Chapter Ten
Lissa
It may be silly they hadn’t carpooled, given they both had to make the two-hour drive from Seacliff, but Lissa was grateful Ria hadn’t asked or offered.
Trapped in a car with nothing to do but talk would have tested Lissa’s resolve.
They wouldn’t be five miles out of town before she cracked and confessed she just wanted Ria’s marketing secrets.
Then the whole thing would blow up in her face.
She wasn’t ready for that to happen yet, so when Ria suggested meeting at the south entrance, she was more than happy to agree.
Now, if only the pasties would stop chafing her nipples, she might be able to enjoy herself.
She and Daria always went balls to the wall for Pride, so it was strange being there without her.
Though Daria had actually been the one to insist Lissa needed to be alone with Ria, practically doing a tuck and roll once they got into Portland.
She said she’d find her own way back to Seacliff and vanished into the crowd before Lissa even had the car turned off.
Which was why Lissa was actually getting to enjoy people watching for the first time ever.
The crowd was nothing more than a sea of rainbows, and something about the celebration always made Lissa’s gay little heart happy beyond belief.
Small children ran around with rainbow capes, laughing and playing while their parents chased after them.
Vendors wandered around selling flashing rainbow hair clip-ons and fake tattoos.
One woman who was essentially naked, save for a thong and some body paint, danced through the crowd sprinkling fairy dust on everyone.
The energy was infectious, and her body thrummed to join the crowd. She just needed to wait for…
Ria?
Lissa gulped and the swallow slid all the way down her body to blossom into a heat that spread through her abdomen and nestled in the space between her thighs.
Her core throbbed, almost in time to the pounding music, as her eyes raked over the Elixir Enchantress.
Ria hadn’t noticed her yet, so Lissa allowed herself a moment to blatantly ogle the witch.
The reserved, buttoned-up woman Lissa met at Mixie’s was gone, and in her place was the hottest chick Lissa had ever seen.
Ria’s curls were tied up into pigtails with rainbow streamers woven in that hung all the way down to her barely covered breasts.
The multi-colored string bikini top she wore covered about as much as Lissa’s pasties did, the only difference being Lissa had thrown a mesh crop top on for some tiny hint of modesty while Ria was letting it all hang out.
Well, given her breasts weren’t much bigger than an A cup there wasn’t a ton to hang out, but the triangles still managed to press her tits up and together enough to show off the perfect amount of cleavage for Lissa’s tastes.
Rainbow boy shorts and knee-high, pink sparkly boots finished off the outfit, but it was the body paint that had Lissa entranced.
Ria’s body wasn’t decorated with rainbows or peace signs like most, but starbursts of color spreading across her body like fireworks.
It reminded Lissa of the way her glass art would refract light into mini explosions of color.
Maybe there was something to be said for witchcraft because Lissa didn’t think she had ever been so entranced by another woman before. Even Lexi with her hot twenty-something body couldn’t hold a candle to Ria.
Lissa glanced down at her own outfit, briefly wondering if she should have done more.
Like an idiot, she’d thought turning thirty meant she should tone it down, so while she had her rainbow mesh crop top and fishnets, she also wore jean shorts and her standard black combat boots.
A couple painted rainbows on her cheeks was the extent of her artistic flare.
She quickly scanned the festival grounds, looking for the vendor selling hair clips. Maybe she could spice up her look before Ria noticed her…
“Lissa?”
Well, so much for that plan.
Lissa schooled her features, then slowly turned around. “Ria!” she exclaimed with a bit more enthusiasm than was likely needed, trying desperately to focus on Ria’s face. “Good to see you again. Did you just get here?”
If Ria noticed anything about her over-the-top greeting, she didn’t mention it.
“Yeah,” Ria replied. “My friend dropped me off a few minutes ago. I had no idea there would be this many people here.”
Don’t stare at her chest, Lissa’s brain shouted.
“Your outfit is amazing,” Lissa breathed out, focusing her attention on Ria’s face and those perfectly painted rainbow lips. “Now I feel a little underdressed.”
Seriously, don’t stare at her chest.
Ria smiled shyly. “Thanks. I actually let a couple of friends dress me. I wouldn’t normally be out in public like this.” She scuffed the ground with her pink boot and tried to tuck her hands into her non-existent pockets. “I kind of feel a little awkward.”
I’m not joking. Eyes up! Eyes Up! EYES UP!
