Page 23 of Against The Boards

“Damn, girl. How long have you been in this city? Two days and you already have a date?” Maxine asked.

I shrugged, but inside, I felt like spiders were crawling around inside my skin. I hadn’t been on a date in a long time, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.

I didn’t know what to wear on my date. Quinn and I were friendly, but I didn’t think it was appropriate to ask my boss for advice on what to wear on a first date. Dinah and Noah had gone up to Winnipeg to visit his parents, so I couldn’t ask her. I ended up video chatting with Natalie instead.

“Hey!” she cheered when she answered the call.

“I need your fashion guidance,” I said.

She raised an eyebrow. “Do you have a date already? OMG! Is it with Benny?”

I scowled. I would never tell anyone I had kissed Benny; I would take that to my grave. It didn’t matter how good his lips felt on mine or how much I loved the pressure of his hands clutching onto my hips.

...and now I was thinking about those hands doing other things to me. Some very X-rated things. I needed to get laid.

“Fuck no! Just some guy I met while I was grabbing drinks with my coworkers the other night.”

Her question about Benny reminded me he hadn’t been home for a couple of days. When he disappeared after our kiss, I assumed it was because he feared my reaction. I didn’t blame him; I could be a petulant asshole, and I had expressed my undying hatred of him for several years. I hadn’t thought much about his disappearance until I was on the phone with my brother last night, and he mentioned Benny went to visit his family in Boston.

“Oh! You haven’t gone out with a guy since university!” She narrowed her eyes. “Why do I feel like you’re withholding something?”

“I’m not!”

She glared. “Rox.”

I sighed. “He’s the beat reporter for the Bulldogs.”

She pursed her lips, and I waited for the screen to catch up because it lagged again. It went back into focus, and she glared at me. “That’s not it.”

“Okay, fine. I kissed someone.”

“Ooh…who?”

“It’s not important. Help me with what to wear for this date.”

Her mouth hung open. “You kissed Benny, didn’t you?”

I stared at my computer screen.

“Oh, my God! Finally!”

“Shush. Focus, Nat! It was an accident, and it’s never happening again.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did you trip and break your fall on his lips? Oooh, is he a good kisser?”

I gave her the finger. “Enough about him. Help me out. I don’t know how to dress for a date with a man anymore.”

She laughed. “Look hot and show off your big boobs.”

I glared. “Help me!”

“Show me some outfits, and I’ll see if I can help.”

I pulled out a red wrap dress with white flowers that showed some cleavage and a simple black A-line dress and held them up to her.

“The black one, right?” I asked.

She put a finger on her chin. “Hmm. What else you got?”