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“I thought I told you to stay hidden until I came for you,” I tease, locking the door behind me.
“You were taking too long,” Shaun says in his sweet little voice.
I take a step forward and crouch down to his eye level, making sure to maintain eye contact. "You know I promised you that I would always keep you safe, right?" He nods slowly, his eyes still fixed on mine. "Well, I meant it. And nothing is going to change that."
I tap his nose lightly, a playful gesture to ease the tension. "But I need you to do something for me. The next time I say thesafewords, you have to promise me you'll stay put until I come to get you. Even if I take too long, okay?"
He nods again, his voice barely above a whisper as he replies, "Yes."
I smile warmly at him and tap his nose once more. "Good. Now, let's finish our Christmas shopping and grab some hot cocoa."
His eyes light up with excitement as he jumps up and down, "Yes!" His wariness is forgotten, and he takes my hand and leads me toward the kitchen. The day is looking brighter already.
* * *
“Ithink this is a bad idea.” I’ve been staring at the umpteenth outfit for my date with Maverick. No matter what I pick, nothing seems to call out to me, which means it most likely won’t for Maverick.
“Would you stop it already?” Gem chastises. She’s been helping me get ready for the past three hours.
“Where’s he taking you?” she asks.
“I have no idea. He said it’s a surprise.” Not knowing doesn’t ease the anxiety building inside me that’s ready to topple over like a stack of blocks.
“You’re thinking way too much about this. This is you and Mav. Do what makes you comfortable. He’s never once made you feel out of place,” Gem reminds me as she picks another outfit for me to try on.
We finally decided on a pair of black skinny jeans, a black and green sweater top with three quarter sleeves, and black lace trim on the back collar. Gem lets me borrow her black leather wrapped bracelet with stud beads. She dragged me to the salon earlier, and I dyed my hair back to its original blonde with hot pink dipped ends. Instead of pulling it up in a high ponytail or bun, I let my waves flow down to my back. When we got back from the salon, Gem insisted on doing my makeup. She applied green smokey eyes, black eyeliner, a subtle peach blush on my cheeks, and a soft peachy matte lipstick.
Gem stands behind me in front of the mirror. “You look hot, mama.” She whistles. I wouldn't say hot, but I look pretty. It’s the first time I’ve admitted that to myself.
Gem's phone buzzes. I peek and notice it's Mason texting her.
"So, are you guys talking?" I ask, curious.
"Yeah, but it's no biggie." Gem shrugs while texting him back.
Pfft, they've been playing this game for ages. I don't get why they don't just go for it.
“Honey!” Mom calls from downstairs.
“He’s here!” Gem squeals like a little girl.
I hear little feet running up the stairs. “Ricky is here! He's here!” Shaun shouts excitedly as he darts into my room. He stops midway and stares at me. “Wow. Pretty.”
“Awe. Thank you, monster.” I bend down to his level and open my arms for him. He runs into my arms and wraps his little hands around my neck.
“You’re welcome.”
God, I love this boy so much.
“Come on. Let’s go see Ricky.” I wink.
He smiles wide and grabs my hand and drags me out of the room and down the stairs with Gem chuckling as she follows behind. Just as I reach the bottom of the steps, my heart stops a beat when I take him in. And the way he’s staring at me says he’s feeling the same about me.
* * *
Maverick
It must be illegal for her to look like a sexy angel that fell from the sky just to torment me. My dick twitches in my pants when I scan her from head to toe. Fuck.
