Page 15 of Hot Four Teacher (The Lawson’s #4)

Chapter fifteen

Decisions, Decisions

Michelle

“ C ome on, come on. Pick up your damn phone,” I mumble as I pace back and forth across the floor of my bedroom. I stop walking and wiggle my toes in the plush carpet, anxiously waiting.

Finally, I hear a “hello” on the other end.

“Ronnie, where the fuck have you been?”

“I’m out of town on a work trip. You knew that. What the hell is wrong with you?”

“What the hell is wrong with me? I’m standing naked in my bedroom with absolutely nothing to wear…

for a date with a guy who is so freaking hot.

I’m so nervous that I feel like I’m going to puke, and if I do, he’s going to think that I will throw up ev ery time he takes me out.

I have no idea what I’m doing, and you’re not here to help! ”

“Okay, Michelle, I need you to calm down. Everything is going to be fine. I think you’re putting too much pressure on this whole thing.”

“Oh, am I, Ronnie? Am I putting too much pressure on it?” I say the words in a high-pitched mocking tone.

“Yes. Number one, sit down. I can practically hear you pacing.”

I plop onto my bed. “Fine. I am sat.”

“Okay, now, I need you to breathe. Everything is going to be fine. You’re going to go and have a great time.”

“But–”

“But nothing. Michelle, I know I give you a lot of shit, but you’re fucking awesome. Any guy would be lucky to have you. Any guy. If he doesn’t see how awesome you are, fuck him. And if he does see it…fuck him literally.”

“It’s just been a long time since I’ve been on a date.”

“Dating is easy. Go out. Be yourself. And just try to find some common ground. Everything is going to be okay.”

Her words calm me down a little, but I’m still freaking out more than I would like.”

“I still have no idea what to wear,” I tell her.

“I’ve already taken care of that.”

“What do you mean?”

“While you were freaking out, I called in reinforcements.”

“Who?” I ask. “Liz?”

“Nope.”

“Mom?”

“God, no!” She actually sounds offended. “I called Leah. Aside from me, she has the best taste. Well, aside from Jo. But she’s out of town still.”

Thank heavens for that. Jo would probably have me wearing a crop top and some jeans that were torn to shreds. While that looks good on her, it wouldn’t on me.

Ronnie says, “Just calm down. Leah will be there in a few minutes to help with the outfit crisis. Now, tell me…did you test out the new super dildo?”

“No, I didn’t. I wanted to actually be able to walk today.”

I leave out the part about how I did use the wand one. I wanted to try to take the edge off, and it worked–for a little while anyway. I forgot just how good a vibrating toy feels.

I wonder if Dane and I wind up in bed together, if I’ll feel the same warm and fuzzy feelings about the sex.

Before Ronnie can say anything else, there’s a knock on the front door.

“Okay,” I say. “I have to go. Leah’s here.”

“Alright. Have fun! And call me tomorrow to tell me everything.”

We hang up, and I quickly throw on a robe before heading for the door.

When I swing it open, Leah hands me a to-go coffee cup before walking inside.

“While I appreciate this,” I say. “I’m not sure that coffee is going to help me right now.”

“It’s tea. No caffeine. I figured you could use something calming rather than anxiety-inducing.”

“You’re a Godsend,” I tell her while taking a sip.

“Let’s pick you out an outfit.”

I follow her into the bedroom and watch her rifle through my closet for a couple minutes before emerging with an outfit. She lays it out on the bed, so I can get a good look at it.

It’s a low-cut white sweater with a pair of black leggings. Simple yet cute. She then pairs it with some gold jewelry and a pair of ankle boots.

“Wow,” I say to Leah. “You work fast.”

She smiles. “I do what I can. What underwear are you wearing?”

“Uh,” I stammer. “Why does that matter?”

“Are they underwear that you wouldn’t be embarrassed to let anyone else see?”

I think for a moment. “Okay, I’ll change them.”

I duck into the closet to get dressed. When I come back out to accessorize, I say, “Leah, you’ve dated before. How do you get over the nerves?”

“I think a bit of nerves is good. It can make things more exciting. But just remember that he’s probably nervous too.”

“Yeah, I guess,” I mumble.

“How about if you are having a terrible time on your date, call me and hang up real quick. I’ll call you back with some sort of emergency of why you need to leave.”

“Really?”

“Hell yeah! I’ll bail you out in a heartbeat.”

Just when I’m starting to feel a bit calmer, another knock on the door sends my heart racing again.

“Shit! He’s here!”

“Okay, calm down. You go ahead and go, and I’ll lock up and head out after. That way, he doesn’t see me.”

“Thanks, Leah. I owe you one.” I take a couple of deep breaths before walking out of the bedroom.

