“Pucker up, baby.”
For the first time in my life, things were perfect. I was enjoying my job, I had amazing friends, and I had been seeing a guy for over a month who I was one hundred percent completely in love with. And that relationship was going surprisingly well.
But when you live a life where it’s guaranteed that the other shoe is going to drop sooner or later, it’s hard to sit back and relax. It’s impossible to bask in the joy of all the good because you’re constantly worrying, waiting for the day to come when it all blows up in your face.
I wanted to believe that I’d reached a turning point in my life where the good outweighed the bad. I wanted to believe that things with Rowan had nowhere to go but up. I wanted to trust that I was finally getting the happy I deserved. I just couldn’t stop looking over my shoulder, nervously waiting for the inevitable to happen.
I lowered my guard. I’d handed my heart over willingly so when that boom was lowered, it hurt so much worse than I had anticipated. I should have known better. I never should have gotten my hopes up. Because that just made the crash back down to rock bottom all the more painful.
“Ouch, Harlow! You’re about to rip my damn hair out!” I whined from my place in front of the bathroom mirror.
“If you’d sit still, it wouldn’t hurt so much!”
“You’re pulling too hard!”
“Just take a deep breath. I almost got it.”
“Ow!
Pepper’s voice spoke up from behind us and we both turned to see her leaning against the bathroom door. “You know, if I were a guy and had no clue what was happening back here, I’d probably be sporting a chubby right about now.”
I rolled my eyes just before slamming them shut in pain as Harlow ripped the comb through my hair once more. “She’s trying to scalp me!”
“Stop being such a baby,” Harlow complained. “It’s just a tangle. Ha! Got it!” she crowed triumphantly as the comb finally slid through my strands of hair unimpeded.
“I hate you,” I grumbled, reaching up to touch the tender section of my scalp.
“You love me. Now, shut up and let’s get you beautified.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I glowered at my reflection in the mirror. “I don’t understand why we have to go through all of this anyway.”
“Uh, maybe because one of the hottest guys who’s ever graced our planet told you he wanted to take you out on a date?” Pepper asked sarcastically.
“We’re already sleeping together,” I insisted. “And I’ve stayed the night with him, so he knows what I look like first thing in the morning.”
“Doesn’t get much worse than that,” Harlow said under her breath, then, “Ouch! Damn it!” when I reached back to pinch the hell out of her arm.
“What’s up with you?” Pepper asked as she studied me with a narrow-eyed stare. “It’s not like this is the first time we’ve made you over, and you’ve never been this bitchy about it. You’re going on a date tonight with one of New York’s most eligible bachelors. You should be excited! Women would literally kick your ass to be in your shoes.”
I inhaled deeply through my nose before blowing out a deep breath. “I’m nervous,” I begrudgingly admitted. “I feel like I’m out of my element here. This whole thing has gotten so much bigger than I planned for, you know? I mean, first we hated each other. We went from enemies to friends, then to friends with benefits to dating so damn fast my head’s spinning. I feel like I’m not prepared.”
“Ah.” Harlow grinned, leaning down to pull me into a hug. “Young love, it’s a beautiful thing.”
I shoved her face away. “Shut it, whore.”
“Just go with the flow, Navie,” Pepper advised. “Don’t overthink things. Just take each moment as it comes.”
Pulling in another fortifying breath, I focused on my reflection in the mirror and willed myself to believe everything my girlfriends were saying.
I could totally do this.
I couldn’t do this.
What the hell was I thinking, trying to set up a romantic date for Navie? I wouldn’t have recognized romance if it walked up to me and kicked me in the nuts. The longer I thought about everything I’d set up for our evening, the more I felt like a douche. I wasn’t really a romance type of guy. Navie wasn’t the typical hearts and flowers kind of woman. And the evening I’d arranged for us was a total cliché, right out of a poorly scripted chick-flick.
“You’re taking me on a horse drawn carriage ride?”
I could see the humor swimming in her smiling eyes as I looked down at her. Then it hit me.
Son of a bitch! Why the hell did I think a fucking horse and buggy would impress her? She lived on a ranch in Texas, for Christ’s sake. I’m sure she rode horses all the damn time.
“Uh…” I stumbled, feeling like an asshole.
“It’s sweet!” She giggled, but I got the distinct impression she was just humoring me as we climbed into the carriage. “This is fun. I’ve never done this before.”
“I feel like an idiot,” I groaned, dropping my head against the back of the red-velvet cushioned seat.
“What? Why?”
“Because this is stupid.” I waved my arm around, indicating the carriage ride. “It’s like I stole every dumbass date from every cheesy movie ever created.”
Navie’s head fell back in laughter as her hand rested against my thigh, the melodic sound combined with the heat of her touch warming me from the inside out. I was quickly becoming addicted to her laughter. Playfulness strung her words together as she asked, “Well, what else did you plan for tonight?”
I glared at her from the corner of my eyes. “You can’t laugh.”
She pretended to lock her lips together and throw away the key. “No laughing, I promise.”
I hesitated before finally admitting, “A picnic in Central Park then a trip to the top of the Empire State Building. That’s it!” I harrumphed when she burst into a fit of laughter. “The date’s officially canceled. Get the hell out of my carriage.”
“No, no, no.” She giggled hysterically. “I’m not… I’m not making fun of you.”
“Could have fooled me,” I muttered, arms crossed over my chest as I glared out at the pedestrians we passed.
“Aw, I’m sorry,” she cooed, reaching up to place her soft palm against my cheek so she could turn my face to hers. “I’m sorry, Rowan. I’m really not making fun of you, I swear. I can see how much effort went into putting this together, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that. It’s just…”
“What?”
“This doesn’t really feel like… us, does it?” It was as if she’d just read my mind. I felt awkward and out of place. “Can I tell you something?” she asked with a conspiratorial gleam in her eye. “I was really nervous before you picked me up.”
“What? Why?”
She shrugged and gave me a self-deprecating grin. It was then that I realized that no matter what we were doing or where we were, as long as I was with Navie, it was impossible for me not to enjoy myself.
“Things feel… different with us. I always have so much fun when we’re together and you’re not being a giant ass-face—”
“Wow,” I deadpanned. “You really know how to make a man feel good about himself.”
“You love it.” She winked, and Lord help me, but I was pretty sure I did. “Anyway,” she continued, “I guess what I mean is that this date kind of feels like the next level, you know? At least to me. I got worried that I’d somehow screw this up.”