Behind his zombie, undead costume she imagined was a man very real, very handsome, and very much one she could think of as perfect. From her vantage point across the room she watched, unhindered. From the moment
he
stepped in, the trio of men by her side had vanished.
Oscar didn’t mix a drink back behind the bar. He only inspected bottles, twisting and swishing them around. He checked a few glasses, said a few words to Mitch, then disappeared down a dark hallway under the neon “Restrooms” sign.
With Oscar out of her sight she thought for a moment.
Run.
But her heart screamed louder.
Stay.
Terrified of the unknown, she had stayed away from the Buckeye for too long. Tonight she was listening to her heart, not her fears. “Nice meeting you all,” she said, without turning around to the trio of men, leaving them to their silence.
She strolled back to her seat next to Mitch, hopped up, and hoped he’d take care of the introductions when Oscar returned. “Did ya miss me?”
“Liz, there you are. Oscar’s here. You should meet him,” Mitch said just as the zombie bartender was returning with an armload of liquor bottles.
“Hi,” Liz giggled, uncontrollably when he was in earshot.
“Hey,” Oscar nodded. He finished unloading his arms onto the counter and slapped his hands together. “That should do it,” he said to Angela. His gaze locked onto Liz. His slow sexy smile, the one she’d been dreaming about, crept up under the zombie makeup.
Liz’s lips twitched into a pucker. She was captured in a spell he couldn’t know he was conjuring over her. Time was standing still as she searched for more clues of his features beneath the gray face paint and fake blood.
Then out of no where, Mitch turned on his barstool, knocked his knees into her, toppling her balance, and sending her straight into Oscar’s strong muscular arms.
“Oops.” Liz said. Then inhaled, taking in the scent that permeated on his flannel shirt. It was all man, just as she thought it would be. She tried to right herself, but her hands had landed on his tight chest and she couldn’t tear them away from him.
Caught in his grasp, Oscar held onto Liz longer than she would’ve thought. She melted into him and begged his hazel eyes for a kiss, but her pleas would have to wait until later. “Throw yourself at me anytime.”
“I didn’t. . . Mitch. . .”
“I know. I’m Oscar.” He let go of his catch and pulled out an empty barstool to sit down. Their private space had become one. Each captivated by the other. They sat unaware of any other disturbances in the bar. Until Mitch said what she’d wanted him to.
“This here’s Liz. She’s Bill’s friend.” It was a good thing he spoke up, since Liz hadn’t yet found the words to say to her perfect bartender.
“Didn’t I see Dina here?” Oscar thumbed over his shoulder.
“We’re friends too,” Liz added to clarify any misconception about what kind of “friend” she was to Bill. “He’s bugged me to come in here for months, but I kept avoiding it. I don’t know why.” Liz rambled. “The Buckeye is great and Mitch is great. Angela is. . .”
“Not the best bartender. Where’s your drink?”
“Had one. An Eye Opener.”
“Angela! How could you do that?” He grimaced back to her. “Do you not want this friend of Bill’s to come back?”
“Thought it’d be fun.” Angela shrugged, finishing up a pour on a pint of beer. “Besides Dina drank most of it.”
“Let’s get you—a Rum & Coke.” Oscar tapped the counter. Angela responded by clinking ice cubes into a lowball glass.
Searching for a sexier pose and not wanting to be thrown off her barstool again, Liz slipped off her seat and stood. She leaned her ass on the edge and grabbed the cushion behind her back.
“You’ll like this.” Oscar handed the drink over to her.
Remembering the buzz she’d gotten earlier, Liz lifted the drink up, wrapped her lips around the skinny red straw and sucked. She closed her eyes as the smooth liquor ran down her throat. “Mmmm,” she said, releasing a small sigh.
“Damn—woman,” Oscar growled.
His reaction confirmed that even after so many years of marriage, she still had that little something in her to make a man squirm. “Tastes great.”
“Sure it does,” Mitch said. “Give her another on me.” He slapped the bar.
“Slow down,” Oscar said, holding his hand up to Mitch, but not turning his gaze away from Liz. “You’re Bill’s friend? His married friend?” He tapped the diamond band on her ring finger. It clinked against the glass in her hand and echoed “mistake” in her ears.
“I’m going through a divorce.” Liz sat the glass down and tucked her hands back under her ass. “It’s almost final.”
