“You’re lucky I love surprises.”
“Well, that’s good to know. I’ll have to keep that in mind.”
I giggled, and the flirtatious tone in Josh’s words was ill-disguised as he said, “You sound adorable when you giggle, but I wish you were here and I could hear it live.”
“So, what time should I come over?” I asked, leaning against the bathroom door.
“How about seven?”
“Sounds perfect. Gives me some time to take a nap,” I answered.
“Go enjoy your nap, everything will be ready when you get here.”
“Thanks. I can’t wait to see you tonight,” I admitted.
As I was getting ready to say goodbye and hang up, Josh surprised me with another request.
“And, Jersey… bring an overnight bag.”
An overnight bag? Making the decision to put everything I had into whatever this was still didn’t make me feel like rushing back into bed with Josh. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to sleep with him again, it was just, this time, I wanted to do it on my terms. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that it took a moment to realize that Josh was calling me.
“Jersey? Jersey?” he called over the line.
“Yeah?”
“All that silence is making me nervous. I wasn’t trying to suggest you sleep with me again, I just figured it would just be nice if you slept in my arms tonight,” he insisted.
I was such an idiot. There he was being extremely sweet, and I was jumping to conclusions. The trust I’d so willingly given to Ryan was going to take a while to rebuild, but I needed to let Josh try. This thing between us could turn out to be something wonderful, but jumping to conclusions would ruin it.
“I like the sound of that,” I agreed with a smile.
“Okay, beautiful, go rest. I’ll see you later tonight.”
We said our goodbyes and I leaned my head against the wall. The last few weeks had been a complete roller coaster ride, but now I was ready to get off and enjoy life again.
Standing up, I actually made it into the bathroom, despite the ache in my legs. Leaning my head back against the tiles, I let the hot water from the shower wash away the tension of the morning, and after quickly changing, I crawled back into bed. Between my date with Josh yesterday and many sleepless nights while I’d tried to figure out what to do about him, my body wanted nothing more than to be trapped in the cocoon of my covers. As soon as my head hit the pillow, my eyes closed and I sank into a deep sleep.
I woke up feeling completely refreshed. Looking at the alarm clock, I realized that I still had a few hours before I had to get ready to meet Josh so I wandered out to the living room. Morgan was still where I left her a few hours ago, her butt planted in front of the TV, watching stupid reality shows.
Flopping down next to her, I tried to pay attention to what she was watching.
Without taking her eyes off of the TV, Morgan started with the twenty questions. “So, what’s the plan for the night?”
I shook my head at her. “You don’t let anything get by you, do you?”
“Never, and you still haven’t answered my question.”
I wasn’t avoiding her question, it was just fun to give her a hard time now and again. “Well, I only know about the first part of the night. Right now, I’m meeting Josh at his apartment, and he’s making dinner.”
She started to nod her head in approval. “Cooking dinner, very nice.”
“Except, he admitted that he doesn’t really know how to cook, so I have no idea how any of this is going to turn out,” I laughed.
She shrugged. “You never know maybe he got someone else to cook for him. So, what are you doing after dinner?”
“I don’t know. He said he wanted to surprise me,” I said wistfully. That was the part I was the most excited about, because I loved surprises. Well, any surprises not from my dad. Not sure how much of a romantic he was, it was going to be interesting waiting to find out.
She turned to face me. “Does it really matter where you go or what you do?”
She always could say everything I was thinking, even when I couldn’t. “No, it doesn’t. As long as I’m spending time with him, I really don’t care what we do,” I sighed.
“That’s what I thought,” she nodded. She was right. I wanted Josh from the first moment I saw him, and now that I had finally admitted that to myself, I wanted to spend as much time with him as possible.
We spent the next few hours watching reality TV, which I hated, but it was always fun to watch with Morgan. We chatted at the same time and, apparently, she had plans with Nick tonight. I knew they’d been getting cozy at the bar the other night, and Nick hadn’t shown interest in anyone since he lost Angie to Caleb last year. Maybe he was trying to move on. Nick and I’d been friends since last year, and truth be told, he wasn’t as much of a player as he made out. Either way, I was happy for both of them.
The time passed quickly and before I knew it, I was ready to go. Wearing a blue spaghetti strap dress, I did a spin for Morgan in front of the mirror. I was having a real sense of déjà vu.
“It’s perfect!” she cheered. “Josh is gonna die when he sees you in that dress.”
Looking in the mirror, I had to admit the dress was the perfect match for my hair color and complexion. Still, I was nervous about the cut of the dress. Would it seem like too much?
Morgan must have seen the look on my face. “Stop thinking so much and get your ass out to the car,” she ordered.
“How do you know me so well?” I asked, astonished.
She walked over and gave me a hug. “That’s what best friends do. Now go and enjoy your night.”
“I will,” I smiled.
Walking out to my car, I couldn’t help but wonder what tonight would hold. The last time I stayed with Josh, I left in the middle of the night. Things could only get better, right?
Once I got off the phone with Lauren, I started to get a little nervous. I hadn’t exactly been truthful with her. There was a plan for the night and it was a surprise, but it did not include us having dinner at the apartment.
