Chapter 4 I’ll fuck you on this slide
I'll fuck you on this slide
"I love this song," I announce. "Turn it up, pretty please."
Using the button on his steering wheel, Braidy turns the volume up as he glances at me in the rear-view mirror.
Luke listens intently from the seat beside mine. "What’s the song?"
“"Riptide.” It's my jam." I bop my head and begin to sing, peering out the window as we roll down Old Coast Road towards the marina.
Toni sings over the top of the music. He twists to grin at me from the front seat while making a jerking-off motion with his hand. "Your left-hand, man."
I just laugh and continue to sing, lost in my own world of Vance Joy and ocean views.
When we get to the marina, we wander the docks for a while, pointing out the boats we like and enjoying the final rays of the sun.
"Where is our boat today, Toni?" I ask, smiling widely.
He chuckles. "Fucking Manu," he says, and we hip and shoulder each other lightly.
An amused look passes between Luke and Braidy.
"Who is Manu?" Braidy asks.
"When Toni and I were younger, we used to pretend that our boat was being cleaned by our boat chauffer, Manu. I don't even know if there is such a thing as a boat chauffeur, but that was our lie for why we didn’t have a boat docked here."
"You guys have known each other for a while then?" Luke asks.
Toni laughs. "She's like an addiction."
As we pass by the bar, Gypsy's, Toni persuades us to go inside. It can be pretty rough in here at times, but then again, we are with two of the District's finest. And the food is always good, huge selection too.
When our meals arrive, Luke stares at my plate. "Wow, I've never seen a girl order that much food."
Toni tsks. "My friend, you never mention what a girl orders. How many dates have you been on?"
My eyes narrow at Toni and they inaudibly scream, 'This is not a date!'
Grinning at Luke, I give him my attention. "Eating is like my third favourite pastime." I pause, thinking on it. "Fourth favourite. Dancing. Fireworks. Arcade games. Eating."
"Do you want to hear mine?" Luke asks, focusing his attention on me as Braidy whispers something in Toni's ear and they both chuckle. We twist even further to face each other. Our knees touch, but I don't mind.
I take a sip of red wine and focus on Luke's crooked canine. "Yeah. Shoot."
"Movies, cricket, playing guitar, and sleeping. Although, I'd say sleeping can creep its way up to number one under certain circumstances." Luke grins at me. "And I think it's great you eat. I love food."
Using my fork to point at his plate, I ask, "Then why did you order a tuna salad?"
He glances at Braidy and then back at me, searching for words. "Trying to be healthy?"
"You don't sound sure." I giggle.
Toni plays footsies with me under the table. "You don’t make friends with healthy."
I laugh and dunk my potato in sour cream. "Toni's allergic to healthy."
"Isn't it, you don’t make friends with salad?" Luke points out.
"Is it?" Toni curls his lips in contemplation. "All these years. Hmm."
I begin to really enjoy the wine and find myself signalling the waitress for another... And another. Luke's crooked canine gets cuter and cuter with every sip. He pushes his blond hair back from his face and finishes his fifth pint before asking for the check.
He goes to pay, but I object. "No. I can pay for myself."
There is this grin playing on his lips now. "Seriously, Cassidy. Let me pay for you."
When he says my name, I think of Max, just for a second. Because Max never says my name. He calls me 'Little One'. And I'm still not sure if that's a term of endearment or if he's being patronising, but I like it anyway.
I shake my head. "No. I don't feel comfortable with that."
His eyes search my face, measuring me up. Perhaps wondering if I'm being serious or testing him, which is so not in my nature to do. "I'm serious," I press. "I work really hard and have my own money."
"Hmm." He nods in agreement. "How about we rock paper scissors for it? I win, I pay. You win, you can pay for yourself."
I smile. "I love that idea."
We both put our fists in and count, "One. Two. Three!"
My fist flattens into paper, and he throws two fingers out, making scissors.
We are both smiling at each other now. He's nice.
"Okay. You win," I say.
We walk hand-in-hand towards the carnival rides, but it's very G-rated between us—coy and flirty, but suitable for all ages. Toni and Braidy disappear into the crowd, leaving Luke and me to continue the night on our own.
He seems to enjoy my silly side and even joins in. We sit on the teapots and spin, shoot ducks and miss, throw coins and sink them, and now I'm genuinely having a really great time.
We leave the rides and games and head up the hill, where we plonk ourselves down on the grass steps that overlook the water. Conversation with Luke has become completely natural.
