“What I was going to say was that I think we’re overdue for another girls’ night.” She beamed.
Megan grinned. “Sounds like fun.”
I faced her. “You sure you still have time for us now that you and Mr. Wonderful are going out?” I loved seeing Megs so happy the past few weeks with her new boyfriend, Brendan. She deserved it. I felt a little guilty that we hadn’t been spending as much time together lately, but I could tell she was clearly happy.
She laughed, a goofy grin all over her face. “Of course I do.”
A week after the Benefit Auction, Megan had first gone out with Brendan, a guy from her art class. Since then, they’d spent more and more time together, and were now officially one of the cutest couples I knew. It was easy to see that she was completely smitten, and he was obviously gaga about her, too.
“I’m really glad for you, ya know.” I smiled.
She reached out to squeeze my hand. “Thanks.” Her face shadowed the tiniest bit. “It’ll happen for you, too, Sarah, I know it will.”
It had been a week since the night Chance had shown up at my house to talk. Seven days of crying myself to sleep and feeling sorry for myself. I had to try to move on. At least Megan and Emma had realized that no matter how much they tried to convince me to tell Chance how I really felt, I couldn’t do it. They’d stopped pushing.
I forced an even brighter smile. “I know it will. But this isn’t about me right now. Let’s figure out what we’re doing for girls’ night.”
We talked about what movie we should watch (Megan won with saying we had to watch some new horror movie she’d seen the previews for and insisting it looked creepily awesome) and whose house to stay at (Emma’s) while we walked to Megan’s car. I was so busy trying to tug my phone out of my pocket to text my mom and let her know my plans that I didn’t see him until the other girls stopped short.
I looked up.
Chance leaned against Megan’s car, clearly waiting for us…for me.
Megan and Emma looked back and forth from him to me, trying to figure out what I wanted them to do, probably not sure if they were supposed to burst into best-friend mode and chase him off.
I shook my head. “It’s okay,” I said softly. I stepped forward. “Hey. What are you doing here?” My words came out even, but I was shaking inside. Just seeing him made all the feelings I had for him rush to the surface. He looked so good, his curls sticking out from beneath his navy beanie, his long legs stretched out in front of him. Even in a faded hooded sweatshirt, he managed to look sexy.
He straightened up and in two steps erased the space between us.
“This.” He reached out, pulled me toward him, and crushed his mouth against mine in a completely heart-stopping kiss.
I couldn’t think; I could only react. My body and heart knew what they wanted before my brain could even begin to catch up. I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck and gave in.
The kiss went on until I heard a cough from behind me.
Embarrassed, I pulled back.
“Well, that was unexpected,” said Emma, smirking.
“I give it a nine out of ten, what about you?” Megan turned to Emma.
“I don’t know, style alone should give it an extra point,” she said.
I closed my eyes. What am I doing? As much as I’d liked kissing Chance, my heart couldn’t take it. I wanted something more with him…something real.
“Well, ignore us, we’re just going to put our things in the car,” Megan said. “Excuse me.” She stepped around us, and Chance tugged me out of the way and even closer to him.
I pulled back a little, not knowing what to say. Wondering where his head was at. I was so confused.
“Close your eyes,” he said.
“What?” I wasn’t in the mood for games. I thought about just leaving.
It was like he’d read my indecision. “Sarah, please. I’m only asking for a couple of minutes,” he said, his voice soft. “Please trust me.” He smiled softly. That endearing smile I’d come to love.
So I closed my eyes.
He gently maneuvered me a step to the right. I felt him move away for a second, heard rustling, then felt him step behind me. Every cell of my being was hyper-aware of him, the slightest brush of his body against mine sending delicious shivers through me everywhere. I sensed him leaning in, closer, closer. When he spoke, his words were a whispered breath against my ear. “Now open them.”
He’d reached both arms around me and held a newspaper in front of me.
I peeked over my shoulder at him, surprised. A newspaper was something I definitely hadn’t been expecting.
“Now, I know you aren’t the biggest fan, but I really hope you’ll make an exception in this case.”
He opened the paper and pointed. I read, The Girl Who Took a Chance on Me, by Chance DuPont.
As many of you know by now, I was one of the participants in the Dates with Heart Benefit Auction held at Auburn High School. But what many of you may not know is that I went into it worried if I’d even be able to make it through a dinner date with whoever won the bidding. I’m not proud of that.
A girl I barely knew won the raffle. Her name is Sarah. From the first time I met Sarah, she left an impression. It would probably be safe to say that I left one on her as well. I wish I could say it was a positive one, but it wasn’t. (Although I hope it’s gotten better.)
Over the next several weeks, I got to know Sarah more and more. And with each passing day, she impressed me more fully—with her intelligence, her heart, her fire, her bravery, and her spirit. And each moment that I was lucky enough to spend with her, I knew without a doubt that she was the girl I wanted to be with. It was no longer about a raffle prize or expectations, it was about one thing—this amazing girl I couldn’t get out of my mind.
