Love and Lies (9 page)

CHAPTER
FOURTEEN

For the concert
, I chose a pink silk-cotton blend miniskirt with a wide black belt at the waist and a white cotton shirt with a scoop neck. The outfit looked damn good, but my hair was a mess. I had my own style...trendy with a little bit of nostalgia. Tonight, I wanted that with my hair.

“What am I going to do with this mop?” I yelled at the mirror, tugging at the disaster on my head as if it would magically fix itself.

A knock on the door pulled me away from hair meltdown.
“Who is it, and what do you want?”

“
It's your lover, now let me in or I'll kick down your door.” The sugary voice from the other side of the door had me laughing, a distraction only Alec could provide.

“
My lover, huh?” I opened the door to allow him in. Alec followed behind me to my room and took a seat on my bed. I performed a quick assessment of his clothes. “My lovers don't wear Dolce to an outdoor concert.”

“
Oh, but honey, Dolce is the only way to go.”

“
I guess you'll suffice for the night. Now help me fix my hair.” I tugged his arm and pulled him off the bed.

Alec was the best hair stylist I knew. Once, while we were getting ready for a play
, he admitted to considering stylist as his future career, but said he changed his mind since all the guys were too whiney and needy for him. He didn't want to get mixed up in all the drama. When he said “drama”, he threw his voice up an octave or two, pushed his hip out, and waved his hand in the air. It was a comical sight that stuck with me. Since my hair went frizzy if I didn't do something with it, I always called on Alec to help me for big events.

A quick wash, dry, and lots of product later
, he finished with my hair. He’d managed to weave the unruly strands into a cascading braid that looked amazing. I was ready to meet Eric for dinner.

“
Have fun, baby girl. Oh, and Sean said he'd come with us. Sorry I forgot to let you know.”

“
No problem. I'm glad he's coming. You need someone to play with since I'll be occupied with good music.”

Sean was Alec's current boy toy.
The guy changed dates like I changed shoes, so it was a pretty good bet they wouldn't stay together long. I asked him once why he didn't stick around when it came to relationships. He said he couldn't deal with all the check-ins and monogamy a long-term relationship required. Until recently, we’d agreed on that. Eric was making me change my mind on the whole relationship thing though. Long-term still frightened me, but for Eric, I thought I might be willing to give it a try.

Tonight
, I wanted Alec to have as much fun as I planned to have. Since both Eric and Logan were going, I didn't want to risk Alec being left out. For purely selfish reasons, I knew when Eric and Logan became too much Alec and Sean would keep me happy and enjoying the evening.

“
That's cool. I'll see you guys in a little while. Don't forget we're meeting at the diner at seven.” I said while I stood on my toes and kissed his cheek.

“
Oh, actually Sean and I are going early. You and Eric are going with Logan.” He smirked and winked at me. “Enjoy.”

“
Thanks,” I murmured as he sauntered out of my room.

Five minutes hadn't passed
before Eric knocked on my door.

I checked the
peephole to be sure it was him, then swung the door open wide. With an exaggerated bow, I swept my arm in invitation. “Carissa's House of Hotties. How may I be of service, sir?”

“
Hmm…House of Hotties, not sure I like that.”

“
Too bad. Alec just left, and now you're here. What else would I call it?”

Eric rubbed his chin in thought. I took advantage of his silence and studied him. He'd worn faded blue jeans with a black retro
New Orleans Saints shirt. It fit snug across his shoulders and tight around his well defined arms. For a dancer, he was much larger than one would expect. But it was necessary for him to keep up his strength in order to do a lot of the moves and lifts. Some of them required more upper body strength than a football player. He’d finally invited me to one of his rehearsals on Wednesday. Watching him was like watching poetry in motion, he was so graceful and sure when he got on a dance floor. One of these days, we'd have to go out to a club and show off. But not tonight.

“
You could call it ‘your place’, since that's what it is.”

“
Boring. Try again.” I waved Eric off and went to my room to grab my purse off the bed. I'd paired my outfit with a small pink shoulder bag. It held only the bare essentials. I'd use Eric to hold any souvenirs I bought at the concert.

