I was a wreck the night of Raye's engagement party. I was supposed to be there at three to help with the decorations, but by two thirty I was ready to call Jane and beg off. Mentally, I gave myself a shake and stood in front of the hall mirror giving myself a pep talk.
"Today is not the day to bail," my tone was soft and gentle but the weight of my fears hit hard. As the tears started to form, I clenched my fists and shook my head. "You can do this."
My whispered words were punctuated by a sharp ring and my phone buzzed from its place on the hall table. It took two more rings for my mind to clear, when I answered, it was with a hesitant, "Hello?"
"I'm headed down to the restaurant to help decorate, figured you might like a ride."
That weight lifted a little at the thought of having back up. It would be easier to navigate the sea of people and waves of questions if Eli was there to field some of them. He was just driving me there, it wasn't really a date.
"Maya?" He said, followed by, "Mariah?"
"I'm here," my laugh sounded weak and half hearted. "I'd like a ride, thanks. How long will you be?"
"I'm out front."
This time my laugh was a little more real. "Thanks for the notice. I need a few more minutes, you could come in if you like."
My answer was the slamming of a car door and heavy foot falls up my front stairs. The minute I swung the door open, I was blinded by a warm smile that seemed to brighten my life with a steady solar flare.
"Mariah," he said. I liked the look of contentment that had washed over his face.
"Eli, come on in. It's not the cleanest, but..." My voice peatered off. Eli slid by me and headed straight for the living room. Instantly I was regretting letting him come in.
The room hadn't changed at all since my Aunt Mae's death. Hell, I don't even think I'd stepped foot inside it after she died. Every dusty porcelain doll, every cross stitched item sat exactly in place. The plastic covered furniture sat without a wrinkle or stain. Everything was just as Mae had left it.
He took it in without a word, doing one full sweep as he turned around slowly, Eli finally let his eyes settle on me. We watched each other for a moment. His eyes slid from my upswept hair, a simple black dress and a pair of beautiful black heels. I was too busy soaking him in to see the warmth and appreciation in his eyes.
Eli looked dangerously good. He'd gone with his signature all black suit, his hair was neatly styled, he wore his glasses. He looked as he always did, good. Only now I knew what lay beneath that cool exterior, I'd been victim to those hands and heard arousal in his voice, it did things to me. Even like this he did things to me
"Go get dressed," he told me. "We can't stay too long."
"I don't need to change," I said. Holding my dress out to the sides I asked, "What's wrong with my dress."
"Nothing, if you're going to a funeral." Eli winked at me and headed to the stairs. "You have all these dresses you never wear, Mariah, it's criminal."
My laugh made him smile and there was nothing I could do but follow behind him. "Why are we going to my room?"
"I need to show you which dress to wear."
"Why don't you just tell me which one?"
"Because if I do that, I don't get to see your inner sanctum, your Bat Cave." Eli's smile was infectious and despite my better judgement, I pointed to the door on the left. He disappeared behind it before I could even reach the landing.
It wasn't anything much, I told myself. I hadn't done anything to it over the years. A twin bed, with one side pressed up against a wall, had a side table to one side of the head of the bed and a trunk at the foot of it. There was also a closet, dresser and a table with a chair by the window which held piles of books and a CD player at the moment. Other than that it looked like the rest of the house, a snap shot of an earlier point in time. Pastels, flowers, crochet, and cross stitch.
Again he did that sweep, stopping his turn when we were facing each other. Him at the centre of the room and me frozen in the door ways. We watched each other for a minute and I eventually took a slow, deep breath.
Eli moved to the closet and pulled the door open. Without a word he started riffling through the hanging clothes and pulled out a sapphire blue dress I hadn't worn in a couple of years.
"This is pretty," he said, "Would you try it on for me? Just to see how it looks." Again we just watched each other, until I stepped forward and took it from him.
A few minutes later I was back, stepping through the door with an aroused buzz that made it hard to think straight. It fit a little tight, but that didn't seem to bother Eli. His eyes raked their way down my body and I shivered.
"I like that dress," he said softly. Those sinful eyes lingered at the swell of my breast and a huge part of me wanted to step forward and ask him to kiss me. I didn't, and sooner than I would have liked, he met my gaze and held out another dress. "This one next."
After that there were two other dresses. With each costume change my desire rose. There was just something about putting on a show for him that sparked a need in me so deep it felt out of this world.
"How many more?" I asked when he handed me the bright green vintage cocktail dress. "Are you going to need to see everything in my closet before you can decide? We're going to be late."
Eli chuckled, "Try that one, I have a feeling that's the one."
He was right while the first dress felt too tight, the second too revealing, and the third too short, this dress felt right. I was Goldilocks and the four dresses and this was the one.
When I stepped out my eyes were instantly drawn to the spark in his. "That's the one," he said.
I nodded and his grin widened. "Can we go now? You're making me late."
With a handful of hands on deck, we managed to turn Jane's family's restaurant into a Japanese garden oasis. By the time the guests started to arrive, I felt ready to head home, but the horror that was social interaction had only just begun.
After Raye's enthusiastic hello, the entire line of people coming through the door thought they had license to touch me too. I, and my grimace of a smile, cringed my way through every hug and then moved to the bar where I downed two gin and tonics before Eli found me hiding on the patio in a dark corner. He stopped a few feet away, blocking the view and making it nearly impossible to look at anyone but him. Holding out a martini glass he said, "How are you holding up?"
"It's a great party, I'm having a good time." We both took a drink at the same time.
"Don't lie to me," he said. There was no anger, frustration or judgement in his tone. "Lie to them," with his martini glass in hand he pointed to the people behind him then at himself, "but don't lie to me."
After an uncomfortable moment or two, my shoulders dropped and suddenly every cell in my body was weighing me down. "If one more of those people hugs me, I'm not going to be held responsible for what I do."
He chuckled and took a step closer. In this limited light he was cloaked in shadows, giving him an 'angel of darkness' vibe that was working for him, well it was working for me.
"Seriously Eli," I said unable to hold back my shudder. I tried and failed to keep it from my voice. "My skin is crawling, I washed my hands four times and I still feel dirty. I don't like it when people touch me."