She taught me how to see the world differently, how to appreciate things I’ve never noticed, how to find joy in little things, like spending the day at a farm laughing and goofing around together. Her beauty isn’t just on the outside, it’s a light that glows from the inside. I am a better man because of her.
So Sarah, I want you to know, you may have won some raffle, but I’m the one who feels like the real winner, being with you.
I brushed back a tear. I knew what I hoped this meant, but I needed to hear it.
He played with my fingers, and sparks shot up my arms from his touch like fireflies dancing on my skin.
“I miss you,” he said.
My breath caught as I looked up at him. “Really?”
He nodded and reached down to twirl a strand of my hair between his fingers. “Really.”
Something inside of me was still afraid to admit this might be real…was afraid to totally let my guard down and hope things really would be okay between us. I bit my lip.
“I’m glad you quit the website thing,” he said.
I stared at him, shocked. “You are?”
He laughed and nodded. “I went down there to quit the same day, but Erica told me you’d already been in and done it yourself.”
“Why were you going to quit? When you came over, I thought you were mad at me for doing it.”
He shook his head. “No. I’m sorry if you thought that. I guess I didn’t do a very good job of trying to talk to you that night.” He paused. “I was going to quit because I didn’t want our time together to be with all these other people. It means more to me than just some article for a blog.” He brushed his thumb against my cheek. “You mean more to me than that.”
My heart raced. “I’m sorry, too.” I looked him straight in the eyes. “I was scared.” I took a deep breath. “Scared about how I was feeling. Scared because I wasn’t sure how you felt.” I looked down, avoiding his gaze.
He reached out and lifted my chin with a gentle hand, until I was looking at his warm brown eyes again.
“I don’t want you to ever be scared with me, Sarah.” He smiled. “And I hope the article showed you how I feel.” He brushed b
ack my hair. “Although I do need to thank all of those blog readers, after all.”
Confused, I asked, “What do you mean?”
“I wanted to win you back. I posted my story, my real story, about how I felt about you on there, I guess hoping you’d see it.”
I hung my head. “I haven’t been able to bring myself to go on the site at all since last week.”
“It’s okay. Because even though so many people commented and were so encouraging, I realized that I didn’t want just the blog to be how our story continued. I wanted to, needed to, see you face-to-face.” He shook the newspaper. “So that’s how I came up with the idea to write how I felt and put it in the paper to bring it to you and show you.”
I was touched that he’d put so much thought and effort into what he’d done. “Thank you, Chance. So much.” I reached out and took his hand. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“Another nice part is when I did it, donations spiked.” He smiled.
I knew what that meant to him. And why. “I’m so glad,” I said softly. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him. We stood together, close, not moving, for a while. It felt right.
After a little bit, he whispered, “I was kind of hoping you’d still want to go out with me. Ya know, minus the mics and photographers.” He leaned in even closer. “What do you say?”
I smiled and nodded.
“So that’s a yes?”
I nodded again. “That’s a yes.” I couldn’t wipe the huge smile off my face.
“In that case, I know we’ve already done dinner and zoos and skateboarding…which didn’t end well.” He flinched. “But I was wondering if you’d do me the honor of being my date for the Spring Formal.”
My heart felt full to bursting. I reached up and pulled his head toward me. “That’s a definite yes,” I said, before I kissed him to show him how much I meant it.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chance
Something’s got a hold on me now
It’s feeling, burning like a love on fire ~ Eddie Money
“So everybody knows what they’re doing?”
I looked across the table at Eli, who had his arm slung over Emma’s shoulder.
“Chance, we got it.”
Emma nodded and beamed. “She’s going to love this.”
I hoped she was right. I wanted the night to be special—our first date sans microphones attached to us recording our every word or someone snapping photos the whole time. I wanted it to be perfect.
“Now remember, Eli and I will meet you guys there,” I said to Emma.
“I know. I got it.”
Eli rolled his eyes and turned to her. “Are you sure, Em, maybe we should have him go over it a tenth time, in case we don’t quite understand the plan yet?”
She giggled. He pulled her in and kissed her cheek.
“Okay, okay, I’ll shut up now.” I knew I was probably driving them nuts, but I couldn’t help it. I didn’t want to leave any room for error.
“Man, we get it, and like Em said, she’s gonna love it. Now stop worrying.”
“So I hear things are going really well between you two,” Emma said.
I couldn’t stop my grin. I nodded. “She’s awesome.”
Since the day at Megan’s car a little over a week ago, when I’d invited Sarah to the Spring Formal, things had only gotten better every day. She’d had family in town over spring break, so between that and both of our jobs we hadn’t had time to go on an actual date-date yet, but I’d gone over to her house several times. We’d hung out, talking and watching movies, or even playing video games. I was kind of embarrassed to admit she’d kicked my ass more than once in Call of Duty. We talked on the phone every day, too. But I was ready to take her out on a real date, and this weekend, at the Formal, was my chance.
Eli stood up. “Anyone want something to drink?”
I shook my head. “I have to head out soon, I have a couple last-minute things to take care of.”
Eli bent down to pat Vader, his chocolate lab, on the head, before walking to the refrigerator and grabbing two cans of soda. He opened one and set it in front of Emma. “Here ya go, sweets.”
