Bad Boys of Romance(27)

“Did you want to come in?” I asked. “I'm just watching TV and have a pizza in the oven. Hannah is out with Trey.”

“Okay.” He stepped forward.

“Okay.” I opened the door wider and let him in.

He walked into the living room and scanned the room, making no comments about the black and red furniture or the rose paintings that hung on the walls. I heard the timer go off in the kitchen and hurried to get the pizza out of the oven. When I came back into the living room, he had already changed the channel to a basketball game and made himself comfortable on the couch.

“Make yourself at home.” I laughed and relaxed a little.

“I did.” He winked at me, and I felt my face turn red.

I placed the pizza, two Cokes, and two plates on the black coffee table before taking my seat on the opposite side of the couch from him. I reached for the remote and changed it back to the romantic comedy I had been watching.

“Rule number one.” I pointed the remote at him. “Never change the channel on my TV.”

He laughed and relaxed even more into the couch as we watched the movie and ate pizza.

“Do you like magazines about decorating?” He nodded to the stack of home magazines on the coffee table.

“Yeah.” I shrugged. “I like to design my dream home in my head and pick out pictures of what I would want the different rooms to look like.”

He sat there as he considered my answer.

“How many tattoos do you have?” I asked when the movie ended.

“I lost count a few years ago.”

“Seriously, you have that many?” I had only seen a few that his t-shirts didn't cover.

“I would guess around thirty or so.” He shrugged. “What did you have done today?”

“It's just a quote,” I answered.

He turned and looked at me and waited for me to continue.

“It's about following your dreams. One I've liked for a really long time but am just now following its meaning.” I wanted to change the subject. “What did you have done?”

He shook his head. “I want to see it.”

“You didn't get a good enough look in the shop today?” I raised my eyebrows.

A look of shock crossed his face, but he quickly recovered. “Hmm, okay. Maybe another time.”

It was my turn to look shocked, and my cheeks were burning hot. I reached for the remote and found another movie to fill the silence that was starting to consume the room.

He stood and flipped the light switch before claiming his spot back on the cushion. His strong arms reached over and pulled me close into his side. I brought the blanket I had been sitting underneath with me and draped half of it over his legs. My head was spinning, and I knew I was probably sweating and breathing loud. My heart was pounding so hard against my chest, I was sure you could see it through my shirt. My body was doing none of the attractive things you want it to do when trying to act calm in front of an incredibly hot guy.

“Relax.” He spoke softly before kissing the top of my head. “We're just watching a movie. A terrible chick movie at that.”

I let out a small laugh as my shoulders loosened up and head leaned against his chest.

It was after two o'clock in the morning when he left. We hardly talked again after the second movie started, but I had the best time I'd had in years. This stupid smile was going to be stuck on my face for days.





Chapter 4

“You have to go out with us,” Hannah whined. “It's going to be a group of people. Not just the two of us.”

“Yeah, a group of couples,” I argued.

“No, not everyone is coupled up. Technically I'm not coupled up, so don't include me in that comment.”

It was Valentine’s Day, and everyone wanted to go out. It had been almost a week since I had seen Luke, and I could still feel his arm wrapped around me. I didn’t give him my phone number that night, but I figured if he wanted to find me, he knew where I lived.

“We're just going to The Green Room,” she called from her bathroom.

Well, that just made this more interesting.

“Okay, I'll go.” I smiled in the mirror.

“You will?” She poked her head in my room. “Why are you smiling like that?”

“I'm not,” I lied, trying to wipe the smile from my face.

“Yes, you are.” She put her hand on her hip. “Did you meet someone?”

“No.” I laughed because I hadn't told her about Luke stopping by that night. I wasn't sure what to say about it so I just hadn't said anything.

“Liar.” She glared at me. “Fine, I'll get it out of you sometime tonight. It's wine night so get ready.”

I had never drank wine before but that sounded fun. Something different since it was the lover's holiday and all. It had to taste better than beer.