Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 125257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 418(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125257 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 418(@300wpm)
I half want him to say tonight, but I also don’t know that I can excavate any more of my emotions today. I hold my breath, waiting for him to answer.
“Tomorrow. Yeah, tomorrow. That work for you?”
He has a game in the late afternoon. I need to be at the arena too. I’m conducting a VIP tour for a local youth sports and mental health charity that we partner with prior to warmups. “Before the game?”
“Yeah, I was thinking since we picked up your dress today, why don’t you come over to my place? You can help me pick out a suit for the wedding. I’ve got a lot.”
But all I hear is why don’t you come over.
Lake’s inviting me to his apartment, in the city, before a game. He wants me to look through his clothes. Like a girlfriend would do. Then, play The Naked Truth.
My chest is lava.
My throat is a desert.
He’s been in my home, so I don’t know why this feels different. But maybe it’s because of the way he kissed me today.
Maybe it’s because of the things he said in the dressing room.
Or possibly it’s because he wants to do five things with me that a bride and a groom were never able to do.
“Sure,” I answer, but my voice hardly sounds like my own. This is the real danger, and I’m walking right into it.
As the buses and the buildings and the city streak by, I try to tell myself it’s just his home. It’s just a project. It’s just a thing two people going to a wedding together would do.
But it’s also a card game, a list, and a night where we held hands.
We’re both quiet as he drives me home, grabs the dresses, and walks me to my door. I unlock it and open it slightly. I hardly want the night to end. “The Ruby Glow? It’s doing great,” I say, stalling.
His gaze sails down to my lips once again. They feel tingly under his stare. “Because you take good care of it.”
“I’m just good at following directions—that’s all.”
He scoffs, looking me in the eyes again. “Nah. It’s more than that, Remy.”
I buy some more time. “Is it?”
“Yeah. You’re detailed. You remember things. Not everyone can take care of a plant.”
“It’s not a dog. Or a cat.”
“But someday it will be, right?” It’s a reminder of what I told him—that my plants would become real pets.
“See? You’re the one who remembers things. But yes, someday it’ll be a dog keeping me company as I plan dates for my clients. For now it’s plants,” I say, and I’m doing it again. I’m trying to extend the night. I force myself to shift gears. “What time tomorrow?”
“How about noon?”
“Perfect,” I say on a rough swallow. “I have to be at the arena two hours before the game. And you need to be there two and a half hours early, so it should all work out.”
There. That was businesslike.
“Yes, I’ll text you the address, but you should know I always take a nap on game days. So, bring your nap blanket.”
I go inside with a black dress for me and a white dress for someone who never got to wear it, but all I’m thinking about is a small, soft fleece.
25
THE NAKED TRUTH
LAKE
“Called it,” I declare once I round the corner into the kitchen, spotting my dad assembling the border of the Signs with Sayings puzzle.
He shoots me a look that says calling it was child’s play. “Yes, like it’s a surprise, too, when Thor rubs his face on the catnip banana.”
I stop in the doorway, arch a brow. “Did you just compare your love of puzzles to the cat’s obsession with a catnip banana?”
He stops, stares at the ceiling with a puzzle piece in hand, then shoots me a smug smile. “I did.”
As if on cue, Thor rounds the corner and leaps onto the table then skids, sending a handful of pieces skittering onto the floor.
“You are such a dick,” I say to the big boy, but I pick him up and scratch his chin.
He permits five seconds of contact before ejecting himself from my arms and onto the floor where Dad’s kneeling to pick up the scattered pieces. I bend down and help him out.
When he returns to the table, he slides a piece in, then nods to the stove. “You want some breakfast? I can make you something.”
Shaking my head, I grab a banana from the hanger on the counter, then a bowl. “Nope. Just gonna have some cereal then take off. I’ve got morning skate.”
“And a game this afternoon.”
And…something in between. Something like a date. Or maybe a date-ish. But that reminds me of something else. As I peel the banana and slice it into a bowl, I say, “Dad, I forgot to tell you the puzzle is a gift from…” I pause, since I’m not sure how I want her name to sound coming out of my mouth. Affectionate? Fond? Fucking obsessed? The latter, dickhead, since it’s the truth. “Remy.”