Page 26 of Beneath the Midnight Sky
“Yeah, your walls are a bit on the boring side, cowboy,” she said with a smirk.
I swore my heart skipped a beat at the sound of that goofy nickname she’d given me. I hopelessly believed there may be a chance I could still salvage this—you know, without locking her in my house with security cameras and tracking devices. There was a chance that I hadn’t completely scared her away.
“Are you off again this Thursday?” I asked quickly before I could lose the nerve.
“Yup,” she replied with the ‘p’ popping on her lips.
“Would you uh”—I rubbed the back of my neck, trying not tot be awkward as fuck—“be interested in going out with me Thursday night? On a real date, I mean. I could pick you up. Please.” I forced myself to look over at her, trying to gauge her reaction. She looked as if she was trying to solve the puzzle that was Rowan Carragan, and honestly, she’d have to get in line right behind me.
“I’d love to, Rowan,” she replied, her voice finally back to sounding like herself again. “But I’m not going home with you. If you want to do this whole…dating thing, I want to do it for real. Show me you’re serious. Court me and shit. Whatever.” She smiled and shrugged quickly as if she were just as clueless about what that meant. But I couldn’t help the smile that I knew had taken over my entire face, because she’s giving me an actual chance. One that I wouldn’t fuck up.
I nodded slowly. “Okay, Aspen. You’re on. A real date. Be prepared to be wooed, little angel.”
“Fine, I will. Pick me up Thursday night at six.” She reached for the door, and I quickly grabbed an umbrella and rushed to the passenger side of the truck, opening it up as I went. She smiled as she stepped out and under the protective covering.
“Come on, I’ll walk you to the door,” I said, and took her hand in mine as we crossed the street huddled together. Oncewe reached the door, she used her key and stepped inside the building.
“Thank you, Rowan. For…everything. I’ll see you Thursday.”
“Yes, you will, little angel. Enjoy your painting tonight.” I smiled and backed away as she walked up the stairs. Once she was out of view, I jogged back to my truck, shaking the now-closed umbrella off and tossing it in the floorboards of my truck.
I pulled out my phone and sent a text to the group chat I had with my mom and Payton, because I knew I’d need help here.
Me: How does one woo a woman?
My phone immediately started ringing, and I looked down to see it was a group video call with both my mom and Payton. I shook my head and chuckled. At least I knew, while they’d give me hell, they’d help me out too.
12
JALAPEÑO BAGELS
Aspen
Ivyand I were sitting in the middle of my bed, glasses of wine in our hands, a bowl of popcorn in between us, and Grace and Frankieplaying on a laptop in front of us. We’d both watched this show together three times through now, but it was one of my favorites. Rowan had dropped me off about an hour ago, and thankfully, Ivy came right over to help me reflect on the ending of my night.
“Sooo, are we going to talk about it or not?” Ivy asked me, her eyes still on the screen and her wine glass nearing her lips.
“Talk about what?” I replied, tossing a handful of popcorn in my mouth. I knew exactly what she wanted to talk about, but what was the point? Yes, I agreed to a date with Rowan in two days. Yes, I told him he couldn’t take me home and fuck me senselessly—even though I desperately ached for that. Yes, I found it odd that he just happened to pull up to the curb the moment I stepped outside of my place of work. All of these things were true. But what would talking about it do?
“Okay, listen. I need to tell you something,” Ivy said after a moment of letting me stew in my feelings. I felt the bed shift and looked over at her to see she’d turned and was staring at me intently. I set my glass down on the side table and then turned to stare at her back.
“Uhm, okay. Shoot.”
“Rowan has been…watching you.” I felt my eyes widen and my pulse skyrocket. “Oh my gosh, okay, calm down. I can see you goin’ crazy eyes. Not like…stalking you and being creepy with cameras in the house and smelling your dirty panties. More like, he was worried about you when you just disappeared in the dead of night, you haven’t reached out, and he doesn’t know how to navigate this new terrain.” She bit her lip, a clear sign of her nerves.
“I need you to explain, now.”
“He came into the bar last night and sat in my section. Ordered food, tipped me well, and just watched you work from the back. He left when you did and made sure you got home okay. That’s all. Nothing…unhinged. He’s like a sweet lost puppy, ya know?” she said quickly.
“I think all the dark romances you’ve been reading have gotten to your head, Ivy. Truly. You sound delusional, and I mean that in the sweetest of ways,” I told her gently. Following someone around without their knowledge or consent was not cute; it was scary, and I’d been with scary before. “I’m canceling our date. This is a bad idea in every sense of the word.” I reached over and grabbed my phone, but she snatched it from my hands and threw it toward the end of the bed.
Taking my hands in hers, she looked me in the eyes and let out a breath. “Aspen. I need you to listen to me, okay? As your best friend—please.” I reluctantly nodded. “I know you’re scared, truly. I know Sam was fucking horrible, and you didn’t deserve a second of the bullshit he gave you. But Rowan isn’tSam. You know that logically, in your heart, you know that. Right?”
“Yes, logically I know they aren’t the same, Ivy, but that doesn’t make him stalking me okay and you know it!”
“Okay, I know. I get it, he probably crossed a bit of a line.” My eyes widened, and she back peddled. “Okay, he crossed a line. Whatever. But if you would’ve seen him plead his case last night, Aspen, you would get where I’m coming from. Your little golden retriever is down bad for you, and I just don’t think he knows how to explain it…you know? He doesn’t want to lose you before he even gets you.”
I let go of Ivy’s hands and laid back on my bed with a huff. I did know what she meant because I felt the same way. I felt that way every time I picked up the phone to text him, or when he told me tonight that he’d been in the neighborhood, and I immediately thought he meant he was out with another girl.
