One Week Girlfriend(24)

I glance over at him. His mouth is swollen, his eyes glittering and his hair is sticking up all over the place from me tugging on it. Other than that, he looks perfectly fine.

Really fine. But what else is new?

Reaching out, I smooth his hair down, combing it back into place with my fingers. I do it a few times more than necessary but his hair so silky soft and I love how it clings to my fingers. He doesn’t say a word, he hardly moves, though those intense blue eyes are locked on me the entire time. When I finish, I pull away from him, settling in my seat with a breath of relief.

“There,” I say, clearing my throat when I realize my voice is still shaking. Damn it. “Now you look presentable.”

The car pulls to a stop in front of a giant, beautiful old building and my door swings open, a man in a dark green and white uniform with a kind smile peering inside. “Need help out, miss?”

“Yes, thank you.” I settle my hand in his white-gloved one and he pulls me out of the back seat. Drew opens his own car door, as does his dad while another attendant takes care of Adele.

I hardly noticed what she was wearing back at the house, so I take my time to check her out now. Her dress is a dark navy blue, a long, slender column that skims her every willowy curve, covering her from her neck to her feet. It doesn’t reveal much skin, but it showcases the length of her body, the fact that there isn’t an ounce of fat on her anywhere.

Her hair is pulled back into a low ponytail, black as a midnight sky, and the ends swinging across her perfect butt as she turns to greet someone. The place is bustling with excitement, lots of people pouring inside and I know it’s going to be packed. I really hope we have a table already reserved or something, though it might be kind of exciting if Drew and I were together but separated from his parents.

In fact, I would prefer it.

“Like what you see?”

Adele’s contemptuous voice startles me and I lift my gaze to hers, discover she’s watching me with an undisguised sneer curving her lips.

“Your dress is beautiful,” I say and she smiles icily in response but otherwise doesn’t say a word.

God. I want to stomp my foot and tell her to screw off. But I hold it all in, offering her a faint smile when she looks back my way. Though she’s not really looking at me, she’s looking at Drew, who’s come up behind me. I know this because I can sense him, smell his delicious scent, feel the alluring warmth that radiates off of his big body.

I have it so incredibly bad for this guy. I’m in deep trouble. What if he doesn’t feel the same way? What then? There’s nothing I can do about it. I signed up for this and now I have to deal with the consequences, no matter what happens.

“Ready to go in?” He settles his hand on my bare shoulder and his touch is such a shock to my system, I feel like I can’t breathe, my lungs are frozen solid.

Turning my head to the side, I realize he’s standing close. Really close. His mouth is at my temple, like he’s kissing me there, and I can feel his warm breath stir the little tendrils of hair that rest at my forehead. We make an intimate picture to everyone, I’m sure. I wonder if it’s all for Adele’s benefit.

I don’t understand the control she has over him. He puts up a front for her with me, yet doesn’t want to be around her. None of it makes any sense.

For the majority of my life, I’ve allowed myself to be used. Repeatedly and by everyone who surrounds me. I should be numb to this. But I’m not, not with Drew. I don’t want him to use me to make his parents freak out. I don’t want him to use me as some sort of weird protection so the people in his life quit asking probing questions and leave him alone.

I want him to actually like me. I want to spend more time with him. Real time. Not phony ‘oh, let’s hang all over each other’ time either.

“Yes,” I finally say in answer to his question because I don’t know what else to do. We need to face reality and that crowd waiting for us inside.

He squeezes my shoulder and we walk in together, trailing behind his parents, earning a hard glare from Adele as we pass through the open double doors.

This night is going to feel like an eternity. It already does.





~* Chapter Seven *~



Day 2, 9:38 p.m.



I’ve never dropped anyone I believed in. – Marilyn Monroe



Drew



We sit next to each other at the round table surrounded by a crush of people, the noise from their constant chatter deafening. We say nothing to each other throughout the entire meal, for at least an hour, if not longer. I know it’s stupid, but she makes me nervous and I want to get this just right.

It’s like I can’t find words. What can I say to follow up that kiss in the backseat of my dad’s car? I don’t want to cheapen the moment. It’s like I sit here and I’m wallowing in it still. Thinking like a chick, relieving the moment over and over again in my mind.