With a sigh, she made her way over to her bed and crawled underneath the blanket. Though she tried to push her worries to the back of her mind, she found it hard to relax and fall asleep. She was too anxious. Biting her lip, she admitted to herself that she was completely out of her element in the dating world.
She watched the clock for a half hour before the ticking hands became almost a taunt. Rolling to her side, she tried to busy her mind with things that were more familiar to her, like camping and hockey. Her tactic worked, because before long, she felt the tension in her shoulders ease and her eyelids become heavy.
She was just starting to doze off when her bedroom window opened and Alec crawled through. As he’d done a thousand times before, he edged through the window and climbed across her desk. Lowering himself carefully to the floor, he padded across the room in her direction.
Kicking out of his unlaced sneakers, he climbed into bed clad in flannel sweats and a plain cotton t-shirt.
They didn’t speak. They’d done this enough times that she knew he didn’t want to talk when his dad got to drinking. Alec’s father had never gotten violent when drunk, but he was cruel and emotionally abusive. It wasn’t something Alec enjoyed rehashing.
Silently, Ellie shifted in the bed to make room for him.
Alec repositioned himself closer to the center of the bed and pulled the blanket up over his waist. His shoulders were tense and his movements stiff.
Both of them stared up at the ceiling, lost in their own thoughts. With a weary exhale, she scooted closer and let her head rest against the side of his shoulder in a show of silent support.
He patted her head before settling in. Within a few minutes, his breathing had evened out and he made a soft mumble in his sleep.
Ellie’s eyes drifted closed, and she relaxed completely. She always felt so at ease with him. He was familiar. He reminded her of her childhood. She only prayed he would help her achieve even a fraction of this comfort level with Jake. If anyone could do it, it was Alec.
Chapter Four
“Hey, Ellie.”
Upon hearing her name spoken from right beside her in Jake’s unmistakable lilt, Ellie jumped with a yelp. She slammed her locker shut with a bang to find him grinning at her from the other side of the door. “Y-yes?”
“Nervous?” he asked with a chuckle.
Trying to salvage a sliver of her dignity after her shameful outburst, she shook her head. “Nope. Not nervous. Not nervous at all. Why should I be?”
Jake’s grin widened. “Exactly.” Leaning against the locker next to hers, he gave her a considering look. “Are you sure DeNuzio’s is good for you next weekend? I can pick some place different if you would prefer it.”
It took her a moment to stop ogling how pretty he was and concentrate on his question. When she did, she frowned. More than anything, she wanted to ask him to pick a different restaurant, but a vision of Alec’s look of disapproval flashed in her mind. Swallowing down the request, she instead said, “DeNuzio’s is perfect.”
His smile in response was worth having to suffer through a seafood dinner. “Great!” Reaching out, he took the stack of books from her arms and held them on top of his own in the crook of his elbow. “Let me walk you to Biology.”
Ellie blinked at him for a moment in surprise. She’d never had anyone carry her books for her before. It was so gentlemanly and…smooth. “Thank you.” Ducking her head, she attempted to hide her giddy smile.
Jake snorted in amusement and elbowed her lightly. “You sound shocked. This can’t be the first time a member of the opposite sex has offered to carry your books for you. Doesn’t Alec ever offer?”
She couldn’t hold back her bark of laughter. “Alec?” She shook her head with a small smile. “No. I usually end up carrying his books. He’s always got his stick in his hands.”
Jake’s brows shot up at this, and his lips tugged in the beginnings of a smirk.
Realizing how that may have come across, she waved her hands in front of her to dispel any inappropriate thoughts that might have crossed his mind. “His hockey stick. Because he’s on the hockey team.” She quickly added, “I didn’t mean in a perverse…” She bit her lip and gave him an apologetic look. “He doesn’t know how to manage time, so on many game days, he doesn’t leave himself enough time to lock his equipment in the gym. His stick is too big to fit in his locker. His equipment bag, too. So he carries both around to classes with him all day. I usually offer to carry his books for him, because he’s dropped them on my toes before. It’s just safer that way.”
