Why?”

  “Because this is a party and you’re bumming everyone out.”

  “Wow, thanks for the sympathy.”

  “Sympathy. Such a human emotion . . . ” Ravi deadpanned. He finally flashed Sam a grin. “Okay. Fine. I’ll simplify this for you—why are you moping around here when you could be moping around Lillian? Get outta here. Go get the girl.”

  Ravi was right. Again. Scary. Ravi’s advice seemed better than Sam drinking himself to death at a Christmas party. He set his glass down on the bar, gave Ravi a well-deserved slap on the back, and then made his way through the crowd. It took a few minutes, between stopping for handshakes and acknowledging slurred congratulations, but Sam eventually made it to the doors and then slipped out of the party.

  He walked toward the elevator at the end of the hallway with a newfound spring in his step. A small spring, but better than nothing. He couldn’t give up on Lillian. No one had the right to stop them from seeing one another. Not Rik. Not Preston. Sam, least of all. If she gave him one more chance, he would give her exactly what she . . .

  The elevator dinged and the doors glided open. Sam stopped in his tracks, frozen in place by a stunning flash of red that sent his heart rate into hyperdrive. The star of his show had finally arrived.

  Lillian smiled as she walked toward him. Sam wanted to smile back, but his numb face refused to work. His eyes traced the line of her garnet red mermaid dress, from the glittering neckline where the rounded flesh at the top of her breasts peeked out, down to the curve of her hips beneath the skintight fabric. The flared bottom billowed down around her feet and made her look like a sexy angel on a crimson cloud.

  She approached slowly, and he thanked God for it. Gave his eyes the extra time to enjoy the trip back up. Excitement coursed through him. Hard again. Naturally. And no table to hide it. His pulse quickened, matching the rapid, heavy bass of dance music echoing down the hallway. The flash of a diamond pendant drew his attention to the soft skin of her neck and reminded him of how smooth she felt against his lips.

  Time stopped. Lillian didn’t. In seconds, she stood only inches away. Her eyes, shaded and seductively smoky, looked straight into his. Her plump red lips glistened in the low light, sultry and slightly sinister like something out of a dark fairy tale. His knees got a little shaky as he took in every detail.

  “Sam,” she said, a sexy little grin curling the corner of her gorgeous mouth.

  A few long seconds of silence passed. Awkward seconds deserving of a response. But Sam couldn’t stop staring long enough to think. At least not until he realized his head was slowly tilting to the side, mimicking Lillian’s. Her grin faded into a slight frown. Seductive eyes narrowed. Sam righted his head and coughed.

  “Yeah.”

  A perfectly arched eyebrow rose slightly. “Did you think I’d decided not to show?”

  Big gulp. “Yeah.”

  “Sorry. I learned something new about my little sister this evening—not only is she an incredibly talented makeup artist, but she’s also a sadist. Took a bit longer than expected but, here I am. Poked and prodded to within an inch of my life,” Lillian said with a smile.

  Hard swallow. “Yeah.”

  For fuck’s sake, say something else!

  Her smile grew strained, and her eyes darted down. “Thanks for the lift.”

  “What?”

  Good. A new word. Very good.

  “Didn’t you send the limo?”

  “Yeah.”

  She stared at him for a second and then shook her head. “Okaaaaay. Well, from the sound of things the party is going well, and I’m here to have some fun so . . . Good talk, Sam.”

  She started past him, gliding by like her feet didn’t touch the ground. Sheer panic jolted him, a gripping pain shooting to top of his head. Instinctively, he stepped in her way, and then forced himself to speak coherently to keep her from leaving.

  “I . . . Uh . . . You know, I mean . . . ”

  Semi-coherently.

  “God, Lillian,” Sam whispered. Finally, he kicked himself in the brain to jumpstart things. “My whole world was silver-screen, and then you walked in and colorized it. You are absolutely stunning.”

  To tell a beautiful woman the obvious was never a mistake. Lillian beamed and blushed. Her gaze darted back down to the floor. “Thanks.”

  “No. Thank you,” Sam said, placing his fingers beneath her chin and tilting her face back up to him. “Thank you for giving me another chance. I’ve made changes. Big changes. You are my number one priority. I want this—us—to work out in the long run.”

