Dare Me Forever (A Solana Beach Book)

by Paige Edward

Everything was going well at the store. I had already picked up a few more commissions for wedding invitations, and the brides to be had enjoyed picking out the different papers, envelopes, and the direction I’d given about how to style the invitation so it was an extension of their vision for their special day. It was so fun to help the bride find just what she was looking for and it felt so grown-up and professional to be doing it in my own store.

  My journal section was seriously lacking. I needed to find some ones that were more humorous—more who needs him anyway? Or out with the old in with the new or my favorite, the best way to get over someone is to get under someone new type inscriptions. That was definitely Jamie and Cat’s way. My two best friends knew how to have a good time. I was a little slower to move on.

  Finally in the afternoon, there seemed to be a break in the stream of customers. I sat down behind the cash register, and began reading my favorite design and stationary blogs. It counted as professional research now that I was a small business owner. I needed to make sure I had all the products that my clients wanted and it was a great excuse to read about and see beautiful pictures of all the incredible designs out there. It was totally inspirational and gave me great ideas of hip new trends and products to carry in the store. Looking at a beautiful photo collection of paper flowers, I leaned in closer to see how exactly they were put together. The petals of the flowers had been dyed neon and were then pressed into the paper—a modern take on a very old form of paper. It was cool.

  I hadn’t heard from my brother over the past few days. I hoped it was because he was taking his classes seriously. If the store kept doing so well, maybe I could take him somewhere over the holidays. That is if he kept up with his homework and applied himself. He hates when I got all parental on him, but it’s impossible not to, considering our six year age difference and having taken care of him since before he was a teenager. I needed to concentrate on the task at hand, not obsess about my brother. I went back to the design blogs.

  “You look like you are going to fall into the computer.”

  Startled, I looked up. Ryan walked towards me with an easy and strong stride. What a hottie, a man on a mission. Just hearing his voice made my mouth go dry. It was almost like the original James Bond was in front of me, all serious, sexy, and dressed in a fantastic suit. I was glad that I’d put on a fitted dress that accentuated my curves for the day (thanks Jamie). But anyway it didn’t matter. It wasn’t good business to think every guy who walks in here was doing it for me. Ryan was a customer like any other, and I would help find what he was looking for. Besides, we hardly knew each other but I had to admit, the chemistry I had felt at the barbeque was still fresh on my mind.

  “Amy, I need a birthday card,” he paused, “for my secretary,” he added smiling.

  “Sweet,” I said, pointing him to the right section. I kept my eyes firmly on the computer screen. There was no way I was going to check out his ass. Not today. I was a business owner, a full-fledged adult—I didn’t ogle at men like a teenage girl—okay maybe I did. I couldn’t help but peek now.

  This man had it all—incredible looks, a sexy accent, and real charm. He was fingering the different birthday cards, and with a decisive gesture pulled one out of the rack. I barely had time to look down before he could notice I’d been staring at him.

  He came to the register and handed me the card. Without missing a beat, he looked me straight in the eye and grinned. “Amy I’d love to take you out. I was rude the other night. I had a lot on my mind--please let me make it up to you.” He was handsome, successful, and apologizing, but I was afraid of how his physical presence made me feel and we’d hardly even spoken.

  I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go out with him—I didn’t think I could handle this roller coaster—not right now, at the start of my new life. I felt almost too attracted to him, unsteady in his presence, like I couldn’t trust my usual good sense to kick in. Looking into his green eyes, I realized I’d been staring at him and hadn’t yet answered.

  “Please,” he said softly. “It’s a benefit for the school system. I have to be there and it would make the evening less unbearable if you would join me.” He smiled again.

  I didn’t want to give in too easily. ‘Less unbearable’ was not exactly a compliment to sweep a woman off her feet. One minute he is totally suave, the next slightly condescending--sure it sounded like a nice invitation, but the way he was asking me made me think he’d never heard the word no. I wasn’t usually like this, but I suddenly had the urge to see what would happen if he did.

  “No,” I said smiling sweetly.