First, Lauren had hit the nail on the head when she questioned my cooking skills—they sucked. Angie and Caleb usually did the cooking. I’d rather have to clean the bathroom, which was perfect because that’s what our deal was.
Second, I wanted to have a fresh start with Lauren. My plan was to do a repeat of the night we met. I had no definite plans for the night, I just knew I wanted the ending to be different.
As it got closer to seven, I started to pace the living room while Caleb sat and laughed his ass off at me.
“Dude, seriously,” he chuckled from the recliner. “Didn’t we do this exact same thing last night?”
“Shut up asshole,” I scowled. “That was different. Last night I was nervous that she wouldn’t show up. Now, I’m not sure what she’s going to think about my plans for the night.”
He continued to laugh. Jerk. If I hadn’t needed his help to get the reservations last minute, I would’ve just talked to Angie. But he had connections and was able to get his parents to make the last minute reservations at the hotel. Everyone else was meeting us at the bar afterward.
I flopped down on the couch and continued to scowl at Caleb while he watched TV. Without even turning he said, “Give it a rest, man. She’s going to love it.”
Taking a deep breath, I scrubbed my hands over my face. There was something about Lauren that I couldn’t stop thinking about. Whatever it was made me need her like I’d never needed anyone. Tonight needed to be perfect. It was our do-over, a chance at something unbelievable.
Closing my eyes, I leaned back against the couch. The butterflies danced around in my stomach as I prayed that this was a step in the right direction.
A few minutes later I heard a sharp intake of breath. Opening my eyes, I noticed Angie standing at the opening to the hallway and, once again, she looked gorgeous. Caleb should really stop being surprised.
“When a
re you going to stopped being shocked that your fiancée is hot as hell?” I asked, knowing he wouldn’t be offended that I thought Angie was hot. Just like Emily, she was like a sister to me, even more so now that she was marrying my best friend.
He shook his head at me. “It’s not that,” he said as Angie walked over and sat on the armrest of his chair. He cupped her face with his hand. “She’s always gorgeous, but it’s nights like these that I remember just how lucky I am to have her.”
He brought her face down to his and kissed her. What they had together was something most people only dreamed of, but as the kiss went on, I decided that some retribution was in order.
“Isn’t it time for you guys to get going,” I said tapping on my watch.
“Man, you are the world’s biggest cockblocker,” Caleb groaned, pulling his mouth away from Angie’s.
Angie lightly touched his shoulder. “Honey, Josh is right, we need to get out of here before Lauren shows up.” She bent down to whisper something in his ear and whatever she said had him standing up so fast, he almost knocked her to the floor. I moved to catch her but Caleb was quicker and slipped his hand around her waist, pulling her close.
“I’m going to hold you to that later,” he warned her. Turning to me as he led her toward the door, he said, “We’ll see you at the bar later.”
I nodded and closed my eyes again.
“Josh?”
I opened my eyes and looked at Angie. “Yeah?”
“Don’t be nervous. Everything is going to be perfect,” she said reassuringly.
I smiled and my shoulders relaxed. “I’ll try,” I said.
The minute the door closed, my nerves returned. What felt like moments later, there was a knock at the door. I brushed down my jeans, a nervous habit because regardless of the situation, I still wasn’t entirely comfortable in fancy clothes.
Walking to the door, I took a deep breath and opened it. On the other side stood an angel. Lauren looked so stunning that it took my breath away. Now I understood what Caleb had meant earlier. Seeing her like this reminded me how lucky I was to get a chance.
I stepped back and let her in to the apartment, still unable to speak. Her eyes appraised me the same way I was looking at her and, thankfully, her perusal gave me the time to find my voice. I took one of her hands in mine and spun her around. “You look… you look beyond words.”
The blush rushed up her cheeks. Damn that was hot.
“Thank you,” she smiled. “You look pretty good yourself.”
Seeing the bag she carried in her hand made me more excited than I’d ever thought possible. When I’d suggested she stay over tonight, I knew she wouldn’t be ready to sleep with me again, but that wasn’t why I’d suggested it. The do-over wasn’t just about making the night better. Waking up with her in my arms, instead of to a cold bed, would be amazing, even if that meant we were fully clothed.
I reached my hand out. “Can I take that?”
She nodded nervously and handed the bag to me.
“I’m going to put this in my room and then we’ll get going,” I told her.
“Going?” she asked. “I thought we were having dinner here?”
“Change of plans,” I said, moving towards the hallway. “I have a surprise for you.”
The smile spread slowly across her face. “I love surprises!”
Okay, that was a good start. Relief swept through me as I made it to my room and placed Lauren’s overnight bag on the chair in the corner. Just as quickly, I made my way back to the living room, excited to get our night started. Catching sight of her, facing away from me as I re-entered the room, I stopped still. The cut of her blue dress had desire pouring through my veins, making me hard in seconds. I walked up behind her, slipping my arms around her waist and, moving her hair to the side, I touched my lips to the back of her neck. She made a low moan in the back of her throat. The scent of her made me want to slowly slip her dress off and bury myself inside her. It took every ounce of my control but I managed to pull away before things got too heated. I rested my chin on her shoulder. “Are you ready?”
