Page 6

CHAPTER 6

CASSIE

I rummage through my closet, analyzing every single article of clothing that I own and hating them all. I hate having to dress up and go out. I’m a jeans and T-shirt kind of gal and dread the idea of any kind of glam. This is one of the many reasons why I have no desire to go on this date tonight. Nothing in my closet is suitable and my mood is quickly turning into one of doom and despair.

“Knock, knock,” I hear someone say outside of my bedroom door and before I can tell them to come in, Grace enters.

“Oh, hey! Sorry, I didn’t realize you had arrived.”

She shrugs. “No big deal, your dad let me in. I’ve come bearing gifts.” She’s holding a huge pile of clothes that she immediately dumps onto my bed.

“Thank you because I really don’t have anything to wear.” I start picking through the pile and quickly get discouraged by what I see. “Grace, why are these all dresses? Not only do I hate wearing a dress, but we’re not even the same size.”

“Fear not, grumpy pants. I only brought you my best cutesy and demure dresses, some of which are A-Line.”

I give her a what the heck look and she rolls her eyes in frustration. “C’mon, you’re an artist. Surely you know what an A-Line dress is?”

“I work with paint, not fabric.”

She huffs, grabs a dress off the bed, and holds it in front of her. “Look at the bottom half of the dress. See how it flairs out like the shape of an ‘A’?”

I nod. “I see it, but I still don’t think these dresses will fit me. I have no boobs and big hips.”

“You have the perfect hourglass figure and I would kill for the size of your boobs. Stop being so pessimistic and try them on. Here, these three are my favorite.” She throws the dresses at me and they all bounce off my face and into my arms.

I look down at the colors of each dress and balk. “Red? I can’t wear a red dress with my hair color.”

“Your hair is dark auburn, not bright red. Trust me, the dress will be fine.”

“Trust me , it won’t.”

Her eyes narrow and she points to my bathroom. “You’re starting to annoy me. Get in there and try the dresses on now or I’m leaving you with nothing!”

“Lord, you’re bossy today,” I scoff and start making my way to the bathroom.

“And make sure you come out so I can see you in each dress. I will be the judge of which is the final winner.”

I shut the door and quickly change out of my clothes and try on dress number one. It’s a black, long sleeve V-neck dress that hugs every curve of my body. I absolutely hate it and if she says this dress is the winner, then I’m going to have to sneak another dress in my bag to wear when she isn’t around.

I walk out of the bathroom and try to keep my face neutral. It only takes her three seconds to decide. “Too baggy in the top and too tight in the hips. I can see the outline of your granny panties.”

“Oh, thank god,” I mutter and turn around to go back to the bathroom.

“You know you're not leaving this room without wearing a thong, right?”

I spin back around and glare at her. “I hate those things. It’s dental floss for the anus. I don’t want to be picking at my ass all night long.”

She starts laughing so uncontrollably, she’s soon snorting. “Sorry,” she wheezes in between giggles while trying to catch her breath. “The mental image of you picking at your ass all night was too much for me.” She wipes the mascara away from underneath her eyes. “Gah, thanks for that. I really needed it.”

“So happy to entertain you at my expense, Grace,” I grumble sarcastically and go back to the bathroom.

“But you’re still wearing a thong tonight.”

I shoot her the bird before slamming the door. I hear her laughter and smile, loving our honest friendship.

The next dress I try on is a bright red, long-sleeved maxi wrap dress. Grace studies me for a long moment, the tip of her finger tapping against her lips. “Hmm, there's something off about this dress.”

“Yeah, it’s my hair.”

“No,” she pauses. “I think the color of the dress washes you out.”

“I told you this color red with my hair and pale skin wouldn’t work.” When it comes to clothes, I usually can’t wear red, but I sure can rock it on my lips.

“All right, noted. I will never buy you any red clothes in the future.”

“Thank you.”

The final dress is an emerald green, long-sleeved mini dress with a square neckline. I stare at myself in the bathroom mirror, amazed at how the color transforms my eyes.

“Winner, winner, chicken dinner! You look smoking hot.” Grace exclaims when I exit out of the bathroom. She makes me twirl for her and then I stand in front of my full-length mirror to see the full effect.

“You don’t think the dress is a little too short?” I ask, trying to pull the hem down. The dress is barely covering my thighs and the amount of leg I’m showing makes me uncomfortable.

“Are you kidding me? You shouldn’t hide those killer legs. Seriously, Cass, you look incredible. What do you think?”

I study my appearance, and I hate to admit it, but this dress not only elevates my appearance, but makes me feel confident and sexy. “I do think I look pretty.” I turn from side to side, studying myself at every angle. “Okay, I’ll wear it.”

“Hell yeah you’re wearing it!” She reaches into her tote bag and pulls out a pair of pointed black heels with ankle straps. “Here, these are perfect to go with that dress.”

“Ooh, I like these!” I go to grab the shoes, but she snatches them out of my reach.

“You can’t have them until you get a proper thong and bra out of your drawer and put them on.”

I start to pout but do as she commands. “Now look who's the annoying one.”

“You love me,” she practically sings with a sugary, sweet smile.

“I sure do,” I tell her sincerely, because it’s true. Grace is the sister I never had and I’m so thankful for her friendship. “Thank you again for coming to my rescue with clothes and shoes.”

“You’re welcome. I wasn’t going to let you go be your true authentic by showing up in your uniform of jeans and a T-shirt.” She winks at me and I laugh.

“If someone doesn’t like my normal state of not being glammed up, then to hell with them.”

“Amen, sister!” Grace pumps her fist in the air. “C’mon, I’ll help you with your hair and makeup.”

I stop myself from following her in the bathroom as I question whether or not this is a good idea. “Please don’t make me look like a hooker.”

