Tomorrow I was going to find out.
We just had to get past tonight.
Rider also wasn’t bothered by the dinner he’d be having with Carl and Rosa. I, on the other hand, barely made it through the day, and I showered after returning from school just to burn off excess energy.
I had no idea how tonight was going to go.
But the house smelled wonderful.
Rosa had put a pot roast in the slow cooker and even though I was incredibly nervous, I wanted to shove the entire thing in my mouth.
That would probably be a bad idea.
Hair dried, I didn’t put what I’d worn to school back on. I wasn’t sure if that was weird or not, but I thought tonight... Tonight was special. Three out of four of the most important people in my life were finally meeting. I pulled on a pair of jeans and the soft cream cap-sleeved sweater Ainsley had given me for my birthday last year. It was fitted at the chest and waist, flaring out slightly around the hips. I twisted to the side while I checked myself out in the mirror.
Pressing my lips together, I smoothed my hands down my sides and over my hips. An unexpected thought hit me, flushing my cheeks. It wasn’t necessarily a thought. More of a...an image, a feeling—of Rider doing the same. His hands. A shiver curled lower in my stomach.
So wrong—so very wrong.
Rider was just a friend. That was his place in my life.
I turned from the mirror and dropped my hands. Taking a couple of deep breaths, I left the bedroom and went downstairs. I checked out the wall clock in the foyer and my heart skipped. Rider would be here soon.
Rosa was in the kitchen, setting the table for four. For Rider. Oh, gosh. She glanced up, smiling. Her dark hair was pulled back in a low ponytail. A timer went off. “Can you grab the pot off the stove? Be careful. It’s hot.”
Happy to have something to do, I grabbed an oven mitt out of the drawer and walked over to the stove to retrieve the pot of steaming veggies.
“Are you nervous?” she asked, moving back to the cabinets.
Smiling, I nodded.
“Don’t be.” She started pulling down cups. “This is a very exciting moment for us all.”
It was.
Once the glasses were on the table, it struck me that Rider and I...we had never shared a dinner like this together. Not once. We’d eaten together. But it was usually on a floor or...
“I want to ask you something before Carl comes down here.” She placed her hands on my shoulders. She smiled, but her dark eyes were serious. “How do you feel about Rider?”
My eyes widened. There were so many ways I could answer that. So many things I could say or think, but the first thing that popped in my mind was what I had felt when I stood in front of the mirror.
“Ah, that’s what I thought.”
I looked up at her. “I...”
“You don’t have to say anything.” She placed a hand on my warm cheek. “It’s all right here.”
“He has a girlfriend,” I told her.
“Honey, that doesn’t mean you don’t end up feeling something for someone when you shouldn’t.”
Oh.
“You’re growing up.” Her gaze lifted to the ceiling. “And I am so not ready for this again.”
Um.
“But I’m going to have to be, aren’t I?”
Uh.
Rosa’s gaze searched mine. “I’m going—”
“What are you two doing?” Carl crossed the living room toward us. “Having a special meeting without me?”
“Just a little girl talk.” She dropped her hand and curled her arm around my shoulders. I’d totally just dodged a bullet that had awkward written all over it. “Don’t you dare lift that lid—”
Carl had stopped at the counter, where the pot roast was cooling on a platter. He feigned innocence. “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Uh-huh. We both know better, don’t we, Mallory?”
I nodded. We totally knew better.
The doorbell rang suddenly, and I jumped. My gaze searched out the time. It was five till the time Rider was supposed to be here.
Carl turned toward the entryway.
“I’ll get it.” I took off, squeezing past him.
Sliding to a stop in front of the door, I all but threw it open without even looking to see who it was. But it was him.
Rider stood on our porch, and he... He had changed his clothes, too.
Relief washed over me, immediately followed by a keen sense of awareness, because he looked—he looked hot. I shouldn’t notice that about him, but I did. He was wearing a button-down gray dress shirt and dark jeans. My gaze got hung up on his hands.
His full lips curved into a half grin. “Can I come in?”
I blinked.
The grin spread into a smile. “Mouse?”
“Oh. Yeah.” I moved to the side. “Yes.”
Rider stepped in, his gaze drifting over me. I inhaled, catching the scent of cologne. Our gazes caught for a moment and then he looked toward the living room. The centers of his cheeks were flushed a darker shade. “Dinner smells amazing.”
“It’s...it’s pot roast.” I was no longer hungry. I glanced at his mouth and quickly looked away. “Um, Rosa is... She’s a great cook.”
Hyperaware of his presence, I started to lead him toward the kitchen. We walked through the living room, and Rider stopped suddenly in front of the china cabinet. “What are these?” he asked.
I turned, following his gaze. My eyes widened. He was staring at the soap carvings he must not have noticed the day he’d stopped over after school. “Um...”
He leaned in, tilting his head to the side as he studied a sleeping cat. “Were they bars of soap?”