Page 82 of Ten Rules for Faking It
Chris’s surprise must have shown.
Noah laughed. “What? You didn’t think I was Team Everly? I’m keeping up with the action. I love your Facebook posts.”
Everly smiled, her real smile. Not the one that didn’t reach her eyes. “Thank you. It was two until tonight. Now it’s one. I’ve dated more in the last few weeks than my entire life.”
Chris chuckled despite the surprise he felt at Everly opening up to his brother. Though, why wouldn’t she? Every other woman did.
“What are you working on?” Chris asked, glancing at the promotions binder she was looking through. He stepped closer, leaned over her shoulder to see.
Her breath hitched, so low he hoped he was the only one who’d noticed. One hand rubbed over the other. Did he make her nervous? A good nervous? Was there such a thing? Did she have any idea how much he enjoyed being with her? What would it be like if she felt the same?
“I had an idea for the podcast thing. I wanted to look back over some of the things we’ve tried in the past. I need to talk to Mari. I feel like she’s feeling on the outskirts of things. There’s no reason. I want to put together a proposal that’ll mean us joining forces with a real talk segment. We’d invite successful professionals to share their truths. I’m not making sense.” She turned, enthusiasm making her more animated. Their knees brushed. “Someone thanked me the other night for sharing my story. We see so much of the polish online. ‘I ran a marathon.’ ‘I baked eight dozen cookies and iced them like Martha Stewart.’ But what if we showed the tears halfway through the run or the eight dozen cookies that ended up in the garbage before the perfect ones were ready?”
The idea pulled him in immediately, and when he caught her gaze, he felt the flicker that shimmered there all the way through him. Everly Dean was beautiful, but when she was excited about something… she was indescribable.
Noah whistled, putting his hands in his pockets. “I love that idea. We were just going to grab some food. You should come with us. Tell me about this little town my brother’s been stuck in for so many months now.”
Everly’s face blanched for just a second at Noah’s wording, and Chris was back to wanting to punch him. She licked her lips, making Chris’s stomach tighten. She locked her hands together and nodded before she spoke. To his utter surprise and delight, she turned her shy smile and sparkling eyes Chris’s way and said, “Sure. I could eat.”
Chris wasn’t sure if he could eat with her there looking like she’d walked out of one of his dreams, but who needed food when he could fill up on the sight of her?
[27]
Everly squeezed the steering wheel until her fingers touched the base of her hands around it. The Saturday-night traffic was worse than normal—maybe. She actually had no idea, because she rarely went out at night. And now she was heading from one date to another.
“So not a date.” The Burger Shack was about twenty-five minutes from the station, and though Chris had suggested they drive together, Everly had quickly made an excuse, saying she needed her car, which she now desperately wanted to turn in the direction of home. At this point, she was basically a walking nerve ending in a pretty shirt. But driving her crazy, more than the nerves, was the desire tobewith Chris. To see another side of him. To watch more of the fascinating interaction between him and his brother that revealed a completely new side to him.You’re going. Rule seven: Find your happy. This counts. Seeing a new side to someone you now consider a friend makes you happy.She was so good at glossing over the rest of her feelings.
“Hey, Siri,” she called. The beep sounded and waited. “Text Stacey.”
“What do you want to say to Stacey?”
“I’m heading to the Burger Shack with Chris and his brother Noah. I need you to meet me there. I don’t know why I said yes, but whatever you’re doing, come there. Please don’t be on a date.”
Everly pulled into the right lane, stopping at the light.
Siri’s cute male-accented voice responded, “Your message to Stacey says: I’m heading to the booby shake with Chris and his lover Noah. I need you to meet me there. I don’t know why I said yes, but whatever you’re doing, come there. Please, I’ll be your date.”
“Do you want to send?”
“Yes.” The light changed. “Wait, what?”
“Message sent.”
“Son of a bitch.”
“I don’t know how to respond to that.”
Forming anowith her lips, Everly breathed out a long breath and pressed the gas. “Me neither, Siri. Me neither.”
When the phone rang, she pressed Connect on the steering wheel and braced for Stacey’s response. Nothing like autocorrect to make a girl’s life worse.At least it wasn’t to Chris.
“Are you okay?” Stacey asked as Everly drove. Palm trees lined the streets in between one-level, mostly concrete homes.
“What? Yes, why?”
“Multiple reasons, but the first is because you need to be told that when you do the booby shake with a boy, you shouldn’t ask people to tag along. I mean, unless that’s your thing, but it’s not mine, so I’m going to pass on that one.”
“Shut up,” Everly growled.
