Page 86 of That First Night

“No, I want allllll the dirty details.” Avery laughs loudly.

“Guys, I don’t know.” I tuck a small strand of hair behind my ear, all of sudden feeling shy. “I don’t know what we are. We haven’t discussed anything. I want to believe that we’re more. Ifeellike we’re more. But am I just someone that's convenient for him since I live there?”

“Girl,” Kali stops me. “He asked you to this event, didn't he?”

“Yeah,” I draw out.

“Well.” She opens her arms as if to be likeduh. “He must see this as something more.”

“There’s more to factor into this, Kali. He’s a dad. He has a son,” I let out a long sigh. “And he doesn’t do relationships. He made that very clear.”

“Neither do you,” Avery snaps. “And now here we are, on taco Tuesday, talking about how head over heels you are for your boss.”

“I am not,” I defend myself.

“Stop playing, girl.” Kali rolls her eyes. “You have feelings for him. Strong ones. You can’t hide them from me, from us. I can see it. I see how you two interact. I see your cheeks flush when he’s near you. I see the smile he puts on your face. I see how much you love and care about James. I also see…” she pauses and takes a deep breath. Releasing the breath before she continues, “You’ve never been like this with a man before. You’re so confident and bold. When I say you’re glowing, Pey, I mean it. You’ve always been a ray of sunshine in our eyes. But Thomas brought out an even brighter you. One for the whole world to finally fucking see. How can’t you see that?”

My chest aches at her words. She’s not wrong. Thomashasbrought out a new side of me that I have never known before. Confidence in every aspect of my life. From the bedroom, to walking down the street.

There’s no doubt in my mind that I am in love with Thomas Ford.

Fuck.

“I-I,” I stutter. “I’m in love with him.”

Kali chuckles in her seat, “The first step is always admitting it, babe.”

“What do I do?” My questioning eyes bounce between the two of them.

“You know what you have to do,” Kali says. “You have to tell him.”

“You can’t continue to be his nanny if you guys are in a relationship,” Avery adds.

“I think that’s what’s making my brain go haywire.” I shake my head and my head falls to my hands. “I won’t have a job. What the fuck will I do? And then the next question, do I continue to just live there? Like… that's pretty fast.”

“These are all valid questions,” my responsible friend, Kali, adds. “I think you need to have a sit down and have a talk with him, honestly.”

“But I think you should wait until after the gala,” Avery cuts her off.

“Why?” My head tips to the side in question. In my head, isn’t it better to get this conversation done and over with sooner, rather than later?

“Because we have to get you ready for a gala,” Avery gleams.

“I don’t understand,” I say as confusion crosses my features.

“Ohhhh,” Kali giggles. “I see where this is going.” She takes a sip of her margarita with a devious smile plastered on her face. These fucking two. I can’t. “Yup, we have to get you ready for a gala.”

“Someone, please fucking explain,” I snap.

“Listen,” Avery continues her laughing fit. “You need to use this event to your advantage. Let’s show him how irresistible you are.”

“So irresistible,” Kali chirps.

“Let’s show him your best fucking features,” Avery continues.

“The best,” Kali echoes again.

“Let’s make him beg you to stay in his life.”