Page 19 of Hello Tease

Knox hadn’t had all of those items on hand... Had he gotten them... for us?

The question ran through my mind as Liv and I went to my house, going through my closet until we found a summery cotton dress I could wear with a pair of cute cowgirl boots. “You’ll want your toes covered up when we go dancing,” Liv said with a wink.

“Dancing?” I asked.

“It’s a girls’ night staple,” she said, and then we walked out of my house and to her truck, which she introduced as Bernice.

“That’s my boss’s name.” I laughed.

“Oh my gosh, it is.” She laughed along with me. “Maybe don’t tell your boss I’ve been riding her all over town.”

I giggled, feeling like a dorky teenager with an indent in my hair from wearing my braces headgear at night. Liv seemed so cool and confident, effortless in a way that I never possessed. “I feel out of my league,” I admitted. “I think the last time I went dancing I was still in college.”

“When did you meet Seth?” Liv asked.

My lips twisted to the side, my mind immediately taken back to that day eight years prior. “I’d just graduated from nursing school and passed my exams, so a group of friends took me out to celebrate. He was schmoozing potential clients at the bar that night, and before they left, he pulled me aside and convinced me to call him.”

Sometimes I wondered what my life might look like if I’d gone to a different bar that night. If I’d missed one too many questions on the exam or hadn’t called the number on the business card he slipped me. But I couldn’t go down that path.

“He was so charming,” I said. “At least he started out that way.”

“That’s the Seth I knew,” Liv agreed.

“Sometimes I forget everyone knows everyone here.” I said. “Give me the dirt.”

She cast a look my way, illuminated by the dash lights of her truck. “You sure?”

I nodded.

“I’m the messenger, you know,” she said.

“I’m the only Texan who doesn’t own a gun, so you’re safe,” I teased.

She laughed, then sobered. “He was a couple grades behind me, and he moved to Dallas after he graduated, so this is just what I know about him. He was always dating a different girl from a different town, sometimes more than one at a time. But even knowing that, the girls here loved him. He had this charm about him that was hard to resist.”

“That tracks,” I muttered, and I had to wonder if the time I found out about was really his first indiscretion with me or if there had been others before. But I knew I’d never have the truth—I couldn’t trust Seth. Not anymore.

Liv gave me a sad look. “He was popular, all the guys liked him, and he was so persuasive. He could sell a red popsicle to a woman in a white pantsuit.”

That made me laugh. “I can see that.”

“But we don’t need to talk about him. I want to know you.”

What was there to know? I thought about what I enjoyed that was just for me. “Outside of being a mom... I have a lot of fun with my Cricut. I like making shirts, sweaters, things like that for special occasions.”

“So fun,” Liv said.

I nodded. “I love yoga, but don’t ask me to do Zumba. Ever. It’s horrifying.”

She giggled. “Noted. I haven’t done yoga before, but I’d love to try it sometime. There’s a yoga and mimosa class in town the first Saturday of the month,” Liv said. “We should totally do it together.”

“That sounds so fun,” I said, meaning every word.

She stopped in front of a house, the front porch light illuminating a pretty wreath with aDin the middle. Liv leaned on the horn, an ornery grin on her lips. Then a pale redhead came out the door, wild curls bouncing at her bare shoulders. She wore a soft yellow camisole, a denim skirt, and boots, along with a leather purse. When she climbed in the car, Liv said, “Larkin, this is my bestie for the restie, Della. Della, this is Knox’s hot new neighbor, Larkin.”

My cheeks were already heating, and that was before Della let out a low whistle. “You weren’t exaggerating, Liv. Knox is in deep shit with this one next door.” She shut the truck door behind her, and Liv took off. “You’re a total babe, Larkin.”

With heat radiating from my cheeks, ears, and neck, I said, “No need to worry about Knox. It would probably be a bad idea to date him.”

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