Footloose

“Why? I like this,” she protested. “I can keep going.”

“You may not like it when you hit traffic, Magnolia. You’ll be using the clutch a lot more.”

Realization hit her face and she frowned. “In that case, you can have it,” she said and pulled to the side of the road.

He got out of his seat and stretched as he walked to the driver’s side of the car. Amelia stepped from the car and wove on her feet. He shot out his hands to steady her.

“Whoa. What’s up?”

She grinned, exhilaration flooding her face. “That was so cool,” she said.

Her eyes were glazed, her cheeks pink and she was licking her lips. She looked like she’d just had really good sex, he thought, and temptation rushed through him. He wondered how wild he could get her in bed. He might just find out after he’d gotten everything else he wanted from her.

TO EASE HER INTO KEY WEST mode, Jack bought her a margarita at an open bar, where they sat and did some people-watching. Afterward, they strolled through the Audubon House.

“Watches are outlawed down here,” he said, pointing to her wristwatch as she dawdled in the Audubon shop. “But we don’t want to miss the sundown celebration.”

“Okay. I’m just going to get a few of these for my dad. He loves birds,” she said and purchased several postcards.

She joined him in a fast walk to Mallory Square, passing by the sounds of Cuban and rhythm and blues music spilling from the bars. Food stands offered ice cream, drinks and hot dogs. A colorful array of characters filled Mallory Square, including a live tin man statue, a juggler and people hawking everything from hemp bracelets to hair braiding services.

“It’s like a carnival,” she said, doing a double-take when she spotted a guy with dreadlocks down to his hips.

“Yeah,” Jack said. “Definitely not like your boss lady’s genteel home. No cucumber sandwiches here.”

Amelia smiled at his comparison. “She might be tough on the surface, but I think there’s more to her than the grande dame.”

“What makes you say that?”

“A few things she’s said. I won’t deny that she expects a certain performance level and good manners, but if you pass muster, I get the impression she can be a caring person.”

“Madame Bellagio—caring?” he repeated in disbelief.

“You shouldn’t be so prejudiced. Lillian really misses her son and hardly ever gets to see him. She doesn’t want to intrude in his life, but I can tell that it hurts her that he lives so far away and visits her so rarely. Just because she’s wealthy and she married one of the founders of one of the most successful shoe companies doesn’t mean she’s totally snooty.”

“It doesn’t?” he said, clearly fighting a grin as he rubbed his index finger over the edge of her nose.

“No, it doesn’t. Haven’t you heard that everyone is like a rainbow? More than one color? Some colors stronger than others?”

“No,” he said. “Did you learn that in Sunday School or Girl Scouts?”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh, forget it. You’re impossible.”

“Impossible, but accurate,” he said, slipping his hand around her elbow and guiding her toward the wrought iron fence at the edge of the Square. “Front row is standing room only, but it’s worth it.”

Leaning against the tall fence, she silently watched the orange ball of the sun dip below the horizon. She sighed at the beauty. “That was lovely,” she said, glancing at Jack. “Thank you.”

“There’s a custom,” he told her. “It’s like New Year’s Eve at midnight. You’re supposed to kiss at sundown.”

Quickly glancing around, she observed that no one else was kissing. She shot him a suspicious look. “And you also own some swamp land you’ll sell me at a discount?”

He laughed. “Had to try.” He circled her wrist with his thumb and forefinger. “Come on, Magnolia. Let’s see if we can work off some of your tension.”

“I didn’t say I was tense.”

“Trust me, babe, your body is screaming it.”

She scowled at him. “I’m dressed in very casual, beachy attire.”

“But your panties are in such a twist you can barely walk.”

She felt her cheeks heat. “That’s not nice.”

“It’s not terminal,” he assured her and guided her into a bar. “What would you like?”

“I’ve already had a margarita,” she said, her internal caution light blinking on at the devil in Jack’s eyes.

“Then how about lemonade?” he asked. “I don’t need help from alcohol to turn you upside down.”

She opened her mouth in surprise, but couldn’t think of a reply. His expression took her breath away. “Lemonade,” she finally managed, much more breathlessly than she would have preferred.

He ordered two and they listened to the Lynrd Skynrd–style band for a while then got up to explore more. People from a jam-packed bar spilled into the street. She heard screams and catcalls. “What’s going on?”

“This may be too much for you,” Jack said.

She frowned at him. “Too much?” she echoed and walked to the edge of the crowd. Inside the bar, five well-endowed young women were sprayed with water, turning their T-shirts to transparent strips of cotton.

“I warned you,” Jack said and covered her eyes.

Morbidly curious, she brushed his hands away and stared at the spectacle. “Do they really not care that everyone can see…”

“Apparently not,” Jack said.

“We have a winner!” a man joining the women on the table called out. He lifted the buxom brunette’s hand. “Sidney from Maryland!”

“Sidney,” Amelia echoed, bitterness rising from the back of her throat as she recalled the name of the woman Will had left her for.

“You know her?” Jack asked in surprise.

“No,” she said, shaking her head, wanting to brush off her sudden heavy feelings of inadequacy and discontent. “I think I want that margarita now. Is there another bar around here?”

“Only about thirty. You gonna tell me what this is about?”

“It’s nothing. Can’t a girl have a margarita?” she asked, meeting his gaze.

“Yeah,” he said. “Except you’re a terrible liar.”

“Does that mean I should practice?”