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“I knew I would hear from you, but I didn’t expect it to be a quarter to eleven. I’d begun to think you were going to prove me wrong.”
“You knew, huh?”
“Yes. Why would you ghost me?”
I rolled onto my back, laughing under my breath. Draven using slang was hilarious.
He was a good ten, eleven years older than me and aging like the finest of wines. And clearly, he had an abundance of confidence. That didn’t bother me as much as I would’ve expected it to.
“I’m sorry for reaching out so late.”
“You can contact me at any time, Della. I want you to come to me whenever you feel the need.”
Della? I smiled like a fool, still finding this to be surreal. I didn’t want to question why he was seemingly interested in me or what brought this about. I simply wanted to enjoy the moment—using it as the distraction I needed from my mess of a life at the moment.
CHAPTER FIVE
I studied my reflection, turning from left to right. Draven hadn’t been too detailed on what I should wear, only saying I should dress comfortably, but warm.
When I found this sweater dress in the back of my closet a few days ago it’d seemed perfect. It hit just above the knee, leaving my low-heeled boots to cover the rest of my legs. It sat off one shoulder so wasn’t too revealing while hugging my curves. Not to mention the color was perfect, one could rarely go wrong with black.
I wasn’t sure I was feeling it as much now as I had been then, but it’d have to do. There wasn’t any time to change.
My GPS put our meeting spot about thirty minutes away. He’d offered to pick me up, but I preferred to drive myself. I also had my location visible to Jessica and Kyle, just in case.
I smoothed a hand from the roots of my hair to the loose hanging ends before turning away from my full-length mirror. My stomach had been inundated with fluttering since Draven told me to meet him for dinner. I tried not to get ahead of myself by thinking of it as a date, but we texted so often I’d begun to look forward to his morning messages.
I grabbed my purse and an extra car charger on my way out of my bedroom. Wanting to say goodbye to my sister, I paused outside the bathroom and lightly knocked on the door.
“Isa?”
“It’s unlocked!”
I turned the rickety knob and pushed open the door. The space wasn’t big enough for us both to fit comfortably so I remained in the doorway.
“Wow, you look great!” I exclaimed, taking in her outfit.
She’d paired a chic red top with black jeggings and boots similar to mine, minus the heel and over the knee length. She turned towards me, keeping one hand wrapped around our shared flat iron. While I got pencil straight hair, she got waves.
“Are you sure it’s not too much?”
“You look good, Isa. I’m glad to see you in something other than bandit gear,” I joked.
She gave me a tight smile that didn’t quite meet her eyes. If not for her being so moody this last week I’d have immediately been concerned.
I expected her to be radiating with excitement. She never got to go out and even though I wasn’t Troy’s number one fan I appreciated him hustling enough to take her out and do something.
I couldn’t complain or demand he cough up the cash to go towards bills or groceries when Isa had been so emotional lately. I still felt like I wasn’t getting the appropriate vibe from her, though.
“What’s wrong?”
“Noth--.”
“Don’t say it’s nothing. Do you know who you’re talking to right now?”
Her smile felt a bit warmer this time.
“It’s Troy.”
“Okay, what did he do?”
She set the straightener on the edge of the sink and turned to face me. “I think he’s going to propose.”
“With what--?” I caught myself before I put my foot in my mouth. “Isn’t that what he should do?”
“This is the modern century; Del. Women don’t have to be married to have babies and live happily. It wouldn’t be right anyway. He’s not, never mind.” She turned away, glancing back over with an impish grin. “Shouldn’t you be walking out the door? Don’t be late on your first date.”
“It’s not a date.”
“So, the notorious Draven Alistair just wants to take you out as a friend?”
“Technically he isn’t taking me anywhere.” I held up my keys to emphasize my point.
“Go on, get out of here and keep me updated.” She waved me off and went back to styling her hair.
I hadn’t recognized the address Draven sent for me to put into the GPS, but as my arrival time diminished, I began to realize where I was going—Hawthorne Bay.
It was a popular hotspot for the Cottonwood residents and tourists that could afford to spend money at the small shops and cute little eateries that lined the boardwalk.