When she was finally done rambling, Jake gave her an appraising look. “So Alec has a big stick?”
“The biggest.”
He burst into laughter. “Most guys wouldn’t like to hear about how big a stick a prospective date’s male best friend has, but I’ll allow it.”
Ellie flushed. “I didn’t mean…”
“I know you didn’t.” His eyes crinkled in the corners as he smiled. Their bright blue irises studied her face a moment before he said, “You’re very cute.”
She glanced down at her toes, knowing she must be blushing a ridiculous shade of red. Knowing there was no hiding it, she looked back up into his sparking eyes with a shy smile. “You’re very nice.”
He nodded his thanks, his face softening. “I’m really looking forward to next weekend.”
“Me too.” Her voice was a breathy whisper that she was sure was drowned out by her thudding heart. She couldn’t remember looking forward to anything more in her life.
“We should get to class before we’re late.”
“Yeah.” She gave an awkward stutter step before falling into stride with him. Walking along next to the most eligible guy in school had Ellie beaming. She kept glancing over at Jake to make sure he was real.
When they entered the Biology lab, she wasn’t even bothered by the antiseptic smell or the dirty looks sent her way by half of the cheerleading squad. She was being escorted by Jake Phillips. That was all that mattered.
* * * *
“No. No. No,” Alec grumbled. “You’re doing it all wrong!”
Ellie shot her friend a dark look of warning. “What did I do wrong this time?” It seemed as if she hadn’t gotten a single thing right in over an hour. When she’d requested his help, she hadn’t realized he would be so tough on her.
Ignoring her frustration, Alec took her arms and pressed them down to her sides. “Don’t walk with your hands outstretched like you think you’re going to fall.”
“I am going to fall.”
“If you can’t handle heels, then you shouldn’t be wearing them.”
Ellie breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh thank goodness.” Bracing one hand on his shoulder, she lifted a foot and began sliding the killer shoe off. “I didn’t think I would last—”
“If you take that shoe off, I will beat you with it!” Alec’s voice rang loud and firm through the room. “Then I’ll flunk you.”
Ellie froze in shock, and her eyes slowly lifted to his. “I thought you said…”
“I was telling you to man up and learn to walk in high heels!”
The words ‘man up’ and ‘high heels’ had probably never been uttered in the same sentence before. She was almost sure of it. “Man up?”
He nodded firmly. “You’ve only got a little over a week before you need to be perfect at this. Stop whining and learn to saunter in heels!” With a sound of frustration he took a step back and studied her.
She saw the instant an idea popped into his head and started growing wary before he even opened his mouth. Whatever his plan was, she was almost certain she was going to hate it.
“We’re doing a crash course here. Come on.” Grabbing her wrist, he dragged her out of the bedroom, into the hallway, and down the steps to the house’s first floor. “You’re either going to learn to walk in those, or you’re going to break an ankle.” He shot her a wicked grin over his shoulder. “We’re going to play ping pong in the baseme
nt.”
“Ping pong?” Her words came out a screech as she wobbled unsteadily after him.
“If you can learn to play ping pong in heels, you can handle dinner and dancing no problem.”
Ellie came to an abrupt halt at his unexpected words. “Dancing? No one said anything about dancing!”
Alec rolled his eyes. “That’s what DeNuzio’s is known for! Where have you been living? Under a rock?”
“Excuse me, Alec,” she said cuttingly. “Most boys our age can’t afford a place like that. It’s usually burger joints and mini-golf.”
He snorted in disgust. “You’re the one dating a preppy rich boy. Complain to him, not me.”
She opened her mouth to argue and come to Jake’s defense when her mother waltzed into the room and zeroed in on Alec the moment she saw him. Ellie crossed her arms and pursed her lips with annoyance as her mother let out a little sound of delight. Her mother thought Alec was just the greatest thing ever. That was because he didn’t spray her with the garden hose every time he washed his car. He reserved that nasty trick for Ellie, because he took amusement at her outraged squeals.
