Rolling her eyes as they swayed to the music, she said, “We did, but it was far from relaxing.” Then she told him about all the sex talk and the incident at the hair salon.
“Wow. Yeah, none of that sounds relaxing at all.”
“Exactly. Plus, my feet are killing me. I’m not exactly a dressy kind of girl. Once a year, I can put on heels and that’s it. All the massaging my feet got earlier was for nothing.” With a pout, she shook her head. “I’m going barefoot all day tomorrow.”
“Tell you what,” he said, his voice low against her ear. “When we get back to your grandmother’s place, I’ll give you a foot rub. What do you say?”
“What do I say? Can we leave now?”
That was exactly what Levi was wondering. But…
“Don’t you think it would look bad if the youngest people here were the first ones to leave? Plus, Gammy drove here with us.”
“Well drat. I forgot about that.”
Just then, Gammy and Donald spun by. “You kids having fun?” she asked, smiling from ear to ear.
“We are! Everything has been wonderful, Gam.” Willow’s words were interrupted by another yawn. “Sorry!”
“Nonsense, you’re allowed to be tired. I ran you ragged today!”
“Just a bit…”
“Donald’s going to take me home later. So if the two of you want to go, you don’t have to wait on me.” Smiling up at Donald as they continued to dance, she added, “And you probably shouldn’t wait up either.”
Levi met Willow’s gaze and saw she was just as uncomfortable with that information as he was.
“Okay, then. So…would you mind if we hit the road?” Willow asked.
“Not at all! You two deserve some alone time!” She winked, and when Donald spun her around one more time, she waved. “And don’t forget, condoms in the closet! See you in the morning!”
Willow shuddered slightly in his arms and all he could do was chuckle softly. “Mango,” she muttered against his chest. “Mango, mango, mango!”
Holding her close, he said, “That was going to be my line.”
With a sigh, she looked up at him. “So then we’re in agreement. We are free to go and we should go, right?”
“Absolutely.” Hand in hand, they walked across the room to the table where Willow grabbed her shawl from her chair. Levi kept his hand on the small of her back while looking around to see where her parents were at. It wasn’t likely that they’d be able to leave without saying goodbye to them, but he was hopeful it was all they were going to have to say.
Wishful thinking and all.
“Are you leaving, dear? We barely had a chance to talk!” This coming from Willow’s mother as she approached them.
Turning, Willow faced her mother and kissed her on the cheek. “Parties aren’t exactly the best place to sit and chat.” She smiled at Levi as he placed her shawl over her shoulders. “If you had come with us today for a little spa time…”
“Oh, you know I hate that kind of thing. So many germs.” She visibly shuddered. “I don’t know why you would even subject yourself to them.”
“It was a nice time to sit and chat,” Willow said, ignoring her mother’s comment. “Gam and I made a lovely day of it. You could have joined us for lunch, too.”
“You know how your father is. He wanted to play some golf and relax before the party.”
The image immediately came to mind of Paul Andrews enjoying a few cocktails at the country club after his golf game.
Willow shrugged. “Will you be joining us for brunch tomorrow? Gammy’s really looking forward to sitting down with the family before we all have to leave.”
Mrs. Andrews eyed him before returning her attention to her daughter. “It’s on the calendar, so we’ll be there.”
“Oh, okay then. Great. I guess we’ll see you in the morning,” Willow said before kissing her mother on the cheek again.
“It was a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Andrews. I hope you have a good night.” Levi wasn’t surprised when her wan smile was her only response, and he hoped they could make their escape unnoticed.
“Willow,” her father called out when they were in the lobby. They both stood still and waited for him to walk over. “A little early for you to be leaving, isn’t it?”
“Actually, no,” she said, but Levi could hear the slight tremor in her voice. “It’s been a very full day, and the party is winding down. Gammy was the one to suggest we go home.”
His gaze narrowed at her and then Levi. “You should stay until the end of the party. It’s the proper thing to do.”
Levi was about to step forward and say…something, but Willow beat him to it.
“Oh, really? And is it also proper to get drunk and be surly to all the guests?” she asked, and there was no disguising the sarcasm in her tone. “Maybe you should consider calling it a night, too, Dad.” She paused and looked at him with mild annoyance. “Or at the very least, have some coffee. Oooh…there’s one of the waiters! Maybe I should call him over for you?”
Paling, Paul muttered a gruff “Goodnight” to them before turning and walking away, and it was hard to tell who was more shocked by her act of bravery.
“Come on,” she said, smiling. “You promised me a foot rub.”
His bark of laughter was out before he could stop it. “Willow, you got it!”
10
“What song would totally embarrass you if people knew you loved to listen to it?”
“Okay, but you can’t tell anyone…”
Willow made a zipping motion across her lips.
Levi let out a long, dramatic sigh. “I listen to Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ year-round.” He shook his head. “I love that song.”
She knew her eyes went wide but fought the urge to giggle. “Okay, wow. That was…not what I was expecting.”
