The Fire In My Eyes (30 page)

“Who, me?”

“Yeah, you. I'm going to throw you at the brunette. Surprised you're not going for the redhead. Whatever, just buy her a drink, right? Kev, man, we'll mention our other friend is just holding the table, maybe the redhead will come over and talk to you. We'll tell them you're just shy.” Drew grabbed at Max, but missed.

“I'm coming, don't embarrass me,” Max snapped. He stood up and brushed himself off, then followed in Drew's wake. The two girls looked up as my roommates approached. They were too far away from me to hear what they were saying, but before long, Max pulled a chair over and Drew headed to the bar. He flashed me a quick thumbs up sign out of their line of vision.

I sighed and refilled my glass. I'd go over and join them in a few minutes so I didn't have to sit and drink by myself in a booth like a common drunkard.

He stepped up to the bar just as the redhead walked back to the table. She paused before sitting down and I could see Max talking to her, probably introducing himself. He must have mentioned me, because all three girls looked at me. I froze and my face burned. I looked deeply into my beer and wondered if I could drown myself in it.

The redhead stood up. She looked in my direction, then drifted around the tables toward me. Her hair was still sparkling whenever she passed beneath a light. She was walking in my direction. I felt my mouth go dry and took a quick drink before she arrived. I couldn't believe it had actually worked. More to the point, what the hell was I going to say to her? What would I tell Nikki?

She paused as she reached the booth. At this distance, I could see that she had a scattering of freckles across her cheeks. Her eyes were a dark green and she was watching me without saying anything. I put the beer down, trying to keep from trembling. “Hi,” I said.

“Hi,” she replied. “Mind if I join you?”

“Not at all,” I said. She sat down across from me and placed her drink on the table. I could smell coffee. “Just coffee?”

She smiled. “Irish coffee. Heavy on the coffee. You?”

“Just this terrible beer my friend ordered,” I said. “Fresh from the cat.”

Her smile grew. “Your friend said you were a little shy. I'm not sure he was telling me the truth.” Her voice was a comfortable alto, her tone a little teasing, a little playful.

I shrugged. “Max exaggerates sometimes.”

“And your other friend?”

“Drew makes Max looks like a paragon of truthfulness. Some sort of paladin.”

She laughed, a carefree laugh that I wanted to hear again. “Max and Drew. And what's your name?”

“Kevin. You?”

“Call me Star.” She folded her hands under her chin and smiled at me. “As dramatic as it sounds, it's just a nickname.”

“I like it,” I said. “Does it refer to your hair sparkling?”

“You noticed?” She looked pleased.

“It's hard not to notice. I like that too.”

“Thank you, Kevin.” She laughed again. “Are you from around here? I don't remember seeing you around here before.”

“No, I'm from Pennsylvania, go to school in New York. We're taking a road trip to Florida over our summer break,” I told her and reached for my drink.

She reached for it as well, brushing my hand out the way. I watched as she raised the glass to her lips. “You're right. This is cat piss. Your friend has no taste.” I chuckled and she grinned playfully at me. “Summer break. I see, so you're a college guy? What school do you go to?”

“Ripley University.”

Both eyebrows rose. “Ripley? I've heard of that school. An interesting take on education, isn't it? Special courses for special students?”

“Something like that,” I said, pulling the beer back over to my side of the table and taking a drink. Something in the way she said “special” struck me as strange. Maybe she was making fun of me in some obscure way. “It's a pretty nice place. Some odd things happen there, but I think you can say that about all colleges. What about you?”

She shrugged. “I work. Been working since high school.”

“What do you do?”

“This and that,” she said, waving her hand dismissively. “Odd jobs. I'm saving money so I can go to school like you are.”

“You could always get a loan,” I said.

“I don't like being in debt,” she said, then looked over at her friends. “Did you know that tonight is karaoke night?”

“No, we're just passing through,” I said. “Are you going to sing?”

“Of course,” she said. “Would you like to sing with me?”

I shook my head. “You don't want to hear me sing. Really. I'd love to, but I think people would start tossing barstools at me.”

She laughed. “I doubt it. Your voice is strong. If you're not a singer, that's fine. How about dancing? Will you dance with me?”

