Excerpt: Still Life

The elevator dinged behind him, and Shane turned around to enter. He staggered back, surprised and yelped so loudly that he didn’t have to look around to know that any number of cops had turned toward him with their hands on the butts of their service pistols. He squirmed against whatever had hit him, pushing it away from his body, and was relieved when it took up the momentum and moved on its own. Her own, he corrected himself as he got his first look at the lovely young woman, trying to regain her feet beside him. She lifted from her hips, raising her behind high into the air in a graceless attempt to stand. He shoes slipped on the linoleum, causing her left leg to shoot straight out. She jerked sharply and gave a frightened chirp as she toppled to the left, landing squarely onto Shane’s open left palm. She chirped again, even louder and attempted to pop straight up away from Shane. She managed a quick, low bounce before ending up right back where she started. If Shane had had any idea what she was planning, he would have tried to help her, push her to her feet. He would, at least, have made an effort to move his hand sot the next time she came crashing down on it, she would have hit bare floor instead. But he only had a moment to think about it before he heard himself cry out at the sudden pain. The men and women in The Pit roared with laughter. Shane could already hear the jokes starting.

The woman moved again, this time attempting to roll away from him. A move, that once again, returned her behind to the air and ultimately left her sprawled on her back with her knees up, legs splayed wide, and her yellow lace panties on display. Shane tried to look away. He was, after all, a gentleman, but he knew that the image needed just a moment to be burned into his memory.

Fortunately for both of them, one of the rookies took pity and offered the woman a smirking hand. She blushed so fiercely that the spray of crimson was easily visible beneath her caramel skin. She grasped the officer’s wrist sharply and allowed him to pull her to her feet. She kept her eyes down and smoothed her skirt with trembling hands. She muttered something that may have been thank you to the cop who assisted her then bent sharply down to grab the papers that scattered when they made impact, once again, flashing her panties to the now cheering crowed.

Shane couldn’t help but notice the tears collecting in her eyes, or the way she raced away to the back offices. As bad as that was for him, it was obviously worse for her. At least his underwear choice was still a private matter. If he ever ran into her again, he decided wincing at his own silent word choice, he would have to come up with something to say that would take the sting out of what just happened. Shane got to his feet just as The Pit began a chorus of Tie a Yellow Ribbon. Cops could really be jerks.

He pressed the elevator call button again, this time keeping his eyes on the elevator doors. While waited, he heard the cops voices raise in another round of cheers. The woman was returning. She strode into The Pit with her head up, chin thrust out at a defiant angle. She glared around the crowded room, despite the tear streaks on her cheeks and she said, “Yes, yellow. Yellow is my favorite color and, until today, I considered it to be my lucky color. You can spend the rest of the day attempting to embarrass me because you found out that, big surprise, I wear underwear, or you can act like adults, like gentlemen and get over it.” Then, with her nose in the air, she stormed into the elevator that opened behind Shane without his notice.

He thought it best that he let her go, and Shane took a step back from the doors. She stood with her hand on the button for a moment before looking up at him. “Are you coming?” She demanded? Shane snapped alert and rushed into the waiting car. They rode to their floors in an uncomfortable silence.