When I came back to the living room,
he still stood by the door, but now he leaned against the wall with his arms across his chest. His left foot crossed over his right, showing off just how comfortable he was. So protective, yet all I wanted to do was hug him close like a big teddy bear.

How lucky was I that Eric was interested in me? Even after I'd gone a little crazy around him and pushed him away. Relationships didn't have nine lives like cats
; it would do me good to remember that and not screw up again.

I walked to him and reached for the door, but he stopped me with a hand around my waist. Eric
hauled me close to his body. His lips slowly lowered to mine, giving me a chance to pull away if I wanted to. But I didn't. What I wanted, needed, was to kiss him. To know that he really had forgiven me for my outburst. Confirmation that he wasn't running.

Our lips touched
, and the spark that I was coming to depend on a lot faster than I’d like, rocked through my bones. Excitement coursed through me, and I almost pulled away to jump and scream my joy.

When Eric pulled back
, we stared at each other for a minute. A smile spread across his face. All I needed to know reflected in his eyes. We were okay. Now it was time to enjoy my birthday dinner and then the concert.

“
No need to call it anything. You, gorgeous, are coming to dinner with me. Your House of Hotties is going to be empty.”

“
Where are we going?”

“
Your choice. I was going to arrange a surprise dinner, but it's your birthday after all.”

That was an easy choice. We were going to my favorite restaurant, Coop's Place. Eric didn't argue or try to change my mind. He led me to the car by my arm
, and we headed off. The perfect beginning to what I hoped would be a perfect night.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

The concert was
at City Park with the main stage set up to look over the lagoon. Logan, Eric, and I met up at the diner then drove the ten minutes it took to get there in silence. The ride was just as awkward as I expected. Eric and I had a great time at dinner, and I didn't want to ruin the mood. It probably would have been better to not spend time with the two of them alone, knowing that Logan liked me. But it didn't seem fair for Logan to go by himself, when he was the one who’d scored the tickets for us.

Sean and Alec stood at the front
, waiting for us to meet up with them. As soon as Alec found me, he dashed across the lot, pulling Sean along behind him, and caught me up in a crushing hug. You'd have thought we hadn't seen each other in months, when in reality it had only been a few hours. That boy was crazy, but I loved him too much to care. Logan made it through the makeshift gates and headed for the stage.

Alec pulled me to the side after we all went through.
“What did you do, baby girl?”

I huffed and planted my hands on my hips. He was not going to accuse me of causing problems.
“Why would you assume I did something?”

“
Well let's see, you went to dinner with your boyfriend then rode over here with him and the guy who you know has a major crush on you.”

“
What else was I supposed to do? I couldn't ditch Eric. Logan got me the tickets, so it would be rude for me to ask him to come alone. Besides, you’re the one who set all this up. Not me. I was going to come with Eric by myself. “

“
I know. I know. That was my mistake. Too selfish for my own good, I guess. Sorry about that, baby girl. Let's see if we can smooth things over.”

“
Whatever you say.”

Alec and I returned to Eric and Sean then wound our way through the crowd to find Logan. The best way to keep everyone happy was for me to bring them al
l together. After a few minutes, we found Logan at the railing in front of the stage. His hands were shoved into his pockets, and he was watching the opening band warm-up. I snuck up behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist. “Come back here with us.”

“
And interrupt your date? No way. I'm not ruining your night.”

“
Logan, this isn't a date for me and Eric. That's what dinner was for. This is my closest friends celebrating my birthday. You are one of them, so you have to hang out with me.”

“
But...”

I held up my hand to stop him.
“No arguments. Come on.”

Logan didn't have a chance to say anything or pull away from me. I grabbed ahold of his belt loops and pulled him back. He either had to turn around and follow us or fall on his ass.