“She’ll cut the ring off, if you ask nicely,” Mitch said.
“Thank you.” Liz flashed a smile back to Mitch. When she turned back around, Oscar’s interest had clearly faded. He was staring off into the crowd of the bar.
I can’t lose his attention this fast. I’ve come this far.
She turned back to Mitch and pleaded with her eyes. He nodded to the end of the counter.
That’s it.
“Do you have change for the game machine? I’m sure you’re a master at something over there.”
“You want to play a game?” Oscar offered his arm to her. She looped hers around his. “I know just the one.”
Chapter Five
They stepped the few feet to the end of the bar, past Andy on the last stool, and sat at a right angle to the main counter. The countertop touch screen gaming system’s menu included video poker, trivia, solitaire, mini golf, photo hunt, and more.
“I have a feeling we’ll make a good team.” Oscar squeezed in an extra barstool, giving Liz the seat next to the wall. He inserted a dollar and navigated through the menu buttons as expertly as he dodged the tables and chairs when he’d entered the bar. He choose a sub category heading, an erotic version of the photo hunt game.
“You’re an expert at this one?”
Numbers flashed on the screen, counting down to the start of the game.
“Maybe,” Oscar answered.
The game started and two nearly identical photos of a woman in a white bikini bottom and no top popped up. “Hit the differences fast.” He tapped on the left side where a plant was missing in the background. “Don’t be shy. Just don’t miss.” Oscar tapped another part of the screen, a strand of the woman’s hair lengthened to match the photo on the right.
“I got this.” With no distractions from the half naked woman, Liz quickly found the other three differences. “This is a breeze.”
The next set of photos were similar. This time it was a blonde holding a beach ball over her head and wearing the tiniest yellow bikini, barely covering her nipples. Oscar must’ve liked yellow, because Liz found the first two differences before he raised a finger to the screen.
“You’re catching on,” he said, finding a missing beach towel on his side.
“It’s not that hard. You just need to focus.” Liz tapped on a tattoo of a butterfly on the women’s hip near the tie of her string bikini.
“I’m the master of focus.”
“That’s a bold statement. How about a test?” Liz grasped the top of her costume, shimmied it down a few inches to expose more of her cleavage, and jiggled.
“No fair!” Oscar yelled.
Andy turned away from the baseball game. Mitch leaned back on his barstool. “Need help over there?” he asked, stretching his gaze over to Liz’s direction.
Oscar covered her chest up with one hand and tapped on the last difference with his other. “Are you crazy?”
“You’re no fun.” Liz pursed her lips, leaving her lower lip extended out in a pout.
“And you’re too sexy for this place.”
His compliment took her off guard.
Could it be? Is my fantasy man attracted to me? How is this going to play out? How far am I willing to go?
“Look at this,” he said, snapping her out of her daydream. “We got a top score.”
Oscar typed the initials OWW in the 10th spot. It matched several other slots in the leaderboard taken up by his initials. “Next time. You behave and we’ll do better.”
“Fine. So, OWW? What’s your full name.”
“Oscar Wayne Wallace,” he said with no hesitation.
Liz couldn’t help but hold back a chuckle over his full name. “Your parents didn’t even give you a chance.”
“I know. Family names. My sister’s got it worse.” He took another dollar out for the machine. “Her name is Clarice Opal.”
“Her initials are COW?” Liz covered her laughter with the back of her hand, which became so fierce it turned into a coughing fit. “Tell me you’re kidding.”
Oscar shook his head, handing a drink over to soothe her cough. Not only was he a master of focus, but as Liz learned at that very moment, he was a master of timing too. When she tipped the glass up to drink he said, “She’s married now. To a man named Dixon. Now she’s a COD.”
“Fudge!” That was too much, Liz spit out her drink, spraying his pants. “Shit. I’m sorry.” She dabbed the wet area with a napkin, grazing his crotch in the process and finding a surprisingly pleasant sized package that was a little excited to meet her.
“Good enough,” he said, placing his hand on hers and scooting it down to his knee. “What’s your middle name?”
“Ann. I’m, Elizabeth Ann Martin. EAM, boring, huh?”
“Not really.”
“You two done yet?” Angela poked her head around the machine. “Bill texted. Dina’s driving him home. Apparently she didn’t like the way the young sexy pirate was eyeing him.”
