Page 32 of Hyde and Seek

When it became obvious that my focus wasn’t on the badly doodled cake sketches I was working on, I gave up trying. Instead, I decided to make the most of my day off and pamper myself with a soak in the tub and all things girly.

Fearing a repeat of Friday night, I didn’t spend too long in the bath. Of course when I gave myself the time, my makeup only took one redo.

Even my hair cooperated when I used a barrel brush to blow-dry it wild. With my luck, I’d expected it to fall flat, become a snarled mess, or maybe even start on fire.

When I finished my hair and makeup, I pulled on dark gray skinny jeans and a thick, hot pink belt. After, I stood, for what felt like forever, staring into my open closet.

Okay, so apparently the perfect shirt isn’t going to catapult itself out at me.

Damn.

Jeans and my hot pink wedge shoes were a safe bet. The top was what would make the outfit casual or dressy.

The problem was that I had no clue what kind of party it was going to be. I could safely guess that it wasn’t going to be overly formal, but that still left a lot of options.

I reached for a fitted t-shirt when something towards the back caught my eye. Shifting hangers, I pulled out a corset style top.

Dark gray with pink detailing, the halter showed off my tattoos, accentuated my curves, and looked rocker glam. I’d bought it on a whim but had never worn it.

If there was any place to wear rocker glam, I figured a party at an actual rocker’s house was it.

I was putting on a gray bolero when there was a knock on the door. Opening it, I was surprised to see Jake.

“Hey, you’re early.”

Jake didn’t say anything, but his eyes swept over me, making me wonder if I should’ve gone with a more casual look.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

“No, not really.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Don’t suppose I could convince you to go change, huh?”

“Should I? I wasn’t sure what type of thing this was.”

“Got any sweats and hoodies four sizes too big?”

“Um, no?”

Jake shook his head. “Then don’t bother. You look hot, sweets.”

Sweets?

“Thanks, so do you.”

Which wasn’t quite true. He was definitely working a scorching look in motorcycle boots and worn in black jeans. A white t-shirt contrasted with his tanned skin and showed off his tats and strong arms. His hair was pulled back and I wondered again how it looked down.

And how it felt.

I was thinking I might be starting to get a tiny bit obsessed.

Starting?

Tiny?

Full-blown, baby.

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