The Arrangement Anthology 1(39)
“That’s not it.” I breathe. He’s an inch from my lips. That tugging consumes me. I want to close the distance and press my mouth to his, but I don’t.
“Then what is it?” he replies softly.
I’m quiet for a moment. I’ve forgotten what I’m talking about. His eyes are so beautiful. The curve of those lips is hypnotic. No wonder why I can’t think around him. I find my brain and tell him. “That seat belt only buckles. It’s doesn’t unbuckle.”
Sean grins wolfishly, like he just deflowered an entire flock of virgins and I’m next. “I guess I’m going with you, then.”
Shaking my head at his tenacity, I start the car. It lurches out of the parking spot and I get onto the road. Sean reaches for the heater. I tell him not to, but it’s too late. A puff of white smoke shoots out of the vents. Reaching for the switch, I flip it off. “Don’t touch anything.”
“There’s no heater?” he balks, but when he glances at me, he looks concerned. “Why aren’t you ever wearing a coat?”
“Because I don’t have one. They’re expensive and it seemed like a waste of money. When it’s really cold out, I have a sweater I can wear.”
“You mean that other oversized ball of yarn I saw you wearing?” I nod. His eyes flick to the window, where it’s cracked open next to my head, blasting me with cold air. “Why are you still driving this thing? It’s a death trap.”
I shoot him an evil look. “Seriously? You’re asking me why I’m driving a shitty car? Because, I don’t have eight grand to blow whenever I want. I can barely keep this thing running as it is.” There must be something about the way I say it, because Sean doesn’t press me. Instead the topic shifts to him.
Sean’s fingers are at the top of the window, and he looks outside and up at the sky. “I haven’t been here at this time of year in a long time. I forgot how much I like it. The air smells like snow.” He gives me a half smile and asks, “Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.” I drive into a park. It’s past dark and there aren’t many lights along the road once we’re inside.
Sean looks around and says, “If I wasn’t stuck in my seat, I’d be worried you were going to hack me up and leave me in the woods.”
Grinning, I reply, “I have to get you out of the seatbelt somehow.”
“You’re a little twisted, you know that?”
“Oh, and you aren’t?”
“I never said that.” Sean gives me a look and shakes his head.
“What then?” I say, driving past the building I was looking for. There are a few cars in the parking lot. I drive around back and stop the car. It shudders and dies.
“You surprise me, that’s all.” Sean looks around and asks, “Where are we?”
“At the skating rink.” I get out of the car and walk around to his side. I yank open the door to find him trying to free himself from the seat. “I’ll get it. Wait a second.” I flip open the glove box and grab a screwdriver. I lean across his lap and shove the screwdriver into the buckle. I can feel Sean’s breath on my cheek. His scent fills my head as I jiggle the screwdriver and the buckle comes free. “There.” Sean’s gaze is intense, like I just did something so sexy that he’s going to die. The way he looks at me, makes every nerve in my body feel like it’s strung tight. I want to scream in giddy excitement and laugh.
“Thanks,” Sean says, his voice a little too husky. I turn and walk away from the car. Sean steps out of the old car and slams the door. “What are we—?” he asks but doesn’t have a chance to finish before getting hit in the face with a snowball.
I laugh hysterically, standing next to the enormous pile of ice shavings from the rink. After they fix the ice, all the shavings are dumped out back to melt. It’s the funniest thing to grab some snow and hurl a snowball at someone when it’s summer. Since it’s cold outside, there is a lot more than normal because it hasn’t melted yet, but still—Sean doesn’t expect it. The look on his face is priceless.
Sean turns toward me in slow motion, his eyes taking in the pile of snow. “You took me here to have a snowball fight?”
I nod. “Well, I can’t exactly take my chastity belt off for just anyone. You have to earn it, man.”
“I thought I bought it,” he says, walking slowly toward the pile of snow. It’s taller than both of us. It looks like the huge snow piles you see in parking lots after the plows push all the snow aside.