AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My gaze sweeps up to meet his, and for a moment, we have a palpable connection. A mutual understanding, maybe? I don’t know. But the moment passes as our food arrives.
Blake takes a hearty bite of his food before leaning in to continue our discussion. “What about our first date? We need a convincing story for that.”
I pause, taking a sip of my drink before responding. “Right, that may be something they ask. Hmm, how about … we went ice skating?”
He laughs, raising an eyebrow. “Seriously? Ice skating?”
I roll my eyes, crossing my arms in front of me. “Fine, Mr. Perfect, you pick something then.”
A sly smile spreads across his face. “Actually, ice skating works. And it kind of fits with the whole hockey thing.”
I nod. “Exactly.”
“So, we met at the library. We had been dating for one month, and our first date was ice skating.” He pauses, holding up a finger. “Anything else?”
I raise an eyebrow at him, amused by his thoroughness. “Isn’t that enough?”
“Well, my mom can be pretty thorough in her interrogations,” he shrugs.
“Then we’ll just have to be prepared.”
“Agreed,” he nods. “I think we’ve nailed this entire relationship thing. Ready for tomorrow?”
“Bring it,” I say with much more confidence than I feel.
CHAPTERSEVEN
AMANDA
As the carwinds through the iron gates, my pulse hammers in my ears. The ostentatious fountains and manicured hedges of the Morton estate are a galaxy away from the cramped apartment I call home. Blake’s hand finds mine and gives a reassuring squeeze against my clammy palm as we pull up to the grand entrance.
“Welcome to the lair,” he murmurs, his lips quirking at the edges.
“More like a castle.” My words come out as a whisper as I trace the towering stone façade. Whatever smugness I felt back at the apartment after he laid eyes upon me is long gone, replaced by the familiarity of inadequacy.
God, I hate this feeling.
He chuckles a sound that does weird things to my insides and pulls my gaze to him. He’s staring. “Don’t let it intimidate you. Inside, they’re just people.”
“Rich, influential people.” The very ones I’ve spent most of my life trying to measure up to, only to realize I will never fit in.
“Still just people.” He squeezes my hand again. “You’ll like my sister, Emily. She’s five years older and graduated from Stanford with her MBA.”
“Impressive.”
“Yeah, but don’t worry. She’s more like me.”
“Arrogant?” The tease in my voice makes his lip twitch.
“Maybe, but I meant her personality. She’s levelheaded and down to earth. But she’s lucky.”
“Why?”
“She actually wants to work for Dad’s company.” His voice flattens as he stares at the house. I get the impression he wants to say more, but he remains silent as his jaw ticks. With a quick shake of his head, he slips out of the car and jogs around to open my door. His smile doesn’t reach his eyes as he grabs my hand. “Come on, beautiful girl. We’ve got this.”
I avert my attention to the ground as warmth coats my cheeks. He’s just being polite. The last thing I need is for him to see how the sentiment affects me. I’m sure he calls every girl he wants to hook up with beautiful. Not that he wants to hook up with me, but still. A part of me wants to believe he thinks I’m attractive. And, as much as I hate to admit it, I liked how his eyes widened after seeing me in this dress. That and his “Wow, you look gorgeous” comment ignited a tiny spark of hope. Maddy was right. Blake eyed me as if I was the queen of his castle.
But this isn’t an actual date. Nope. There are no fantasies to be had here. I’m just escorting Blake to dinner to keep his mother off his back.