“Are you kidding me?” Liz stretched her head up scanning the bar for Bill.
“Dina’s got him by the balls,” Mitch hollered over from his seat.
“No balls, two strikes. Bottom of the eighth,” Andy interjected.
“If he dared to hit on someone in front of Dina, then he can kiss those balls goodbye,” Angela said.
“Foul ball. Doesn’t count. Still two strikes against the batter.”
“Nice update Andy,” Angela said, replacing his beer with a fresh one.
“Well that’s a bummer.” Liz slouched in her spot. With Bill gone she’d have no excuse to stay. She was just getting somewhere with Oscar and didn’t want to go home. She fidgeted and touched one heel down to the floor.
“You don’t have to leave,” Oscar said, reading her mind. He suggestively raised his eyebrows, twitched his head towards the game machine, and let out a whimper.
This was exactly the move she would’ve hoped he’d make on their first meeting. It was tempting and sweet without being desperate. She was hooked. “One more game, but—let’s switch it to men. Show me the abs.” She hit the menu button on the screen.
“You want abs?” Oscar raised his shirt. To Liz’s delight, he was fit like the models in the photos and had an inviting trail of hair leading down into the top of his jeans.
“Liz wants to see abs,” Oscar called out to the men in the bar, lowering his shirt.
Mitch pulled his up first, exposing a white beer belly, which shook when he slapped it. Andy lifted the side of his jersey to reveal abs similar to Oscar’s, but not as hairy.
“Over here.” Behind Liz, all three men at the pool table had their shirts up.
“Your turn,” one of the three called out.
“You’re all nuts.” Liz looked around at the eager eyes staring in her direction. Most of the crowd had thinned out, leaving the regulars and a handful of shadows in the back.
The rum must’ve gotten to her head. “What the hell.” She looked over to Oscar for approval. His eyes were full of anticipation and lust. Just what she wanted.
Liz balanced on the rung of her barstool and ran her hands up her torso to her breasts. She teased the men, inching her fingertips back down to her waistline. Pulling ever so slowly, her glittery top untucked out of the tutu of her bumblebee costume. She hadn’t planned on lifting it all the way up. She hadn’t had that much liquor yet, but she had the hem in her grasp.
Now what?
The universe answered. Her phone vibrated in her purse, bringing an end to her pretend striptease. Ignoring the groans from the onlookers, she threw her hands up and fished out her phone. The screen showed one missed call, from Chris. “Some other time.” She flashed around her excuse. “I should return this call.”
Oscar held his hand out to help her off the barstool. “Go out back if want any chance of reception.” He pointed to the door under the red exit sign in the the dark corner.
“Thanks, I won’t be long. Don’t get the top score without me.” She gave his muscular bicep a squeeze and made her way to the back door.
Chapter Six
The back door opened out to the alley and the gravel parking lot that was full earlier. Now only a few cars were left in the spaces. Liz stepped under a light fixture attached to the building and returned her soon-to-be ex’s call.
“Hello. What do you want?”
“You’re pretty snippy. Are you in bed already?”
“Not even home. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“Oh, you’re out. Not getting drunk are you?”
“What do you want?” she asked again, kicking rocks in the gravel alleyway.
“It’s just that we’re still married and I don’t want you to embarrass yourself. Or me.”
“Is that why you called? Spit it out or I’m hanging up.” Liz paced, not wanting to ruin her mood, by starting an argument with Chris tonight.
“Yeah, well, I’m trying to coordinate all this documentation. Our firm’s working hard to get the petition satisfactory.”
“I don’t need it perfect. I just need it over.” She rested her head against an electrical box hanging on the back side of the building. He always did this to her. He always found a way to be absurdly right, causing her to be in the wrong. His attitude and his over spending were the main reasons she’d asked for the divorce.
“Okay. That’s just what I called about. Judge Warner, the judge I wanted to sign off on our final hearing is going on vacation.”
“So?” She paused letting his words sink in. He was serious. He was asking for another postponement. She couldn’t let that happen.
What about Oscar? This has to end.
“Some other judge will sign it.”
“No. We’re being passed off. I can’t accept that. We’ll wait for Warner. It’ll only be another two weeks, three, tops.”
“That’s not going to happen. I’m the petitioner. I can and will proceed without you.”