A Valentine Surprise

by Page, Lisa

  Standing in front of the full length mirror in her bedroom, she was holding up both dresses trying to decide which one to wear when the doorbell startled her. She looked at the clock above her bed. Seven o'clock on the dot. Josh was prompt, she'd give him that.

  When she opened the door, her breath caught in her throat. She wasn't sure if her eyes were playing tricks on her. There was a tall, dark and handsome man standing there and that man was...Josh?

  He flashed her a dazzling smile and said, “What do you think?”

  She just stood there, mouth gaping. It was Josh, but a transformed Josh. His hair was cut, gone were the shaggy locks that curled on his neck and hung in his eyes, replaced with a style that made him look like a GQ cover model. And the rest of him matched that hair. He wore a blue button down shirt that brought out his piercing blue eyes with dark dress pants and obviously brand new shoes. Kendra was speechless.

  “Um, is it ok if I come in? It's a little chilly out here.”

  “Oh! Sorry, of course you should come in!” Kendra heard herself giggle nervously as she let Josh in, not able to take her eyes off of him.

  “Josh, I couldn't believe it was you! You are positively dashing?”

  “Dashing? Then you like my new look?”

  “Like it? I love it! You look amazing, it's perfect!” And Kendra did mean it. She hated to admit it but he was looking much hotter than Mark. Perfect for the role of the hot new boyfriend. Things were looking up.

  “Thank you! And thank Libby, too. She's the one responsible for this.”

  “Libby?”

  “Yeah, I told her I was going to get a haircut and she thought that was a great idea until I told her I was going to Cheap Cuts next to the gas station by school. She put her hand over her heart and I thought she was going into cardiac arrest!”

  Kendra laughed. “That sounds like Libby! She's so dramatic!” Secretly though, Kendra thanked her for keeping Josh out of Cheap Cuts or she'd probably be standing in front of a man with either a bowl cut, buzz cut or spike top.

  “So she set up an appointment for me at the salon she goes to and told them the story about how I was helping you and everyone there wanted to help me do it, I was shocked. They only charged me for the hair cut but they gave me a facial, shaped my eyebrows, they even gave me a manicure,” he said as he held up his hands in proof.

  “Very fancy!” Kendra smiled and touched his smooth hand. She felt butterflies flutter in her stomach at the touch.

  “And that's not all Libby did for me. I went to the mall today and she met me to help pick out some clothes to go with my new look.” He turned around in a circle.

  “Wait a minute, how could Libby have met you at the mall, she was with ME at the mall today.”

  Josh smiled smugly.

  “I know she was. She actually snuck away from you and met me in secret. She's really fast about picking things out, she knew exactly what would look good on me. Seriously, it was spooky. She definitely has a gift. It was when you guys were at lunch. She didn't want to tell you because she wanted it to be a surprise.”

  “Ohhhhh...” Kendra nodded in understanding. “That explains why she left me at the lunch table for so long; I thought it was the Chinese food she ate-she told me had to run to the bathroom because her IBS was acting up.”

  Josh laughed. “That's a good one, I'll have to remember that. She didn't tell me that part. But it was either new clothes or I would have had to bring out my dressy sweatpants.”

  “Dressy sweatpants? Is that the surprise you had in your closet for me?”

  “Yeah, I think those would not have made as much of an impact. So, anyways, I hope you're surprised.”

  “Well, I'm definitely surprised. I owe Libby big. And you too, I can't believe how much you must have spent today. I'll go grab my wallet so I can pay you for it.”

  She turned to head into the kitchen for her purse when Josh grabbed her arm. Butterflies again with his touch. What was going on with that?

  “Wait, you don't have to pay me, honestly. I really like my new look and if it wasn't for you I never would have done it. You should have seen all the attention I got from women at the mall. I'm not used to that. I kind of liked it.” He flashed that infectious smile with dazzlingly white teeth-did he get his teeth whitened, too? Kendra felt just the slightest twinge of jealousy but pushed it aside quickly. Josh was her friend, why would she have to feel jealous that he enjoyed female attention. They were only friends. Friends.

