Adorkable(14)

Paula met me at the door. “Hey, Sally. Oooh that hair should come with a warning: Large and in charge and too hot to handle. You go girl, never knew you had it in you. What’ll it be?”

“Water and a slice of pepperoni with pineapple, please.” I smiled as she led me to my usual table. “Thanks, Paula.”

“Sure thing, sweetie.”

A few moments later, Becks came out with my water and plate, set them down and sat across from me. The first thing he said was “What’s with the hair?”

“Just trying something different,” I replied. “You like it?”

He shrugged. “It’s cool. So how was the movie? Was it as mind-blowingly awesome as it looked in the trailer?”

Figures Becks would be the only one to write off my so-called sex hair.

“Don’t know.” I popped a piece of pepperoni into my mouth. “It was kind of hard to pay attention.”

Becks smiled. “Well, this sounds interesting.”

“Don’t you have to get back to work?”

“Nope.” He untied his apron and laid it in front of him on the table. “I’m officially off the clock. Spill it, Sal.”

By the time I was through, Becks was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes.

“Chaz Neely?” he said, breathless. “What was Lillian thinking? That guy is such a tool.”

“Yeah, I know.” In my re-telling, I’d left out the frigid bit. Partly because it was embarrassing and partly because I didn’t think Becks would find it funny. At all. Standing, I asked, “Could you drop me off? I didn’t want to go with Austin, thought it’d be kinda weird.”

Still grinning, Becks stood as well. “Yeah, like the most awkward car ride ever. He really likes Justice League over the X?”

I shrugged.

“The guy is either seriously deluded or straight-up crazy,” he said. “My vote’s for crazy. He really told you he loved you? That’s just ridiculous.”

“Gosh, Becks,” I said, masking my hurt with sarcasm, “I’m so happy I told you.”

“Ah, Sal, you know what I meant.”

“You really know how to make a girl feel special.”

“Never had any complaints before.”

I went to stalk past him, but slipped on a wet patch instead, wincing as my ankle rolled. With cat-like reflexes, Becks’s arms shot out to catch me. If he hadn’t been so close, I would’ve definitely faceplanted. Knocking out a few front teeth would’ve been a perfect end to this crapshoot of an evening.

“You okay?” Becks said.

“Yeah,” I mumbled into his chest. His arms were locked around my waist, mine resting on his forearms. After such a trying night, his familiar scent, the comfort I found in his nearness almost undid me. I was so tired of surprises. If I had to meet one more blind date, I would literally go insane.

“Jeez, Sal,” he laughed, resting his chin on my head. “If you wanted a hug, all you had to do was ask.”

I slapped his shoulder. “Jerk.”

“I’m just saying.”

Despite my protests, I stood there, embracing him longer than necessary. It’d been a hard night, and I didn’t even get a chance to really watch the movie. Lucky for me, Becks gave the best hugs on the planet. Even Austin’s kiss, sweet as it was, had nothing on the feel of Becks’s arms around me. It was exactly what I needed to clear my head.

These surprise dates had to end.

They just had to. Since demands and pleading hadn’t worked, I’d have to try a different approach. What I needed was a plan, something failsafe, something to get both Mom and especially Hooker off my back. A sure way to end the matchmaking forever. The answer didn’t come until much later, but when it did, the solution seemed so simple, so perfect.

Now all I had to do was find the perfect guy.

How hard could that be?





CHAPTER 4





“How’s that article coming, Spitz?”

I mentally counted to ten.

“Hello,” Priscilla said, rapping her knuckles twice on the table. “Earth to Spitz? It’s October, mid-season for God’s sake. I need an ETA on that sports article like yesterday.”

Taking a deep breath, I gave up the counting. Numbers wouldn’t numb the pain. Priscilla Updike’s annoying voice was like listening to fingernails on a chalkboard, enough to make my ears bleed and set my teeth on edge.

Looking up, I forced a smile. “It’s coming along, should be ready by Saturday.”

“You just make sure it is.” She fluffed her hair which was already over the limit on the fluffiness scale. Blonde, busty and a big fan of Mary Kay, Priscilla was the image that came to mind when most people pictured the Southern bombshell. “And don’t skimp on the word count. Everyone knows they only read our newsletter to check the scores and see highlights. Make sure you include those this time instead of going off on one of your silly human interest slants.”