Page 14 of Pieces of Us
Their coach is wrapping things up, and my work is done, so I head back over to Melonie. She stands and slings her purse over her shoulder as I get closer.
“That was so great to watch! The kids were so excited.”
“Told you. You’re leaving already?”
“Oh, yeah. I have stuff to get done and plans later, so I need to get moving.”
“Are you going out with the girls?”
She averts her gaze from my eyes. “Um, no. I have a date.”
An unexpected tightness forms around my chest. “Oh. Well, I hope you have fun. Is he taking you somewhere nice?”
“We’re just catching a movie.”
“How many times have you been out with this guy?”
“This is the first time. Why do you care, Linc?”
“Movies for the first date is a horrible idea.”
Her brows pinch together. “Why do you say that?”
“Because you’re both staring at a screen. You can’t talk, you can’t get to know each other.”
“We know each other. He works in my building, so we’ve talked a few times and got coffee once.”
I shake my head at her. “Those are surface conversations. All I’m saying is, you get to know a guy better after a couple of hours. It’s hard to keep up an act for longer than a few minutes.”
“Linc, it doesn’t matter. If anything, it’s a free night out for me.”
“You deserve better than a twenty-dollar movie ticket, Mel.”
She pauses and starts to fidget. I might be making her uncomfortable, but damn it, she does deserve better.
“Well, if he asks me out for a second date, I’ll make sure he buys me a proper dinner. Happy?”
“At least that would be an improvement.”
She blows out an aggravated breath. “I’m heading out. Let me know if you need help with the tuxes.”
“Will do.”
She gives me a tight smile and turns to walk away. I watch her as she leaves, and suddenly, I’m jealous of some asshole who gets to take her out tonight.
Chapter Seven
Melonie
I’m sad I wasted my expensive red lipstick this evening. At least I didn’t waste my time by shaving above my knees. Chase picked a scary movie, so I’ve been covering my eyes half the time. I hate scary movies, but he didn’t ask my opinion on the movie we saw. The rest of the time, I’ve been fighting off his hand from roaming too high on my thigh.
Chase shovels a handful of popcorn into his mouth, a few pieces dropping to his lap. He offers me the bag, and I politely decline. Guess it’s good we didn’t go to dinner. If he eats like this at a dinner table, I wouldn’t have an appetite.
I’m relieved when the ending credits start rolling across the screen and the lights come up. I’m ready to get out of here. I want to take a hot bath and curl up with a book.
Chase drops his popcorn bag on the floor and stands up, leaving his cup in the cupholder. “Ready?”
“Yeah. Um, are you going to grab your trash?”