  “And I like the new clothes I bought. I'm pretty lucky that I have a job where I get to wear sweats and sneakers but that doesn't mean I can't wear something nicer when I go out.”

  “Do you go out a lot?” She asked casually. “I mean, we never really talk about your love life at work, do you go on a lot of dates?”

  He smiled coyly at her, “The reason I don't talk about my love life is because I really don't have one. A few dates here and there, but it's been a long time since there was someone serious.”

  The pain in his eyes betrayed his light tone and she wondered who it was that broke his heart.

  “I'm a good listener, if you ever want to talk about it. And I may have been burned once or twice myself as you've heard.”

  “Not really much to talk about. The last time I was serious with someone was my senior year of college. I was playing basketball and having a great year, all set to go pro when I graduated. I had a serious girlfriend, everything seemed to be falling in place for me. And then I got injured. Really bad-three surgeries, no more ball for me. Then my girlfriend-who it turns out was most likely only with me because she wanted to be the girlfriend of a professional athlete-dumped me. I'm not going to lie, it really hurt and was a hard way to finish what started as such a stellar year. So, that's why I haven't really jumped into anything serious since then. I want to make sure I found someone genuine...like you, for example.”

  Kendra laughed. “Me? Having you pretend to be my boyfriend to make my ex jealous doesn't really sound very genuine.”

  “Oh, that, yeah, I guess...but I can see why you would do it. You had your heart broken and want to show him that you can be happy without him, I understand that. I'd do the same thing with my ex if I had the chance. But I'm talking about how you are kind to everyone, not for what they can do for you, but selflessly, just because that's how you are. Kids love you, adults love you, you're just a great girl.”

  Kendra felt herself blush. And made a mental note to herself to skip the talk about making up a fake job for him. That wasn't something that a 'great girl' would do. She was feeling warm under his stare which lasted long enough to start making her uncomfortable.

  “Can I get you something to drink? A soda, some wine?” She needed a drink to cool herself down. How did it get so hot in there?

  “I'm not much of a wine guy, but I'll take a beer if you have one.”

  “Actually, I do. I'll be back in a minute.”

  She opened her fridge, saw the six pack of beer in the back and gulped. She wondered if she should have just told Josh that she didn't have any beer. It was a pack of some fancy microbrew that Mark had loved. She bought that the same day that he broke up with her and it had been in her fridge ever since. She wasn't much of a beer drinker so it just sat there, waiting for someone to claim it. She could have given it away to a friend or neighbor just to get rid of it but instead, it just sat there like all of the other reminders she'd kept around, hoping maybe he'd come by and she'd have it waiting for him.

  Kendra Hart, she scolded herself, he used you and he would use you again. He isn't fit to drink the sour milk out of your fridge! Every once in awhile her head was able to overpower her heart and nuggets of wisdom were able to ring true inside of her head. She grabbed a bottle of beer and opened it before her heart took back over and she changed her mind.

  She carried the beer and her wine back into the living room where she found Josh holding the picture of her and Mark at the wedding.

  “So this is him, huh?”
His words had a tinge of anger, maybe even a touch of jealousy?

  Kendra laughed. “You don't sound impressed. We did make a pretty cute couple, you know, we got that all the time.”

  Then she felt a little awkward that she had the picture of them still out in the first place. “I actually forgot that I had that there, I probably should take it down now.”

  “He looks so, so... with that cheesy smile, he just looks so fake. I'm getting a distinct used car salesman vibe.”

  “So then that makes me the schmuck who drove away with the lemon is basically what you're saying.”

  Kendra watched his cheeks flush with color as a sheepish grin spread across his face.

  “No, that's not what I meant at all. Sometimes it's hard to see what's so obvious to others. Love is blinding, that's for sure.”

