Page 53 of In Love with Lewis Prescott
A satisfied smile tugs at Naomi’s lips. “You should definitely make up for lost time.”
“If you won’t, I will.” Maren wags an eyebrow. “Lewis is one of my hall passes.”
Excitement courses through me at the thought of pouncing on Lewis when I arrive home in a few hours.
“Your face. You are so gonna go wild on him,” Maren teases.
I roll my eyes in a pathetic attempt to play it cool. It’s like we’re in middle school and she’s teasing me about a boy I’m crushing on.
“You gotta bang in every room of the house,” Naomi says matter-of-factly. “To really break it in and make it feel like yours. I mean, I’ll always think of it asApongBernie andApongVivian’s house first and foremost, but the second thought that’ll come to mind will be that it’s the house where my cousin got it on with a hunky TV star.”
I crumple up a tissue and toss it at Naomi, but she sways out of the way, giggling. “Way to taint the sentimental mood of dress shopping today with all this sex talk.”
She tilts her head at me. “Have you forgotten just how inappropriate you were when Simon and I were in our ‘will we or won’t we’ phase just before we hooked up? You were hiding vibrators in my work bag. This is payback.”
I mumble a disgruntled sound and silently admit that she’s right. I teased the hell out of her when she and Simon were trying to stay in the “strictly just coworkers who just so happen to be attracted to one another” zone. I deserve all the shit she’s giving me.
“In all seriousness, Harper. You seem really happy lately.” Naomi’s expression turns tender. “Ever since Lewis started working on the house, you’ve sounded more excited when we chat on the phone and when you tell me about all the projects he’s working on and how much fun you’re having just hanging out together. You even use more emojis in your texts to me. Did you realize that?”
I shake my head.
“It’s clear Lewis makes you happy in a way that I don’t think anyone has before,” she says, her soft tone knowing.
“You’re right. He does.” My chest and cheeks flush with my admission. Even though I’ve been well aware of my growing feelings for weeks, it still feels so weird to admit it out loud.
“What’s with the freaked-out look on your face?” she asks.
“I’m not like this. I don’t fall hard and fast for a guy.”
She shrugs, like it’s no big deal. “That’s just it, though. Sometimes someone comes into your life when you’re not expecting it. They blast through every expectation and leave one hell of an impression. That’s how you know they’re special.”
My cousin’s words hit me at the core. That’s exactly what being with Lewis feels like. But I can’t ignore the one glaring difference between us.
“He’s a celebrity, Naomi. I’m a regular person. Even if this were to become more than just a temporary fling, how could it ever work out between us?”
“You have a connection. That’s all that matters.”
“It doesn’t, though. He and I come from completely different worlds. I live the most normal life you could imagine. Meanwhile, people all over the world know who Lewis is. He can’t even go to the grocery store without getting hounded by fans and photographers. Yeah, everything is great now, when we’re holed up in the house, but what happens when...”
I don’t let myself finish the rest of that thought, because that’s when I realize that I’m envisioning a future with Lewis. And that’s something I absolutely, positively should not be doing. I’m embarrassed for even letting myself think that far ahead.
“You don’t have to analyze this like you do with everything else, Harper,” Maren says. “Try to live in the moment. You’re hooking up with a hot celebrity. Enjoy it for what it is.”
I tell her that I will, but I can’t ignore the doubt that lingers in my mind about just how incompatible my normal-person life is with Lewis’s superstar status, and how that could never work long-term.
Just then Naomi’s eyes go wide as she clasps her hands together. “Oh, I have an idea!” Naomi says. “You should bring Lewis to the wedding!”
That giddy smile spreads across her face once more. Maren chimes in with her agreement.
My stomach seizes with nerves at just the thought. “No way.”
“Why not?”
“Attending a wedding together is the exact opposite of living in the moment. No way that’s happening.”
Naomi and Maren let out dual sighs, clearly disappointed at my refusal to amuse them. Then, Mari returns with the info on the dress order, and Maren and I snap a million photos of Naomi looking stunning in her gown. Maren helps Naomi off the platform and offers to go with her back to the dressing room to change. While I wait for them so that the three of us can head off to lunch, I can’t help but think about what it would be like to bring Lewis to her wedding...even though I just told her it was a no-go.
But the more I think about it—about sitting next to each other holding hands, whispering jokes, slow dancing—the more I feel my chest start to squeeze. Because if I’m being totally honest with myself, the thought of going to my cousin’s wedding with Lewis makes me happier than I’ve felt in a long time.
