Flirting with Forever: A Hot Romantic Comedy(30)

He cleared his throat. “No. I’m good.”

“All right.” I poured two glasses, then looked at the cork. Knocking it onto the floor so I could bend over and pick it up was such a cliché. I decided to do it anyway.

I shifted so my backside would be right in front of him and took my time bending at the waist. I didn’t look back to see if he was watching. I knew; the feeling of his eyes on me was almost palpable.

Glad I’d worn those jeans, I straightened and replaced the cork, my demeanor nonchalant. Nothing to see here, Dex. Just the woman you’re not interested in.

From the corner of my eye, I saw him swallow hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.

Pleased with our little interaction, I picked up the wine glasses. “Thanks, Dex.”

“Yeah. Sure.”

Without another word, I went back outside. I brought Maggie her glass of wine and noticed Riley, sitting by herself. Her attention was on her phone and she had an obvious look of concern. Her brow was creased, her lower lip caught between her teeth. Was she trying to keep herself from crying? I had the sudden urge to sharpen my claws. Who’d hurt that sweet girl?

I headed her direction, grabbing a chair along the way, and set it next to her. She looked up, her features relaxing.

“Mind if I join you?” I asked.

“Sure.” She sniffed.

I lowered myself into the chair. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing. Just, you know, family get together.”

“No, honey.” I pointed to her phone. “What’s going on there.”

“What do you mean?”

I leaned back and crossed my legs. “I realize we haven’t known each other very long so I should probably tiptoe around the fact that you’re obviously upset and hope you decide to open up. But that’s not really my style. What’s going on? Is it a boy?”

She shook her head. “No.”

“Friend troubles?”

“Sort of.” She hesitated, her eyes on the phone in her lap. “Katie took a picture of me sleeping when I was at her house. And somehow this other girl got it and posted it.”

“And you’re embarrassed,” I said, my voice soft.

“Yeah. It’s a bad picture. Now all these other kids are adding stuff to it and making it worse.”

I wanted to find out who this girl was and launch a campaign to ruin her life. Then I remembered that she was just a kid. Not that it excused her behavior. Besides, retaliation was so rarely the right answer.

“Do you want to know what I think you should do?”

She nodded, her eyes hopeful.

“Own it.”

The hope in her expression melted into confusion. “What? How?”

“This kind of cruelty won’t last very long if you don’t react the way they want you to. Sure, they’ll laugh and say terrible things. But you’re better than that. You walk into that school with your head held high. Don’t spare them a single glance. They’re not worth your time.”

“I’m not sure if I can do that.”

“Sure you can. Do you like any of these kids who are making fun of you? Are they people you’d share your secrets with?”

“No,” she said vehemently.

“See? Keep that in mind. You’re beautiful and talented and they only matter if you let them. Don’t give them that power. They don’t deserve it.”

A little smile played across her lips. “Own it?”

“Yes.”

She met my eyes. “What if I wear the pajamas I was wearing in the picture? To school, I mean.”

I laughed. “That’s brilliant. You strut your beautiful self down those hallways. They won’t know what hit them.”

“Okay. I’ll do it. I think it’ll actually be funny.”

“It’ll be badass.” I winked.

“Thanks, Nora.”

“My pleasure, sweetie. Can I offer one more suggestion?”

“Yeah, please.”

“Ignore your phone for a while. Don’t look at the things those kids are posting. It’ll just make you feel shitty. Don’t give them that power.”

She glanced at her phone and nodded. “Okay.”

“And sorry for swearing. It’s not my most ladylike habit.”

“That’s okay, my dad swears sometimes.” She got up. “I’m going to go put this inside.”

I stood. “Good for you.”

She hesitated for a second, then threw her arms around me. I lifted my wine glass so it wouldn’t spill and hugged her back with my other arm.

I watched her go inside, then Dex caught my eye. He nodded in acknowledgment.

And that felt even more satisfying than any teasing I could have done.





12





DEX





Riley laughed as she jumped in the bounce house with her cousins. It was music to my ears.

The sound of one of my nephews puking in the bushes, not so much.

“I know, honey,” Angie said. It was one of hers and she rubbed his back in slow circles. “I told you not to jump after eating all that watermelon.”

Frankly, I was surprised there weren’t more puking kids. We’d all spent the afternoon snacking, followed by a big dinner of burgers, hot dogs, chips, and tons of watermelon. All that food plus wild jumping seemed like a dangerous combination.