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An hour later, I slid the dress back onto my body and came out to find Weston already waiting for me. My jaw dropped, and I hastily recovered.
Weston Wright was dressed up in a white button-up, black dress slacks, a thick black belt, and dress shoes. I could hardly believe it. He was the perpetual ripped jeans and T-shirt guy. He drove a Subaru with over a hundred thousand miles. He let his hair grow out until it bothered him before a haircut. I hadn’t expected him to even own a suit. Let alone be able to fill it like a fucking god.
“Wow, West,” I muttered.
He grinned. “Figured if you were dressing nice, I should make an effort.”
“This is a little more than an effort.”
He held out the tie that he hadn’t yet tied around his neck. The white button-up was undone to the second button, and personally, I was a fan. “Still not used to this thing though.”
I slid the material between my fingers, dragging it out of his hand. “Eh, you don’t need it.”
“Well, that’s decided.”
His eyes traveled to where I now held his tie. Part of me wanted to say fuck the pretense and kiss him. He might find me attractive, but that didn’t mean he wanted to kiss me. It didn’t mean he wanted to complicate our roommate situation or betray Campbell. He felt a great obligation to my older brother, and I doubted he’d do anything to jeopardize their friendship.
So, I tossed the tie to the couch and smiled brilliantly up at him. This was my flirt coach. That was all it was. “Round two?”
He nodded. “Let’s go.”
We got into the Subaru and headed away from the house. When he veered away from downtown, I looked at him in confusion. “Where exactly are we going?”
“You don’t actually want to date frat bros. So, we’re going to need higher-end clientele.”
“And where would that be in Lubbock, Texas?” I asked skeptically. I’d dressed the part, but I hadn’t considered that we had nice enough bars for me to practice in.
“Manhattan 9.”
“I haven’t heard of it. How do you know about it?”
“Well, it’s a speakeasy, and they have live music on the weekends. I played piano there a few times when I first moved into town.”
“What? You didn’t tell me that.”
He shrugged. “It was sort of an escape. It was hard when I first moved here and Whitt and Harley were still in Seattle.”
I nodded in understanding. “So, I’m trying to get a guy to ask for my number again?”
“No, we’re past that. You were a natural, as I’d suspected.”
I laughed. “I was far from a natural.”
“Either way, you excelled. Did that guy call you after all?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Exactly. So, tonight, you’re going to try to meet a guy you can see yourself agreeing to go on a date with when he inevitably calls you. More than a drink or a phone number. If you hit it off, then you’ll spend the night hanging with him at the bar.”
I gulped. “That’s a big ask.”
“You’ll do fine.”
“What if he wants to go back to his place?”
Weston stiffened. “Look, only you can answer that question. If you want to go home with him, that’s on you.” His eyes cut to mine. “Do you have a condom?”
I sat frozen in place at that question. “What? No! That’s…that’s way too soon.”
He released a breath. “Well, that’s your answer then.”
“I mean, Jesus, I’ve only ever been with one guy.”
Weston arched an eyebrow. “Really?”
“I mean, yeah. I’ve only dated one, only slept with one. That’s the whole point of all of this.”
“Those things don’t always mean the same thing.”
My cheeks colored. “They do for me.”
“Nothing to be ashamed of,” he insisted. “Only do what you’re comfortable with tonight. Just try to have fun and don’t think too much.”
Easier said than done.