“I mean, it’s a lot, right?” Ria swept a hand down her body to indicate the ensemble, and Lissa caved, eyes zeroing in on the witch’s now perky nipples courtesy of the breeze floating off the river.
Dammit!
Lissa gulped and with great effort forced her attention back to Ria’s face. “Well, you should,” she said.
Ria frowned, and Lissa mentally kicked herself.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean you should feel awkward,” Lissa blurted out.
“I meant you should go out in public like this more often. Well, not all the time—that might be a little weird—but you should definitely dress up for Pride in the future. If you come back next year, that is. Cuz you look…incredible. Not that I’m staring at your body or anything. ”
Please stop talking, Lissa’s brain begged. For the love of all things quirky and queer, please just shut up!
Ria smiled, and the entire crowd melted away into the background. Lissa saw nothing beyond those multicolored lips curving into an upside-down rainbow.
“And I thought I was bad about rambling,” Ria teased.
“Yeah, not sure what happened there,” Lissa admitted, scratching the back of her head. “I guess I haven’t been out in the world for a bit.”
“Well, that’s why I’m here,” Ria said. “To guide you. For all we know, this event is where you meet the future love of your life.”
“Maybe I already have,” Lissa mumbled under her breath before she could stop herself. Thankfully, Ria’s gaze was darting around, taking in the colorful scene around her, so Lissa’s words were lost in the background noise.
I thought I told you to shut up? her brain seethed.
There was no way Lissa was going to make it through Pride without a drink. Or ten. She was supposed to be covertly getting Ria to open up, but instead the only thing she’d done so far was act like a teenager seeing tits for the first time.
“I could really go for a drink,” she confessed. “How about you?”
“Sure,” Ria replied enthusiastically. “I could use a little liquid courage so I don’t spend all day with my arms awkwardly trying to cover my chest.”
“Well, we definitely don’t want that.” At Ria’s blush, she added, “Because self-confidence is so important.”
And I’m out, her brain declared. Have fun screwing this up.
Hurrying over to the drink tent, Lissa exhaled a sigh of relief that the line was short.
The parade had probably started, so she would just have to sacrifice getting a good spot this year.
It would probably take at least a few drinks to calm the jumble of inappropriate thoughts bouncing around her head.
“What sounds good?” she asked Ria.
The witch chewed on her bottom lip, smearing the blue and indigo in her rainbow lipstick. “You know, I don’t drink a whole lot, so whatever you think is good.”
“Two strawberry margaritas,” Lissa told the bartender and forked over a wad of cash. She didn’t even care they were ten bucks a pop. She’d pay twenty if it helped slow down her mouth from saying stupid shit.
She needed to keep reminding herself this woman might be why her entire life fell to shambles, and not even the hottest body could make up for that.
If she played that mantra on a loop in her brain, maybe she could focus on getting answers instead of wondering how many kisses it would take to mess up the rest of Ria’s lipstick.
The bartender handed over their plastic cups, and Lissa promptly downed half the drink in one go. The burn of the alcohol rolled down her throat and settled into her lower belly, numbing the annoying throbbing that stuck around long after she’d told herself to get it together.
“Wow,” Ria commented, eyeing Lissa’s half-empty cup. “I didn’t know I was drinking with a professional.”
“I’m not a pro. I swear. I’m just a little nervous right now. You know, because of the spell. I figured the alcohol might help loosen me up and go along with whatever mystical mojo might happen.”
Ria took a sip of her drink as they made their way toward the street for the parade. “Mystical mojo, huh? I take it you’re not really a firm believer in magic?”
Shit. Lissa’s brain really had vacated the premises.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that,” she said sheepishly.
“It’s okay. I’m used to it. It makes it that much more fun when the spell works, and I turn you into a believer.” Ria winked and Lissa’s knees wobbled just enough for her to lose balance. She threw out a hand to avoid crashing into the guy beside her, and Ria grabbed onto her.
“Looks like the margarita’s catching up to you already,” she remarked, laughing.
“Right, the margarita,” Lissa agreed, far too enthusiastically. “Like I said, I haven’t drunk much recently. My ex-girlfriend had a little issue with overindulging, so I tried to stay sober for her. You know how it is in a relationship when your partner’s problems become your own.”
Ria nodded solemnly. “I get it. My ex-girlfriend also had a problem.”
“Drinking?”