“Good afternoon, Alec.” Cindy Harper practically trilled the words. “How is hockey coming along, dear?”
He grinned sheepishly, as if he didn’t know he was the most skilled defenseman on the team. “It’s alright.” His grin widened. “I got that A on my jersey this year. Assistant captain.”
Cindy wrapped him in a giant bear hug. “Keep this up. You’ll get a scholarship no problem.”
He chuckled, a blush touching his cheeks at the praise. “Thanks.”
She patted him on the shoulder before stepping back to look at them both. “So what are you two up to this evening?”
“Ping pong,” Alec said with a grin. “That table downstairs has been calling to me.”
“Lovely.” Cindy waved in the direction of the basement door. “Well, I’m heading out to pick up some groceries. The two of you have fun!”
Ellie inched past her mother with a grumble. The odds of having fun in heels while trying to smack around a tiny ball were unlikely.
“We will,” Alec called politely. Then with a hand to her back, he guided Ellie down the steps to the basement. As he descended into the living area, he gave a low whistle of appreciation. “No matter how many times I’ve been down here, I am still impressed.”
Ellie shrugged. Her mother had bought the house from a man who’d turned the basement into the proverbial ‘man cave’. Pale woodwork framed the walls. The carpet was a rich brown that made her think of beer. There was a fully stocked bar, a ping pong table, and walls full of sports memorabilia.
The seller had been a friend of her mother’s. He’d decided to retire and head south where his grandchildren lived. He’d offered Cindy an unbeatable price and left the man cave behind.
Her mother only came down here to do laundry in the connecting room. It was usually only Ellie and Alec who used the downstairs for entertainment. Alec enjoyed watching hockey on the big screen television. Ellie didn’t mind watching the good-looking players in high definition, so she never complained.
“You ready for some ping pong?” Alec asked as he flicked on the room’s lights.
“No?”
He shook his head with a grin. “Too bad.” Lifting a paddle from the table, he tossed it in her direction.
Ellie made an attempt to catch it, but it slipped through her fingers and clattered to the floor. She emitted a complaint and struggled in her heels to pick up the paddle.
“Heaven forbid Jake throw something to you. You’ll make a fool of yourself and the date will be over before it starts.” He snorted. “Though I’m sure you have nothing to worry about. Jake wouldn’t want to dirty those pretty manicured fingernails of his with physical activity.”
“Be nice.”
At the warning note in her voice, Alec chuckled. “I don’t mean anything by it. Jake’s cool as far as I’m concerned. He’s just not…”
“He’s not a jock,” she supplied. “He doesn’t enjoy pummeling other guys for icing the puck.”
Alec rolled his eyes. “I’ve never started a fight over icing. Do you even pay attention to the games?”
Laughing, she reached up to rub her thumb over a cut on his eyebrow. “You’ve started fights because a player looked at you the wrong way. It doesn’t seem out of the realm of possibility for you to start a brawl over icing.”
With a laugh, he pushed her hand away. “Yeah, yeah.” He made his way around the side of the table and picked up his own paddle. “I’ll start a fight with your rich boy toy if he doesn’t keep his hands to himself next weekend.”
Stepping up to the table and lifting the little white ball for a serve, Ellie shot him a disapproving look. “Don’t go getting all protective big brother on me.” She tapped the ball in his direction and awaited its inevitable return.
“I just don’t like his type. Rich preppy boys always feel as if they’re entitled to whatever they want. Just be careful, okay?”
As the ball came back across the table, she tapped it back. Then she arched a brow. “Jake isn’t like that. He’s a good guy.”
Alec hit the ball back with a little more force than was necessary. “I know what guys are like. More so than you. I’m just looking out for you.”
Ellie had to lunge to her right to return the ball to his side of the table. “Well, if he turns out to be a creep, I’ll let you go all hockey jock on him. I promise.” She had no worries where Jake was concerned, but if it made Alec feel better to know she was looked after, she would concede to what he obviously thought were his rights as best friend.
