Page 15 of Serendipity

“You’re being increasingly annoying about this, you know.”

“I know,” he says with a grin. “I promise I’ll share her with you soon. When she’s ready. For now, though, it’s just too soon for her. She’s closed off and I don’t want to do anything to scare her.”

“I respect that,” I tell him, reluctantly. I do respect it, but if this girl is involved with my son, I’d like the chance to get to know her. “And you? What’d you and Kyle end up doing?” I ask Brock.

“Not much.” He shrugs. “Hung out here for a while. Drove around a bit. Ended up at Gage’s house ‘cause he was having a bit of a party but it sucked so we headed out.”

“Why’d it suck?”

He shrugs again. Ugh. I hate the shrugging. “Too many people showed up. We bailed.”

Ahh. I know my son enough to know that “too many people” means that Naomi and Wyatt showed up and he didn’t want to have a firsthand look at them together. He tries so hard to deny his feelings for her but it’s only breaking his heart more and more each day to do so.

“Okay. Well, I need to get dressed but before I forget to tell you, Cash and Corbin Rae are coming home next weekend so plan for family dinner, okay?”

Something flashes in Boone’s eyes but I don’t understand the meaning. It’s probably because they haven’t seen their siblings since they left after Christmas break so I ignore it.

“Got it.”

They leave me to myself and I stare at the closet. Corbin Rae and Naomi video chatted with me this afternoon and helped me pick out what to wear but after I put it on, it just didn’t feel right. Wearing a dress in the middle of February just for dinner at Stone’s house felt like I was trying too hard. Sure, it was a pretty dress and shows off my best assets, but comfort is key for tonight. If I’m in a dress, I know I’ll be fidgeting with the hemline all night and wondering if he thinks I’m overdressed.

Jeans.

Jeans would be good.

It’s not leggings, which is what I wear pretty much ninety-percent of the time, and I can dress them up by wearing heels and a blouse.

I pull on my favorite dark but perfectly faded skinny jeans — millennials be damned, I like what I like — a black blouse that has a sexy cutout right in the center which shows off the perfect amount of cleavage, ends right below my waist so I’m not showing stomach, and the best part is it’s a gauzy material. Lightweight clothing is my best friend when I have a hot flash out of nowhere.

At forty-seven, I’m already in perimenopause and with that comes a lot of fun experiences.

I look at myself in the full-length mirror. My brown hair is shiny and full with thick waves, makeup a little heavy in the eyes with shiny nude lips, the bra I chose gives just a little bit of lift so there’s some peek-a-boo action happening but not so much that it makes me look like I’m ready to give it all away, the jeans give me great lift to my ass and adding in heels helps my short legs look much longer. All in all, I’m pretty satisfied with my look.

It does nothing to stop the nervousness that’s become almost overwhelming. Tonight is only a date and Stone and I are friends already. I know it won’t be awkward, but I still have no idea what to expect. Dinner at his place is casual enough, right?

Unless…

Oh, crap on a cracker.

He surely doesn’t expect me to…

The only man I’veeverhad sex with is Brett.

My one and only.

I have zero experience, basically. Only what Brett liked. And, well, it wasn’t anything to get too excited about. Basic sex only in the bedroom and it usually lasted all of five minutes. Maybe that’s normal and the romance books I read justreallymake me hope for something more.

I blow out a breath to calm myself.

This is Stone. He’s kind and decent and mind-blowingly hot, but he didn’t ask me out for just for a romp in the sheets. I know that much.

Nerves finally settling in my stomach, I slip my feet into a cute pair of ankle booties that have a stiletto heel. Something I rarely wear but they give me confidence and I need that tonight.

Just as I’m about to yell for the boys to tell them I’m ready, my phone chimes with a text.

Jenna:Don’t forget an overnight bag.

Shit. No. I can’t do that. I have kids that expect me to come home tonight and this is just a dinner date. I barely got over my nerves about sex and now they’re ramping up all over again.

---