Sage was the headliner, so I wasn't too worried about getting close to the stage until then. I dragged the guys around to each of the vendors, shopping for T-shirts and CDs, and bought at least one album from each artist. Then we stood in the autograph line to get them all signed. By the time we finished, I'd waited too long to go to the front, and the guys wanted to rest their feet. We found a place on the edge of the grassy area to sit and watch until the crowd thinned and we could worm our way to the front. I sat between Logan and Eric, leaning back on my hands, my legs stretched out. “This is awesome. Thank you.”

Eric harrumphed and glared at Logan.

“What?” I demanded.

“
Nothing at all, just taking in the sights. Did you enjoy dinner?”

“
You know I did. Now quit acting like this.”

“
I'm not acting like anything,” Eric retorted.

I shook my head and turned away from him. I didn't want to deal with him acting like a child. If he wanted to pull the jealousy card
, then he could spend the night alone. “Lose the jealous routine. Green doesn't do anything for you.”

Sage
strutted on stage, and Alec jumped up to dance. When Alec did a bootie shake that would put most girls to shame, Sean, Logan, and I burst into laughter while Eric sat with his head tilted to the sky.

“
Alec, hun, your gay is showing. Put it away please.” I looked up at him and smiled.

“
No way. I'm so not going to miss out on this opportunity. I need someone to dance with. Get your cute little butt up here with me.” Alec reached for my hand.

I shook my head.
“I'm having fun watching you.” I looked to Sean. “Get him to dance with you, that's why you brought him, isn't it?”

Sean looked in my direction, his eyes wide with terror.

“And if he doesn't want to, I'm sure there's a whole crowd of people out there just waiting to dance with a hottie like you.”

“I can't argue with that. But, I'd rather not go into the sweat-fest going on down there.” Alec looked toward the main stage where thousands of people gathered grinding against each other. He moved to sit on Logan's lap.

“
Whoa tiger, slow down. You're barking up the wrong tree here. Go sit on your boy's lap.” Logan pushed Alec away.

“
I'm gonna go get a drink and head closer. You guys coming?” Eric asked.

I shivered and rubbed my arms as a slight breeze blew through the park. The temperature
had dropped after the sun set, and I'd forgotten my sweater.

When I stood
, Eric wrapped his arm around my waist to pull me in close. He quickly rubbed his hand up and down my arm to warm me up. “You cold?”

“
Yeah, a little. Maybe they have some hot chocolate.” I chuckled, knowing there wouldn't be hot chocolate anywhere around. This was a concert not a campfire.

We got our drinks and headed to the middle of the crowd. Alec finally talked me into dancing
, and I tugged Eric along. Logan quickly found a girl to dance with, but his face was still grim as he watched me with Eric.

I heard Alec and Sean talking a few feet away from Eric and I.

“Look at Logan rockin' out. Who knew he could dance like that? The guy's got some moves. Look at the way he's spinning that chick. She's eating it up,” Sean commented.

Alec looked at Sean with his eyes wide, followed by a look of appraisal.
“You ready to get those sexy jeans dirty?”

Sean look
ed around the park then at Alec. “What do you mean? Oh, no way. I'm not dancing.”

“
And keep that sexy away from everyone? I think not.”

“
I guess it wouldn't hurt to dance a song or two.”

A wide grin spread across my face. Eric tilted his chin to look at me.
“What's made you so happy?”

“
I was just listening to Alec and Sean. They're too cute.” I wiggled my hips and swayed my arms above my head in time with the music. Eric tugged me to his chest, my back pressed to his front. We danced like that through a song and a half before he said anything else.

“I’m sure they’re happy.” Eric
kissed the crook of my neck. I'd do just about anything to have his mouth on my skin. Every time his touch heated my body better than a strike of lightning.

“
Sean is the first one I would consider an actual boyfriend. But don't say that to Alec. He'll go psycho bitch on you.”

“Okay. I won't say anything.” The song switched to a slower tune. I burrowed closer to Eric, turning in his arms so I could lay my head on his shoulder. It was nice being close to him.

He
leaned down close to my ear. “You look hot tonight. Why do you stick around with all of us?”

“
Because I can.” I shifted out of his hold. I bent my head back and pointed up. “Look...fireworks.”

