Page 17 of Plan Interrupted
“You guys are practically going at it right there in front of me on my couch,” Elizabeth snapped with annoyance. They were acting like love-struck teenagers.
Sam and Holly smiled as if they were all happy and proud of themselves.
Sam rose from the couch. “I’m going to head over to Joe’s and see if he’s ready to go.”
“I can’t believe you talked me into going to this Christmas party with you guys and Joe. How does he feel about this setup?”
Her friend’s delayed response, and sheepish gaze, concerned her. There was something more to the story here.
“To be honest, he doesn’t know you’re coming along. Sam’s probably filling him in as we speak.” Without pausing, Holly continued on as if intentionally not giving Elizabeth the opportunity to interject, “We need to leave in a few minutes so you better go get dressed for the party.”
Apprehension coiled around Elizabeth’s spine. Her fingers tingled and shook. “What do you mean he doesn’t know I’m coming along?” She glanced down at her outfit. “And this is what I’m wearing, in the event I actually go. How could you do this to me? Joe already thinks I’m some sort of socially inept moron. And now you reinforced that by indicating to him that I can’t get my own dates, and you had to hide me from this set up until the last moment so he couldn’t back out.”
“We all know you’re perfectly capable of getting your own dates, you just don’t. And no, you are not wearing that drab, navy suit to a Christmas party,” Holly said as she handed her a small garment bag.
“What’s this?”
“This, my dear, is what you are wearing tonight.”
Elizabeth studied the dress for a moment. “Where’s the rest of it? I can’t wear that in public.”
“Oh yes you can, and you will.”
Knowing Holly would nag her to death about it, Elizabeth slipped into the skimpy, red sequined, cocktail dress. Though more her friend’s revealing style, versus the conservative design she preferred to wear, the dress was beautiful. The expensive fabric felt smooth and soft against her skin, and as she stared at herself in the full length mirror, she couldn’t help but like the way she looked in the garment.
The dress was fitted with a crisscross band that not only separated her breasts but also gave them a little lift, making them look larger than usual. Not necessarily a bad thing. The sleeves were three-quarter length, and the length of the dress fell inches above her knees. The red dress looked extremely bright against her pale skin.
* * * *
Joe couldn’t believe what Sam was telling him. “You’re kidding, right? You can’t possibly be serious.”
“I am serious. Elizabeth is coming with us to the Christmas party as your date, and you need to get a move on so we’re not late.”
“Absolutely not. I’m not taking a date to our employee Christmas party, especially her. She doesn’t even like me in that way. We’re two very different people.”
“Well, she must like you somewhat, she agreed to go,” Sam replied as he opened the entryway closet, retrieved Joe’s overcoat, and handed it to him.
Joe shook his head. He wasn’t quite sure what to do. He couldn’t cancel with her at this point in the game that would be too rude. Yet, did he have the courage to show up with a date at his employee Christmas party? What will they think? On the other hand, it wasn’t like he hadn’t considered the idea of getting to know Elizabeth better, and helping her realize there was more to life than work, especially after the conversation they shared a couple of days after Thanksgiving.
Joe followed Sam to Elizabeth’s where they impatiently waited in the entryway for their dates to finish getting ready. His brain anxiously worked to find a way out of the situation. Nothing, outside of rude, presented itself.
The sound of footsteps caught his attention, and he glanced in that direction to find Elizabeth floating down the stairway, light on her feet like an angel descending from the sky. Her milky white skin looked soft and smooth against the bright red dress that hugged her thin, proportionate-toned body. He couldn’t help but wonder how her skin might feel against his fingertips. Her big, bright, emerald green eyes caught his gaze. He tried to pull it away but it was as if she wouldn’t release him. She was absolutely breathtaking.
“Elizabeth, you look lovely,”
She smiled softly. “Thank you.”
She retrieved her long wool coat from the entryway closet. He immediately took it from her hands and held it open for her. Peering over her shoulder he caught a glimpse of her pale, soft-looking breasts. His heart skipped a beat. Raw, primal need rushed through his veins. He hadn’t been this stirred up in a long time. He tore his gaze from her breasts as she turned toward the door to exit the house.
Joe willed the rhythm of his heartbeat back to normal as he followed behind Elizabeth. He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anything so beautiful as her, descending those steps toward him a minute ago. He shut his eyes for a moment, squeezing them tightly as if that would help to extinguish the heavenly vision of her that kept replaying in his mind. A vision like this would only lead to complication; he was sure of it.
He opened the back driver’s side door of Sam’s bimmer for Elizabeth. Her jacket opened as she slid in, allowing him to catch a glimpse of her sexy, shapely legs. His heartbeat spiraled out of control again. He needed to get a hold of himself before his heart exploded altogether.
He shut the door and walked around the car and entered through the back passenger side door.
His friend started the car and backed out of the driveway. The banter in the front seat of the bimmer was nonstop between Holly and Sam. Joe simply listened to them and watched their interaction. He couldn’t help but notice how Sam gently held and caressed Holly’s hand as they rested their arms on the center counsel. They seemed so relaxed with each other. He wondered if he would ever hold a woman’s hand in his again like he did with Amanda.
A crater the size of the Grand Canyon filled his chest. Oh how he missed her. He’d hoped the pain would fade with time, but there were still moments where it seemed like she’d been taken from him just yesterday.