Lucy Spence is acting strange tonight.
She looks the same, despite the bangs, which are admittedly cute. Though I do miss that certain sophistication she had without them. Her sister looked more like the Lucy I knew with pinned-back bangs that I can only surmise weren’t styled tonight like last time.
I glance at the pretty woman beside me in the passenger seat, who is elbows deep in her big, white purse that looks more like a carry-on bag one might bring on a plane.
She notices my stare, peeks up at me through a cascade of strawberry blonde hair, smiles gently, and says, “One second. It’s in here somewhere.”
“Take your time.” We are parked in the lot of Bellina Gardens, and Lucy is on the hunt for her lipstick. I don’t have an issue waiting for her to find it, but it is a bit odd that she suddenly wants to make sure her lipstick is perfect before getting out of the carwhen it was getting smeared across her face on our first date. She ended up wiping it off during one of her several bathroom trips.
She’s also been super chatty and touchy-feely, which hasn’t been the case the past two dates.
Does this mean she’s getting comfortable with me? She’s definitely more like the woman I met at Hadley’s wedding. Maybe it’s because I cleared the air about my title. Maybe she thought she had to act differently since I wasn’t being truthful with her right off the bat.
Who knows?
I need to enjoy this date without overthinking things and comparing each date we go on. I like this woman, no doubt, and I should focus on that. Learn to love and accept all sides of who she is—even the kind of annoying, overly girly side of her.
“Aha!” She plucks a small, black tube out of the massive bag and flips the visor down to apply the soft pink color. Watching the stick sweep across her bottom lip stirs desire in my gut.
I’m going to kiss the girl by the end of the night.Got that, Sebastian?I think as the tune to the red crab’s song flickers to life in my head.
Hopefully… If she lets me. She has touched me a lot tonight. Plus, we held hands almost the entire two hour drive. I didn’t feel that special zing I’ve grown accustomed to and felt when I touched her sister’s hand back in Juniper Grove. I chalked that up to the fact that they are twins. But that’s okay. At least my desperate need for physical touch is now getting met even if it’s a comfortable touch over a passionate touch.
“I’m ready,” she says with a grin, tossing the tube that took her three minutes to find back into the bag with a careless flick of the wrist. “Can’t leave without freshening up with my beloved Rarest Beauty lipstick. Do you like the color?”
She purses her newly-mauve lips, and the desire to kiss her dissipates. I miss the natural look on her already, though the color is pretty against her skin.
Lucy frowns, and I realize my own lips are sagging.Get it together, man.
I shake my head with a forced laugh. “You look great. Let’s get going. But please wait for me to get to your door. I don’t want any repeats of the last time I attempted chivalry on your behalf.” I take my first chance of the night and cup her face. She doesn’t move, her cheeks warming under my touch. Her face continues to warm; she’s red all over.
“Are you okay?” I ask. “Your face…”
She pulls back and my hand falls. “Yeah, sorry. I blush with my whole face.”
Hm.I vividly remember a dusting of pink across her nose and her cheeks. Not her chin or her forehead.
Stop overthinking things, Finley. You always do that. Roll with it.
I get out of the car, walk around to open her door, and take her hand as I guide her out of the old, low-riding, blue mustang. I catch sight of Gabriel and Anders a few paces away, dressed in their black suits. I nod to them and interlace my fingers with Lucy’s.
Still no zing, but she doesn’t rip her hand from mine.
Instead, she squeezes my hand and leans into me with a broad, dazzling smile.
Something definitely changed over the past four days…
But thank goodness she’s letting me touch her now. I’m sure the zing will come once we find ourselves amidst the flowers and sweet smells and underneath the romantic lights as the sun continues to set.
We shuffle through the line and have our hands stamped to indicate we paid our entrance fee, then we exit through double doors that open up to a magnificent row of magnolia trees that create the path to the opening of the gardens. The floral smell at sunset is captivating.
“Wow, it’s beautiful,” Lucy remarks. She’s looking up the tall trees, her eyes bright with excitement. Today, I noticed earlier, they are more on the green side like I remember from the wedding. There’s no trace of the hazel-blue I’ve come to know recently.
“Yes, you are.” I squeeze her hand as she snaps her gaze to me, her smile somehow widening. She stands on her tiptoes and plants a quick kiss on my cheek, taking me by surprise.
“Sorry if that was forward of me.” She’s still smiling, but there’s a caution to it now, mostly likely due to my stunned expression. “I don’t tend to hold back when I want something.” I swear she mumbles “or someone” under her breath.
“No, no. Don’t be. I was just surprised, that’s all.” I rub the back of my neck with the hand not holding Lucy’s. “You would hardly let me touch you on our past couple of dates, and you avoided my kiss. What changed, if you don’t mind me asking?”