“Thanks.” She smiled up at him and leaned in to rest her head against his arm.
I could tell when three’s a crowd. I grabbed my jacket from the back of the chair. “Okay, I’m out of here. I’ll see you guys Saturday night?”
Eli nodded. “I’ll be there early.”
“Bye!” Emma waved.
I headed out to my truck. There was just one more stop I had to make, to place a rather large order, and then I was pretty sure I’d taken care of everything. I went through the mental checklist and nodded. I couldn’t wait to see Sarah on Saturday.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Sarah
’Cause lovers dance when they’re feeling in love,
Spotlight’s shining, it’s all about us ~ He Is We
“Are you sure this looks okay?” I turned to try to see myself from the back in the long mirror hanging on my closet door.
“Honey, you look beautiful.” Mom smoothed her hands over my shoulders and smiled at me in the mirror. “This color is gorgeous on you.”
The dress I’d chosen for the dance was a pale lavender. It reminded me of the color of the ribbon that Chance had tied around the daisies when he’d planned the picnic in the library for me. It seemed like so long ago, and like just yesterday all at the same time. The dress had a halter neckline, which came up close to my throat and fastened just off to the side with a small rhinestone button. It cut in at the shoulders, leaving my arms bare, and scooped midway down my back, while the dress itself landed with a graceful swoosh right above my knees.
“I love it,” Emma said. She sat at my vanity table, applying the finishing touches to her makeup. “Chance won’t know what hit him.” She winked.
“You look great, too.” She did. She wore a silver spaghetti-strap dress that shimmered when she moved. “Just wait until Eli sees you.”
She stood and preened a little in front of the mirror, turning side to side.
I smiled. Eli was good for her. She’d come out of her shell more since they’d been together. One of my favorite things about their relationship was what good friends they were, too. I hoped Chance and I would be that way.
“So what’s the plan? Are the boys meeting you here?” my mom asked.
“No. They had some soccer thing the whole team had to do, and it ran a little late, so they’re going to meet us at the school.”
Mom frowned. “But I won’t be able to get pictures.”
I winced. I’d had my fill of those the past few weeks.
“I promise we’ll take some at the dance, okay?”
She nodded, looking disappointed. “You better. I want some with all of you together. Make sure you get a few before the boys decide to take off their ties and jackets.”
I laughed. “I promise.”
Emma looked at her phone and then typed. “That was Eli, they’re on their way home now.” She stuck her phone in her purse. “So, are you ready?” She stood up and reached for her long jacket.
I glanced at the clock. “It’s still pretty early. I think if we leave now we’re just going to get there way before they do. They’re driving from Pottsville, and they still have to change and all.”
She shrugged. “That’s okay, we can meet Megan and Brendan and get some pictures.” They were going ahead of time, since Megan was on the decorating committee and Brendan had of course volunteered to assist her.
I nodded. “Okay, sure. Maybe they can use some last-minute help.” I looked at my mom. “I guess we’re heading out.”
She walked over and hugged me. “Have fun, sweetie. I love you.” She sighed. “You look so grown up.” She had tears in her eyes.
I hugged her back and smiled. “I love you, too, Mom.”
She turned to include Emma, who she considered a second daughter. “Come here.” She wra
pped Emma in a quick hug, too. “You’re stunning.” She smoothed a piece of Emma’s hair back. “Okay, get out of here, you two. Have a good time, and be safe!”
“We will, bye!” we called as we ran down the stairs. I grabbed the thin white shawl I planned to wear over my dress and threw it around my shoulders.
“Got everything?” I asked.
Emma glowed, she looked so excited to be heading to the dance. “Yep! Let’s go!”
We walked to the front door, and I opened it and stopped dead in my tracks. Parked on the street in front of my house was a shining black stretch limousine. I gaped.
Emma squealed. “What do you think?”
I turned to face her. “Did you do this?” I pointed to the car, where a driver now had stepped out and stood next to it, waiting for us.
She shook her head. “Nope. Chance did.”
I couldn’t believe it. “Wow. I’ve never ridden in a limo before.”
“Me, either. Let’s go check it out.” She grabbed my hand and raced toward the street.
I totally hadn’t expected this. I mean, it wasn’t like this was Prom or anything, that wasn’t until the last week of school. Chance had outdone himself. I couldn’t stop smiling.
The driver opened the back door for us and closed it once we were inside. The car was huge. Our seats faced another seat, with plenty of legroom between them. The windows were dark tinted glass and made it a little harder to see out of than an ordinary window, since it had begun to get dark.
An ice bucket rested in a space in front of us. I peeked in. “There’s sparkling cider.”
He’d thought of everything. I felt bad that he got stuck on something for the team and couldn’t even be with us to enjoy it.
Crystal champagne flutes hung upside down by their stems next to the silver ice bucket.
Emma wiggled her eyebrows. “Shall we?”
I laughed. “I think we shall.”
She reached in and pulled out the cider and opened it, pouring some for each of us. We clinked our glasses together and each took a sip.
The Boyfriend Bid (The Girlfriend Request) Page 16