Sign Me Up by Dulcie Dameron
Parker
tastefully creepy break room, I’m amazed that Jamie and Gladys pulled this off. Black and orange streamers hang from the ceiling while black balloons flank a table filled with food. Black ravens perched on black branches hang over the table with a gold pennant banner that reads Happy Halloween. There’s even a smoking cauldron filled with who knows what bubbling beside the drinks.
Thankfully, Jamie didn’t include any spiders or webs in her decorations. For that fact alone, I determine she’s a keeper.
All my co-workers stand around talking, holding plates full of the festive Halloween-themed treats Jamie and Gladys prepared. They bought most of the food from O’Malley’s subs, but I know Jamie made some of the Halloween-themed ones. It should probably weird me out that Les is biting into what looks like a bloody eyeball, but knowing it’s made out of white chocolate and peanut butter makes me head toward the table to grab one for myself.
Just as I take a step, someone taps my shoulder. I turn and Jamie stands before me looking adorable in a short dark red wig, a white T-shirt, and jeans with a plaid shirt tied around her waist, completed by a little backpack hung over her shoulders.
Very cute, I sign as I smile down at her. Or should I say, very Kat.
It looks like she’s fighting a smile when she reaches inside my leather jacket and pinches my side. I grab her hand, holding her back, and for the first time, she takes in my getup.
“And you look very…Aris.” She smiles wide, flashing her teeth and biting that lower lip.
The long, dark wig I bought paired with the thick leather jacket Dane loaned me is so hot, sweat’s dripping sweat in places it has no right to drip. But it’s all worth it if she’s going to look at me like that.
Would I pass as a motorcycle riding fae?I ask before tucking the sides of the wig behind my ears to expose the pointed ones I found online. Her mouth parts, and she reaches up to trace her hand over my ears. When her fingertips graze my neck, I resist the urge to shiver at the slight touch.
“You totally would,” she says with a smaller, more intimate smile. “Wait.” She trails a finger over the fake scar on my eyebrow that I worked tirelessly on for a half hour. “How did you—Parker, did you read the books?”
I shrug, then sign, I wanted to make sure I really grasped his character.
Her beautifully full lips part in surprise as she stares at me with a kind of wonder I know I don’t deserve. All I did was read a few books.
Let’s eat before it’s gone, I sign before ushering her toward the food table. Both of us pile our plates with a sub and some ghoulish treats. Once we’re settled in the corner, I scarf down the food faster than I probably should. But it’s hard to communicate with her while my hands are full, and I’m determined to be a good, conversational date tonight.
Jamie might not be looking at this like we’re on a date, but I am. It’s why I suggested we go as a couple from one of her favorite series. I figured if I wanted her to start seeing us that way, I needed to encourage it. I offered to pick her up, but she had to be here early to finish some last-minute decorations and said I wasn’t allowed to help. She insisted it needed to be a surprise.
I’ll admit, after tending to her when she was sick and seeing that text from Mike, I might’ve gone down a dark hole of depression during my own sickness. But then she showed up. For me. Just like I had for her. And it renewed my will to want to fight for her—for us.
I toss my plate in the trash while she finishes the rest of her food and return with a smile on my face. Everything looks great. You and Gladys did an amazing job. And the food? Fantastic.
Her lips tip up in a shy smile as she signs, Thank you.
At that precise moment, Lucas approaches and looks at us like we’re from outer space. “And who are you?” he asks Jamie, not even deigning to look my way. I already know the guy seems to think I’m the scum on the bottom of his shoe, but for whatever reason, it irritates me more than usual.
He turns in such a way that I can’t see his lips and my rising irritation almost boils over. Especially when I see Jamie’s lips tighten and her eyes take on a deadened appearance.
“We’re characters from a book, Lucas,” she says, through gritted teeth.
He tosses his head back and laughs, then shakes it as he walks away like we’ve somehow lost touch with reality.
As soon as he leaves, Jamie rolls her eyes and takes a sip of her drink. “He’s such a jerk,” she mouths for only me to see.
Who did he think we were?I don’t know that he asked her anything, but I’m guessing he did by her response.
“He asked if you were a washed-up rockstar and if I was your groupie.”
I bite my tongue to hold in a PG-13 word my mom wouldn’t approve of. Jamie’s right. Lucas is a jerk without any real cause. He thinks everyone is beneath him and I don’t understand it. If Stefan doesn’t see through his façade and offer Jamie the interview in the end, I’m going to seriously consider whether or not working here is worth it.
Over the course of the past few weeks, I’ve seen a different, softer side of my boss. But it’ll all be a moot point for me if he gives the exclusive interview to anyone but Jamie. She works so hard at her job and takes each assignment seriously. Not that Eric and Lucas don’t, but the quality of her storytelling far surpasses theirs. She’s able to weave a tale that anyone would want to read, not just local sports enthusiasts. She does investigative work into the players, even at their junior levels, by getting in touch with the families and highlighting their personal strengths. She’s personable and makes everyone she comes in contact with feel special, just like those kids from Miss Fowler’s class.
“Anyway, let’s not focus on him,” Jamie says and signs at the same time, pulling me out of my thoughts. “Let’s try and have some fun.” She points to where Eric is trying to bob for an apple, then puts a hand to my arm to get my attention again. “Gladys insisted on having some old-school games.”
I turn back to the tin bucket full of floating apples. Eric dunks his entire head into the water, trying to chase and catch one. A few people, including Les, look to be cheering him on. When he comes up for air, he resembles a drowned rat. Yeah, I don’t think I’ll be playing a game where I’m bobbing for apples in Eric’s leftover spit.
Maybe something else?I ask, then point to the Alexa on the table that’s playing music. How about a dance?
