Page 37 of When Glitter Meets Gold

Only this one appears to challenge that hypothesis, because…

“Ahh!”A shrieking gasp yowls from the deepest part of my chest cavity.

Drew springs back, eyes flaring as he tracks my gaze. He looks confused but mostly hurt, because above all it’s just rude to scream in horror when faced with someone else’s private parts.

“What happened?” He glances down, then back to me, begging for resolve.

“I…” I think fast. Clawing for an excuse other than the truth, because there’s no way I can tell him that when I looked at his penis, another man’s face appeared. “I…” While my brain chooses this moment to short circuit, I fight back the urge to spew,Your dick just turned into the man I spent the night in a tent with.

“Sara?”

When I continue to exercise muteness, Drew grows more visibly concerned. I draw in a rushed breath, “I thought I saw a bug.”

Immediately, his shoulders relax, and the smile slowly returns. “Wow, for a second, I thought there was something wrong with my junk.” He throws his head back and laughs. “There isn’t, right? I mean I’ve never had any complaints in that department, from anyone.” He looks down, admiring himself.

“No!” I say, wishing he’d stop talking about the abundance of women from his past. “Of course not. It looks very nice.”

It’s the moment I realize nothing short of jumper cables could have what it takes to summon a sexual connection between us. It’s the most wretched display of miserable chemistry.

“Drew. I’m so sorry, but you gotta put your penis away.”

15

SARA

The air is stale.

The life sucked from every pocket.

“Wow.” Drew splutters eventually. Then he gazes at the window, a vacant look in his eye. “This has never happened to me before. Wow.”

I bite my bottom lip. “I’m sorry,” I say comprehending the irony of apologizing to a man who broke into my hotel room.

“Yeah, it’s cool. No worries,” he says, sounding like he’s convincing himself as he paces back and forth.

Then he halts in the center of the room. Places both hands on his hips and tilts his head to the side. “Is it because I’m not serious enough?”

I frown. “What do you mean?”

“At work, people think I’m just some dumb jock. They wonder how I could possibly care about anything apart from my gym schedule.”

I feel a pang of sympathy for him. If anyone can relate to not being taken seriously in the office, it’s me. “Hey, peopledefinitely don’t think you’re dumb. I know for a fact Walter likes you.”

“Really?” He seems genuinely surprised.

“Sure.” I watch as Drew’s face relaxes. “I saw how in awe of you he was a couple weeks ago when he was asking about your competitions.”

Drew laughs. Scratches his neck like it never occurred to him that people could actually admire his disciplined routine and lifestyle. “It just feels like I have to prove myself all the time. It gets exhausting.”

I puff out my cheeks and exhale slowly because it turns out Drew and I aren’t so different after all.

“If I let you in on a secret, promise not to tell?” I say sheepishly as I swipe the bowl of strawberries. Drew nods. “I hate hiking. I hate it so much I booked this hotel with the intention of staying here for the entire week while I partake in zero hiking.” I can’t believe I just told him that. “Anyway, I got into some car trouble, and I had to be rescued by a stranger I ended up spending the night in a tent with.”

Drew frowns like it’s the last thing he expected me to say. “A tent?” He shakes his head. “But you told everyone…”

“I know. I lied,” I say quickly. “Let’s just say I’m also tired of not being taken seriously. I made the whole trip up so Walter would put me forward for a promotion. Not to mention, Kandi is going for the same job. I needed an edge. And…I was also trying to impress you too. You didn’t imagine that part.” I pluck a strawberry from the bowl, attacking it with my teeth like it’s going to replace the last few meals I’ve missed. “The whole thing is messed up. I shouldn’t have lied. I was just sick of being this airhead who hates going outside.”

“But that’s who you are.” Drew shrugs with the most gorgeous smile. “It’s cute, don’t change that.”

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