Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 130307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Grace: I love y’all, but it’s not even six AM where I am. Muting you until I’m a human later today and I’ll catch up. *kiss emoji*
I chuckled, typing out my response.
Me: Believe it or not — this was his idea.
Maven: My jaw is on the floor. Did he have fun?
Me: Would I know if he did?
Livia: LOL grumpy ass goalie. I bet Ava had a blast, though.
I sent through some pictures, which got a flurry of responses that made me glad Grace had turned her notifications off. Otherwise, no way would she be able to get back to sleep.
Maven: It’s been too long since we’ve seen you. I think we should plan a date.
Livia: Yeah, I need an update about this hottie at your school.
Maven: Noah!
Me: Not really much to tell…
Maven: I call bullshit. The way you looked in the photos I saw on Instagram today? You were glowing.
Livia: Ah, it’s that freshly fucked look.
I swallowed, typing and deleting about a dozen things.
What the hell did I say to that?
Maven: I’m telling Vince we’re doing a barbecue. We’ll do it at Will’s, since we all know he’ll find an excuse not to come if it’s anywhere else.
Me: Arushi and I can help with this ambush. I’ll text you when we’re back home.
Livia: Love it. Night, babes!
I let my phone fall to the side, smiling up at the ceiling as exhaustion made it feel like I was sinking farther into the bed.
I had friends.
I had friends who thought to text me, who wanted to make plans to see me.
And not just the girls, but Arushi, too. I’d barely had time to work on any of my puzzles or crafts lately, between hanging out with Chef, spending time with Ava, texting the girls, and getting… lessons from Will.
Who even was I?
Eventually, I managed to peel myself off my bed, rolling over until my feet hit the floor. I groaned when I stretched my toes on the carpet, and then carried myself step by painful step to the bathroom. My fingers worked the seashell clip in my hair until it came loose, my hair spilling free, and I rubbed the spot with a content sigh.
My reflection was one I didn’t recognize, not just because I was still in the princess gown with glitter and a full face of makeup, but because something had shifted in me on this magical day, too.
I couldn’t name it, but I could feel it.
I was unfastening the pearl earrings the boutique had provided me when a knock sounded on my door.
Will stood on the other side of it, his face as worn and tired as mine and a bottle of champagne in his fist.
Instantly, my heart jumped into my throat.
“Hi,” I said more breathlessly than I meant to, my body already coming alive just at his presence.
“Hi,” he echoed. “May I?”
He gestured toward the open door between us, and I slid to the side so he could let himself in.
Unlike me, he’d already changed, his hair drying in messy waves and the fresh scent of his shower gel meeting my nose as he passed by. He had on light gray joggers and a black Ospreys t-shirt that was made for Gasparilla weekend.
He wasn’t wearing shoes.
And I internally rolled my eyes at myself, because once again, I was drooling over this man’s feet.
“Ava asleep?” I guessed. She and Will were staying in the room right next to mine, and Chef in the room on the other side of that.
“She begged for a sleepover in Arushi’s room. Pretty sure they both knocked out before I even finished my shower,” Will confirmed. “I found us some champagne,” he said once I let the door shut behind us.
I walked toward the bathroom again while he flopped down in the swivel chair at the desk that was piled high with the random things I’d strewn out of my suitcase. My heart was beating in my ears as I tried to figure out this confusing man.
He’d set all these boundaries, all these rules… and yet today, we’d talked and talked. He’d found a way to make one of my childhood dreams come true, for fuck’s sake.
How was I supposed to figure him out?
“Us?” I asked as I unfastened my necklace and set it next to the earrings. “You don’t drink.”
“I don’t drink often,” he corrected. “But I’m in the presence of a princess. Feels like the perfect time to make an exception.”
I snorted on a smile, reaching behind me for the zipper of the dress. Except it was harder than I thought to grasp. The Fairy Godmothers had helped me dress, and therefore, I hadn’t realized I’d have to twist my arms and elbows in the most unnatural ways to try to reach the zipper at the top of my neck.
I strained a bit too hard in my attempt and winced, but managed to grab the zipper and pull it down a couple inches. When it reached the middle of my shoulder blades, I lost it again, and had to switch positions to reach for it from the bottom, instead.