AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Because I just wanted to have a good time in college. I didn’t want to settle down or get serious then.”
“No.” She lifted her chin off my shoulder, still looking at me in the mirror. “You’ve never wanted to get serious because you don’t trust men. You never have. You don’t want to love someone who might let you down. Or disappear.” She squeezed my arms and let them go. “Like Dad.”
I flinched at the piercing pain of her words. Not because they were meant to hurt, but because they were real and true. I swallowed hard past the lump in my throat.
“We’re not even dating, Em. We’re just—”
Wildly lusting for and falling deeper into like with each other every time we’re together. That stage kiss told me how he felt well enough.
“You want my advice?” she asked, brows raised.
“Yes.”
“Go for it. Make tonight a real date.” She stepped to the side of the mirror to get a better look at me. “And wear this dress.”
Blowing a heavy breath and shaking out my nerves, I looked at myself in the mirror. “Too much?”
“Not if you want him to swallow his tongue when he first sees you.” She smiled. “Wear your hair down. Put a little effort into it. Curl it in waves like I taught you with the flat iron.”
I slouched with a heavy sigh, glaring at her.
“And don’t fucking slouch like that. Shoulders back. Tits up.”
She was back to teasing me, which helped me shake off the tension from the tough love she handed to me a minute before.
“I hate curling my hair,” I muttered. What could I say? I was low-maintenance and lazy as fuck.
“Come on, Bea,” she said affectionately, using my childhood nickname. “Just think of Bennett’s face when you open the door for this—” she used air quotes— “theater business date.”
I stared back at my reflection, taking in her words. Emma knew me better than anyone on the planet. She was right. She knew that only someone I deemed very worthy could jolt me out of my laziness and force me to put in the extra effort. To even agree to a date.
“Yeah,” I replied, unable to prevent the smile that thinking of Bennett always conjured. “Now, what shoes have you got?”
Hell,yes. The hour-and-a-half prep time to wash, shave, primp, and pretty myself was worth every damn second.
Bennett stood on my doorstep utterly speechless. It was a beautiful thing. The man with an easy smile and charming words for everyone seemed to have been struck by lightning.
“Fuck,” he muttered, shaking his head as his eyes roamed everywhere. “You look”—he cleared his throat nervously—“amazing.”
“You look nice yourself.”
And by nice, I meant GQ model, hotter-than-a-fucking-fireman, lick-a-licious. In black slacks and a tailored, gray button-down that fit him to perfection, highlighting his broad chest and tight ass, this man wasfine.
“You ready?” he asked, still gawking, his eyes roaming all over me.
“Yep.” I shut the door and enjoyed the way he escorted me to his vehicle with a light hand on my back. After opening my door, he climbed in and veered his truck toward the highway.
He didn’t say anything, but I could feel him glancing at me. A lot.
“What?” I smirked. But I knew what. And my ego did a pirouette at the attention.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmured in that low voice that sent a tingle spiraling down my body.
Whoa.Swallowing hard against the sensation of being thrown off-track at that unexpected compliment, I resorted to my usual defense mode by switching subjects quickly.
“I have to say I’m surprised you’re a truck guy.”
Mind you, it was a nice truck. New and maxed out with all the bells and whistles. The dashboard looked akin to a NASA console.
