Even if it was only a friendly dinner, Gabby intended to look her best. It was necessary for her own peace of mind.
It was five forty-five when she pulled into her driveway and hurried inside the duplex. Thirty minutes later, she had managed to shower, shave her legs, and dry her hair.
The problems began to arise when she looked at the outfit she picked out the night before. In the light of day, it didn’t look so hot anymore. Groaning, Gabby dove into her closet and started pulling out options. Texas in June wasn’t exactly cool and comfortable, and she didn’t want to smell like a wet sheepdog before the end of the evening.
Finally, after twenty minutes of indecision, Gabby threw a pink and white striped, strapless maxi dress on the bed. The cotton dress was cute enough for a date, but not too heavy for the heat of the evening.
Though she rarely fussed with her hair, she took the time to twist it into a fishtail braid that draped over her right shoulder. A quick glance at the clock had Gabby feeling even more frazzled.
Quickly, she brushed her teeth and began to put on her make-up. Three minutes before seven, she slid her feet into a pair of nude wedge sandals while trying to put a pair of turquoise drop earrings in her ears. Just as she draped a matching turquoise beaded necklace over her head, the doorbell rang.
After one more glance in the mirror, Gabby dabbed a little perfume behind her ears and on her wrists, grabbed her aqua colored clutch, and left the bedroom. She tried to ignore the fact that her heart was thumping in her chest as though she just ran a four-minute mile and put a smile on her face when she opened the door.
“Hi, Logan.”
“Wow, Gabby, you look fantastic.” Logan’s eyes drifted from her face down her body, his gaze almost palpable on her skin.
Heat suffused her chest and shoulders. “Thank you. Would you like a drink before we leave?”
Smiling, Logan shook his head. “No, thanks.”
Gabby stepped out of the house, locking the door behind her. She couldn’t help the grin when he opened the door of his truck for her.
“Thanks.”
The climb up into the cab was a little tricky with her long skirt and wedges, but Gabby managed it without incident, a miracle in itself.
When Logan slid into the driver’s seat, she asked, “So, are you going to tell me where we’re going?”
He reversed out of the driveway. “The Bistro.”
“I love the food there! I haven’t been in a long time.”
Logan glanced at her. “Really? Why not? It’s only a few minutes from your house.”
Gabby laughed. “Yeah, it isn’t that far, except I’m usually working at The Wild Vine, or at home trying to relax. The restaurant is usually closed by the time I scrape up the energy to go.”
“I see.”
She laughed again. “Hey, my off time is my chance to be lazy, okay? I don’t leave my couch if I don’t have to and The Bistro doesn’t deliver.”
“Now, that does make sense.”
They continued to chat on the way to the restaurant and Gabby’s nerves melted away. Current Logan was even more fun and interesting than High School Logan.
His attitude seemed friendly rather than flirtatious, which relaxed her even more. Obviously his invitation to dinner was meant in a platonic sense. She felt a little silly for worrying about her appearance so much.
By the time they got their entrees, Gabby was enjoying her second glass of pinot noir and the conversation.
“Come on, you have got to be pulling my leg,” she stated, laughing at the expression on his face.
“I’m not. I swear, Brayden was determined to be a pro bull rider. He dragged me to this PBR thing in Decatur and insisted on sitting right down in front. He kept talking about this one bull that was supposedly the meanest son of a bitch in the place and how he couldn’t wait to see how long the rider would last. When they let him out of the chute, he was all over the place and obviously pissed as hell. He nearly jumped the railing on the other side of the arena because he was bucking so hard and high. He threw the rider but kept dodging the rodeo clowns and wouldn’t leave the ring. Then, suddenly he stops dead in the middle and, in slow motion, turns his head toward us. I don’t know how I knew it, but I was certain this monster was looking straight at us. It’s like something out of a bad horror movie. We all stared at each other for a few seconds then he started running straight at us. I mean,charging.”
At this point, Gabby was giggling so hard she could barely speak. “So what did you and Bray do?”
Grinning back at her, his dark grey-green eyes sparkling, Logan answered, “Considering I just saw that big bastard nearly leap over the railing earlier, I got up and ran. Bray was right behind me.” He shook his head. “Everyone around us was pointing and laughing. Needless to say, he dragged me out of there as fast as he could, and that was the end of Brayden’s freshman year dream of being a bull rider.”
Wrapping her arms around her stomach, Gabby guffawed. “Oh, that is a great story. I can’t wait until the next time Bray comes into the shop. I’ll definitely be asking him about his dreams of the rodeo.”
“You do that.”
They spent the rest of the meal chatting and Gabby realized she’d never laughed so much on a first date. Really she’d never laughed that much on any date. She also managed to avoid saying anything seriously awkward, which was a regular occurrence for her. If Gabby had a fatal flaw, it was speaking without thinking. When she was nervous, angry, or even happy, she had a tendency to let whatever was in her head fly out of her mouth.
As they finished their food and Logan paid the check, she couldn’t help feeling disappointed that the night was ending. Usually adolescent dreams remained unfulfilled and crushes never lived up to expectations. Tonight, Logan surpassed her most elaborate teenage daydreams.
Unfortunately, dreams ended.
