Free Beneath the Surface by Cat Johnson Page B

always teasing her about never having a date. Actually, more accurately, they teased her about never having sex—at least, not in recent memory. Kid nowadays had no boundaries. They’d talk about anything. Nothing was private or sacred anymore.
    They told he she would forget how to have sex from lack of practice. Ha! Apparently, judging from the man’s obvious interest, she still had it even if she hadn’t used it in a while. Just because she didn’t go out with and sleep with a different guy every weekend did not make her a prude. She was just focused on her career at the moment. She had plenty of time to go out and sow her wild oats. Right? After all, she would only be turning thirty-five next month.
    As she walked through the door of the offices and caught her two college Conservation and Preservation major interns in an obviously passionate embrace, she had to reconsider that thought. Suddenly, thirty-five sounded really old in her own head. It was almost forty. And after that, fifty would quickly follow, then sixty…
    Resigned, she cleared her throat. “Good morning.”
    They broke apart, looking more reluctant than guilty. Ahh, the exuberance of youth that can squelch shame plus so many other annoying little feelings that got in the way of enjoying life when you got older—such as Beth’s new and sudden fear that she really had become old before her time. Maybe they were correct. She did need to get some. And maybe she would as soon as she had handled the latest problem to pop up at work… If some other issue didn’t need her attention after that.
    “I need you two to give me an update on those ceiling tiles down by the restaurant. We need to determine if any of the cracks have gotten worse. If so, we’ll have to take measures to stabilize them. I’m hoping the damage I found initially was simply from the renovations of the Oyster Bar. If not, we have a big problem on our hands.”
    The task required only one person, but Beth knew better than to separate the two new lovebirds. They would only spend the whole time text messaging each other on their cell phones if they weren’t together.
    You can’t fight love, she supposed. Might as well roll with it. And they were working for free as part of their college classes, not that that was an excuse for a shoddy work ethic. She sighed. She did sound old. Next she would be telling them how back in her day there had been no such thing as text messaging.
    Robby, the male intern, grabbed the tools he would need to measure and record the information she requested. “Will you be doing the tour today?”
    Beth frowned. “Is it Wednesday?” She could have sworn it was only Tuesday.
    Lyssa, Robby’s female counterpart, laughed. “Yes, it’s Wednesday. Damn, Beth, you really have to get a life outside of work.”
    Beth could feel the creases in her forehead increase at that comment. Now that she was turning thirty-five, she would probably get wrinkles too. If she had a social life, or any prospects for one, she might consider getting Botox.
    “I’ll do the tour for you if you want,” Robby offered.
    Beth shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I’ll do it. I just didn’t realize it was today.” The weekly Municipal Arts Society tour for the tourists was actually the highlight of Beth’s workweek. Hers could be a lonely job, as evidenced by the years she had spent stuck alone on top of the scaffolding as she scrubbed the delicate, painted Sky Ceiling. The tour let her interact with actual living people besides just the two lovebird interns. It was a nice change.
    Robby grabbed Lyssa’s hand with his free one. “Lyssa’s right. You need to get out.”
    Lyssa nodded. “Hey. Maybe there will be some hot male tourist on your tour. Maybe he’ll ask you out for coffee or a drink afterward.”
    Beth rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right.” Although, she wouldn’t mind going out with the hottie in the leather jacket by the information booth giving her the eye before, but