On the Corner of Heartache and Hopeful--MIC Read Online Free Page B

her lap, her fragile self-esteem in tatters. Long moments passed as the
muted sounds of clicking glasses and murmured voices magnified to the point of
pain. Humiliation scalded her face.
    When she
couldn’t take the silence any longer, she pushed from the table. “If you’ll
excuse me,” she muttered.
    His hand
jettisoned out to snag hers. “Where are you going?”
    She didn’t look
at him. “I think I should leave.”
    “Why?”
    The quiet word
almost shattered her razor-thin control. Tears burned. They presented quite the
spectacle to the other patrons with him gripping her wrist from across the
table. “Please,” she begged on a whisper. “Let go.”
    “Only if you
promise not to bolt.”
    After another
excruciating moment, she nodded and he released her hand. Mic tried to stop the
tears, but couldn’t. She dabbed her eyes with her napkin. The silence
brutalized her. Why had Scott insisted she stay if he wasn’t going to say
anything? She forced herself to meet his gaze.
    He sat forward,
his hands clasped on the table, a confused expression on his face. When the
waitress returned, he glanced up, shook his head and she did an immediate about-face.
“Why do you want to sleep with me?”
    Mic gave a tiny
shrug, hoping to seem nonchalant. “For the usual reasons. I’m sorry if my
proposal shocked or offended you.”
    He smiled a
small heart-breaking smile and an infinitesimal amount of her humiliation dissipated.
“I don’t shock or offend that easily.”
    “Oh.” She sat
straighter. In for a penny . “What’s your answer then?”
    He smoothed the
wrinkles from the wrinkle-free tablecloth. “Well, I…uh…kinda thought…that is I
heard you were. . .a lesbian.”
    Her eyes popped.
“What?”
    “I mean I didn’t
know for sure, but, well…” He blew out a sigh. “I hate to say it, but when a
woman works like—”
    “A man,” she
finished. “You assume she’s a lesbian.”
    “Yeah,” he
sighed, leveling his eyes on her. “Sorry.”
    “Don’t
apologize. So far, it’s gotten us nothing but trouble.”
    He grinned at
her tease then signaled the waitress. “Ready to order?”
    Mic shook her
head. “I couldn’t eat now. Food isn’t appealing.”
    “Want to go
somewhere else?”
    “No. I just want
to go home.” And forget any of this night ever happened.
    Scott pulled his
wallet out and handed several bills to the girl. “We’ve changed our mind about
dinner. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
    By the look on
the waitress’ face as she took the money, she’d be this inconvenienced any
time. Scott stood and helped Mic to her feet. With his hand touching her lower
back, they walked outside.
    She cleared her
throat. “Just drop me at the garage. I’ll drive myself home.”
    “You can’t do
that,” he stated.
    Her hackles rose
at his firm tone. She wanted this humiliation over, and over right now.
“Really? And why is that?”
    He held the
convertible door for her. “Because I haven’t given you my answer.”
    ~
* ~
    Within minutes,
Scott parked the car at the edge of Ginny Pond, a small, man-made lake in the center
of Tatum. He cut the motor and stared out the windshield. They sat surrounded
by the muffled chorus of crickets.
    He watched the
water slowly lapped at the dirt shoreline as the scent of honeysuckle mingled
with the faint odor of stagnant water. He used to come here in high school. The
peacefulness never failed to calm his wayward teen-aged thoughts. He turned to
his passenger, who had remained very quiet on the drive. She now studied her
folded hands.
    With her head
bowed, the curtain of her hair spilled forward to catch the last of the sun’s
rays. Her locks shone like a soft, metallic fabric. He resisted the urge to
thread his fingers through it, settling instead on waiting Mic out. From the
passages he’d read in his grandmother’s journals, Mic reminded Nonie of a cat,
unable to curb her curiosity.
    Finally she
peeked over at him. “What are we doing