They were lying in bed, in pajamas, facing each other. Only one small lamp was lit and even though no one else was home, they were talking softly. It was almost as intimate as all the kissing and touching they’d done last night, but for some reason, she wanted to talk to him right now more than anything.
“Although…I sort of got hooked on Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’ after seeing the movie by that name last year. I could probably listen to it year-round and not get tired of it.”
“I also really love Taylor Swift’s ‘Lover’.”
“Wow.”
Nodding, he said, “Yeah. I know. Now it’s your turn,” and reached for her hand and linked their fingers. “And it better be really embarrassing.”
“Trust me. It is.”
“Well?” he prompted when she didn’t share right away.
“Ugh…all right. It’s the Pina Colada song.” She huffed. “There. I said it.” Flopping onto her back, she closed her eyes and waited for him to laugh.
“So…you like Pina Coladas.”
Turning her head, she looked at him. “And getting caught in the rain.”
It was pointless not to laugh at that, and while they were both cracking up, Levi pulled her into his arms and kissed her on the head. “That is awesome. And surprising. That’s a really old song!”
“I know, right? I can’t even tell you when I heard it for the first time or why it stuck, but it’s on my playlist and I swear I listen to it several times a week.”
“Good to know.”
“New topic…did you ever have one of those themed birthday parties when you were a kid?”
“Guys don’t do that.”
“Oh, please,” she said with a snort. “Yes, they do. And I’m talking about when you were young–like ten or younger.”
“I was really into trucks, and one year my mom did everything with them–the plates, the cups, the cake…she even made a bunch of kid-sized trucks out of old cardboard boxes so my friends and I could sit in them and watch a movie in the living room.”
“Aww…that’s adorable!”
“Did you?”
“I have always lov
ed Disney princesses, so I had several parties with a princess theme.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, why?”
“After everything you’ve told me about your parents and after meeting them tonight, I can’t quite envision them doing something whimsical like that.”
“Only on birthdays and holidays,” she admitted. “And trust me, they looked uncomfortable with it.”
“Did your siblings want parties like that too or did they come out of the womb as academics?”
The imagery was enough to make her laugh. “No, they were normal kids too. And really, they’re normal now. They just chose very challenging careers. And believe it or not, they both love them. I don’t think they felt the same pressure as I did growing up. It’s probably harder on me because…”
Levi placed a finger over her lips. “No negative stories. We were going for funny childhood memories and embarrassing things like that.”
She nodded.
“What was the best Christmas present you ever got?”
“That’s easy. I got a treasure chest filled with costumes–well, princess dresses and all the accessories. I was a different princess every day of the week. It was awesome!”
“Awesome? You must have been really young.”
“Not as young as you’d think…”
His eyes went wide. “Um…are we talking under the age of ten or over the age of twenty?”
“I plead the fifth.”
“Now I’m even more curious!” He hugged her closer. “Come on…tell me!”
But she held firm. “Sorry. No can do.”
“Willow…”
“Most embarrassing thing you’ve ever worn–either by choice or your parents made you.”
“Hmm…we went to Disney when I was around eight. I had a mullet and was dressed in this whole khaki outfit with a matching hat–like one of the tour guides on the Jungle Cruise.”
“That sounds so cute!”
“And I also had on a fanny pack.”
“Yeah, that ruined it.”
“Yup. What about you? And it can’t be anything princess related.”
“Well, duh. How can I be embarrassed about wearing something I love?” she asked, feigning sarcasm. “But I did go through a bit of a goth phase in high school. There are some pictures of me, Donna, and Jen, where you would think it was Halloween, but…it wasn’t.”
Levi pulled back and looked at her in shock. “No way! There is no way you were goth. I don’t believe it.”
“The next time the girls and I come into McGee’s, ask them. I think Donna even has one of the pictures on her phone.”
“Oh, believe me, I am totally asking her that.”
Resting her head on his shoulder, she asked, “Do you believe in fortune tellers or psychics or tarot cards?”
“Not quite the direction I thought we were going in, but…okay.” He sighed. “I’ve never had any personal contact with anyone who claims to be…what’s the word…clairvoyant, but I think it’s possible. What about you?”
“I totally believe in them.”
“Really?”
She nodded. “A friend of mine took me to get my cards read when we were in college and it was so spot-on. Not the usual generalization that you hear about, but a lot of specifics. But then I went to one on my own back home and it was a total waste of money. She was so off on everything that I almost left in the middle of the reading.”
“Why, what did she say?”
“That I was going to be a lawyer because I like to argue. That is the total opposite of who I am. If anything, I never make waves.”
Kissing her forehead, he said, “Well, no one’s right all the time. Maybe she was just having an off day.”
“Maybe. Still, it was very disappointing.”
Sort of like how you can lie here with me half-naked in your arms and not even remotely try to cop a feel…
“What were you hoping to find out?” he asked after a few moments.
“To know that I’m not going to grow old alone,” she admitted and immediately wanted to kick herself. “To see if maybe she could give me some hope that I was going to figure out what I was going to do with my life.”
