Page 63 of Since Day One

She broke apart from the hug, patted my leg, and then stood from the couch. “Well, it’s nearly lunchtime. Do you want to take some sandwiches out to Gunnar and those two friends of his? Jesse will be down from her house to grab some for Ruger and his boys in just a few minutes.”

I smiled, setting the pillow to the side and standing up. “I would love to help,” I answered, and her eyes scanned my crumpled clothes.

She clicked her tongue and gestured for me to follow. “I’m also going to have Jesse bring you a change of clothes. Those look stale.”

I blushed in embarrassment, placing my hands quickly over my cheeks while following her into the very quiet kitchen. She began pulling lunch meats and cheeses and lettuce and bread from the fridge, while I gathered the condiments and listened to her instructions on how to make the sandwiches her way.

“Also, you need to brush that hair of yours,” she added while slicing a tomato, and I internally groaned. I had no idea how haggard I actually looked at this point and quickly pulled my phone from my pocket. Pausing at the lock screen, I sighed. My heart still fluttered despite how horribly guilty I felt when I saw him this morning, the same as it did now seeing him in that picture.

Unlocking the phone, I flipped on the camera and gasped. “Oh my gosh. This is embarrassing,” I mumbled to myself, trying to smooth out a few strands of my hair that had been pulled from the braid. The bags under my eyes looked just as bad as Gunnar’s had, my outfit completely disheveled. Katherine chuckled as I stared in horror at myself. He’d seen me like this. Rob and Carsen had seen me like this. The first time I’d spoken to Gunnar’s mom, she saw me like this. No wonder Gunnar had looked at me the way he had.

Just then, the front door opened, and a sing-songy voice danced through the air. “I’m here!” Jesse skipped into the kitchen and then stopped, blinking in shock at the state of me. “Oh, honey,” she sympathetically said, trying to hide her fright.

“I know, it’s bad,” I muttered, and both Jesse and Katherine chuckled. I was quickly ushered from the room and shoved toward the bathroom at the end of the hall with a stack of clothes and a small zipped bag on top. Jesse pulled the door shut behind me, and I flicked on the light, staring at the crazy woman reflected back to me in the mirror. It was a beautifully tiled bathroom, crisp grays and whites that sparkled from being freshly cleaned and maintained.

I quickly got to work, stripping off my clothes that were stiff and smelled pretty rough.

Chapter 23

“You better actually put some on,” Jesse pressured through the door as I held the small mascara bottle in my hand.

“Won’t that make me look like I’m trying too hard?” I muttered in reply, wanting to avoid this at all costs.

“There is nothing wrong with getting yourself dolled up every now and then. Besides, it’s only mascara. Nothing else. Not even a little blush. Now, hurry up; we have food to deliver.”

“But I’m already wearing something fancier than I—“

“Willow! Shush and put the mascara on before I come in there and pin you down and force it on you,” Jesse exclaimed, cutting me off. I groaned but leaned forward and did as she asked. Long sweeps of dark liquid painted upon my lashes emphasized just how large my eyes were. Plunging the wand back into the bottle, I dropped it into the little makeup bag Jesse had brought and stared thoughtfully at my reflection.

Brushed hair draped in waves down my back, pulled from the usual braid I wore. Jesse had brought me one of her tighter dark green sweaters, the fabric a very silky, almost satin-like material that she paired with some flattering high-waisted bell-bottoms. An outfit I only once dreamed of wearing, and only imagined feeling good in. But now that it was fitted on my body, I couldn’t help admitting that I might actually have some desirable curves and qualities to my figure.

Though, I was extremely nervous about wearing something like this in front of Gunnar when we weren’t exactly in a good spot.

I turned the doorknob and slowly pulled open the door. Jesse clapped her hands in glee and snagged the pile of clothes and makeup bag from my arms. She stepped closer to me and sniffed once before backing away in satisfaction.

“I did exactly what you said, okay?” I muttered, and she grinned in triumph.

“Just had to make sure that you didn’t just pretend to put the perfume on,” she answered and then whipped around, quickly tapping back into the kitchen. Her outfit today was, once again, impeccably chosen. A flattering dress that emphasized every part of her body with expert curls once again adorning her blonde hair.

We entered the kitchen, and Katherine looked up from the last tray she was plating sandwiches on. A massive smile caressed her lips as I felt her dissect every inch of me. “Perfect,” she exclaimed, and Jesse clapped again before quickly grabbing one of the trays. I shuffled forward and snagged the other one with a slight scowl.

“Smile, Willow. You’re about to make him forget all about why he was mad in the first place,” Jesse said, and Katherine nodded in agreement.

“I feel like I’ve been set up,” I mumbled, turning around to follow Jesse out the front door, and both women laughed but neither denied it. Jesse handed me my black coat, which smelled just like the perfume she’d made me spray on earlier as we walked out into the cold frontier.

“You need something nicer with an outfit like that.” She clicked her tongue as I pulled it over my shoulders and began walking toward the barns. “You better take that off as soon as you get into the arena.”

“Why would I do that?” I asked as we turned off of the main road and followed the worn path down to the barns.

“So Gunnar can see all your goods, obviously,” she answered nonchalantly and brushed some hair behind her shoulder.

“You and Katherine are acting like we are a couple who’s fighting,” I replied, stunned.

“Maybe y’all haven’t manned up and set labels yet, but you totally are.”

I looked at her, trying to comprehend what was happening. “No we aren’t,” I said defiantly, and she scoffed, expressing her disbelief. Without another word, she winked and then went her separate direction to Ruger’s arena as I continued onward to Gunnar’s.

What just happened? This thing between Gunnar and I was nothing close to two people dating. At all. Neither of us would want that knowing that in just a couple weeks, things would be ending because I was returning home. Yet apparently, even his mother was aware something was going on between us. I could only pray that Jesse had respected my wish and not told Ruger, although I was beginning to highly doubt that.

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