I open the door to see Dane standing there. He wears a black button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of dark blue jeans. I’m sorry, but it should be illegal to look that good.

“Hi,” I say in probably the most awkward fashion.

“Hey.” He smiles. “Sorry. I know I’m a little early. I guess I was nervous.”

Leah was right.

“Are you ready to go?” He asks.

As ready as I’ll ever be.

***

I’m thankful our ride to the restaurant is a quick one. My stomach does somersaults with all my nerves. With my hands crossed in my lap, I nervously pick at my nails.

And believe me when I say that Dane is not the problem here. He is making pleasant small talk and is being an absolute delight. Meanwhile, I’m sitting here like I’m in pain.

“You look beautiful,” he tells me.

“Thank you,” I reply. “So do you. I mean, you look handsome, not beautiful. And sexy. You look sexy.”

Michelle, if you have even a speck of intelligence, you will stop talking right now.

I snap my mouth shut. I’m almost too scared to look at him.

Almost.

When I do manage to look over, I see a smirk playing on his lips.

“What?” I can’t help but ask.

“You think I’m sexy?”

A genuine laugh escapes me. “Shut up.”

“For the record, I think you’re sexy too.”

Now, I’m the one smirking. “Even naked?”

Part of me asks to keep the banter going. And part of me asks because I want to know.

He moves his eyes from the road to me for a moment. “ Especially naked.”

Just as we are finishing this conversation, we pull into the restaurant. He puts his pick-up truck in park and shuts off the engine. We sit in silence for a moment before he’s the one to break it.

“Are you okay, Michelle?”

I nod. “Just nervous.”

“I’m nervous too. But I think we are both putting too much pressure on this. We’re just having some fun.”

He has a point. This date doesn’t have to be a huge deal. It isn’t like this is the storyline of a rom-com. I highly doubt it’s going to be some epic love story. But maybe it will at least give me enough confidence to put myself out there.

“You’re right,” I tell him. “And I’ve been excited about this date all week. I have just always hated the first date awkwardness. Once we are over that hump, I think things will be better.”

“I get what you’re saying. I have an idea.” He lifts up the center console, now leaving nothing in the seat between us.

“What’s your idea?”

He scoots a little closer to me, and I still have no idea where this is going. But the way his blue eyes stare into mine, I really don’t care.

My heart beats out of my chest as he grabs my chin between his thumb and finger and slowly pulls me toward him. With every second, my pulse quickens even more.

When his face is mere inches from mine, my eyes close, and I’m anxious for what’s going to happen next. A slight gasp escapes from between my lips as he makes contact with them.

It’s been forever since I’ve had anyone kiss me—when I’m sober.

And it’s so much better than I remember. As his lips massage mine, I get lost in the moment. Dane is so tender, yet so commanding all at the same time. It makes me want to see which one of those things he favors more during other activities.

My entire body relaxes as he softly grabs my lips between his. Just when I’m wishing for more, he pulls back.

“There,” he says, sounding almost as breathless as I am. “Now, we’ve got that out of the way. Maybe we can both relax a little.”

Although we kissed the other night, this feels different. Now, I’m sober enough to take in every single detail and am able to truly appreciate how incredible it is.

“Yeah,” I agree. “Glad we did that.”

And wishing that we were doing more.

I silently tell my libido to quiet down. Just because Dane is a good kisser, that doesn’t mean he’s going to be equally skilled in the sack.

He quickly gets out of the truck and walks over to open my door. I usually would already be out before he had a chance to be chivalrous, but I’m still reeling from the kiss.

He opens my door and holds out his hand for mine. Still trying to compose myself, I take it and step out. Much to my surprise, he continues holding my hand as we walk across the parking lot.

It’s nice.

And he was right. The kiss eased some of my nerves.

“I hope you like Italian,” he says.

“Love it.”

We head inside to the warmly lit restaurant, and the hostess leads us to a quiet corner booth.

After we’re seated, our waitress comes over to introduce herself and get our drink orders. When I look up at her, I’m a little taken back because her boobs are massive. I’m not saying that to be rude in any way. It’s just a fact. I don’t often gawk at other women, but it’s hard not to.

Trying not to stare, I look at my menu and order a glass of wine. Dane orders a whiskey, and she walks away.

Surprisingly, he doesn’t gawk. It’s like he barely even notices her. Maybe that’s the case…or maybe he’s better at hiding it than I am.

“What are you going to get?” He asks me.

Boy, that’s a loaded question. If I get anything with red sauce, I run the risk of making a mess of my white sweater. If I get any type of cream sauce, I run the risk of shitting my pants later. That much cream wreaks havoc on my stomach.