  His face flushed. I could see the thoughts running through his head as he tried to wrap his mind around what he just heard. Guess I’d been spot on.

  “I don’t like benefits,” I pressed on sarcastically, “and I hate school children.”

  He laughed. “You almost had me there. And no one ever gets my goat--and bloody hell I just said no ever gets my goat. I’m actually one hundred years old.” The smile faded slightly from his lips. “But you still haven’t said yes.”

  What did I have to lose? Sure I hardly knew him, but I’d decided to take risks, and this seemed like a good place to start. Not that school fundraisers are particularly risqué.

  “Sure,” I answered, angling my body towards him. “Why not?” I couldn’t help the smile from spreading across my face.

  “Well I guess I deserve that,” he said, chuckling, gently touching my wrist. “Not the most enthusiastic response I’ve gotten, but deserved.”

  I liked that he could at laugh at himself. My bangs had fallen into my eyes, but I hadn’t even noticed, at least not until he leaned over and brushed them back behind my eyes. It was so intimate. It made me self-conscious. I wanted to feel his fingers on me again.

  “I just wanted to see your entire face.”

  “Thanks,” I said softly. I knew if I tried to say more, I’d sound breathless. He was so distracting.

  “Thursday night, after closing? I’ll pick you up here or…?” Ryan looked down at me. He was very tall--I love that feeling of being smaller than the man I’m with.

  “Here’s my address.” I wrote it on a SWAK business card. Ryan took it and squeezed my hand gently before walking out of the store with his purchase. My skin tingled from the touch of his on mine. I stared at it. It was just the briefest connection, but I could feel exactly where his strong manly hand had touched mine. It felt like an imprint on my skin.

  Wow, Jamie wouldn’t believe all this attention. Who knew opening a store could get a girl so much attention?

  CHAPTER 8

  Amy

  Jamie ran into the store a few minutes before closing. I had already texted her about Ryan, but she wanted all the details and she wanted them now. She came in looking as cool as ever, in her cut off jean shorts, and tight white tank top. Since she usually worked nights, she could wear whatever she wanted during the day. She had style and a great body and wasn’t afraid to show it off. I needed all the help I could get if I wanted to look my best at the charity event. Thank god for Jamie’s fashion sense. Besides the date, it was important that I looked good for prospective business at the new store.

  Jamie insisted we go dress shopping, even it was just in her closet. Her wardrobe was extensive, as she’d always worked at upscale restaurants and needed to look professional but sexy, so she had plenty of dresses for me to try on. The only problem was Jamie is of the less is more variety, meaning less fabric, more skin.

  I put away my latest calligraphy project for a local Women’s Group, which I had designed using a violet gauche paint on a deep purple background, very feminine yet sophisticated. Probably inspired by Pamela’s outfit the other day. But something was missing--I’d figure it out tomorrow.

  “Come on Ames, it will be fun! I have so many ideas, and I’ll do your make-up.” Jamie laughed. “When was the last time we did something like this?”

  Prom, I thought, six years ago. We had spent months finding the r
ight dresses, perfecting our outfits, making sure our hair was just so. We even had tried an ultra-moisturizing treatment with avocado—talk about disgusting! I’d found my sequined Jovani dress in a gorgeous blue. And all for nothing. Hunter had broken up with me the week before and never told me why. The next day he was with someone else.

  I hated to admit it, even to myself, but I still sometimes wondered why. The months before we broke up, things had been tense with his family, but he hadn’t seemed to really notice that we were hanging much more at my house, instead of his. Our physical relationship was so intense by then, it had seemed natural we’d want to be at my house with no parents around. But now seeing him again, reminded me the incredible hurt he’d caused me. He was a total jerk to me, and maybe he’d grown up, maybe he’d changed, but so what? Running into him only made me start asking those pesky questions, all beginning with Why? Why had he left me? Why did it have to be right before prom? Why couldn’t he have stuck it out to save my day? He’d never told me what happened and it seemed like it came out of nowhere. I shouldn’t have said yes to dinner.