“Yes, are you going to tell me where we are going?” she asked.
“Nope, you’ll see when we get there,” I said. “Do you want to drive, or do you want me to?”
She turned in my arms and looked me in the eye. “Well, since I don’t know where we are going, how about you drive?” she said, pulling her keys out of her purse and handing them to me.
“You’re going to spoil me, you know,” I replied. The anticipation of the evening was killing me so I took the keys from her hand and moved us toward the door.
After helping her into the passenger side of her car, I moved around and slipped into the driver’s seat. The engine roared as I turned the keys and started the ignition. We were pulling out of the parking lot when I noticed her fidgeting with the strap on her purse, in an almost nervous manner. Reaching my hand over, I placed it over hers.
“Nervous?”
“A little,” she admitted. “But I’m more excited than anything.”
“I hope you like what I have planned for the night.”
“I’m sure I will,” she said with the most beautiful smile.
A few minutes later we pulled out front of the Statler Hotel. Her head snapped in my direction, her eyes exposing her shock. I had to smile as it became clear that she had no idea what I had planned for the night. Sending up a silent prayer, I hoped she liked it.
Stepping out of the car, I walked around to her side and opened the door. The dazed look never left her face, even as I reached out my hand to help her from the car. I ran my hand down her arm and linked her fingers with mine and walked up to the front door. She shook her head like she was trying to clear it.
“Josh, what are we doing here?” she asked when she finally recovered her voice.
I stopped just inside the lobby and turned to her. “I wanted us to have the chance to start over. The night we met didn’t end exactly the way I think we both wanted it to.” She dropped her eyes and looked away from me. I cursed inwardly. My goal wasn’t to embarrass her. I wanted her to see the beauty in second chances. Touching my fingers to her chin, I lifted her face to look at me. “Don’t look away. Tonight can end differently.” I cupped the side of her face. “I wanted the chance to get it right, and I thought the beginning was a good place to start.”
She gasped. “Really?”
“Really,” I whispered, leaning down to press my lips against hers.
“That is the sweetest thing anyone’s ever done for me.”
I took a step back and laughed. “I don’t think I’ve ever been told that by a woman before.”
“No, I can’t imagine you have.” She laughed along with me and it was a wonderful sound to hear.
“But you, Jersey, are different from anyone I’ve ever met,” I said seriously.
I felt her squeeze my hand and we made our way back to the restaurant. At first I’d brushed it off, but Angie had explained that I needed to show Lauren that I was different… that she was different. That asshole of an ex of hers had broken her trust, and it was my responsibility to prove to her that I was nothing like him. She was a princess, and deserved to be treated as such. So, even though it went against everything I knew, I was being the gentleman that Lauren deserved. I just hoped it meant that she’d think me worthy of her, too.
When I’d told Angie about my plan for tonight, she’d thought it was genius, agreeing that we both could use a fresh start. Redoing our first meeting would help Lauren let go of her embarrassment from that first night and take a step in a new direction, at least, that’s what Angie had said.
Dinner went better than I could have imagined. Lauren relaxed pretty quickly, but I think she was still a little scared of getting hurt. As the evening progressed, she opened up and, just like the last two times, we simply sat and talked. The chemistry between us was astounding. It wasn’t just physical chemistry either. I mean that was definitely there, but we
had an emotional chemistry that I hadn’t felt with another person before.
We talked about school, music, our likes and dislikes. Even when we disagreed it still made for interesting conversation, which was good, because just like her taste in pizza, her taste in movies left something to be desired. Once we’d finished dinner and had ordered dessert, our conversation turned to the future.
“You only have a year left, what are you going to do when you’re done?” she asked, finishing up her desert.
“Well, since my degree will be in advertising, I figure I’ll need to move closer to a city to find a job,” I answered. For a moment, I saw a flash of sadness in her eyes, before she quickly covered it with a smile. “What about you? What are your plans when you finish?”
“I guess that depends on who you ask.”
The tone of her voice was strange, completely unlike her usual jovial self, and it set me on edge. Whatever the answer to my next question may be, I had a feeling I wouldn’t like it.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, if I listen to my dad, I’m supposed to play professionally, and my coaches want me to attempt the Olympic team—”
As she spoke I reached across the table and covered her hand with mine. “Jersey, I didn’t ask about what everyone else wants. I want to know what you want to do.”
She sighed. “You know something?”
“What is that?” I said, squeezing her hand.
“It’s nice to have someone listen and care about my opinion,” she said, grinning. “To be honest, I’m not sure what I want to do. Playing pro, or for the Olympics, is always on my mind, but if that’s what I choose I want to do it for me.”
It had to be hard, everyone always trying to make decisions for her. Her dad seemed to want to make a lot of those decisions. Problem was, since he appeared to know so little about her, he had no idea about the type of the choices she would make for herself.
Wanting to take her mind off of the last part of our conversation, I offered to move onto the next part of our night. By now, all of our friends should already be at the bar.
Redemption (Forgiven Series) Page 14
