“Ah, a date?”
She snorted, then snapped her head up and blinked. “Um, no, m-my cousin.” Ashley glanced at the group I’d stolen her from. I didn’t know which was her cousin but figured it might be the curvy Marilyn, who was glaring at me.
“She’s a makeup artist. She was hired to do this.” Ashley waved at a passing waitress, then at herself, and shrugged. “And dressed me up, too, to show off her talents.”
Ashley was making eye contact now, at least, and the same thing I had thought before still stood. She had very pretty eyes. Dark hazel with only a small hint of brown near the center. Her makeup was rather heavy, but the colors were complementary to her complexion. The skin of her exposed chest shimmered slightly, and her legs were thin. By her blush, she caught me looking.
“She’s quite talented, I’d say.”
Ashley chewed one corner of her lower lip with straight, white teeth. “I’ll pass it along.”
“Are you enjoying your—” we asked at the same time, then stopped at the same time and chuckled.
“You first,” I said.
“Are you having a nice evening?” she asked, then added, “I’ve not really done this sort of thing before.”
“Well then, why don’t I show you how it works?” I held out my arm for her to take. Her shy nature seemed to fall away in layers with every second, which was intriguing, and what I’d expected of her silent bearing was most likely true. She had many thoughts behind her eyes, and I made it a mission to get to them.
Ashley glanced at my arm, then slid a firm grip around my elbow and nodded. She wasn’t as tall as me, but in her heels, we were nearly even. How very opposite the young women Mother would wish to see me with. Perhaps it was a bit of defiance, but I sent her a smirk as my inner brat gave Mother the finger.
“The trick is to appear so engaged, no one would be rude enough to interrupt,” I said as we slowly skirted the edge of the room. “See those men talking and gesturing with their glasses?” I nodded toward a group of seven or so, one being my father.
Ashley turned, then glanced at me with expectant eyes.
“Those men will boast about the donations they make tonight. They use the occasion to get away from their wives and talk business over a drink, trying to be the loudest and most influential.”
“Influential about what? What color suit they’ll wear next time?”
I snapped my gaze to them, then down at my own black suit. “It’s formal attire.”
“It’s a costume party.”
“Eh.” I winced. “To some, it might be. Or maybe they’re always in costume.”
Ashley hid a snort of laughter with her free hand. “Aren’t there other colors, though? And what does that mean, exactly? Formal. I have a cousin that’d swear jeans were formal as long as his boots were clean.”
I chuckled. It hadn’t taken long to get her loosened up. “Your dress is black,” I whispered near her ear and took in a lungful of spicy perfume. “Mmmm.” She smelled … nice. I cleared my throat, straightening and wondering where that thought came from. Perfume usually overwhelmed me, but hers was …
“I didn’t have a choice,” she mumbled, then hastily said, “It’s my aunt’s dress. I didn’t have anything for, uh, this occasion.”
“Then what color would you wear if you had the choice?” We never stopped meandering around the room, but watched the crowd less and less.
“Hmm. Maybe red. I’ve been told I look good in red.”
“Have you?”
She didn’t answer, only turned the tables. “What about you? Is black your go-to color?”
“It is, actually. I’ve been told it makes my eyes stand out.”
Ashley danced hers between my blue ones, then blushed and looked away. “I’d have to agree.”
The more she relaxed, the less I wanted her to lower her gaze in that shy way she did so well. The longer I could stare into her pretty eyes, the more curiously captivating they were. Green with flecks of gold and brown, and her tan skin reminded me of a woodland elf straight from the fantasy books I used to read. Mysterious yet authentically natural, earthy.
I cleared my throat again, not entirely sure why I found her so interesting, and searched for a mundane topic. “Are you in school?” Hopefully, that wasn’t insulting, but under the pounds of makeup, she appeared very young.
“I’m at Cressmann U.” No other details. “You?”
