AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Love you more,” I tell her before signing off.
Shaking my head, I set my phone aside and finish putting together the salad. Once it’s ready, I cover the bowl and place it in the fridge before checking the time once more. I’ve got about thirty minutes before I need to pick up Ellie, which leaves me just enough time to run through the shower.
A wave of nervousness sweeps through my veins.
I’m not anxious to be around her. I love having her near. I’m worried her answer to the question I’m going to ask won’t be what I hope. But if anyone will be worth putting it all out there for, it’s Ellie. Time to man up and ask her on a date.
I’m going to pray like hell she doesn’t say no.
“Let’s sit outside for a bit,” I say to Ellie after she slips the dessert she made into the fridge. I knew she’d bring something, even after telling her not to. I do admit, her Twinkie dessert looks a hell of a lot better than the store-bought cookies I picked up earlier.
“All right,” she replies, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge and moving toward the back door.
She takes a seat in the double lounger in the corner, as I knew she would, and sighs contently. She convinced me to purchase that big thing years ago, back when I bought my house, and picks it anytime we sit back here. The deck is tucked in between the kitchen and master bedroom, giving it a touch of privacy. Originally, I thought about screening it in or turning it into a four-season room, but I just haven’t gotten around to it.
I choose to sit at the round pub table. From my seat, I can have this conversation straight-on and watch the way she reacts to what I say. My heart starts to pound a little harder now as I prepare to ask one of my dearest friends out on a date.
“I love it back here,” she says, relaxing into the plush cushion. “This big lounger was your best purchase ever.”
I snort a laugh. “It only gets used when you’re here,” I tell her, a hint of a smile on my lips as I watch her stretch out.
“That’s a travesty. You were supposed to use it. I bet if you tried it, you’d like it. Come on, Thomas. Just try it.”
“That sounds just like peer pressure, El, and I won’t fall for it. No means no,” I quip, earning me the grin I was hoping for. When a few moments of silence pass, I finally start what I’ve been wanting to talk about. “So, there was something I wanted to run by you.”
“Okay,” she says with a touch of hesitancy in her voice, shifting in her seat to sit up a bit straighter.
“We’ve been friends for a long time,” I start.
She nods in confirmation. “We have.”
“I’d like to think that over the years, we’ve grown pretty close, and you’re one of the people I trust the most and rely on when I need someone to talk to, to make me laugh, or tell me when I have my head in my ass. To be honest, you’ve become more than just a friend to me. You’re the person I want to spend all my free time with, which I know isn’t always a lot. The person I want to call just to see how your day went. And the one I want to take out on Saturday night, not as a friend, but as a date.”
Ellie stares back at me, those big green eyes full of confusion and shock, and after several very long, painful seconds, she still doesn’t speak. My heart practically stops beating as fear grips my chest. She’s going to turn me down. I can see it in her eyes.
So I need to make sure that doesn’t happen.
Slowly, I get up out of my chair and approach where she sits.
“May I?” I ask, pointing to the vacant spot beside her.
She continues to watch me with hesitant, confused eyes, but after a couple of moments, she nods.
Once I’m seated beside her, I turn and meet her gaze once more. “I’ve been thinking about this for a while now, and I keep coming up with a thousand reasons why this is a bad idea, as I’m sure those same reasons are flying through your head right now. But every one of those reasons is trumped by the reasons I should ask you. I think you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and my heart does this weird beat thing anytime you’re near. I want to spend more time with you and hold your hand. Maybe even steal a kiss every now and again, because that kiss last Friday night was hands down the best kiss I’ve ever had.
“I know this is scary, El. Really, really scary. I’m not just nervous but terrified I’m going to fuck up one of my longest, greatest friendships I have in my life, but I don’t want to regret not asking again, so here I am, asking.” I take another deep breath. “Will you go out with me this Saturday night?”
Again, she doesn’t say a word for what feels like eternity. Then, she gives her head a slight shake and asks, “Again? What do you mean again?”
I rack my brain to recall what part of my word-vomit she’s referring to when it hits me. “Oh, that,” I start, running my hand through my hair and giving her a sheepish grin. “I, uh, sort of had a little crush on you back in high school. I had just convinced myself to take a chance and ask, but then you started seeing someone.”
Her eyebrows pull together and her nose wrinkles up in confusion. “Seeing someone? The only person I dated was—oh.” A red blush creeps up her neck and stains her fair cheeks.
“Yeah, I was a day late.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispers.
“Don’t be,” I quickly insist. “It turned out exactly as it was supposed to, El. If I had asked first, you wouldn’t have Brody.”
