We walked away from the steps into the mostly empty main venue. A few groups of fans still stood around. I got the feeling they were hoping for a glimpse of the band.
"So, where to?" I tried to bite back the smile that wanted to come out as a group of girls stared at us with mouths agape.
"Do you guys need to get a car or anything?" Chase asked.
"No, we cabbed it." I was grateful not to have to worry about moving my car. I was nervous enough as is.
"All right. Let's walk down to King Street then."
"Are you from here?" I asked Chase. I didn't expect the guys to know Charleston at all.
Chase adjusted our hands. "No, but our older brother lives here. That's why we planned to spend the night in town before heading on to Charlotte. Sometimes it's nice to schedule in a decent night's sleep every once in a while."
"You guys have another brother? How did I not know that?" Jade was animated now. At least she had her confidence back.
Len looked at her. "Riley tends to stay away from us, unless of course we're in town. Then he puts us up at his place because he has no choice."
"Are you in town often?" As soon as I asked the words, I regretted them. I probably sounded like I wanted him to be, which would be bad. I was supposed to be the one who didn't even want to see him again.
"Every few months we come through," Chase answered. "Maybe more if I want to be though."
"Oh. Cool." More if he wanted to be? What did that mean?
I slid into a booth at one of the better diners downtown, and Chase slid in next to me. He didn't bother trying to leave the socially acceptable amount of space. He was close enough that his thigh touched mine. I had no room to scoot, so I tried to relax.
He put an arm around me after handing me a menu. "Do you know what you're getting?"
I set aside the menu. "Just a cup of coffee."
"Really? Coffee at eleven o'clock?"
"I can drink caffeine anytime. It never keeps me up."
"Interesting. I'm the same way." He ran his hands through my hair absently.
"What are you getting?"
"Pancakes." He dropped my hair and picked up the menu.
"Just pancakes?"
"What do you mean? That's better than coffee."
"I mean what kind?"
"Oh. Is there a type you'd like me to order? Maybe so you can steal a bite or two?"
I glanced across the table, but Jade seemed completely fixated on what Len was saying. I was glad neither of us had anything to drink earlier. At least we didn't need to worry about making drunken decisions-been there, done that.
I leaned into him slightly. "If you get chocolate chip, I might take a bite."
"Chocolate? You have a sweet tooth then. I guess I'm ordering chocolate chip pancakes."
"I never said you had to."
He brushed his lips against my ear sending a thrill through me. "I want to make you happy tonight, Cara. If making you happy involves ordering chocolate chip pancakes, I'm doing it."
"What if I wanted to make you happy?" Where was this flirtatious side coming from? It was like I couldn't resist him.
He set aside the menu again. "You already made me happy by agreeing to come out after the show. The fact that your hand is on my leg also makes me happy."
I glanced down. I hadn't realized I was doing that. "Oh, sorry." I went to pull my hand away but he stopped me.
"I just told you it made me happy and you're going to stop?"
"Sorry. Impulse response. I assumed it was sarcasm or something."
"Listen, I don't know who you've dated before, but if I tell you I like something, I like it. And just to make it even easier, I like when you touch me. So, you really can't go wrong as long as your hands, or other body parts, are on me."
"Other body parts?" I raised an eyebrow.
Just then, a waitress came over. Chase ordered right away. "We'll have two coffees and chocolate chip pancakes."
"Do you want a second plate then?" The waitress looked at me.
"Nope. We're great sharing from the same plate." He squeezed my hand.
Jade and Len both ordered dessert. She grinned at me from across the table.
I turned back to Chase, leaving my hand on his leg. "I told you I was going to take a few bites, not share it."
"I've never ordered for you. I thought I'd try it out."
"And how was it?"
"Pretty good." He settled his hand on my leg right where my skirt ended. "How did it feel to have me order?"
"Why do I sense some insinuation in those words?" I shifted, allowing his hand to slip under my skirt slightly. I closed my eyes. I wasn't allowed to enjoy the feeling so much.
"Because it's there. I've been thinking about you constantly since that night. I got kind of obsessive even. I found myself searching social media sites for girls named Cara."
I laughed. "Seriously?"
"Yeah. If you'd worn that shirt that night, it would have been a much easier process." His hand brushed against my chest with his exaggerated motion. Then his face got serious. "Have you thought about me?"
"Yes. A lot." If he was being honest, so could I. I mean, he was going to be leaving soon anyway.
A smile spread across his face. "Did you regret not giving me your number?"
"Yes. I thought I was being cool-doing the right thing. And I guess now that I know who you are, I did do the right thing."
He scrunched up his forehead. "Wait. What? Why does who I am change anything?"
"You're in a band. You probably have tons of random hook-ups. I was only memorable because I didn't give you my number." In his line of work, he probably had girls throwing their numbers at him.
"Hold that thought." Chase looked at his brother. "Len, could you help me out for a second?"
Len gave me a once over. "Sure."
"Would you describe me as the kind of guy that has so many hook-ups I don't remember the girls?"
Len laughed. "Not quite. He's the celibate of the group. Even Jessa gets more ass than him."
"Thank you. Now one more question. How would you describe my behavior after meeting Cara?"
"Meeting? Is that what you're calling it these days?" He wriggled an eyebrow. "But either way, he was half flying high and half freaking out."
"Thanks, Len. You can go back to bragging about how great you are to that poor girl."
Jade laughed. Clearly she wasn't bored with whatever he was saying.
Chase leaned in close again. "So, what were you saying? Why do I remember you?"
"I want you." Those were not the three words I meant to say.
"Blunt. I like it."
I wanted to disappear. "Sorry. I can't believe I just said that."
"And you said it while sober, am I right?"
"Completely." A drink would have been great to cut my nerves, but there was something nice about not having anything clouding my judgment this time. Chase was hard enough to resist as it was.
Our pancakes were delivered, and I bought myself some time, taking a bite.
"I want you too, and I'm sober."
I set down my fork. "Are you always this honest with girls?" I was used to forward guys, but they still usually beat around the bush more.
"Are you always this honest with guys?"
"I asked first." I took a long sip of water.
"I don't know. Sometimes."
Len laughed. I guess he was listening in. "In other words, he hasn't asked a girl to hook up with him in a while."
"Unlike Len, who's the expert on getting shot down."
I chuckled. "Wow, you guys are brothers."
"And bandmates. The combination leads to some interesting arguments." Len leaned back in the booth, slinging his arm around Jade.
I was curious what he was eluding to, but I let it go. "So, where in Charleston does your brother live?"
Len laughed. "Already thinking about how you're going to get Chase alone, huh?"
I could feel the blood rushing to my face. "No. Of course not."
"Of course not?" Chase leaned in to whisper in my ear. "Weren't you just telling me that you wanted me?"
"That doesn't mean that's the reason I was asking," I whispered back.
Len smiled. I sensed he heard every word we were exchanging. "He's downtown near the battery. He's got a place with his fiancé."
"Nice. So, I gathered from what you said earlier, he's not a musician."
"No, he's a lawyer." Len polished off his pie and pushed the empty plate away. "At least one of us is making Mom proud."
I smiled. "I'm sure you all make her proud."
"Do you have any siblings?" Chase asked. It was the kind of question you'd ask when you first meet someone and not after you'd had sex, but better late than never.
"Nope, it's just me."
"An only child. Interesting." Len studied me.
"Why is that interesting?" I leaned back into Chase's arm. He squeezed my shoulder lightly so I looked up at him and caught a smile.