Scattered Landmines

five

"That took much longer than I expected. Do you mind saving our table while I use the toilet, love?" Nancy asks as soon as I arrive back with our drinks.

"Of course not," I reply, setting our drinks down.

As soon as she walks away, my gaze wanders to Theo, and I notice he has already sat back down at his table with his friends, and they all look amused by something. "She's bloody fit mate," I hear one of them oddly say. I'm trying not to pay much attention while I wait for Nancy, but just as I nonchalantly peer in his direction, I can see that his eyes are locked on mine. He flashes me a grin, but I quickly turn my head away. Smooth. When he looks at me, I get nervous and feel an uncertain vulnerability that I'm not yet comfortable with.

My mind starts to wander while I sit here, thinking about how I will eventually need to find a place of my own, what Jake would think about me being out at a pub in the UK, and I wonder if he's even thinking about the kids and I. Probably not, but I foolishly pull my phone out of my clutch anyway and scroll through the directory in my phone to his number. It would be daytime back in Texas right now, and I hadn't heard from him since before I left. My intoxicated-self decides to push call. The same alcohol that provides me with courage and bravery also brings on stupidity, but as soon as it rings once, Theo is taking a seat next to me, and I rapidly close my phone shoving it back into my purse.

"Who would be foolish enough to leave a beautiful girl like you sitting here all by herself," he says, scooting his chair next to mine, and setting his pint of cider on the table in front of him. His long-sleeved black shirt fits snuggly against his broad, muscular arms, and he smells masculine and intoxicating all in the same breath. I can sense the heat in my cheeks cause my face to redden, and as he leans back in his chair, I find myself fighting against the growing infatuation I think I am beginning to form for this boy that is much younger than I am. Maybe it is because he is the first man that has come onto me this strong since I met Jake, or perhaps it's because time stood still the first time I laid eyes on his face.

"You've got to stop blushing," he leans into me, pushing his hand through his hair. His grin creates a dimple on the side of his cheek that's both alluring and tantalizing.

"Why? I can't help it." He should know that I can't control the pink tinge that appears on my face when I'm embarrassed.

"Your face is rousing, and when you blush, I just can't handle it; it's a turn on." Is he serious right now? Why on earth is he even giving me the time of day? Anything that I may have started to feel just abruptly stopped. He must notice that I don't have a wedding ring on and thinks I'm an easy lay. I have to cut this shit off immediately before it goes any further despite my immediate attraction to him, and I get caught in a riptide.

"Does that line actually work for you? It might be time for you to get some new material," I say, irked by his attempt at a lousy pickup line. "Look, my step-mom will be here any second. You should probably get back to your children," I motion to his table of friends that are watching their friend get brutally rejected. Laugh at that, boys. The aid of my cider is giving me an appreciated gallantry that I haven't unleashed in ages.

"Theo is getting pied," one of them exclaims, and they all laugh hysterically. "This is a first." He must use these lines frequently by the way his friends are acting. I'm not sure he realizes that I have been around long enough to not fall for his pickup artist act. His specialized tactics to seduce women won't work on me, nor will it ever.

"Ouch," he says playfully, placing his hands over his heart as if I stabbed it. "These lads over here are my mates from uni, and they aren't as mad as they appear. I don't get to meet up with them all that often, but was able to get out tonight for a bit of a reunion. We all live in different places now but come to this pub during the holidays. Are you here on holiday, Rose?" I get the feeling he may have taken offense to my comment feeling the need to explain himself further.