Cicada Song
Page 4
Chapter 3
Sara turned the corner, heading toward the small row of houses that felt hidden on this seldom traveled road, and Ellis followed at a quick but unintimidating pace. He couldn’t help but feel nervous and chastised himself for having come after her. What about Lilly?
“Do you typically make men chase you until they’re out of breath?” he playfully asked a moment later.
She stiffened at first but then relaxed and continued her leisurely pace without looking at him. “Men don’t usually chase me.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“And why is that?”
“Well, you’re probably the prettiest girl I’ve seen so far—in Anderson, at least.”
Sara sighed and Ellis couldn’t help but notice the curvature of her body. He closed his eyes, reminding himself that he had just met with this woman’s mother. There was an unsaid obligation to maintain a respectful countenance due to this, though he wasn’t sure why. Then he opened his eyes again and found that Sara had stopped and was facing him. He was rendered breathless by the woman’s beauty; but, more than that, he was caught off guard by the butterflies fluttering in his stomach. It had been a long time since he felt those.
Her lips molded into a sly smirk.
“Well, you’re awfully forward, aren’t you?”
“Not typically,” he replied. “I was just stating an observation.”
“And what else have you observed?”
Ellis smiled and took a step forward. “You share your mother’s voice, which I find rather sexy.”
Sara’s smirk widened into a smile but then faded. Her eyes grew distant, as if she were lost, distracted by some far off thought.
“Uh-oh,” he said while taking a respectful step back. He had seen this look enough to know that she probably had someone else in her life already.
Sara blinked away the lack of focus and smiled again, though the connection they had briefly shared was lost. “What would my mother say if she found out her Tuesday night star thought her voice was sexy?”
Ellis laughed and scratched the back of his neck.
“Yeah, maybe we should keep that between us.”
Sara studied him a moment before smiling and held out a hand.
“I’m Sara.”
Ellis took her hand and felt himself flush at the touch. The distant look in her eye seemed to have vanished; perhaps there wasn’t another man after all.
“Ellis Barnes,” he said with the best smile he could offer.
They stared at one another awkwardly until Sara broke the short silence by pointing a thumb over her shoulder. “Thank you for the compliments, but my sexy voice and I have to go.”
“Let me walk you.”
A conflicted expression crossed Sara’s face until she finally lowered her eyes. “I’m sorry, Ellis, but I can’t…”
Realizing what Sara was about to allude to and feeling panicked because of it, Ellis held up a hand and stopped her. She paused, which gave Ellis time to figure out what he should say next.
“I’m not asking for a date,” he said a moment later. “Don’t get me wrong, you’re a beautiful woman, but my heart’s already spoken for.” Her eyes widened, but then she covered her surprise with indifference. He decided to continue without letting her speak. “There’s a girl at home who means the world to me, so obviously I’m not looking for a relationship, but what I am looking for is a friend—or at least someone to talk to.”
“And you chose me?”
“So far I’ve met an opinionated Percy, a Phil who threatens the elderly, and a police officer who, I get the impression, trusts no one outside of Anderson.” He considered his confrontation with Stan, but since Sara had been watching the pianist play the previous night, he opted to leave that part out. “I’m pretty sure I’ve run out of options.”
“And you usually begin platonic friendships with compliments to strange women?” she asked slyly.
“Well, I thought about writing you a check yes or no letter but I was afraid it would give the wrong impression.”
Sara smiled and shook her head. She studied Ellis a moment and then looked toward the row of houses down the street. “Alright, Ellis. I’ll show you around, provided there aren’t any ulterior motives.”
“Absolutely none. I assure you,” Ellis lied. “I assume you have a special someone as well?”
Sara’s smile faded and her eyes grew distant again. Ellis recognized a sensitive subject when he saw one, so he decided to change it. “So then, where shall we go?”
Sara put on a mock smile but it gradually became more genuine. “I’ll be visiting some friends as I had originally intended.”
“And me?”
“You can go do whatever it is that visitors do in Anderson. I’ll see you tonight at six-thirty, though. I hope you brought your Sunday’s best.”
Ellis sighed. “Your mother’s daughter, huh?”
“You missed the bigger service this morning but the people at night are more genuine. You can meet some good people there.”
“I’m not really a churchy person.”
“Hey, you wanted to be friends. If you want to be my friend, you go where I go, but if you want to back out now—well, that’s up to you.”
“And you’ll sit with me?” Ellis asked.
“My mother and I, yes.”
“People might talk, you know?”
“That’s why my mother will be there. You’ll be her guest.”
Ellis laughed. Her mother hadn’t exactly held him back earlier, and he wondered what type of protection Sara expected to receive from her. Nonetheless, this could create an opportunity to get to know Sara better. “Alright, I’ll see you at six-thirty.”
“I’ll see you then,” she said confidently, but Ellis noticed her surprised demeanor. She hadn’t expected him to agree so easily—or at all. She started to leave but then stopped and stared inquisitively at him. “The girl at home, what’s her name?”
“Lilly,” he answered without hesitation.
She seemed sad at first, but then her countenance turned to indifference. “Lilly’s a pretty name.”
He watched her go until something in the first house caught his eye. A curtain shifted in an upstairs window, making Ellis wonder if he and Sara were being watched. He decided to leave as if he hadn’t noticed and refused to look back; the last thing he wanted was to make things difficult for Sara if the observer happened to be a jealous boyfriend.