I looked toward the center of the floor. One of the bartenders was moving some of the tables out of the way, while the other was setting up a portable karaoke machine between orders. “I'm not that great a dancer, either.”

She stared at me and both eyebrows shot up again. “Don't sing, don't dance. What do you do for fun, Kevin? Maybe you are as shy as your friend said.”

“It's not that I'm shy,” I said. “I just have a girlfriend back at school.”

Idiot. I bit my tongue and waited for her to cool off and walk away. I didn't expect her to laugh. “So?” she asked after catching her breath. “I don't see you as the seductive player type. You're not going to betray her so easily. I can tell. But, she doesn't know you're here, does she?”

I sighed and looked down at the table. “I didn't tell her that I was going to Florida until just last night. She didn't take it too well. I think she's pretty angry with me.”

Star's hand walked across the table and covered mine. “Sorry. I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories. But you haven't answered my question. Will you dance with me? Maybe it'll take your mind off your girl.” She laughed again. “Just so you know, I plan on dancing well enough to take your mind off everything but me. What do you say? Last chance!”

“Sure,” I said. “But I’m serious about being a bad dancer. I don't want your broken feet to come as a complete surprise.” I grinned in spite of myself. I had never had a girl flirt so openly with me, let alone one as gorgeous as Star. I did need to get my mind off Nikki. She wasn't here and I was just going to have some fun. I wasn't going to be trying to seduce anyone. We were just going to dance. How could I say no?

She stood up, pushing her drink toward me. “Good. I'll be back for that. Go ahead and try it if you want. I always get the first song of the night. People think I've got a nice voice for some reason.” She grinned at me and sauntered away. I watched her walk up to the bar and chat with the bartender, then glance over at me. I picked up her drink and took a sip as she watched. Her lips curved into another playful smile.

It took another few minutes for the bartenders to finish setting up, transforming the place from a dive to a low-key club. When they were ready, they handed Star the microphone right away. The entire bar went silent. She had to be the one the agent was looking for. The song started playing and I recognized the tune as a ballad from a few years ago. Her singing voice was powerful and pitched perfectly, a little deeper than the original singer, but sounding even better than the song I remembered. When she finished, she was breathing deeply, then took a bow with a flourish. Applause rippled through the bar and I joined in.

After she handed off the microphone, she walked back to my table, moving quickly, a little unsteadily. She slid into the seat and breathed in sharply before saying anything. “What did you think?”

“I think you sounded great. You put a lot into it.” She still sounded breathless and her chest was heaving noticeably. She didn't seem to mind my blatant noticing. Gorgeous girl. Nikki was pretty, but Star had a killer figure.

“Thanks. Dance?” Her playful smile was back in full force.

“Are you sure you don't want to catch your breath first?” I asked.

She bounced up out of the booth. “I'm not out of breath. I'm excited. Come on!” She held her hands out to me. Behind her, I saw my roommates getting up, along with the other two girls. They were going to dance too. There was safety in numbers. I wouldn't be the only one to embarrass myself. “Come on!” she repeated.

She wouldn't wait forever. I took her hands and she led me to the dance floor, firmly arranged my arms around her waist, and wrapped her arms around my neck. The next song was another slow ballad. Maybe it was the theme for the night. The singer was nowhere near Star's singing ability, but the music was enough for dancing. Truthfully, silence was all I would have needed to dance with her. She led, not letting my clumsy steps get in the way. At first, she whispered directions as to where she was leading me, but as time passed and I grew more comfortable with how she was moving, she fell silent and we just danced.

Occasionally, I saw Drew or Max and their partners over her shoulder. Drew and the blonde girl were dancing energetically, bouncing around loosely. In contrast, Max and the brunette were very close and quiet, almost stiff, but both of them were smiling. They were having fun too, in a more restrained sort of way.

Star was perfectly relaxed and her carefree manner had me relaxing as well. She tightened her arms around me and pulled me closer. She was just a couple of inches shorter than me. “Hey, Kevin,” she said, just loud enough to be heard over the music. “It's glitter in my shampoo.”