  “Sam, I came here tonight to have a good time. It doesn’t have to be anything more.”

  “I want more. I want more of the good and none of the bad. No more games. No more double life. No more off-season because there’s only one season for me and that’s Lillian season . . . ”

  Jeez, I’m making a fricassee out of this. Gotta shut up and be vewy, vewy quiet . . .

  Sam had to make his move. He slid his hands around her waist, resting them on the small of her back—he loved that spot. Then he pulled her against him. Lillian reached up and interlocked her fingers at the nape of his neck. She pulled him down to her, and they kissed. Heat and longing sent shivers down Sam’s spine. The woman had him wrapped around her finger. And any other body part she wanted.

  He broke away and placed his fingers on her face, tracing her bottom lip with his thumb. “I’ve spent every day since we met trying to do what everyone said was the right thing. Back off. Keep my distance. I’ve failed pretty miserably, and there’s a reason—I need you like air, Lillian. Where we go from here is up to you, but if you want to be with me, then I won’t let Origin or Preston Lavery or anything else keep us apart.”

  Sam held his breath until it burned in his lungs. Finally, Lillian smiled and placed her hand on his cheek. “I quit Mythos. It was the right thing to do. Preston isn’t an issue anymore, so let’s have some fun. Be my date.” She dragged her finger from his chin to his neck, and then down his shirt to his belt buckle. She gave it a tug. “Show me a good time, and you might get lucky later.”

  He got pretty lucky right off the bat. They made out like teenagers in the hallway for more than a few minutes, and then headed back to the party. The doors opened. Everyone stared. Photographers swarmed. The crowd parted like the Red Sea as Sam led Lillian onto the dance floor.

  He took Lillian’s hand, stepped back, and then spun her in a circle. She glided into his arms with the loveliest, most contented laugh. Sam looked into those shining eyes and had never been so happy. It was their moment. The spotlight hit them. Then someone started clapping.

  “Slow clap, everybody,” Ravi ordered the room. “Slow clap.”

  It started slow. Then it erupted into thunderous applause. Lillian blushed every shade of red on the spectrum, but nothing wiped that dazzling smile from her face. Sam gave her another kiss, slow and deep and almost impossible to stop. Everyone cheered.

  The music picked back up, and the party kicked off once again. Even Rik and Emily gyrating next to them to an EDM-remix of “Silent Night” didn’t dampen the mood. Sam held Lillian in his arms and refused to let her out of his sight. They danced and laughed until nearly three in the morning, when the party had all but died and most of the guests had gone home.

  As they swayed on the empty dance floor,
Sam smiled and asked, “Have you had a good time?”

  She gave him another sexy grin. “Yes.”

  “Didn’t you mention something earlier about good times and getting lucky?”

  Lillian started untying Sam’s bow tie. “I believe I did. You and I have unfinished business from the other night. Don’t you think it’s time we settled it?”

  Chapter 29

  Hot Cocoa on a Cold Winter Night

  Sam had her out of Origin and sitting in a limo so fast Lillian’s head spun. The man had experience whisking women away from parties, but she had the forethought to raise the privacy glass. The second it slid up and closed, they made out like their lives depended on it.

  It’s like Speed. But with tongues instead of buses.

  Sam’s hand found the slit in her dress. His fingers wiggled up through it while she unbuttoned half of his dress shirt. If the limo hadn’t made excellent time in getting to Sam’s apartment on Charlotte Street, Lillian would have stripped him down and had him begging for mercy in the back seat.

  Less than fifteen minutes later they stood in Sam’s sleek apartment. White and glass everything. Perfectly clean and modern and feng shui. So not Sam. Not her either. Not that it mattered. She had bigger things on her mind.

  As Sam slipped off his coat, Lillian grabbed him by the belt and pulled him to her. He let the coat drop onto the floor, and wrapped his arms around her. While she laughed and fumbled with his belt, his fingers found the zipper on the back of her dress. Ziiiiipppp. Down it went, very slowly. Lillian panicked.

  “Wait!”

  “What?”

  “This is the part where I tell you I’m going to go slip into something more comfortable. There are several layers and . . . Well, women have their secrets. Where’s the bathroom?”