  I hadn’t had a serious relationship since. I made excuses for myself, like I’d been busy playing adult to my adorable kid brother, but the truth was I was afraid to feel like that again. I didn’t want to risk getting hurt. I dated and saw people for months at a time, but never brought them into my heart. Never spent time with their family, never got too close.

  Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, and determined not to muddle in the past, I followed Jamie out to her car. I’d leave mine in the parking lot and come back tomorrow. Jamie could drop me off at home, and anyway Luke was spending the night, so he could take me back in the morning.

  He needed a little rest and relaxation with his sister after his first few weeks of college. After Jamie’s, I was going to make him a great home cooked meal, all his favorites. Chicken cutlets like our dad used to make, super thin and breaded, a side of broccoli with garlic, and le crème de la crème apple pie (store bought) but who would be the wiser?

  “So remember that bartender I was telling you about?” Jamie said as she sped to her house, just a few blocks from my place. “The hot blond one? We had a great time at closing last night. We got pretty happy on tequila shots and made out behind the bar after everyone left. You have no idea--the guy is totally ripped.”

  “Is it the same one who I saw when I came last week after work? The one with that awesome tribal tattoo?” That guy was so hot it was hard to order from him.

  “Yep. Cole.” Jamie flashed me a smile. “We’ll see what happens. But even if it’s just booty calls, it’s totally worth it. That guy knows what he’s doing.”

  We pulled up to the house she shared with two other girls, Shaya and Jessica. Shaya and Jamie had met working at a family restaurant a few years ago, and Jessica worked down the street from my store at a flower shop. I always got along with them and was glad Jamie found such nice roommates.

  We went directly to Jamie’s room, where she opened her closet, and ordered me to undress and start trying on whatever she threw me. No questions asked. No whining allowed. I looked at her, rolling my eyes. Jamie had always been bossy, but also undeniably sweet. We’d been friends since junior high, ever since I caught Lorraine Harrison—the class bully—spitting in Jamie’s food when she had her backed turned. I saved her from the contamination, glared at Lorraine, and our friendship was sealed.

  Even at fourteen, Jamie had great fashion sense, bordering on the eccentric, but never going too far. She’d wear a floral patterned shirt, with striped skirt, or some other unlikely combination: somehow it always worked. I always looked nice, but in a sort of not terribly exciting way. Coordinated yes, owning my own style…not so much.

  Jamie opened her closet and began to go push it like she was on a hunt. Watching her was like watching a magic show. She was a whirlwind, going through her closet on top speed. She threw something over to me. I struggled into what at first I thought was a skirt, but as I slipped in on, I couldn’t imagine I had it on right. My ass was hanging out the back—maybe too much of a statement at a school fundraiser.

  Jamie came around behind me and tied the straps around my neck. “Not an apron, Ames. It’s called a halter dress.”

  I looked at myself in the mirror. I felt like somebody I wasn’t, definitely sexy but like I was pretending to be cooler than I actually was. I didn’t know how Jamie had achieved it, but somehow she’d managed to make it look like I had cleavage that didn’t make sense with my B-cups. The black dress only just skimmed past my underwear and the soft fabric was smooth against my skin. But there was no way in a million years that I would ever wear something like that in public.

  “No way, Jamie, no way.” I quickly took it off, before she could fight me.

  Jamie threw me another one, this time a metallic silver dress. Not happening. Then a polka-dotted girly one that made me feel like a candy striper, and one after that that was a bit too good-school-girl-gone-bad. I think Jamie was getting annoyed, but none of these were right. They worked on Jamie—somehow making her look sexy and not cheap. On me, they were all wrong, too short, too revealing, too much.

  Jamie kept flicking through her closet. Finally she found what she was looking for at the back of the hanging clothes. She threw me a silk black dress. It slipped right on, feeling almost like the perfect second skin. I could tell this one would be just right. Excitement fluttered in my chest, but I wanted to wait until the look was together to gaze in the mirror. After zipping up the back, Jamie placed her hands on my shoulders, grinning. “Check you out, lady,” she said as she steered me towards the mirror.

