Good night, Ropes.
I slowly drift off to sleep, a soft smile on my lips.
I wakeup happy the next morning with a text from Ben and one from Ropes lighting up my screen. I’m more excited about Ropes, but finally hearing from Ben again is nice. He wants to meet up for another date and asks me if everything is okay after what happened with my brother and Sam.
The text from Ropes stupidly makes me smile.
@ropesandchainsexciteme
Good morning, Red. How’d you sleep?
It’s ridiculous how easily I get butterflies from a guy who I’ve never met and I don’t even know what he looks like. There’ssomething about the confidence, interest, and just how easy he is to talk to.
And I’m trying to get over someone who very confidently ignores and rejects me on a daily basis.
Speak of the devil, Sam walks into the kitchen as I’m making myself a taco bowl for lunch. I just finished baking all the goodies Rosie and I are selling at the farmers market in the morning, and the entire house smells like cinnamon and vanilla.
My yellow cotton sundress is cut in a baby-doll style with spaghetti straps, hanging loosely down to my mid-thigh. I tied Sam’s grandmother’s apron over it and pulled my hair back into a high, messy bun with a few loose strands in the front.
He stops and stares at me for a few long moments. I raise a brow, and he blinks before shaking his head and walks over to the fridge. He reaches in and grabs the leftovers that Lolita prepared and left here three days ago. It’s on the tip of my tongue to offer to make him a taco bowl, but I resist the urge.
I’m getting over him. Doing wifely things like making lunch for him is not the way to go about it.
I sit down at the round table in the breakfast nook that overlooks the backyard. It has cute, frilly little café curtains over the bay windows that I love. Sam’s grandmother had almost my exact decor style. It’s girlie and country, warm whites, scalloped edges and wood tones.
When I was growing up, she called me her little princess. Losing her only two years after my own mother’s passing put a dent in my heart that I don’t think will ever fully heal.
I pull out my phone and type out a text to Ben.
Ben
How’s next weekend for a date night? Can you sneak away?
Dolly
I probably can. What do you want to go do?
Then I switch over to theSoulties app.
@ropesandchainsexciteme
I wanna know what you look like. Red hair?
@redreads
No, actually, but I didn’t even think about that when I made the name, ha-ha. I have black hair.
He starts typing right away. I glance up to see Sam on his phone, eating the cold chicken enchiladas as he stands at the kitchen counter.
@ropesandchainsexciteme
I have a thing for dark hair.
I nibble on my food, smiling down at my phone as I type out a response.
@redreads
Don’t tell me that. I’m already incredibly vain about my hair.
