Читать книгу After Hours - Vicki Thompson Lewis - Страница 7

NO GOOD PROSPECTS. As Eileen Connelly sat in a downtown Phoenix bar soaking up the air-conditioning while waiting for her friends Suz and Courtney, she played what had become her favorite game recently—pretending to troll for cheap sex.

If she had the nerve to proposition a stranger, which she probably didn’t, was there anyone in the vicinity she’d choose? Not tonight there wasn’t. She had her requirements—a rugged physique and dark good looks for starters. Plus he would need to be someone she’d never see again. That was all part of the fantasy.

Adventure, sexual and otherwise, had dominated her thoughts lately. As a little kid she’d had a reckless streak, but her parents had almost divorced when she was ten. After that she’d decided security was more important than adventure. No teenage rebellion for her. She’d gone on to law school, pleasing both parents, and focused on steady career growth. She’d had few relationships with men, and those had been G-rated.

Yet something seemed to have snapped once she’d passed the big three-oh this year. Apparently she’d been good for too long, because suddenly she was deliberately taking risky cases at work and seeking thrills in her spare time. Last month she’d gone white-water rafting, and on Saturday she’d taken a real leap and tried skydiving.

These adventures she could talk about with her friends, but as for sex with a stranger? Forget about it. Despite knowing Suz Clements since junior high and Courtney McRae since their first pre-law class together at ASU, Eileen wasn’t about to reveal her fantasy to them. They were both on the conservative side and would try to talk her out of it.

Courtney came into the bar first, pushing her dark hair away from her face. Last week she’d indulged in a new cut that left her bangs draped over one eye, and she didn’t seem used to the change. “Hi!” She hung her lightweight jacket over the back of a chair, stowed her briefcase under the table and sat down. “Man, it’s hot out there. Ordered yet?”

“Waiting for you.”

Courtney made a face. “I had to stay late. So, you look like you’re still in one piece. Did you jump on Saturday or chicken out?”

“I jumped. It was awesome. Too bad it’s so damned expensive.”

“God, you couldn’t pay me to leap from a plane.”

“I wish they would pay me.” Eileen remembered the adrenaline rush as she’d stepped out of the open door into nothingness. “That would be extremely cool.”

“You’re becoming very nutty.” Courtney said it with a smile that didn’t quite disguise her concern. “I get chills just thinking of you launching yourself into thin air.”

“I was perfectly safe. Listen, the happy-hour special is raspberry margaritas. Let’s get a pitcher for the three of us.”

“Sounds a hell of a lot better than skydiving.”

“That’s because you’ve never tried it.” Eileen signaled a waitress and gave her their order.

“And I never will.” Courtney leaned both arms on the table and shook her head. “I’ll bet Benjamin had a fit, not to mention your parents.”

“Uh, I didn’t tell them.”

“You didn’t tell your parents?”

“Or Benjamin.”

“Ah-ha. So that’s how you got away with it. Well, I can understand not telling your folks and having them freak. I admit they’re overprotective. But you told Benjamin about the rafting, so why not this?”

“Because he didn’t react well to the raft trip, so why stir up trouble?”

Courtney gazed at her. “Shouldn’t he be aware that you’re turning into a daredevil? What’s next, bungee-jumping?”

“Maybe.” Eileen hadn’t decided between that and hang-gliding. “But it doesn’t matter, because once Benjamin and I move in together, I will give up that kind of thing. That’s why I’m getting it out of my system now.”

Courtney looked unconvinced. “I don’t know if it works like that.”

“Sure it does. This is a phase, that’s all. Soon I’ll— Hey, here comes Suz.” She waved at her friend, who was blond like Eileen but wore her hair in a short boyish cut. Eileen had felt extremely lucky when she’d introduced her two buddies to each other ten years ago and they’d hit it off.

The three of them had become a unit during college, and the friendship had lasted through graduation, job hunting and broken hearts. They’d lived together for a while, but then Suz and Courtney had each moved in with boyfriends. Suz was still with hers, but Courtney wasn’t. She hadn’t suggested sharing an apartment with Eileen, though, because everyone expected Eileen to move in with Benjamin when her lease was up.

Eileen expected it, too. Time had flown by, and her parents wanted grandchildren. She was the sole candidate to give them that, which was fine because she’d always envisioned a husband, a home and kids in her future. Ultimately she needed that kind of stability. She just had to get past this thrill-seeking phase of hers first. And sex with a stranger kept nudging its way to the top of her to-do list.

“How’s a pitcher of margaritas sound?” Courtney asked.

“Great.” Suz, an advertising rep for the Arizona Republic, shoved her briefcase under the table to join Courtney’s and Eileen’s. She looked uncharacteristically awkward doing it, using only her right hand and keeping her left in the pocket of her linen slacks.

Courtney hadn’t seemed to notice, but Eileen had her suspicions. She gazed at her friend. “What’s up, Suz?”

Suz looked innocent. “Not much. How was the skydiving?”

“Amazing.” She glanced at Suz’s right hand. “Nice manicure.”

“Thanks,” she said casually. “I like this magenta.” But she only spread out the fingers of her right hand, while keeping her left in her pocket.

“Okay, Suz,” Eileen said, watching her closely. “Spill.”

Suz grinned as she pulled her hand out of her pocket to display a glittering diamond. “Chad proposed!”

Pandemonium erupted at the table as the three friends squealed, embraced and even got a little teary. Suz was the first to become engaged.

“Eileen, you’re next,” Suz said sometime after they’d started in on their second pitcher of margaritas.

“We’ll see.” But Eileen thought so, too. Even though she’d been careful not to promise Benjamin exclusivity, she hadn’t dated anyone else in quite a while. Benjamin wanted her to move in with him. After that, knowing Benjamin and his timetable, the next step would be a proposal. Suz’s engagement brought the concept of marriage a lot closer than it had been an hour ago.

No doubt about it, commitment was closing in on her. As she contemplated a lifetime with Benjamin, she suddenly knew what she had to do. Before she agreed to forsake all others, she wanted the ultimate adventure—sex with the perfect stranger.