  It was perfect. The dress went a little bit off my shoulders, showcasing my favorite feature, my delicate neck, and fell down to just above my knees. It had enough gathering in the skirt that the effect was more glamorous business woman than the high class escort Jamie had dressed me as over the past hour. I loved it. In this striking dress, I felt confident, beautiful, and ready to show the world what I have. I just hoped I could hold on to that feeling.

  “Amy, you look amazing. Ryan is going to die!” Jamie is an amazing friend and really good for my self-esteem. “No seriously, you should let me dress you more often. You got it, and you need to flaunt it.”

  I hoped Ryan would think the same thing. Only two days, and I couldn’t wait to see him.

  CHAPTER 9

  Amy

  After Jamie dropped me off, I had just enough time to prepare the dinner I’d promised myself to make Luke. No frozen food for him--nothing but the best home cooked goodness. I loved to cook, and although it wasn’t gourmet, it always came out well. It was cheesy, but when I cooked for the people I loved, I really think it made the food taste better. By the time Luke got home, the table was nicely set, the meal still in the oven, keeping warm.

  “Ames!” Luke bellowed as he walked in the door. “It smells delicious in here. I feel like I haven’t had a good meal in years.” Luke looked good—instead of his usual jeans and a tee shirt, he was wearing a button down blue collared shirt and skinny jeans.

  “And what about the dinner I made you last week?” I teased.

  “Oh yeah.” He laughed as he plopped down at the dinner table, resting his elbows on the table. “So I’m still into that economics class I told you about. It’s crazy how so many people think, like, there shouldn’t be any checks on banks and mortgages, and just a total free for all. It blows my mind.”

  I smiled. I’d never heard my brother so engaged in school. He’d been a good kid in high school, but not as passionate as he was now. I felt really proud. “And how are your friends? How’s Matt?” Matt and Luke had been best friends since they were kids, before things got messy. He was like another little brother to me. And his parents had helped with Luke so I could have some semblance of a teenage life.

  “He’s good. Wants to come over next week for dinner. That ok?” Luke asked.

  “As if he needs to ask. He’s always welcome.” We starte
d to eat, and Luke shoveled the food in his mouth like he hadn’t eaten in months. Gross. I hoped he wasn’t eating like that in front of other people.

  “Classy, Luke.” I wondered if maybe he had somewhere to be.

  He mumbled, “Sorry.”

  “Trying to win a competition? In a hurry? Or a hot date, Lukey?”

  He blushed. I raised my eyebrows. I wasn’t expecting to be right. Ever since he broke up with his high school sweetheart, Lindsay, he hadn’t mentioned dating anyone.

  “Uh, yeah,” he said, a sheepish smile playing at the corner of his lips. I was actually really relieved. I’m glad he wasn’t wallowing in the break-up, like I seemed to do, and wasn’t too afraid to get back out there. I hated to admit it, but I could learn a thing or two from my little bro. Not that I’d ever tell him.

  We ate for another forty minutes and I listened as Luke told me about all of his classes and his new friends. We cleared the table together, putting the leftovers in Tupperware for my lunch tomorrow.

  “Well, you better get going,” I said cheerfully. Even though I wanted to know about his date, I’d learned over the years not to pry for details. Luke was forthcoming when he wanted to be, and I also didn’t want to put pressure on him. If she was worth talking about, Luke would tell me about his new lady, when he was ready.

  “You going out, tonight Ames?” Luke asked.

  “Nah, just finishing some commissions for tomorrow. But don’t you worry about me. I will go out, just not tonight.” He drew his eyebrows together. I didn’t want him to worry about me and I definitely didn’t want my kid brother thinking that his big sister was a loser. I didn’t want him to have to think about taking care of me at all. I wanted for him what I never got, a carefree, fun, no responsibility few years in college and I was determined to make sure that happened.

  “I’ve actually got a hot date with a new guy I met at the Morgan’s barbeque. A smexy Brit.” He looked at me like I wasn’t telling the truth. I tousled his hair, which he always hated. “Luke, seriously I got some stuff going on—I just don’t want to jinx it,” I said, sliding my bangs out of my eyes. I did have a date coming up, and it might even be a good one.