THAT’S FOR ME TO KNOW AND YOU TO FIND OUT.
K: WELL, YOU HAVE TO GIVE ME A HINT. I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO WEAR.
DRESS CASUAL. WEAR THAT LITTLE BLACK NUMBER.
K: WHAT BLACK NUMBER?
THE ONE YOU WERE WEARING IN THE BATHROOM WHEN PIPER OPENED THE DOOR.
K: ASS :)
Oh, I see you’re back again, smiley face. I hope you’re ready to get your ass kicked this time. I’m gonna turn that one eye into a wink if it kills me.
I had forty-five minutes until I needed to pick Kacie up for our date, time to get moving. I grabbed my keys, left Diesel sleeping in my room and headed downstairs.
“Hi Brody!” Lucy and Piper called out as I passed the kitchen. No sign of Kacie anywhere.
“Hey Twinkies! I’ll be back soon, okay?”
“Shit!” The clock on my truck dashboard read 6:57.
Cutting it a little close, Murphy. Don’t blow it.
I rang the doorbell. Sophia opened the door, her face contorted with confusion.
“Hi, Ms. Jensen. I’m here to pick up Kacie.”
She giggled and stepped back. “Oh, you’re adorable. Come in, Brody.”
“These are for you.” I handed her a small bouquet of tulips.
“They are beautiful, thank you.” She furrowed her brow at me, still trying to figure everything out. “Hang on, I’ll get Kacie.”
She disappeared around the corner and I stayed in the foyer, waiting for my … friend. Lucy and Piper came tearing toward me from the back family room.
“Brody, are you sick?” asked Piper.
“Yeah, do you have a fever?” Lucy asked, tugging on my shirt.
I bent down to her level as she felt my forehead. “Nope, not sick. Why?”
They looked at each other and shrugged.
“Mom was on the phone with Auntie Alexa and she said you were hot. If you’re hot, you have a fever. Do you need medicine?” Lucy continued the inquest.
“She said I was hot, huh? Interesting. I promise you, kiddo, I’m not sick, but thanks for checking on me.”
I held my hand up and they each high-fived me before they ran off.
Kacie came around the corner and my mouth started salivating. She had on a white, lacy tank top and khaki shorts that showed off more of her legs than I had seen before. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun with a few random pieces falling onto her collarbone. The closer she got, the more her green eyes sparkled. She looked simple, yet incredibly sexy. I was going to need a fucking straight jacket to keep my hands off of her all night.
“Hey,” she said, smiling at me.
“Hey there.” I leaned forward, giving her a quick “friendly” hug.
She smelled unbelievable; a lethal cocktail of flowers and her pheromones sent my mind into a goddamn tailspin. I wanted to drop to my knees and beg her to blow off the friend idea right now, but Viper’s words kept ringing in my ear. ‘Turn the tables, prove her wrong, and then make her beg.’ Still drunk on her scent, the thought of Kacie begging for anything was enough to make me hard right there in the foyer.
“Ready to go?”
A small, skeptical smile splayed across her lips as she nodded at me. I stepped back and opened the door for her, following her out. She turned left off the porch, heading for my truck.
I reached out and grabbed her hand, tugging on it gently. “This way.” I nodded to the right.
She looked surprised. “That way? There’s nothing over-”
“Shh. Follow me.”
She didn’t resist again, gripping my hand back and following me around the side of the house. We didn’t talk while we walked across the backyard or for the couple hundred feet down to the lake. I peeked back at her, silently congratulating myself at the confused look on her face.
When we got to the edge of the yard, I made a slight left, still pulling her behind me. We stepped onto the creaky wooden boards of the pier and I looked back at her again. Her eyes were fixed on the blanket and candles at the end of the pier. She looked at me and smirked, shaking her head.
“What?” I joked, defensively.
“The candles—those aren’t exactly ‘friend’ candles.” She nudged my shoulder without letting go of my hand. Any physical contact with her was a bonus. She could give me a noogie and I’d consider it a win.
“No, they aren’t ‘friend’ candles, they’re citronella. I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea and start hitting on me or anything.”
She laughed heartily and I silently put another tick in the win column.
As we got to the edge of the pier, I regretfully let go of her hand so I could go around to the other side of the blanket. I waited for her to sit first, then I followed suit.
She glanced down at the dinner I’d thought long and hard about. “Pizza and beer, huh?”