Flirting in Traffic Read Free

the two men, still feeling the one’s stare like a light caress on her neck and shoulder. “I don’t suppose Vito said he had blue eyes.”
    “Oh my God, Esa, that’s him,” Carla said under her breath when she finally zeroed in on the Adonis standing next to the truck. “Heaven help me, I’m in love.”

Chapter Two
    Esa experienced a flash of jealousy at Carla’s proclamation. She’d seen him first, after all. Her ridiculous proprietary attitude only grew when Carla gave a high wattage smile and waved. She glanced over in time to see Vito’s hand go up slowly in a return greeting. He said something quietly to the man in the truck. Esa saw a flash of white teeth when he grinned at something his friend said. Carla giggled in the seat next to her.
    Cocky bastard , Esa decided irritably. She threw him a sour look before she glanced ahead.
    “Carla, what the hell am I supposed to do now?” Esa hissed. “It’s clearing ahead of me. I can’t sit here and block traffic while you flirt.”
    Carla ransacked her bag, never taking her eyes off Vito. She withdrew her cell phone and held it up for him to see. “It’s okay, Esa. You can drive. I’ve seen more than enough,” Carla conceded breathlessly.
    “What are you doing?” Esa asked as she stomped on the accelerator, leaving Vito in her proverbial dust. That smirk on his face really bugged Esa for some reason.
    “I gave Vito my cell phone number online. He’s going to call if he…you know…likes me.”
    “Why does he get to be the one to decide?” Esa asked irritably. “What a conceited bast—”
    But her tirade was cut off when Carla’s cell phone started beeping the tune to a popular rap song.
    Esa stewed while Carla giggled and simpered, catching phrases like, “Gosh, you must get so tired after working so hard in the sun for almost twelve hours…Oh you poor thing…Are you going to be at One Life then?…What?…I can’t believe you lied about that. You are so bad…Seven-thirty? Sure, we’ll be there…” And then as Carla ducked her head and faced the passenger door, “Yeah, I really liked you too.”
    Esa rolled her eyes as she changed lanes. So touching to be a witness to lust at first sight.
    “How do you know he’s not setting up dates with every woman on that stupid flirting chat loop, not to mention every single female advertising for a man in Metro Sexy ?” Esa accused the second after Carla hung up.
    “Esa, you’re such a bore. We’re not planning on marriage and two point five children. It’s just for fun!”
    “It’s just for sex ,” Esa corrected.
    Carla laughed. “And your point is? Sex is fun, Esa. It’s not my fault you’ve forgotten that.”
    Esa simmered in the seconds that followed, unable to come up with a sufficiently acidic comeback. Besides…Carla was right. Wasn’t she always encouraging her older adult patients to continue to express their sexuality in a safe manner? Sex was a crucial aspect of human behavior after all.
    Lately, however, Esa preached much better than she practiced. At what point had she become such a prude?
    The question rankled.
    She mentally schemed for a way of getting out of going to One Life with Carla but for some strange reason Vito’s grin kept popping behind her eyes like a cocky little dare.
    She’d go all right…to protect Carla. Her friend was used to swimming with the sharks but Esa’s intuition hinted that this particular animal was downright dangerous.
    * * * * *
    Esa peered at her reflection in the mirror . For some asinine reason she’d actually listened to Carla and gone to the lounge at One Life to remove her glasses. She really only wore them when she drove anyway, but all that talk about how boring she was certainly caused her to make a point of checking her appearance.
    The sounds of a live reggae band filtered through the walls. Maybe it was the sensual beat of the music or maybe it was just all the reminders of how lame her life was that coaxed Esa to unfasten