Page 58 of The Heiress

Yara shimmied. “Ohhh…give us all the juicy details. Is that why your eyebrows are looking so fierce?”

Fierce?I ran a finger over my right brow. “They did wax them, but I usually do that too.”

“Yeah, but you go way too long between waxings so the effect is different.”

That almost sounded like an insult. So I sidestepped that with a detailed description of being fitted and having dresses designed just for me.

“Can I be your long-lost twin sister?” Yara asked.

“I have a feeling the age and ethnic differences might stand out.”

She giggled. “But we could try. Man, I’d do anything for a designer wardrobe.”

“Has the clinic been that busy?”

Yara groaned and threw an arm over her eyes. “I don’t want to think about work right now. Tell us about Jace.”

Were my cheeks burning?

“Ah ha!” Hazel pointed at me. “Look at her blushing! What’s happened between you two?”

There was no hiding this. No reason to even try, really. “I launched myself at him like a starving tigress.”

They both leaned closer. “And?” Yara waved her hand for more information.

“And he took over like a starved bear.” I don’t know where the animal analogies were coming from but they were pretty accurate.

“Oh my God I knew it!” Hazel fist pumped the air. “I saw it when he first came over. It was all in the eyes.”

And this was something I wanted to know more about. How long had he had feelings for me? “What did you see?”

“They were all dreamy and possessive. Like you were his and he couldn’t ever get enough of looking at you.”

Oh my.Well then. I squeezed my legs together because all of that imagery made my insides bundle up with want. “Do you…do you think he’s felt that way for a long time or is it new, like it is for me?”

Hazel snuggled back into the couch with her wine. “Girl, he’s got the haunted look of a man who’s been pining for something his whole life.”

Oh God.

But Yara narrowed her eyes. “You were never attracted to him before?”

“God no. He was alwaysJace.”

“And what does that mean, exactly?”

I shrugged, stumbling for the words. “He was my best friend. I told him everything and we used to do everything together. We read the same books, watched the same movies, ate the same junk food. As we got older we grew in different directions but we stayed close.”

“And you never once thought, hey, my best friend is actually kind of hot?”

“No. He was a boy.”

Hazel swirled her wine. “You hadn’t had your sexual awakening yet.”

I cocked my head to the side. She was right. “I didn’t reallyfeelanything for guys until halfway through college.” And even then it was just a flicker of what I felt around Jace now.

“And was he a late bloomer?” Hazel asked.

I nodded slowly thinking about the last time I saw him before leaving town. “He was still holding onto that boyish look. He was still growing, so skinny and tall.” Not at all like the broad chested, muscular man who held me in his arms last night.

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