“Willow…”
Yeah, yeah, yeah…no negative or deep thoughts…
“She wouldn’t give me the winning lottery numbers either, so that didn’t seem fair. She could have lied and said it was possible…”
“I think I’d probably spend the first few minutes trying to prove they were a fraud–like thinking crazy shit and then asking them to tell me what I was thinking.”
“So you don’t really believe.”
He shrugged. “Like I said, I don’t have any experience with them to make that call.”
She opted to leave out the part that she was supposed to meet the love of her life when she was at her lowest point and then have three kids. No need to freak him out.
Besides, how much lower can my life get?
Although…she peeked up at Levi and wondered if he could possibly be the love of her life. With a quiet sigh, she immediately pushed that thought aside. How can someone be the love of your life when they’re obviously just a good guy helping a friend out? That was friendship, not love.
Maybe she was getting too confused by this whole situation. Lines were getting blurred, but…if all she had was this week with him, did she really want to waste it talking herself out of what she wanted most?
They lay there in companionable silence, and Willow snuggled closer, enjoying the warmth of his body, the feel of his scratchy jaw…pretty much everything about him.
What’s not to like? He’s a good friend, an excellent fake boyfriend, he put up with the craziness that is my family and the Romeos…
She knew they had discussed this–all the reasons why fooling around beyond what they had done last night would be wrong. This was her grandmother’s house and all, but…
Shifting a little, she rubbed her legs against his until they were tangled together, and with a soft hum, she placed a hand on his chest.
“Willow…” His voice was barely a whisper, and she couldn’t tell if it was a warning or a plea.
Tilting her head, she looked up at him, she cupped his jaw and saw him swallow hard. “We could talk about our first crushes, or we could maybe…stop talking.”
His eyes closed as her fingers caressed his jaw, his lips.
“It’s your call, Levi.”
“No fair, Willow. You know I want you. I’ve wanted you for a long time.”
She gasped. “Really?”
He nodded before slowly moving forward until Willow rolled onto her back. “Yeah. Really.” Then his lips claimed hers and she was more than okay with waiting to ask any more questions–even though she suddenly felt like she had a million of them. Raking her hands up into his hair, she held him to her while he completely consumed her.
It didn’t take long for him to cover her body with his and for Willow to wrap her legs around his waist. It felt so good–the feeling of the weight of him on top of her–and it no longer mattered where they were or whose house it was. She wanted this.
Wanted him.
And thanks to Gammy and her closet full of condoms, she knew she could have him.
Honestly, Levi knew there were reasons why they shouldn’t be doing this, but for the life of him, he couldn’t have remembered even one of them right now. With Willow beneath him, wrapped around him, the only thing he could focus on was finally being free to touch her the way he wanted to.
And he wanted to in a dozen different dirty ways.
Slow…you’ve got to take things slow.
Wait…why?
He deepened the kiss–or maybe she did. All he knew was that Willow’s hands had a tight grip on his hair and her legs had an even tighter hold around his waist. It was almost impossible to move, and he desperately wanted to. The need to touch her and be touched by her was almost overwhelming, and he’d rather deal with the brief disappointment ri
ght now of breaking their connection than waiting much longer to do what he wanted to.
Lifting his head, he stared down at her breathlessly.
“I’d ask if you’re sure, but…”
“I’m sure, Levi. So very, very, very sure.”
It was hard not to smile. Her face was so serious, and her words were so firm and unlike anything he’d seen of her until this very moment. “I thought we were going to…”
Her hands continued to rake through his hair as her eyes scanned his face. “I thought so too. But…this just feels right, doesn’t it?”
Ah…there it is. The uncertainty.
Can’t have any of that.
“It does,” he said, his voice gruff and sure. With a curt nod, he said, “Do you really think we’ll have the house to ourselves all night? I’d hate to have an awkward encounter with your grandmother and have her walking in while we’re…well…you know.”
With a sexy little laugh that was part giggle, part moan, she said, “This is the first time I’m experiencing this kind of a situation with her. Most of the time I come to visit she refrains from…sleeping out. Actually, I don’t think it’s something she would normally do while anyone’s here visiting. I have a sneaky suspicion that she’s doing it to give us a little privacy.”
“Okay, but…”
“She was trying to get all the details about our sex life out of me earlier, and it was the most awkward conversation ever. And in the middle of the nail salon, no less!”
“Yeah, okay. But…”
“I mean, why would she think I’d share that kind of information? And for that matter, why would she want to know?” She shuddered dramatically. “It’s one thing to discuss your sex life with your friends, but I don’t think it’s particularly proper to talk about it with your family. That’s just weird.” She paused and looked up at him. “It is weird, right? Or do you think I’m way off-base here?”
“Willow…”
“I mean, just because I don’t have that kind of relationship with my mom or my sister, doesn’t mean that it’s like that for everyone else. Do you ever talk about sex with your father?”
“What?! No, why?” Then he paused. “You mean other when he gave me the sex talk when I was a teenager?”
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