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“I’ll only be gone for an hour or two. Mookie doesn’t need a dog-sitter.”
Maisie crouched down and ruffled his fur. “But look at this cute little face? He’d like the company, wouldn’t he?”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re so impossible. Fine. But I don’t need any help getting ready.”
One glass of wine later, I did feel calmer. Until Maisie began pawing through my closet. “No. Nope. Ew, no. Clark, do you own anything other than button-downs and sweater vests?”
“There’s nothing wrong with my button-downs. This doesn’t need to be a whole production.”
She gasped and yanked something from the far reaches of my closet. Oh, no. Surely, she didn’t… Yep. She found one of my very few clubbing outfits from Omaha. “Ohmygod! You own a mesh shirt.”
“I am not wearing that!” I grabbed the hanger from her and stuffed it back into the closet. “Trust me when I say that it’s not a good look for me. Besides, isn’t the straight woman supposed to take fashion advice from her gay BFF, not the other way around?”
She snorted. “Be real. Which of us is more fashionable?”
I took in her off-the-shoulder silk blouse, billowy pants, and heels and admitted defeat. “Fine, you have a point, but trust me when I say I cannot pull off mesh in an Omaha club, much less at The Dinner Bell in Granville.”
Her eyes widened. “The Dinner Bell? This must be serious, then. I was just excited for you to get some with a hot DILF. I didn’t know it would be romantic!”
I huffed a breath. “Stop calling him a DILF. I’m nervous enough about…you know, dating a parent, without the constant reminder.”
Maisie returned to the closet, standing shoulder to shoulder with me. “Is that what’s bothering you? You need to chill. Maybe dating a parent is a bit of a dodgy area sometimes, but—”
“I got Principal Simmons’ approval,” I said quickly, heart thumping. “You don’t need to worry about keeping any secrets.”
She snorted a laugh. “Well, good, but if you think anything will be secret after going to The Dinner Bell, I have news for you.”
I smiled weakly. “Yeah, no, I know. I was just… Never mind. First date nerves.”
Maisie pulled out a silky lavender button-down. “How about this one? It says, ‘I’m too sophisticated for mesh, but I’m still sexy.’”
“With which sweater vest?”
“Nuh-uh. No sweater vests and no bowties.”
“But this shirt is kind of snug.”
“Even better. We’re going to send you on this date looking so hot that Hunter’s jaw drops. Now, point me to your tightest pair of pants.”
I laughed. “You really don’t need to do all this. Hunter will like me fine in my usual clothes.”
“Clark! This is a hot date, not a school meeting. At least make an effort.”
She thrust the clothes at me and shoved me toward the bathroom. It seemed easier to comply than protest, especially because she wouldn’t understand unless I told her the full truth about our relationship.
I changed into my tightest pair of black skinny jeans and the button-down, which clung to my slender frame, then styled my hair. I had to admit when I looked in the mirror that it wasn’t a bad look.
I’d just walked back out and gotten a low whistle from Maisie that made me blush when the doorbell rang.
My stomach erupted with flutters so large I almost ran back to the bathroom in case I puked.
“Don’t look so panicked,” Maisie said with a laugh. “He obviously likes you a lot to be taking you to The Dinner Bell.”
I took a deep breath and went to the door. Maisie was more right than she realized; there was no reason to stress. Even if it looked like a date to everyone else, this was just a dinner between friends at a nice restaurant.
When my heart finally calmed, I opened the door—
And almost fainted.
