A
vignette about Jimmy and Lou…
Jimmy paused in the doorway to the dance hall in Willow Springs. Lou looked up at him in question, wondering why he stopped.
Seeing the indecision in his face, she stood up on tiptoe and kissed him softly on the lips, murmuring a quiet “Thank you. For the dress, dinner, coming to this dance…”
Jimmy looked down at the woman holding onto his arm. Excitement at the chance to dance dressed as a female, not having to pretend to be a boy standing against the wall feigning disinterest in the dance going on around her made her eyes shine merrily.
When she kissed him, his heart stopped for just a beat it had been so unexpected. All the feelings he had been keeping at bay came flooding over him at once. His palms became sweaty as he gazed into Lou’s big doe eyes.
I got a funny feeling
The moment that your lips touched mine
Something shot right through me
My heart skipped a beat in time
There's a different feel about
you tonight
It's got me thinkin' lots of crazy things
I even think I saw a flash of light
It felt like electricity
He closed his eyes for a moment trying to get his head on straight. ‘This is Lou, you idiot,’ he chastised himself as she pulled on his arm, begging, “Come on Jimmy. I want to dance with you!”
As he took her in his arms, they seemed to drift into their own little world among the other dancers. He had eyes for no one but Lou. He noticed the way her hair shown like burnished copper in the lantern light, the delicate pink of her cheeks, the graceful way she held her head high as she spun around in his arms.
You shouldn't kiss me like this
Unless you mean it like that
Cause I'll just close my eyes
And I won't know where I'm at
We'll get lost on this dance floor
Spinnin' around
And around
And around
And around
So lost in her embrace, his mind started to wonder what it would be like to hold her like this all the time. To have the right to do so… He knew that if anyone looked closely at him, they would all be able to see that he loved the woman he was dancing with.
They're all watchin' us now
They think we're falling in love
They'd never believe we're just friends
When you kiss me like this
I think you mean it like that
If you do baby kiss me again
Everybody swears we make the
perfect pair
But dancing is as far as it goes
Girl you've never moved me quite
The way you moved me tonight
I just wanted you to know
I just wanted you to know
‘People would be surprised to find out that Lou and I are only friends. With the way she kissed me as we came in and how she won’t dance with anyone but me, they must think we are a couple. Maybe, just for tonight, I can let myself pretend that it’s true. That I’m the one Lou loves and wants to be with.’
Jimmy was brought back to the present as Lou repeated, “Let’s get some punch. All this dancing is making me thirsty.”
Jimmy smiled, more then happy to comply with her request. Once he had handed her a glass of the fruity drink, he suggested a walk in the cool night air.
“That would be heavenly,” Lou told him setting her glass down on one of the many tables set around the room for such a thing.
Walking through two French doors, the night air immediately cooled their overheated bodies. “I didn’t realize it was so hot in there!” Lou declared, toying with her necklace.
Clearing his throat, Jimmy couldn’t help thinking, ‘You raise my temperature no matter where we are.’ Knowing that he’d shock her voicing such thoughts his lips twitched. He wondered what she would say if he did tell her what he was thinking.
Instead, he held her arm in his, strolling slowly along the boardwalk. “We were dancing a lot back there. I don’t think I’ve ever danced so much…Thank you.”
Surprised at his thanks, Lou hugged his arm tighter and leaned against him. “No. I should be thanking you.”
“For what?” he asked quietly, not sure what he wanted her to say, but needing to hear her speak about anything to him. He loved the sound of her voice when she was happy. It was like angels singing.
Lou stopped walking and turned towards him. “For such a wonderful evening. I’ve enjoyed myself so much, I wish it would never end…”
Looking down into her moonlit eyes, he couldn’t resist the urge to kiss her once more. Without giving himself time to think, he reached up to cup her face in his hands, lowered his head until their lips met. At first he thought he was mistaken that she was kissing him back but when she leaned into him and her hands grasped the lapels of his jacket, there was no mistake. Louise McCloud was kissing him. Kissing him like a woman kisses a man, not someone who is just a friend.
When you kiss me like this
I think you mean it like that
If you do baby kiss me again
Kiss me again
Lifting his head, his eyes were smoky with desire. Swallowing the lump that had formed in his throat as he looked at her. “Lou?” he whispered not sure what all this meant.
Lou’s hand reached up to caress his face. “Oh, Jimmy…kiss me again.”
Anything else she would have said was lost as his mouth came crushing down upon hers again.