someone who could be the enemy in disguise. He was steadily disarming me with his charms. How clever! I couldnât keep my eyes off him for a second.
âNia, hi,â he said.
I passed him by without so much as a smile. My eyes told of my disapproval and suspicion. Or, at least, I thought they did. Itâs like you always think youâre giving signals to guys, but you never really know how theyâll interpret them.
Next thing I knew, his hand was on my arm, pulling me back to him. He had let go of Carolinaâs hand to come question me.
âNow that youâre fancy, you donât know me?â Before I could answer, he put his lips to my ear. âYou play a good game, but youâre still not at checkmate. Iâm feelinâ the dress, pretty lady,â he said.
âDo you like the dress?â
My black stretch, strapless cotton dress that ended just about three inches above my knees was doing its job then. So he thought this was like playing a game of chess. And what wouldâve been the prize if I won? Him? I leaned close to his face and rocked my head slightly to the left then the right as if I was looking for the best way to kiss him. If he was going to go all romantic comedy on me, I had to step up to the plate. Then, just when he leaned into me, I turned my face and let him kiss my cheek.
âYou can look, but you canât touch. You might be at check, but you havenât won the game yet.â I turned on my heel, knowing he would watch me all the way to the door. Who was running the pranks now? As soon as I hit the door, I remembered just how obnoxiously loud these parties could be. My ears would be ringing for days thanks to the huge speakers bumping club tracks with mad bass.
I turned to the shamelessly enormous great room, I think thatâs what these folks call their second living rooms these daysâor at least thatâs what my mom says. Inside the great room, every girl within 100 feet looked at me out of the corner of her eye and whispered something to the girl next to her. This bunch was discreet. I spotted Cindy sitting on Peterâs lap, laughing loudly near the picturesque ocean view. She was cuddling him close; for a second, they looked like a couple.
She always knew what to do to get a guy eating out of the palm of her hand. And, with her, there was never a moment wasted. It was an exact science. Every move was calculated down to the way she threw her hand across his chest as she laughed at his jokes. Watching Cindy was like getting a lesson in Flirting 101. Anyway, the lesson was over. It was time for me to circulate.
On my way to the punch bowl in the dining room, I passed Lucy and Michelle. By the time I spotted those two hags, I was already on their radar.
âWho cleaned that old dog up?â Lucy asked Michelle.
I was surprised she even had her own lowly insults to throw. For the most part, it seemed like they shared a brain. But lo and behold, this was evidence that Lucy might actually be able to come up with her own thoughts.
âI donât know whether to pet you or give you a treat. Wait, that would be your ownerâs job. Sheâs all yours, Michelle,â I said.
Michelle studied my face intently, hoping that on some freak chance I might submit to her nonverbal aggression. I guess someone told her she was intimidating. Please! I flipped my loosely curled hair over my shoulder and into her face.
Where there was Michelle, Craig wasnât far behind. There he was, carryingâbetter yet, jugglingâtwo of every drink available. What were they doing? Using him for a taste test. He tried tomake eye contact with me. Just to mess with him, I purposely didnât look at him while I walked toward him. And, well, my foot might have mistakenly interrupted his path.
âTimber!â I yelled. With the high, cathedral ceilings in that place, my voice echoed. Everyone in the dining room couldnât take their eyes off
âNia, hi,â he said.
I passed him by without so much as a smile. My eyes told of my disapproval and suspicion. Or, at least, I thought they did. Itâs like you always think youâre giving signals to guys, but you never really know how theyâll interpret them.
Next thing I knew, his hand was on my arm, pulling me back to him. He had let go of Carolinaâs hand to come question me.
âNow that youâre fancy, you donât know me?â Before I could answer, he put his lips to my ear. âYou play a good game, but youâre still not at checkmate. Iâm feelinâ the dress, pretty lady,â he said.
âDo you like the dress?â
My black stretch, strapless cotton dress that ended just about three inches above my knees was doing its job then. So he thought this was like playing a game of chess. And what wouldâve been the prize if I won? Him? I leaned close to his face and rocked my head slightly to the left then the right as if I was looking for the best way to kiss him. If he was going to go all romantic comedy on me, I had to step up to the plate. Then, just when he leaned into me, I turned my face and let him kiss my cheek.
âYou can look, but you canât touch. You might be at check, but you havenât won the game yet.â I turned on my heel, knowing he would watch me all the way to the door. Who was running the pranks now? As soon as I hit the door, I remembered just how obnoxiously loud these parties could be. My ears would be ringing for days thanks to the huge speakers bumping club tracks with mad bass.
I turned to the shamelessly enormous great room, I think thatâs what these folks call their second living rooms these daysâor at least thatâs what my mom says. Inside the great room, every girl within 100 feet looked at me out of the corner of her eye and whispered something to the girl next to her. This bunch was discreet. I spotted Cindy sitting on Peterâs lap, laughing loudly near the picturesque ocean view. She was cuddling him close; for a second, they looked like a couple.
She always knew what to do to get a guy eating out of the palm of her hand. And, with her, there was never a moment wasted. It was an exact science. Every move was calculated down to the way she threw her hand across his chest as she laughed at his jokes. Watching Cindy was like getting a lesson in Flirting 101. Anyway, the lesson was over. It was time for me to circulate.
On my way to the punch bowl in the dining room, I passed Lucy and Michelle. By the time I spotted those two hags, I was already on their radar.
âWho cleaned that old dog up?â Lucy asked Michelle.
I was surprised she even had her own lowly insults to throw. For the most part, it seemed like they shared a brain. But lo and behold, this was evidence that Lucy might actually be able to come up with her own thoughts.
âI donât know whether to pet you or give you a treat. Wait, that would be your ownerâs job. Sheâs all yours, Michelle,â I said.
Michelle studied my face intently, hoping that on some freak chance I might submit to her nonverbal aggression. I guess someone told her she was intimidating. Please! I flipped my loosely curled hair over my shoulder and into her face.
Where there was Michelle, Craig wasnât far behind. There he was, carryingâbetter yet, jugglingâtwo of every drink available. What were they doing? Using him for a taste test. He tried tomake eye contact with me. Just to mess with him, I purposely didnât look at him while I walked toward him. And, well, my foot might have mistakenly interrupted his path.
âTimber!â I yelled. With the high, cathedral ceilings in that place, my voice echoed. Everyone in the dining room couldnât take their eyes off
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