The demon of insecurity began running loops inside my head. The push I gave to the soap bottle dumped way more out than I wanted. Maybe it was a sign. Of what? I didn’t know. I had bigger problems. I ran my hands over my body, washing away the grime of the day. Maybe it’d rinse the layers of me off with it, remove all the country hick so I’d present better to be worthy of Dash.
“Hey, come here,” Dash called from the kitchen, where he was no doubt preparing something delicious for us, probably ice cream. I love that stuff. “Amelia's not thrilled that you're taking over her duties.” I couldn't help but roll my eyes.
“It's not right for her to do all the dirty work,” I said, giving my perpetual response as I planned to tackle my laundry after I finished sweeping the foyer. My work boots always left a trail of the outside when I came in.
“But that’s her exact job,” Dash laughed, stepping around the pile of dirt I’d created, with a bowl of ice cream in hand. He took a bite from the one bowl, two spoons and two scoops. “She’s asked me to put a lock on the laundry room door to keep you out. Your vibe’s messing up her flow.”
I glanced his way while drawing the dirt into a tight circle. All I’d ever done was my laundry. How did that mess with her flow? I vacuumed and swept what I left behind...
“You’re overthinking it.” The spoon entered my peripheral vision, laden with a tempting scoop of ice cream. "I may have embellished a bit. She wants to take care of you like she takes care of me. Now, come join me on the sofa. It’s my attempt to begin using other rooms in this house rather than the two we stick to. Dig into this with me. I put extra hot fudge, so the ice cream is beginning to melt."
He sashayed closer, reeling me in with his unmitigated charm. I took the bait and leaned in for a bite. His pucker came next. Ice cream was on his lips, and the tip of his tongue slipped inside my mouth. Dash was a goofball, offering me a bite to then steal it. Another spoonful followed. This time, he let me have it all to myself.
I grabbed the dustpan, ushering the small amount of dirt I found inside, and started toward the trash can. If I didn’t do it now, there was zero way he’d allow me to finish. Everything Dash did had a romantic edge. Floor sweeping was likely to ruin the mood he was creating. “Go sit down. I’ll dump this and be there.”
“I just received an email that Dedman accepted me into their accelerated program, allowing me to graduate a semester early. I then called Haynes, Baker, Smart, and Reed. They seemed happy that I can begin work on January 6th,” Dash explained, following me until we ended on the sofa facing the backyard. The bite he scooped went into his mouth as I dropped down beside him.
"Exactly what you wanted. Good for you," I chirped. I took the second spoon and scooped up a mouthful of ice cream, savoring it when it hit my tongue.
“I also heard today from admissions,” he added, his expressive face turning neutral, lawyer mode worthy. And here we go again. What had Dash cooked up now? “You have a place at SMU. They’re offering scholarships to help fund you.”
Right, I wasn’t letting that fib slip past. “Don’t lie to me over things I know about. You’re payin’.”
“No.” Dash shook his head innocently. “I’m not lying. They wanted you to play football, but I said you were out.” Whatever expression I had on my face caused Dash to laugh. “I told them that I thought your goals had changed and you wouldn’t be attending college there.”
That was a very good answer. If I needed college, I’d do some night classes or online, I heard that was becoming a thing. My appetite returned as suddenly as I’d lost it. I scooped up a big bite. Dash enjoyed nibbling at his food, savoring the experience. Me? I hunkered down into the meal. My current goal, I wanted the hot fudge that had slipped to the bottom. Whip cream and a cherry came with it.
“How’d you fit all that in your mouth?” Dash asked. “Do you have brain freeze?”
Oh, I definitely experienced brain freeze, but tried my hardest to hide the sharp, piercing pain from my face. Through the effort, I absentmindedly dropped the spoon in the bowl then reached for the remote.
“My schoolmates have planned an end-of-semester party at a nearby swim bar. Wanna go?” Dash swiveled his whole body my way, excitement dancing in his eyes.
Soyeahanother uncomfortable setting for me. “When is it?”
“After lunch with my family. A group of us rented the club for the day and night. Families in the day, adults at night.” Adult meant he’d have me wearing something skimpy. The few times we’d gone dancing, as the night progressed, my clothes began to fall off. Depending on the situation—no that wasn’tright. Depending on nothing, Dash put maximum effort into everything he did.
I could feel his penetrating stare straight at my profile. Another bite teased at my lips. Of course, I accepted it, but it landed in my stomach differently this time. “I paid my portion to keep the club private and said we’d be there. It’s a pool club environment. I believe I said that. We’ll have a buffet, swimming, dancing, and drinks. It’s the kind of place I feel like we’d enjoy.”
We did have a great time out in the world together, but they weren’t in places I could embarrass him. We danced, got tipsy, and taxied home. It didn’t matter that he had a sophisticated take on everything, while I was more redneck in my approach to life. This one was going to matter. "Dash."
“Beau,” he mimicked. Yup, I was way past tired of that.
Why were we doing all these things at once? I had new clothes, I was cutting my hair tomorrow night, getting a barber shop shave…
My guy didn’t get life. I scrubbed a palm down my face. Why didn’t he adore our cozy cocoon like I did? He needed to handle all this on his own. I’d wait here for his return and listen to everything he had to say about it. “You go and have a good time—”
Dash interrupted before I had the wordgoout of my mouth. “You fit in my world easily. Everybody loves you.”
“Stop lying. None of your friends know me. I’ve never met them.” Absently, my palm reached for my heart, rubbing there. My guy was trying to give me a heart attack.
Dash erupted into laughter before I finished again. "You're a legend! Everyone's heard about the epic moment you whisked me out of that bar like a hero in a fairy tale."
My eyes did a full-on spin inside their sockets at the ridiculousness of a bunch of competitive law students gettinglost in make-believe romantic notions. I aimed the remote at the TV, tapping the power button. With a raised eyebrow, I said, "Not the way it happened."
“You’d never convince anyone of that.” Dash waved away my reality check. “We aren’t what you think. There’s lots of people like you and me there,” he said, his palm coasting over my hair. “Change of subject. You were talking about the new haircut you scheduled. I found something you might like. It’s long, you wouldn’t cut much off the top, and the sides fade. I think it’ll frame your face really well, and this front part can be tied back. It’s a cool look.”
I let him shift gears, because ultimately, I was going to the swim party, just like going to meet his family. “Do you have a picture?”