Jamie tilts her head, an amused smile curving the edges of her mouth. You like to dance?
I rear back with an expression that says, duh, of course I do, then take her hands in mine. She laughs, pushing me back and setting me away from her.
“But no one else is dancing!” Her hands grip my forearms like if she keeps me at arm’s length, I somehow won’t get my way. “And it’s Halloween music!”
I shake loose of her hold then sign, Turn on something we can dance to. Fast or slow, your pick.
Her expression turns curious, and I can already tell she’s going to give in. I can only hope that the curiosity brimming in her eyes is because she wants to know what it would be like to dance with me and not wondering how or if I’ll move in time with the music.
Of course, I can’t hear it, but I can feel it through the vibrations in the air, the floor, the pulsing of the bass. And I want to show her there’s a romantic side to me she hasn’t yet seen.
She takes a few steps toward the little black puck with lights, says something, then walks back over to me. “Okay,” she says, putting her hands on her hips. “I kept to the theme and put on a different rendition of ‘I Put a Spell on You.’ It’s a slower one.” One eyebrow curves upward like she’s daring me to do this. But she doesn’t have to, I’m the one that put her up to it. There’s nothing I want more than to slow dance with Jamie, even if it is in a room where all our co-workers are hanging out.
I raise my eyebrow right back and hold out a hand. Her lips quirk up just the slightest as she lets me pull her close. She rests one hand on my shoulder, while I hold the other secure and begin to sway us back and forth. Her face alights with surprise when she sees that I actually can dance and not just bumble around. To her credit, she tries to mask it, but I know all of Jamie’s expressions by heart. There’s very little she could hide from me.
Shockingly, Lucas begins to guide Jordy in a dance next to us and another couple who delivers papers begins to join in too.
Jamie turns and takes in the people moving around us, then looks up at me with her big, quartz-like eyes. There’s something like awe, respect, and maybe a little surprise hidden in their depths. Whatever it is, she doesn’t resist when I tug her closer and move her hands to my neck.
Running my hands down her arms, her skin pebbles. I try not to smile at the way her body reacts to my touch, but it takes effort. Gently, I press my chin against her temple, closing my eyes and breathing her in. We’re still moving to the vibrations of the bass, but it feels like we’re floating, like the entire world has fallen away and it’s just us—together.
I’m so spellbound in this moment with her, totally consumed by the way she makes me feel, that it stuns me in place when she leans back the slightest bit and presses her lips to my jaw. My eyes fly open, but I don’t dare move.
As if sensing the way my entire body has tensed in response to her lipsbeing on me, she lowers her head to my chest to hide her face. But I’m not letting her get away that easily.
She just kissed me.
I grab Jamie’s hand and lead her out into the main room that’s crowded with cubicles. No one’s out here, but it’s still not private enough for what I want to ask. Moving until we’re out in the hall by the elevators, I stop and whip her around to face me. Her chest heaves and her eyes are wide.
You kissed me,I sign. Not the most eloquent of ways to start this conversation, but I need her to confirm. It almost feels like a dream, something my mind conjured up to satiate my own desperate longings.
Her eyes immediately drop to the floor between us, and she tugs her bottom lip in between her teeth. Shifting on her feet, she wrings her hands like she’s a child being scolded by a parent. I place my hands over hers to still her movements and calm her down. Spiking her anxiety is the last thing I want to do.
Her watery gaze rises to meet mine. “I’m sorry,” she mouths. “Please don’t hate me.”
All at once, oxygen leaves me. How could she ever think that I’d hate her for making a move? This is what I’ve been waiting for—praying for—dying to have happen for who knows how long.
I hook a finger under her chin and tilt it up. Looking into her eyes, I realize the best communication I can give her wouldn’t be spoken, signed, or written. It should be shown, given, said in a language that doesn’t require words.
I tentatively lower my mouth to hers, but just as I make contact, she startles and steps back, her eyes searching mine. For a moment, I wonder if I’ve read this all wrong—if I’ve pushed her past what she thinks is acceptable.
Maybe it’s just that I’m a terrible kisser. After all, I’m probably the least experienced person in that area. But then she signs, “You want this?” before motioning between the two of us.
I can’t help but smile as I lift my hands to say, More than anything.
She doesn’t respond. Only stares at me like she can’t believe this is happening.
I want you,I sign. Your kiss, your smile, your laugh…everything.
Her mouth parts and I advance toward her, backing her up against the wall next to the elevators. If you don’t want me, you need to tell me now before I do something we’ll both regret.
We’re chest to chest now, so close my body buzzes with the need to touch her. Gripping the sides of her face, I stare into her eyes and wait. All I want is to kiss her, to get lost like we were while we danced, to float off to a place where it’s only the two of us.
But if she doesn’t want this, what I want doesn’t matter.
It’ll shred my heart to pieces, but one word from her and I’ll back away and do everything I can to repair our friendship.
Her lips quirk up the slightest bit on a timid smile. “I want you, Parker.” Her body shivers on a quivery sigh the moment she says it like it took all her energy to release that bit of truth.
Without waiting another second, I tilt her face to meet mine and lay claim to her mouth like I’ve dreamt of doing for months. I’m slow at first, taking my time, praying she doesn’t see through my inexperience and hate me for it.
But when her lips part under the pressure and I deepen the kiss, a vibration from the back of her throat spurs me on. My hands are suddenly moving everywhere at once. Over her shoulders, down her back, gripping her hips…
Sinking into the kiss, I lose myself in her taste, her warmth. But she’s doing something with her hand that distracts me. I pull back, out of breath, and look down. The button to the elevator lights up under her fingers. My brows come together as my eyes flick to her face. A wicked sort of smile curves her lips as the elevator doors open, and she grabs the sides of my leather jacket, walking us backward and dragging me inside.