Grace yells from the bathroom, “I can’t make any promises on that.”

* * *

A n hour later, Grace and I arrive at Uncle Choy’s. We get there thirty minutes before Aaron does so Grace can give me a pep talk. She wants to be here when he arrives so she can properly introduce us to each other. I also think the mother hen in her doesn’t want me sitting by myself, waiting for him.

Once we are seated and Grace goes to use the restroom, I take a look around the restaurant. It’s a chic, modern, Asian fusion restaurant with elegant lighting. I gaze past the wide area of tables and see a large bar in the back.

Grace returns to the table and hands me a glass. “Here, I ordered you a shot.” The small glass contains red liquid that looks like cough medicine.

“This looks disgusting.” I scrunch up my nose while examining the contents of the liquid. “You know I don’t drink.”

“I know, but one shot will take the edge off your nerves.” She nods toward the glass, encouraging me to drink it. “Take it now before he arrives.”

She’s right—I am nervous and need something to calm me down. I take the shot and am surprised to find it doesn’t taste as bad as it looks. “I hope this doesn’t make me tipsy.”

“It shouldn’t. Have you eaten anything since lunch?”

I think about it and realize I haven’t. “No. We should probably order an appetizer while we wait.”

“Good idea. I’m starving and need to eat something before my shift starts tonight.” Grace is dressed in her scrubs and plans on going straight to the hospital after Aaron arrives.

Our waitress makes an appearance and we order some scallion pancakes to start with and water. “Listen, I want you to repeat after me,” Grace says after the waitress leaves. I give her a skeptical look but agree.

“I’m going to have fun tonight.”

I start to smile, already thinking it’s silly that she’s treating me like I’m a child. “I’m going to have fun tonight.”

“I will not be a judgmental bitch.”

I scowl at her. “When am I ever a judgmental bitch?”

“All the time. It’s the snotty artist in you.”

“No, I’m not!” I think if anyone can be snotty sometimes at this table, it’s Grace.

She laughs.“This is so much fun. Now please stop arguing and repeat it!”

“Fine!” I huff. “I will not be a judgmental bitch.”

“It’s okay to kiss on the first date.”

I roll my eyes at her. “It’s okay to kiss on the first date.”

“And it’s definitely okay to have sex on the first date if the chemistry is sizzling and I can’t keep my hands off him.”

I can’t help but giggle at that. “Can you shorten that? It’s too long for me to repeat.”

“I’m not a slut if I want to have sex on the first date.”

“I’m not a slut if I want to have sex on the first date… but I probably won’t.”

“Why not?”

I shrug my shoulders, not really knowing why. “It just seems… wrong, I guess?”

“Why would it seem wrong?” she questions like she’s a detective interrogating a murder suspect.

Our waitress returns with our food and I wait until she leaves to answer Grace’s question.

“Sex is just so intimate that I feel it should be with someone you have known for at least more than one night.”

“Doing it with someone you barely know and have zero connection to can also be very liberating.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?” Her answer surprises me. While I know she has had more experience than I have, she’s also not the type that has slept around either.

“Seriously, Cass. The double standard in our world is unfair. Guys do it all the time. Why can’t women?”

“I’m sure there are plenty of women who do, but it’s just not something I’m interested in.”

“How would you know?” She tilts her head and narrows her gaze. “You’ve only been with one other guy in your life and he was a douche twat.”

I laugh at her nickname for my ex. “You’re right, I don’t know. I feel it would take off-the-charts chemistry for me to consider sleeping with a stranger.”

She sighs. “Just promise me that you’ll be more open-minded to it if you are hard-core vibing with Aaron,” she requests before taking a bite of her pancake.

“I promise.”

She points her fork at me. “And if it does happen, you owe me all the juicy details.”

“You’ll get all the tea.” I giggle and dig into my pancake.

“Tea time is the best.” She looks over by the door and does a double take. “Oh shoot, he’s here.”

I grab my glass of water and swoosh the liquid around the inside of my mouth to try to get any food out of my teeth. After I swallow, I carefully dab at my mouth with my napkin so I don’t take off too much of my lipstick.

“Here, take this,” she whispers, passing me a breath mint out of her purse. Thank goodness for Grace, because my breath is kicking from the scallions and spices in the pancake. I pop it into my mouth as soon as he makes it to our table.

“Aaron, hi!” Grace greets him and we both stand up out of our chairs. I check him out as he greets Grace first. He’s wearing a sky-blue dress shirt, unbuttoned far enough to get a peek-a-boo showing of his chest. My gaze travels down his waist to his beige, slim fit pants that almost seem a little too tight for him. His clothes confuse me because his current style is nothing like what he wore in the photos Grace showed me.

“This is my friend, Amber.”

My head snaps up to his face and I can’t help the blush that creeps along my cheeks from getting caught checking him out. His dark hair is styled in a classic pompadour, with not even one hair out of place. He has a trendy sparingly short beard and warm brown eyes. He’s definitely a good-looking guy. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see a couple of women looking him over.

He holds out his hand for me to shake. “It’s so nice to meet you. Grace told me you were beautiful and boy, she wasn’t lying.” He squeezes my hand hard while blatantly checking me out, licking his lips as his eyes come to rest on my legs.

I gulp down the sick feeling bubbling up my throat. “Nice to meet you as well, Aaron.”

“Well, I need to get to work. You two kids have fun.” Grace hugs Aaron goodbye first and then wraps her arms around me.

“Don’t leave,” I whisper in her ear.

“Have fun!” she whispers back and turns to leave.

I watch her walk out of the restaurant and then glance back at my date with an awkward smile.

“Come, sit down and let’s get to know each other.” He pulls out my chair and I say a little prayer that tonight goes better than what I’m fearing.