"So, you’re a ballerina." He tugs on his earlobe and cocks his head. "I've never been to see the ballet before."
I cross my ankles in front of me. "You should."
He sighs. "I'm not sure I'm cultured enough."
"What?" I say, genuinely surprised. "You don’t have to be cultured to watch ballet."
"Okay. Show me something? Let's see if I like it."
I giggle nervously. "What?"
"Yeah. Seriously. Show me a move or whatever."
"Like, now?" I look around the hill. It's pretty dark, but people are scattered around us for fifty metres or so. I'm not hesitant to dance in public, but in order to do so, I'm going to need to adjust my skirt... "Here?"
"Why not?"
"Okay." I kick my heels off and stand on the grass in front of him.
I hike my denim skirt up until it's around my waist, putting my white knickers on show for far too many people. And what the hell am I doing, flashing half of the marina? It doesn’t matter, I decide.
It's dark. Tilting my chin up, I raise my arms, forming a loose circle above my head.
I relax my neck and smile at him. A little heat hits my cheeks when I see his eyes are trained on me.
Slowly, I lift my working leg up, toes pointed, until my calf is beside my face, my legs forming a perfect line.
I hold the développé position with ease and glance back at Luke, who is now squirming in place.
I lower my leg until my toes meet my knee.
Then I kick with that leg. Whipping around, I hold my head stationary and complete three fouettés—which after a bottle of wine is impressive—before finishing gracefully in first position.
"Are you cultured enough to watch that for a few hours?" I grin at him.
There's heat behind his eyes now that has my stomach flipping. Or maybe that's the wine? He stands, takes my hand in his, and pulls me towards the old waterpark.
We duck under a fence and walk through the ruins of the park.
Stopping suddenly, he lifts me onto the lip of an abandoned slide.
The cold plastic on my thighs sends a shiver down my spine.
He stands in front of me and as he presses his mouth to mine, he moves his hips between my knees.
I close my eyes and welcome him, feeling a fuzzy sensation rush through me and a complete lack of concern because Luke is a cop.
This feels nice too. Luke feels safe. His hands caress from my knees to the plump parts of my thighs.
There he grips me, tilting me up and wrapping my legs around him.
I hum and his tongue finds mine. His jeans rub against my knickers, and a moan escapes me with every movement.
And it's inadvertent and unwelcome, but now I'm thinking about Max.
I close my eyes and imagine for a second that Max is the one touching me. Guilt makes me squirm and I force my eyes open, trying to acknowledge Luke. For Luke. His kiss is chaste. I get the feeling Max's kisses wouldn't be. I imagine they'd consume me.
Stop thinking about Max!
Forcing Luke to the front and centre of my mind, I lift my hands up and feed my fingers through his thick, blond hair.
He touches me with intimacy and longing, making this all feel okay.
I'm sure he won't take things too far. But then his hands start pawing at my thighs and his breathing becomes laboured and mixed with groans.
His hands are up my skirt now, skating around the seam of my knickers. "Cassidy, you're so hot here."
Out of nowhere, Luke is pulled back from me, leaving me open-mouthed and flushed. Luke growls, "What the fuck?" just as Max swings his fist into Luke's jaw.
Max?
What. The. Frick.
I wince when blood sprays from Luke's face.
He doubles over, cupping his chin and groaning gutturally.
It looks like he's about to fight back, but there is no opportunity for him to retaliate; Max is already dragging him towards the fence line.
His superior height and build make Luke look like a petulant child in trouble with daddy.
"Oh my God! Stop it!" I yell out.
Max throws him through the gap before turning to glare at me. I'm speechless.
Luke attempts to come back but stops when Max stares him down. "If you climb back through that fence, your knees won't work for a month." Luke looks at me, and Max takes a step towards him. "A year," he warns.
I nod at Luke, but it seems unnecessary because he's already decided he's not going to take Max on tonight. Turning, he disappears into the dark.
"What the hell, Max?" I crane my neck to glare at him as he dissects every inch of me. His jaw clenches as his eyes scroll down my body, skirt around my waist, and linger at my spread thighs. I slam my knees together, wipe my mouth, and pull my clothes straight.
Max nails me to the spot with his glare. "I just overheard the strangest thing. Apparently, Cassidy Slater is finally putting out tonight."
I cringe at his words. "Max, what have you done?"
A vein in his neck bulges. "I just saved him a lot of pain, Little One. If his hands had gotten any farther, I would have had to break them."