Page 28 of Good Girl's Guide to Love
I shake my head, because I want to do one more thing. If I don’t do it now, I’m never going to have the courage, or liquor level, to do again.
“Ainsley…”
“Linc…please? Just one more thing. Pretty-pleeeeeeese…”
The tiny grin on his face is freaking adorable. Kissable. Oh! I just kissed him, so I can kiss him again!
And I do. I kiss at the corner of his mouth, where the tiniest dimple is peeking out. I let my lips linger for a second, and I can’t see, but I could swear that this man—my hero for the night—is now in a full-wattage grin.
And when I pull back? That theory is confirmed.
“Well, if you’re going to keep kissing me, I don’t know how I can say no.”
“Good,” I say with a wink. “Because I want to sing.”
guide to love #44
When you wake up hungover in a stranger’s bed, first thing you do is make sure you’re wearing clothes. Second is to see if he is.
9
ainsley
Daddy-O…
I was an active member of the “Free Britney” movement. She’s an icon. But I can promise you that I never, and I mean never, have woken up withWomanizerin my head.
Then again, I’ve never woke up with this kind of raging headache, either, so I guess two things can be true.
I can’t bear to open my eyes yet, so I keep them closed as I pull up the cooler-than-I-remember sheets. Also, when did my pillow become so supportive and somehow also soft? I’m not sure on either of those things, but I’m not going to complain.
The song refuses to leave my head as I do my best to fall back to sleep. I start to drift off again, but the lyrics aren’t leaving me. And now, they’re accompanied by images…
How was I opposed to karaoke before? This is amazing! I mean, it helps that I know every word to this song, thanks to my obsession with it when I was twelve years old. I even remember the dance moves I came up with for it. Hip curls and fierce marches. Dropping it low, which I don’t know if I’ve ever done as an adult. But I am now, and I’m killing it.
Mia’s behind me being the best backup singer ever. But what’s really fueling this performance is that Linc can’t stoplooking at me. It’s empowering. Like I’m putting on a show just for him.
Which is why I throw in a big booty roll for the end of this song. And if it makes Jonathan jealous, who for some reason is still freaking here, then oops, I did it again…
Oh fudge….
The dream is vivid. Too vivid. We’re at the bar from last night. I’m wearing the same sundress. Mia, Linc, and everyone else I just saw were also in the same outfits. But I couldn’t have sang karaoke. That’s a hard limit for me.
Not unless I was really, really drunk…
Jonathan.
Linc.
Fireball.
Karaoke.
Oh fudge is right…
I slowly open my eyes, scared to what I might see. I don’t think I’m in my bed—nothing about this feels familiar—but I can’t tell where I am. The room is dark—nearly pitch black except for the small sliver of light peeking through one of the drawn curtains. I do my best to adjust my focus, but it’s hard, between the dark room and the hangover that is suddenly pounding in my head.
Okay, seriously, where am I? My mind is now racing, which is a bad combination with the jackhammer that’s currently going through my brain and my stomach that feels like it’s about to stage a riot.