“
Fireworks? They weren't supposed to have fireworks,” Logan murmured. He had ditched the girl at some point and made it over to the four of us.

“
Well, then I guess it's a surprise ending.” I looked back at him as the fireworks lit up his eyes. Logan turned his head to an angle, our faces nearly touching.

Eric hugged me tighter. Then slid his fingers down the side of my face. His touch
ignited flutters in my stomach, and I gasped.

“
Carissa...I, well…” He didn't finish talking. Instead, he wrapped his hand around the back of my neck and pulled me closer.

The sound of a throat clearing broke the ice that held me in place. I jerked away from Eric and stuck my tongue out at Alec.

“If you two are done, I'd like to get a shirt or something before we go.” Alec stood behind me, his hands in his pockets. Behind him was Sean, pressed back to chest, his hands rested on Alec’s shoulders.

“
Yeah, can we go?” Logan took off toward the vendors selling T-shirts. I caught a glint of sadness in his eyes before he turned around.

“
What was that about?” Alec grunted.

“
As if you couldn’t figure it out.” I wound my arm around Alec’s waist.

While the guys waited in line to purchase their shirts
, I walked across the park in search of peace and quiet. A small stone footbridge crossed over the lagoon off to the side of the concert area. Standing in the middle of it, I looked into the depths of the murky water. Far enough away from the crowds, I could hear the night sounds: locust singing to each other, frogs croaking, and water swishing as fish and other creatures swam downstream. Time passed slowly while I waited for the guys to come back to me. My feet hurt from the heels, so I sat down with my back against the cold stone and closed my eyes.

“
Princess, it's time to go home.”

I smiled at the voice in my ear.
“Not yet. I'm too tired.” I mumbled, still asleep. I readjusted, and tingles shot up my leg. “Ow.” My foot had fallen asleep as well, and now it felt like tiny little ants were crawling all over me.

When I lifted my head
, Eric was squatting in front of me, his hands on my shoulders. “Are you going to be ok walking back to the car?” he asked.

“
Yeah, I'll be fine.” I tried to reassure him, but as soon as I stood, I wobbled. Logan took my elbow to steady me and narrowed his eyes in a look of disbelief. At the same time, Eric looped his arm through mine. One on each side, they walked me back to the car.

“
She okay?” Sean asked.

“She's just tired.” Alec shrugged his shoulders walking faster to catch up to with us.

*
* * *

As soon as we piled in the car I gave way to the tug of sleep. The drive from the city back to home was long enough for me to take a catnap. Eric kept his hand on my thigh the whole time. A soft stroke across my cheek awoke me, and I looked out the windshield to see the front of my apartment building. Eric had come to my side of the car and squatted down next to me, the door still open
, letting in a cool breeze.

“Come on, princess. Let’s get you to bed.” He stepped back to give me room, but as soon as I stood
, he lifted me into his arms, shut the car door, then carried me up to my apartment.

“You don’t have to carry me, Eric. I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

Eric smacked the top of my thigh. “Hush. I want to carry you. Tonight was more fun than I’ve had in years, I’m glad I found you, Carissa.”

My head became to
o heavy to hold up, so I rested it on his shoulder, nuzzling against his neck. “Mmm. Thank you for coming with me. I think it was the best birthday ever.”

We didn’t say anything else until we stood in front of the door. Eric knocked
, and I said a silent prayer that Annabelle was home. I didn’t want him to put me down to search for my keys. Being in his arms, held close, protected but not smothered, I began to understand how good it could feel. It would be easy to fall in love with someone like Eric.

Fortunately, my roommate was home and opened the door for us. Eric nodded a greeting as he moved past Annabelle headed straight to my room. I puzzled over the thought of love, and realized that I wasn’t scared of it. Eric had an effect on more than my body. He scrambled my thoughts, made me believe I could have love without feeling smothered or ending up like my parents.

He pulled the covers back on my bed, laid me down, and touched my forehead with his lips before leaving. The last words I heard were his whispered, “Good night, princess.”