Page 191 of Force Play
“Go show him what he’s missing, babe,” Rory smiles.
I nervously step out of my bedroom and walk into the living room. Ari planted himself on the sofa after he left the gym, and I don’t think he’s moved since.
“Hey, Ari,” I say as cheerily as I can when I walk up beside him.
“Luc,” he gasps. “Wow.”
I blush at the comment but remind myself that I still have work to do.
I take a seat in the chair near him. “Can I get your opinion on something?”
“Yeah, sure,” he says, sitting straight up and facing me. “What do you need?”
I hold the heels up. “I-I’m not sure which shoes I should wear tonight. Will you tell me which pair looks better?”
“Oh, um… okay. Do you, uh, want to put them on?”
This isn’t part of the plan, but I think I have an idea that can help my cause.
“Will you help me?”
Ari’s throat bobs. “Of course.”
He moves in front of me before taking the heels and falling to his knees. He carefully buckles the gold heel on my left foot before securing the black heel on my right.
“What do you think?” I ask softly, staring down at him, still on his knees in front of me.
“You’re stunning, Lucia.” He takes an uneasy breath. “The gold pair looks better.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah,” he breathes before quickly standing up. “John’s a lucky man.”
“Ari…”
“I hope you enjoy your date tonight, Lucia. I’m going to leave for now. I’ll let you have the space to yourself for a while so you can finish getting ready in peace.”
I don’t have any more words.
I watch in silence as Ari rushes across the room, grabs his keys from the hook, and dashes out the door.
My eyes are glued to the spot as the girls exit the hallway, where I’m assuming they watched what just happened.
“Lucia…” Ella says gently.
I just shake my head. “It didn’t work.”
“What are you going to do?” Liv asks.
I sigh and rest my head on the back of the chair. “I have no fucking idea.”
fifty-six
Ari
Ari
SOS