  Kendra thought about that for a moment, feeling tears starting to well in her eyes. “I guess it wasn't love after all, was it? I was definitely blinded, though, you're right about that. Ok, shall we get to business? I was thinking we could come up with a back story about how we met, just in case he would ask. Now, I have no idea if he'll even talk to us. Chances are, they will just see us together and that will be enough. But on the chance that we are in a situation where we have to talk to them, we need to have our stuff together, know what I mean?”

  He nodded. “Got it. Back story. We can just say that we met at work, which is the truth anyways, so it should be easier to remember.”

  Ugh..Kendra sighed to herself. She didn't want to bring up the job thing. If that was their back story, then Mark would know that Josh was a teacher. She didn't want to seem shallow, because, if truth be told, she was proud of the job that Josh did. He was great with kids and made gym class fun for everyone, even the kids who weren't very athletic loved his class. But Mark wouldn't see it that way. He'd see it as a step down from himself. Kendra felt her stomach tighten into a knot.

  “Well,” she said, “I guess that we could go with that. But it's kind of a mundane way to meet, don't you think? How about if we jazz it up. We are playing roles, right? So we may as well go all out. How about this: when I was on vacation in Hawaii, I was swimming and got a cramp and you were there to save me and bring me to shore. If it wasn't for you, I would have drowned. And we fell in love and the rest is history!”

  “Wow, that was off the top of your head? Sounds like you've given this some thought. But isn't it odd that we both live in the same town but met in Hawaii?”

  “Odd? No, I'd say it's romantic. We can give it some thought, maybe we'll come up with something better after we think about it some more.”

  “Ok then, what about touching.How physical are we?”

  Kendra was suddenly aware of her heart beating in her chest. “Physical?”

  Josh walked away from the bookshelf and sat down next to her. “Yeah, physical. Remember when you said you wanted a date who would be all over you? I was wondering what you meant by that and if we should set some boundaries. We should be comfortable with each other, we don't want it to seem like it's the first time we've ever touched.”

  Touch. He wasn't even touching her yet and she could feel the electricity between them. She had never felt this way around him before and hoped that this chemistry would help them at Chez Michel. He sat so close she could smell him. It was delicious, not strong like a cheap mens' cologne, but clean and sexy.

  “You're right, we want it to seem natural. Holding hands should be an easy way to start.” He grabbed both of her hands in his and looked into her eyes. Kendra thought she was going to melt.

  “You smell really good, what kind of cologne are you wearing.”

  Josh blushed. “Um, Irish Spring.”

  They both laughed, cutting the tension for a moment. It was a good kind of tension, though, and unexpected. Kendra hadn't anticipated how much attraction she would be feeling towards her 'pretend' date.

  He was still holding her hands in his and then, took one hand and, very slowly, slid it up along her arm until it got to her cheek. His soft touch on her cheek felt so good, it made her close her eyes. She put her hand over on the cheek, to keep it there. “Yes, that's good, remember to do that.” She could hear her voice shake ever so slightly.

  He leaned in very close to her, so close that she could feel his warm breath on her cheek.

  “What about kissing?” His voice was almost a whisper.

  She opened her eyes and saw his blue eyes staring at her. “Um, yes, kissing is good...we should probably practice that, too...” Before she could finish her sentence, he was already leaning in close, lips parted. She closed her eyes again in anticipation and when their lips met, she felt a spark of electricity that went from her lips all the way down to her toes.

  It had none of the typical awkwardness of a first kiss. It was perfectly coordinated, as if they'd done it a million times. It was sweet, gentle and amazing.

  When they finished, she sat back to catch her breath. “You never mentioned what an amazing kisser you are.”

  “Is that something you're supposed to mention? I never thought of myself as a great kisser, I think you're the amazing one, that was the best kiss I've ever had. I'm not just saying that.”

  “Maybe it was a fluke. We should probably try it again to be sure.”

  He smiled at that and seemed to agree with her suggestion because he didn't waste any time in leaning in again for another kiss.

