Page 127 of Holidating
“May the force be with you,” she replied.
Dash looked down at the test he’d just been handed. It was time to stop worrying about Katie, and start worrying about European art. The painting identifications were tough, but probably not a total disaster. The essay question he chose took a long time, though. And by the time he’d finished comparing the Baroque period to Renaissance painting, he was one of the last people left in the room.
Tired now, Dash gathered up his things and turned in his exam booklet. He shook out his cramped writing hand and headed for the door.
He had managed not to think about Katie for ninety minutes. But that streak ended when he exited the building.
The basketball player was just tossing a duffel bag into theback of a car. Then he chucked the pink basketball inside too. Turning to Katie, he opened his arms.
With a sweet smile, she stepped in close and hugged him.
Looking away, Dash punched the traffic button to activate the crosswalk. (And did those buttons really do anything, anyway? Or were they just a way of asking for your patience while cars kept rolling by?)
Out of the corner of his eye, Dash could still see Katie and the tall guy. They were kissing now. But “kissing” didn’t even do it justice. They were kissing each other as if they’d just invented it. She’d risen up onto tiptoes to reach him. And his arms encircled hers as if he were holding a rare and precious thing.
The look of pure absorption on the guy’s face did something to Dash’s gut. He’d once held five feet and four inches worth of perfection in his arms, and he hadn’t tried even half as hard to hold on to it.
Now that seemed like an error. A big one.
The car that the happy couple leaned against gave a loud and impatient blast of its horn. They broke off their lip-lock, laughing. “I’ll call you,” the guy said.
“I hope you will,” was Katie’s answer. “Now go, before you get in trouble.”
“I’m already in trouble,” he said, opening the passenger door. He winked, folded himself into the car and closed the door. Katie gave him one more wave.
Dash glared up at the traffic light, willing it to change. Finally, it did. But he hesitated for a second anyway as Katie closed the distance to the corner.
I’m sorry. The words formed themselves on the tip of his tongue as she approached. He could say that, right? That was the thing he really needed to do.
Pedestrians moved forward, stepping off the curb. Including Katie. So Dash followed her, readying himself to speak to her once they’d crossed the busy street.
“Katie?” he said.
But she didn’t turn around. She hadn’t heard him. And now the trill of a cell phone rang out. Katie pulled her phone from her pocket, answering even as she walked down College Street. “Hithere.” He could hear a smile in her voice. “I didn’t think you meant you’d callright away,” she giggled. Without a backward glance, she kept right on moving, her long strides carrying her up the street. Away from Dash.
He watched her until she well and truly disappeared.
THE
END
If you enjoyed Blonde Date, you’ll also enjoy the other Ivy Years titles, starting with The Year We Fell Down.
CROSSROADS
A TRUE NORTH NOVELLA
A story of missed connections, broken dreams and two hearts that just won’t quit.
Damien Rossi drives a taxi but dreams of more. Specifically, he dreams about Nicolette Overland, his favorite client, a lonely beauty who lives in an actual mansion on a hill.
Nicolette can’t stop thinking about the hunky guy with the soulful brown eyes, either. She looks forward to every Christmas holiday when she knows he’ll be waiting for her at the airport. But when she screws up her courage to finally tell him how she feels, it might be too late…
CHAPTER 1
ON THE RADIO: “SHE WILL BE LOVED” BY MAROON 5
“No way,” Damien whispers as he pulls up to the address on Old Route 16.
