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No, he didn’t want to share. He was hungry enough to eat his own entrée, but Justin was paying. “Sure, that’s fine, but let’s get extra noodles. And extra soup and salad.”
“Sounds good.” Aimee handed him the menu as if he were the waiter, and he scooted the menus away from him on the marble counter. He’d been to several Hibachi restaurants with his family. They loved sushi, and even though he didn’t, he loved the shows the chefs put on during dinner.
Once their orders were given, the chef came out with their selected amount of food and introduced himself, then started his show by making flames erupt across the grill and even on the countertop.
As soon as the flame erupted, Eric knew they’d chosen the wrong place to eat. Holly jumped up from her seat and excused herself to the bathroom. Everyone’s attention was still on the flames in front of them, so he slipped away as well and followed her. She stood just outside the women’s room, her head pressed to the wall, her eyes closed.
He stayed a few feet away to give her space and waited until she opened her eyes again. “He’s probably done with that part. Ready to go back?”
She gave a small smile and nodded. He offered his arm and was happy she took it since she still shook from head to toe. He stopped around the corner from their spot. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She turned to him with wide eyes. “It was really neat. I guess I wasn’t expecting that much heat. It brought back—”
He nodded and patted the hand she had wrapped around his arm.
“Thanks for thinking about me.”
“Of course.” He took an extra minute to breathe all of her in. Her hair had been curled and pinned back high on her head, her skin was flawless and youthful, her eyes bright and happy. She was the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen. Why had it taken makeup for him to realize that? His gaze fell to her lips and the desire to kiss her again smashed his desire to return to their seats.
“Should we go back?” she asked, slipping her hand out of his reach and down by her side.
Disappointment trickled through his confidence. “Right, yeah.” He let her go in first and then went to the opposite side of the wall to join the group.
“There you are,” Aimee said. “You practically missed the show. Look he’s throwing the shrimp now. That’s my favorite part.”
The rest of the evening, Eric tried really hard to have a good time and to show Aimee interest. But whenever Holly was around, it was as if every nerve in his body buzzed when she met his gaze or they sat close in the car.
Just the mere presence of her had him on his toes.
By the time they got to the dance, he knew if they didn’t get far away from Holly for the rest of the night, he wouldn’t pay Aimee the attention she deserved. Though after a few minutes of talking with her about superficial things, he had the sinking realization that she wasn’t who he wanted.
The Grand Ballroom was lit up with twinkly lights. Silver and black balloons and tiny snowflakes hung from the ceiling, making it appear like a wintery night.
“Wow,” Holly said, from behind him. “It’s beautiful, huh?”
“Just like you,” Justin said.
Eric gritted his teeth, took Aimee’s hand, and moved to the opposite side of the room.
“We’re not staying with everyone else?” Aimee asked, her eyes wide even in the near darkness.
“I’d rather be away from the group, if you don’t mind.”
She pressed her head to his chest and wrapped both arms around his waist. “Absolutely, it’s fine with me.”
He gave an inward groan. He didn’t want to lead Aimee on, but seeing Holly with his doofy, unaware roommate was getting to him.
The songs were mostly slow, and Aimee took every advantage. Despite how close she wanted to stay to him, he held one of her hands, and kept his other hand firmly around her waist, not giving her an inch.
Halfway through the dance, enough time had passed that he’d relaxed. Aimee was a fun dancer with more energy than three people combined. With a magnetic personality, she pulled other groups in with theirs, and before long, someone recognized him.
“Do the raptor,” Aimee said, leaning against him and whispering in his ear. He tried not to pull away. There it was. Not one of the girls he’d been interested in on campus had gone very long before asking him to leave his comfort zone and do something he’d only meant to do once. But she’d asked him, and there was a willing and waiting audience.
Eric glanced around the room to where he’d spotted Holly a few minutes before. Wrapped up in Justin’s arms, her smile was bright, even from across the room.
Maybe doing his impersonation would get her attention, and she’d come closer. Turning his back to them, he did his raptor impression, loud and full of passion, gaining the attention of everyone nearby. Everyone but Holly. The claps came, with Aimee as his biggest cheerleader, but his heart just wasn’t in it. By the end of the song, he was ready to drop. He found Aimee and gestured to the refreshment table. “Want to rest some?”
Aimee looked over his head. “Uh, sure, I guess. But let’s hurry. I don’t want to miss out on too many songs.”