“It's what?”

She laughed. “My hair. It twinkles because of the glitter. It's a pain to wash it all out, but I like the effect.”

“So do I,” I said.

“Are you curious?” she asked.

“About what?”

“The type of shampoo I use. How the glitter gets in there. You know.”

“I've never heard of it before,” I said. “Is it something special?”

“Maybe you'd like to come back to my place and find out firsthand?” she asked, pulling herself even closer to me.

Apparently seduction had been in the cards all along. I took a deep breath before responding. “I'm interested, but I don't know if I should.”

She pulled slightly away to look me in the eye. “Girlfriend?” she asked. I nodded. We hadn't gone very far, just made out a few times. I'd never see this girl again. “I promise I won't tell,” she said.

“I thought you said there wasn't going to be any seducing going on.”

“I said you weren't going to seduce me. I said nothing about me seducing you. I decided you're the type of guy who I want to get to know a little better. Special. You know what I mean?” Her eyes narrowed slightly.

“I think so,” I said. My resistance was waning. There was something just so deliciously straightforward about her. Where Nikki was quiet and coy, Star was making it absolutely clear what she wanted.

She leaned forward and brushed a kiss against my cheek, then traced her lips down the side of my neck. I shivered and reflexively pulled her closer. What she wanted, I wanted too. “Let's get out of here,” she whispered.

“Now?” I asked.

“Now.” She caught the attention of her two friends with a slightly raised hand, then gestured rapidly between herself and me. Her friends both signaled back with flicks of their wrists. It was fascinating to watch, almost like sign language. After a few seconds of flurried hand motions, they both turned back to their partners and Star hauled me toward the door. She was breathing heavily again and smiling very widely. “I'm looking forward to this,” she said as she pushed the door open.

“So am I,” said a completely unexpected voice. The bouncer was sprawled face down across the sidewalk. The agent who had pulled us over a couple of hours ago stepped forward, a broad smile on his face. He folded his sunglasses and placed them in one of the inner pockets of his suit jacket. “I've been looking forward to meeting you for a very long time.”

Star started to say something, but before she could get a word out, the man took a long step forward. I stepped in front of Star and threw my arms out wide before he could reach her. “What do you think you're you doing?” the agent asked. His voice was deathly quiet.

“She's not who you're looking for!” I snapped. “I'm not going to let you take her away.”

“On the contrary, Mr. Parker-”

“On the contrary, Kevin, I am who he's looking for,” Star said from behind me. She gently pushed me aside and stepped up, face to face with the agent. “Tell me, agent, are you going to cockblock me tonight? If you are, I'm going to remove your dick with a butter knife.”

I wasn't sure if I had heard that properly, but I knew that I couldn't let this go. “Look, I don't know if you're really a government agent or what, but she's not any sort of threat. You let her go and I won't call the cops on you as a kidnapper. And assault,” I added, remembering the bouncer who was still laid out on the ground.

“Kevin, I appreciate your stepping in,” she said. “But listen to me. You need to walk away. I'll be fine. Don't worry about me.”

“I'm not going to leave you. This guy isn't what he seems.”

“Your devotion is wonderful, Kevin. Simply wonderful. Your grasp of the blatantly obvious is equally wonderful. If we make it through this, I'll give you a reward. A very nice reward. But you know what? This isn't the time for heroics!” Star grabbed my shoulder and pushed me away. She was far stronger than she looked. When the agent took a step toward me, she interposed herself between the two of us again, reversing who was protecting who. “Run!” she snapped over her shoulder.

I wanted to run. This man, government agent or not, was going to take her away. If I didn't get out of here, he'd probably take me too. That only left two options. Run, or fight. My adrenaline was ramping up, and my power was on the verge of manifesting itself, outside of my control. I forced it down. That was my last resort. If I needed to use it to save her, I would. Adrenaline
was my fuel. Well, adrenaline, testosterone, and a glorious cocktail of other hormones.

“Mr. Parker,” the agent said. “You're consorting with a terrorist. You're giving aid and comfort to the enemy. Don't you know what the penalty for that is?”

“He hasn't actually consorted yet,” Star pointed out.