  Kendra pulled away and realized she needed to get a grip. He was just a friend, no matter how amazing his kisses felt. She needed to refocus and was feeling very hot and a little dizzy. She could stay here all night doing this with him and she didn't want to give him the wrong idea, especially since he was so kind to help her out.

  “Well, I'm not worried about touching and kissing any more, I think we'll do great. We have great chemistry together, so just do what comes natural.”

  He tilted his head and smiled. “Yeah, we do have great chemistry.”

  Kendra could still feel her heart beating in her ears. It seemed so loud she was sure Josh could hear it, too. Even after he left for the night, she could still feel it beating as she thought about the way he made her feel when they kissed. She was going to be looking forward to their date not only to make Mark jealous, but to have another kiss like that.

  *

  Kendra couldn't believe how fast the week flew by. Valentine's Day fell on Friday and as she walked into her classroom that morning she was stunned to find her desk filled with packages wrapped in red, heart-covered paper. In the center of her desk was a vase filled with a dozen red roses. She opened the card attached to the flowers, half-hoping that she would find Mark's name on it. She had missed all of the flowers and gifts that he had lavished upon her. The card didn't have his name on it, though. They were from Josh. She had to admit she wasn't disappointed to see his name, there, either.

  She smiled to herself as she opened the first package, which turned out to be a container of heart shaped cookies. Another package had a pink plastic watch. She laughed out loud at that, knowing he was making fun of her habit of being late bringing her class down to gym. Another package held a Disney Princess coffee mug-he must have noted the Princess DVD collection at her apartment.

  Kendra was touched and thought about how different he was from Mark. Though it's true that Mark lavished her with gifts, they were kind of generically romantic gifts-mostly jewelry and clothes. And although they were very expensive, they were things that could have been given to any of his girlfriends (and probably were). But Josh's gifts were more personal and had meaning behind each one of them, it was obvious he put thought into them.

  She was interrupted from her own thoughts by Libby coming in to see her.

  “Wow! Those are beautiful,” she said, eyeing the roses.

  “Aren't they? They're from Josh. Isn't he the best? Best fake boyfriend I've ever had!”

  Kendra laughed at her own joke, but Libby looked a little bit concerned.

  “You know,
Ken, it's still not too late to cancel your plans tonight.”

  “Cancel them? Why would I do that? I can't wait to see the look on Mark's face when he sees me with someone else.”

  “I know...I just don't want the night to end with a broken heart.”

  “He's not going to break my heart again, I promise, I'll be fine.”

  “It's not your heart that I'm worried about.”

  Kendra looked at her confused. “Who? Josh?”

  Libby laughed at her. “For someone who is so smart, you really can be dumb sometimes. Of course I mean Josh, who else would I be talking about.”

  Kendra didn't say anything, so Libby went on, “Please do not tell me that you don't know how he feels about you. Kendra, he is in love with you. Why do you think he's doing all of this for you?”

  Kendra felt like she just got smacked on the forehead with a brick. She had known. At least, she had thought it so, but hearing it from Libby, confirming it...it was a little jarring.

  “And I don't want him to get his heart broken while you're off chasing after someone who doesn't even want you,” Libby added.

  “Well, you don't have to be mean about it.”

  “Sorry, but just trying to be the honest friend who puts in into perpective for you.” She gestured to the flowers and gifts on the desk. “You have an amazing guy who is head over heels for you, don't lose him over some silly notion about what romance should be, for a man who cares so little for you. Sometimes, Prince Charming isn't the man who rushes in and sweeps you off your feet; sometimes he's the friend who respects you and loves you for who you are, not just as another conquest.”

  Kendra sat down at her desk, staring at the flowers in front of her. Before she had a chance to respond, the first bell rang as the sound of children's laughter and chatter filled the halls. Libby put her hand on Kendra's arm. “I have to get to my room, but we can talk more at lunch, ok?”