The Aristocrat

He moved a step closer. “A little what?”

“Flustered, I guess. Jealous, maybe.” I chewed my bottom lip. “Never mind.”

A few moments of awkward silence passed. “Did it turn you on?” he asked in a low voice. “To think about me fucking?”

My nipples hardened. God, that word coming out of his mouth.

“Not the thought of you with other girls...just the thought of it.”

“Of course. That’s what I meant.”

“The idea of you, yeah.”

He moved closer. “The idea...of me and you…”

“Maybe,” I admitted, feeling hotter by the second.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead. “It’s warm out tonight, yes?” He looked toward the water. “Let’s go sit on the boat. We can go for a ride, if you like. I’ve never taken it out at night. The lights on it are supposed to be awesome, according to the guy who rented it to me.”

I nodded. “That sounds nice.”

“We should grab water from the kitchen, in case you get thirsty.”

I followed him back into the house. As we entered the kitchen, both Marias were hanging off of Sig as he cooked.

“Are you two joining us to eat?” Sig asked.

“No, we’re going out on the boat,” Leo said, pulling two waters from the fridge.

“This late? You can’t even navigate that thing during the day, Leo.”

“We’re not going far. Just getting out of here.”

“Very well, then,” Sig said as he turned to me and winked. “Goodbye, Kitty.”

Kitty? “I thought you called me Ginger now.”

He pointed to my shirt. “Hello Kitty? Goodbye, Kitty. Get it? Also...are you twelve years old with that shirt?”

His girlfriends snickered.

“Bugger off,” Leo said, placing his hand at the small of my back to usher me out of the house. “I’m so sorry about my fucknut of a cousin,” he said as we made our way back outside.

“I actually find him entertaining. It’s fine.”

“He’s even worse when he’s pissed like he is tonight.”

“What’s he upset about?”

Leo looked confused. “What do you mean?”

“You said he’s pissed.”

He laughed. “Pissed where we come from means drunk.”

“Ah.”

We stepped onto the boat, and he turned on the lights. He didn’t turn on the boat, though. We just sat on opposite ends of the bench seat and floated.

Leo’s gaze landed on my chest. “Fuck whatever my cousin says. You look adorable in that shirt.”

“I’m sure people look at the way I dress sometimes and roll their eyes. They would never know I graduated from Harvard and am about to enter law school. But I like cute and whimsical things that make me smile. So sue me.”

“It’s all part of what makes you unique. You don’t give a fuck. At the same time, you look amazing in whatever you wear—even with a cartoon kitty face on your shirt, all I see is the beautiful woman inside of it.” His eyes moved over me before he looked out toward the water. “Do you want to take a ride, or…”

“I think we should just sit here. I want to be able to talk, and we can’t do that if the motor is running.”

“Okay.” He smiled.

I looked down at my shirt. “So…there’s a bit more to Hello Kitty, actually, than just me liking it.”

“What’s that? Tell me.”

“It reminds me of my mother…before she died.” I looked up at the stars. “There was a Sanrio store at the mall. She’d take me there and let me pick out Hello Kitty trinkets. That’s one of the few memories I have with my mother. Whenever I look at this cat, it reminds me of that innocent time in my life. You’d think it might make me sad, but for some reason, it doesn’t. It takes me back to those simple moments before everything changed.”

“That makes sense. Nothing is ever shallow when it comes to you.”

As he looked into my eyes, I summoned my courage. “Why haven’t you kissed me?”

His eyes widened. “You think I haven’t wanted to kiss you?”

“I don’t know. It seems like you’re intentionally staying away. You haven’t asked me to go anywhere, either. I just thought—”

“You’re right. I’m a bit scared to kiss you again. Because the last time I did, I wasn’t even on this damn Earth anymore. I’d never felt anything like it. That carpark didn’t exist. You told me certain things were off limits, and I don’t trust myself not to take things too far.” He exhaled. “I’ve been walking on eggshells because I don’t want to push you into something you’ll regret.”

The only regret I had at this point was having made him feel that way. “I’m struggling with what I said to you in my room that night—the boundary I set. Sometimes I blurt things I’m worried about before I think them through. It’s like I’m afraid I’ll change my mind, so I make sure I get it out.”

“You’ve changed your mind about what you said?” he asked in a low voice.