Champagne Toast Read Online Free PDF Page A

been working together for over a month now , and the tension between us has been growing steadily since I walked through the door for my interview.  Some days I can hardly stand to be near her, like I ’ m afraid I won ’ t be able to keep my hands off of her.  And others, I just can ’ t stay away.  It ’ s fucked up.
    She ’ s still dating a guy named Shawn, which I seriously don ’ t understand.  I ’ ve seen them together and they make no sense at all.  He ’ s an angry guy who seems to want her on his arm for nothing more than to be a decorative ornament.  He sits at the bar, waiting for her to get off work, driving me nuts.  She ’ s different when he ’ s here.  She ’ s not herself — she ’ s anxious and edgy and she hardly speaks to me. But, tonight, tonight is different.  Shawn went home for the weekend to visit his family , and Kate is in rare form, but I ’ m enjoying her change of mood too much to say a word.  Instead, I play along, even though I know I ’ m just torturing myself. She ’ s not mine, no matter how much I want her.
    “ Evan, can you help me? ” Kate asks. She ’ s standing on her tiptoes, her t-shirt rising up her back, exposing her midsection.  I do my best not to stare as I walk towards her.  She glances back at me over her shoulder before continuing her request, “ Vince put the spare key to his office on the highest shelf of the bar and I can ’ t reach it .”  Her hair smells like strawberries.
    “ No problem, ” I say, easily reaching the key.  Just for fun, I dangle it above Kate ’ s head.  She smirks at me, narrowing her eyes as if to say, ‘ okay, let ’ s play. ’  
    Grinning from ear to ear, I ask, “ Oh, I ’ m sorry, can you still not reach them? ”   Whenever I ’ m near this woman, all I want to do is tease her, tease her so badly she can hardly contain herself.  But, the result is that I can hardly contain myself .  Tiny beads of sweat are building along my hairline as I twist the keychain back and forth between my fingers.  Kate swats at the key and gives me a fake dirty look.  I know her well enough to know she ’ s not upset at all.
    “Ev, c’mon.”  Yeah, that ’ s another thing.  She started calling me Ev.  It drives me crazy.  I can ’ t take it!  Every time she says it, I want to throw her up against the bar and kiss her hard, really hard.  I want her all to myself, to make her mine, and yet when the fantasy is over I realize I can ’ t have her.  Not yet.
    “All right.” I hand her the keychain and give her a crafty wink.  She gives a satisfied smile.  “ What do you need it for anyway? ”   I ask.
    “ I don ’ t .”  She raises an eyebrow at me before walking away to take orders from a large table of college students.  My jaw hits the floor as sh e saunters away, looking back with her signature tease of a grin.  This girl is going to be the end of me.
    The next several hours go by in the same manner — Kate flirting with me, getting me to watch her walk by, shaking her sexy ass and even flirting with patrons.  Doing my best to play her game, I find myself flirting with a group of girls sitting at the bar.  Their giggling is pretty annoying, but the blonde is checking me out every chance she gets and I know that if I wanted to, I could get her number with no problem.
    “ So, Evan , is it? ” the raven-haired, outgoing girl asks.  She leans in and puts her chin in her hands. “ Are you single? ”
    The blonde slaps her arm and turns a hideous shade of crimson.  She looks like a tomato.  “ I ’ m sorry, ” she says, “ my friend has had a few too many. ”
    “ That ’ s not true, Care ,” her friend persists, “ I was just asking him an innocent question.  What ’ s the big deal? ”
    “ Tess, stop it! ” the blonde says through clenched teeth.  Sensing her embarrassment a mile away, I decide to ease up on her.
    “ Care.  Is that short for Carrie? ” I ask.  She nods in