AllFreeNovel
Share Us
6
ARIA
Ipulled up to the restaurant and parked, letting out a breath as my hands clenched the steering wheel. A double date with Paul and Shelby. No, Iwishedit were a double date, but of course, the guy who’d be sitting on my side of the table didn’t. Figuring I couldn’t sit in my car feeling sorry for myself for too long since that fact wasn’t going to change, I grabbed my purse off the seat next to me and got out.
Just as I closed my door, Will’s truck pulled into the spot next to me. I backed up against my car to give him room, and when he parked, I shimmied between our vehicles and onto the sidewalk.
He got out, looking way too good in a short-sleeved Hawaiian shirt and shorts. He gave me a small wave as he approached, and suddenly, I froze. We used to greet with hugs. In front of my family, we sometimes still did. But my body didn’t quite know how to process the awkwardness between us now, so we ended up doing this stiltedleaningthing, neither of us sure if the other one even wanted a hug.
Before I could back up and skip it altogether, he stepped forward and put his arms around me in a friendly, back-patting embrace. I tapped his back in return and we parted with short laughs.
“Nice shirt, dude,” I said, gesturing to his surfer boy look. “Good thing this restaurant isn’t fancy.”
Will tugged at the shirt. “Paul brought it back from Hawaii for me. Does it look dumb?”
In my mind, I yelled, “No, you look hot!” but out loud, I just shrugged and said, “You pull it off. Even if we are in the South instead of on a tropical island.”
“Thanks,” he replied, humor in his gaze. Then he looked me up and down, taking in my bright-purple maxi dress and flats. “You look like a popsicle. A grape one.”
I giggled softly, pushing his arm. “Shut up.”
The laughter died, and Will checked his watch. “Are they here yet?”
“I don’t see Paul’s truck, but they could be inside.”
“I think they were going to walk over from Shelby’s since it’s right there.” He gestured down the street where Shelby’s studio apartment sat above the corner coffee shop. “He left a little while ago to hang out before it was time, so I came separately.”
“Right. Of course. Well, we can go inside and sit if you want.”
He looked over my head at the restaurant behind me, swallowing hard as he thought about it. I wasn’t sure what there was to think about, though. It was a simple, practical suggestion. Why would we wait outside on the street when we could sit down and order a drink or an appetizer or something?
Oh, right, because this wasn’t a double date, no matter how much I wished it were. And Will probably didn’t want to go sit down at a restaurant with no one but me to keep him company. It would take the date vibes up about a hundred notches.
“We can just wait out here,” he said with a shrug, glancing over at Shelby’s apartment again. “I’m sure they’ll be here any minute.”
“Okay.”
Ms. Hattie came out of the restaurant with her husband, Thatcher. She grinned when she saw us, changing course to come say hi. “Hey, you two.”
“Hi, Ms. Hattie,” we said in unison.
Will shook Thatcher’s hand as we greeted him, then I stepped forward and hugged them both. Thatcher and Hattie were practically family. It had been that way since we were kids, but then after their son had followed in his father’s footsteps and joined the Marines, the couple became especially fond of Will, Paul, and Nate when they did the same thing a couple of years later. In fact, it was their son, Brett, who’d given Will the idea to join in the first place. Then Will convinced Paul to do it too, and Nate had followed closely after. Peer pressure, I swear.
“Aria, you look lovely this evening,” Ms. Hattie said.
I shot Will a mock glare in reference to his popsicle comment, then smiled at the older woman. “Thank you.”
“Are you two on a date?” she asked, her eyes bright and cunning.
Will and I both shook our heads, and he laughed nervously. “No, ma’am. We’re just waiting for Paul and Shelby.”
“Oh, so a double date, then?” she asked. It seemed clear she knew exactly what she was doing, but it was pointless. If Will truly looked at me like a little sister, no amount of matchmaking from Ms. Hattie would matter.
Thatcher shifted and nudged his wife. “Hattie.”
“Not a double date,” Will said firmly. “Paul and Shelby decided to do a dinner instead of bachelor party stuff, and they wanted their bridal party there. We’re the only ones in town. No biggie.”
Ms. Hattie and Thatcher shared a look, and she clicked her tongue in disapproval. “Shame. See you two around.”
