Emancipating Andie

“Andie,” she said before turning back toward the door and inspecting the doorknob, praying for some magic button that would set them free.

“Andie, huh? Interesting,” he said, and then after a beat, “So, Andie, are you a friend of Justin’s? Or Stella’s?”

She turned to look at him. The confusion must have been evident in her face, because he smiled slowly.

“Justin and Stella? You know, the people who are hosting this party?”

“Oh. No, I don’t…I’m here with Colin Tate,” she added by way of explanation, turning back toward the door and examining the hinge, trying to remember anything she could about the show MacGyver.

“Colin’s here?”

Andie spun quickly to face him, her eyebrows raised. “You know him?”

“Of course I know him.”

Yes, definitely in her best interest to attempt civility.

“Oh.”

A silence fell over them, and he smiled, ru

With a resigned sigh she gave up, walking away from the door and over to one of the shelves against the wall, sitting cross-legged in front of it. “Not a thing. We’re dating.”

“What’s the difference?”

Andie looked down with a shrug, feeling cautious since she had no idea how close he and Colin were. “It’s…new.”

“Ah. Haven’t decided if you’re go

She whipped her head up, an offended expression on her face, and he laughed, shifting his weight as he reached in his back pocket. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes, tapping them against his palm and then glancing up at her from under his lashes as he held the pack out to her.

“No.”

He chuckled, shaking his head as he held the pack to his mouth and removed a cigarette. “That’s rude, you know,” he said, the unlit cigarette wagging between his lips as he spoke.

“What is?” she scoffed. “Declining a cigarette?”

“No, that face you just made,” he said, pulling a lighter out of his pocket. “It’s like grimacing at someone’s food while they’re eating it.”

“Well, if the food in question killed the person eating it, or anyone within breathing distance of it for that matter, then I’d say it’s perfectly acceptable to grimace.”

He chuckled again as he held the lighter to the end of his cigarette, taking a long pull until the flame caught and the tip glowed orange. He put the lighter back in his pocket as he lithely pulled the cigarette from his lips with his thumb and forefinger, locking eyes with her as he blew the smoke out the side of his mouth, sending it away from her. “Just don’t breathe over there and I’m pretty sure you’ll survive.”

Attempting civility was getting more and more difficult by the second.

Andie began neurotically tapping her foot against the cemented floor. This guy was playing on her last nerve. Colin was probably back by now. He’d be looking for her. How would she ever explain this without looking like a complete idiot?

“Is that your natural hair color?” Chase asked suddenly, and her eyes flashed to his as an incredulous laugh fell from her lips.

“You’re go

He shrugged, taking another drag of his cigarette. “It’s just an unusual combo. The blonde hair with the brown eyes,” he clarified, exhaling the smoke away from her again.

He wasn’t the first person to say that to her, but he was definitely the first to preface it by questioning its authenticity. Andie looked up to see him watching her, waiting for an answer.

She shifted her weight on the hard floor. “My dad’s German and my mom’s Greek.”

“Good to know,” he said, “but that doesn’t answer my question.”

Andie rolled her eyes with an exasperated sigh. “Yes, it’s my natural color, okay? My mom has black hair and brown eyes, and my dad is the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Nordic poster boy. Put them together and you get me,” she said, gesturing toward herself. “Anything else you want to know?”

He laughed, and it a

“Huh?”

He smiled. “I said, what are you doing down here? Why’d you come down to the wine cellar by yourself? The bar’s upstairs.”

“I was just…” She trailed off, looking back at the door, willing it to open with her mind.

“Just snooping around?”

“What? No!” she said as she looked back at him, horrified. He was smirking at her, the cigarette dangling between his lips.

“Why are you down here?” she challenged.

He removed the cigarette from his mouth and held it up by way of explanation.

“You came down here to smoke? Shouldn’t you go outside for that? I’m sure the owners of the house wouldn’t appreciate what you’re doing.”

“Me and the owner of this house—whose name is Mitch, by the way—used to sneak down here all the time for a smoke when I was in high school, since he was hiding it from his wife at the time. So yeah, I think he’d be fine with me grabbing a quick smoke down here. But I’m sure he’d appreciate your concern for his house.”

Andie grit her teeth together, looking away from him. She hated feeling stupid, and it seemed like, for whatever reason, it was his goal to make her feel that way. She couldn’t understand how this guy was a friend of Colin’s. Granted, she hadn’t known Colin long at all, but it just didn’t seem to fit.

“How do you know Colin?” she asked, trying to sound conversational instead of accusatory.

“We went to high school together. Played soccer together. We ran in the same circles.” He shrugged, blowing smoke out the side of his mouth. “You?”

“Me? Me what?”

“How do you know Colin?”

“Oh. I met him at a friend’s barbecue,” she said.

“And won him over with your easygoing charm?”

Andie glared at him as she stood, pacing in front of the shelf. She needed to get back upstairs. Now.

“God, how long has it been?” she asked, ru

“Relax,” he said through a laugh. “Here.” He shifted, reaching in his back pocket again.

“I said I didn’t want a cigarette.”

“I’m not giving you a cigarette, sweetheart.”

Andie whirled on him. Sweetheart? Before she could even react, he tossed something at her, and she brought her hands up quickly, fumbling with it for a second before she looked down and realized what it was.

A cell phone.

She should have been happy, but instead, she was furious. “You’ve had this the whole time?” she asked, completely appalled. “Why the hell didn’t you give it to me before?”

He shrugged, flicking the ashes off his cigarette before he lifted his eyes to hers. “You were entertaining me.”

She felt heat curling in her belly as her fist clenched around the phone, and just as she opened her mouth, two muffled bangs sounded outside the door before it flew open, nearly slamming into the wall with the force. A couple stood in the doorway, and the woman immediately looked contrite, holding her hand up.

“Oh my God, we’re so sorry…we didn’t mean to interrupt…”

“Not at all.” Andie cut her off before she turned to throw the phone back to Chase, using a bit more force than was necessary. He caught it easily in one hand, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth as he looked back up at her.

“Nice to meet you, Andie,” he called as she turned to walk out the door.

“You too,” she forced out as she passed the couple, giving them an amiable smile. As she turned the corner, Andie added under her breath, “Asshole.”