“Too much prying,” I inform him and he nods his head in confirmation. “What about you?”

“Let’s see. As you already know, I’ve lived here my whole life. My parents are divorced. My mom lives in Florida and my dad is still around. I live with Robbie, Trey, and Hulk off campus. That’s about it.” He pops a shrimp in his mouth, smiling.

“You make it sound so simple.” I admire him.

“Oh believe me, my life is anything but simple,” he admits.

We lighten up the conversation after that, talking about music and movies. Besides eighties music, the only thing we have in common is that we both love horror films.

After we finish the dinner, Brady pays the bill and escorts me out of the small restaurant. Butterflies fill my stomach when he grabs my hand outside and leads me back to the car. We only drive a few miles down the road to an area where bars fill each side of the road. He parks in one of the vacant lots, paying the man his parking fee. When he opens the door for me to get out, he pulls me into him.

“I’m really betting that when you pleaded the Fifth, it was because you enjoy eighties music.” He turns me around to face the bar across the street where a big sign across the entrance reads “Monday – Eighties Night”.

“I guess we will have to see, won’t we?” I smirk over at him and he wraps his arms around me, pulling me in closer. This is it; he’s going to kiss me. His mouth draws closer to mine and I suck in a breath, licking my lips in anticipation. Right as I feel them brush along mine, he slowly moves to my cheek.

“You have no idea how much I want to feel your body against mine.” He kisses my cheek and grabs my hand, leading me into the bar. I stagger behind him as my heart picks up another beat.

We enter the bar and I’m pleased to find it’s a mix of different ages, not just the usual drunken college kids. Brady guides me past a couple of tables, taking one right next to the large dance area. There are still a lot of empty tables, but the dance floor overflows with couples. I don’t notice any groups of a single gender huddled together, but rather everyone seems to be half of a couple. “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler plays over the speakers while the couples dance, holding each other close.

Brady motions for me to sit in a chair and then takes the seat across from me. His smile hasn’t faltered all night and I’m enjoying how easygoing his personality is. The waitress comes by, looking him up and down, but he only looks at me until I give my drink order. He gives his order and then thanks her. Either he is oblivious to women checking him out, or he has the courtesy not to look when he is on a date because the waitress is young and attractive.

The tall brunette brings our drinks and I take a small sip of my vodka tonic while Brady drinks his water. Since I have met him, he hasn’t had one drink. This spurs a red light for me. Is he a recovering alcoholic like Jessa asked?

“How come you never drink?” I wonder if he’ll lie to me.

“I do but I’m driving tonight. Anyway, I would never put you in harm’s way.” He glances over and then turns back toward the dance floor. I can’t help but feel he is keeping something from me.

“One drink wouldn’t hurt,” I offer.

“That’s what a lot of people think.” His voice goes cold and I know I struck a chord.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you,” I say softly, swirling the straw around my drink.

“You didn’t. It’s just everyone always asks…” he says, trailing off and then abruptly, he scoots out of his chair. “Let’s dance.” He holds out his hand.

“Footloose” by Kenny Loggins plays over the speakers while the men swing their partners around. Suddenly, I’m incredibly nervous. With only a couple sips of my drink, I’m entirely too sober to dance, especially in front of Brady. I press my heels to the ground in front of the wood planks and shake my head at Brady, but he grins and pulls me harder. I reluctantly follow, dragging my feet while Brady walks to the center of the room. We are more camouflaged here and I start to feel more comfortable. I move side to side, displaying my lack of dance skills. As much as it scares me to be close to Brady, I would rather be slow dancing than show my lack of ability to follow a beat.

Brady wraps his arm around my waist and rests his hand on the small of my back, drawing me into him. I hold my hand in his and he leads us around the dance floor in a smooth form of the box step. A calm feeling absorbs me and I start enjoying myself before he pushes me away from him. When he pulls me back to him, I smack into him and both his hands fall to my waist, catching me. We both laugh. As much as I hate to admit it, I think he just discovered I can’t dance. But instead of letting me go, he pushes me out again and this time I attempt to come back more gracefully.

We dance for another three songs before we make our way back to the table. My cheeks hurt from the constant smiles and laughs. He holds the chair out for me like the gentleman he is, while I tuck my dress under me and take a seat. My drink is completely watered down, and since we were gone from the table, I don’t really want to drink it. The cute brunette comes by and asks Brady if we want something else, never glancing my way. He looks over at me for an answer, forcing her eyes to follow his. I tell her I’ll take a water and Brady asks for the same.

A couple minutes later, she brings bottles of water and two glasses of ice. Brady twists my cap off and pours it into the glass for me. “Your mom raised you well,” I compliment his chivalry skills.

“Actually, it was my dad. He always told me to treat a girl the way you want your daughter to be treated.” One side of his mouth goes up while he places my bottle down and picks up his own.

“Sounds like a wise man”.

“Yeah.” He stares off toward the dance floor again. I’m starting to think Brady Carsen could have more secrets than me.

“Where do The Invisibles play next?” I try to divert the topic.

“Are you going to come?” He turns his head my way and smiles as though there wasn’t an awkward silence a moment ago.

“I don’t know. Their music is okay but the lead singer is so incredibly…what’s the word?” I jokingly look up at the ceiling and scrunch the side of my mouth up.

“Hot?” Brady asks.

“No, that’s not it,” I say, still pretending to think.

“Talented?” He smirks over at me.

“Nope.” I smile.

“Amazing?” He laughs.

“He’s kind of…kind of a stalker,” I joke, trying to conceal my giggle.

“From what I hear, he sees what he wants and goes after it,” he confirms.

“What do you think he wants?” I question.

“I heard that he is completely infatuated with this incredibly beautiful girl. Hold on…I know her name…just give me a minute.” He taps his finger to his lips as though he’s thinking hard.

“What a lucky girl”.

“I know, right? I mean Brady Carsen is like the best catch.” He uses his best girl voice. “I think her name is Sadie. Yeah, that’s it, Sadie Miller. Do you know her?” He leans over the table toward me.

“Yeah, I do. What on earth would he see in her? They are so different, surely his friends would disapprove?” I continue to joke, but Brady’s face drops.

“Are you kidding me? Sadie walks into a room and every guy turns. From what he told me, she is not only gorgeous but smart and funny. The complete package with an amazing body to boot. As far as his friends, he could give a shit what they think and he wishes she would, too.” His brown eyes seem to have gotten a little darker as they pierce into me from across the table.

I don’t know what to say. Thankfully, “Lady in Red” by Chris de Burgh fills the room and Brady takes my hand.

“The last song of the evening and how fitting it is…my lady in red.” He nudges his hand on my back and leads me to the dance floor. He wraps his arms around me, resting his hands on the small of my back. I don’t know where to place my hands, so I ultimately rest them around his neck. We sway back and forth to one of my all-time favorite songs.