He gave a sniff of amusement as he smacked the ball roughly to her left corner after making her go right. “Pretty boy wouldn’t know what hit him.”
In her frantic attempt to get back to her left, Ellie caught a heel on the table leg and stumbled. With a yelp, she grabbed onto the edges of the tabletop to keep from toppling over. As her eyes momentarily squeezed shut in her relief that she hadn’t fallen, she heard the ball bounce accusingly along the floor behind her.
Alec’s laughter filled the room. When she looked up, he was staring at her with enjoyment. “You are the worst girl ever. You’re in way over your head.”
Perhaps she was in way over her head, but Ellie wanted this date. She wanted, for once, to be the pretty girly girl who got to date the popular guy in school. She wasn’t about to give up.
Walking over to the fallen ball, she scooped it up and tossed it to Alec. “Your serve,” she said stubbornly.
A slow grin spread across his face and he nodded. “Alright. First one to a hundred points wins?” At her annoyed look, he burst into laughter.
Chapter Five
“Oh, honey! You look beautiful!”
Ellie cringed at her mother’s praise and adjusted the scooped neckline of her dress. “I feel silly.”
“I’m sure your date won’t think so.”
Ellie narrowed her eyes at her mother. “I told you. It’s not a date. It’s only Alec.”
“It’s a practice date,” Cindy countered. “Alec told me all about it. He informed me that your assignment was to pretend every moment was real.” She crossed her arms and smirked. “He asked me to make sure you were doing that even now. The pre-date anxiety is part of the experience.” She paused and arched a blonde brow. “So…you look beautiful. How do you feel?”
Ellie rolled her eyes and mockingly played along. “I’m excited. But I’m so nervous. I think I might sleep with him tonight.” She offered her mother a scandalous expression before it turned into a cheeky grin full of sarcasm.
Cindy Harper had always been good-natured and open about the subject of sex. Taking the joke for what it was, she laughed. “Don’t make me ground you for the first time in your life.”
“But mom! We’re in love!”
Stepping forward, her mother placed a hand against the back of Ellie’s neck and kissed her forehead. “Thank heav
ens I was blessed with a smart girl who has her head on her shoulders.”
Ellie smiled at the praise. Life had been relatively easy for the two of them. She didn’t throw the overly dramatic tantrums that many girls her age did. She wasn’t obsessed with make-up or becoming a bride. She was teetering on the fence of becoming a tomboy. Despite her natural clumsiness, she was pretty skilled with a soccer ball. She usually preferred the sport to boys…that was until Jake Phillips. “This tutoring with Alec is reminding me of all the reasons I dislike girly girls.”
Cindy shook her head in amusement. “He’s only trying to help.”
“I know,” Ellie said with a nod. “I just wish he wouldn’t be so irritating about it.”
The chime of the doorbell drowned out her mother’s laughter. Ellie growled in annoyance. Alec didn’t need to ring the bell. He didn’t need an invitation into the house. He walked in on his own all the time. He helped himself to the contents of their refrigerator without asking for goodness sakes. “He’s such a pain in the butt.”
She swung the door open and was driven momentarily speechless at the sight that greeted her. She couldn’t recall ever seeing Alec in anything other than a t-shirt and jeans. That or a hockey jersey.
He stood before her now in black dress pants and a button up dress shirt that was a chocolate brown color that matched his eyes. His hair was slicked back off his forehead, and a small studded earring shone in his left ear.
The sight dumbfounded her. He looked…handsome. An unintelligible sound bubbled past her lips as she gaped at the shocking sight.
Thank goodness he didn’t seem to notice her fleeting lapse of coherency. Alec stepped forward and held out a bundle of flowers. “For you.”
Ellie reached for them before giving a cry of alarm and jumping back. “Get those horrid things away from me! Posies! Bleck!” She narrowed her eyes at her ‘date’, no longer feeling flabbergasted by his appearance. Whatever initial surprise she’d had at his dating persona, it was long gone. “I’m allergic to posies. They make me break out in hives. You know that.”
The Dating Tutor Page 2