Page 6 of Made Over by Meredith

“Oh, no shit?” I jerked my head back while Jimmy hooted.

Claire smiled. “She really is perfect for you.”

“Yeah.” He nodded, doing the lip licking half-smile thing, and I was interested to know where and when he picked that up. I’d have to try it.

“Can’t friend-zone this one,” Jimmy said, and I agreed with a slap of my palm to the table.

“Won’t happen. Don’t worry, I got you.”

Aiden tapped the edge of his glasses as he asked me, “What’s next, teach?”

“Unit two.” I deliberately dragged my gaze over him from top to bottom. “Fashion.”

He frowned. “What’s wrong what my fashion?”

“You have none,” I said, making Claire and Jimmy break up in a fit of laughter. “You want to be her friend? Because that’s what you look like now. But if you want to look like her hot boyfriend, who knows how to fuck, we need to go shopping.”

He picked up his beer, mumbling something into it that sounded like, “I know how to fuck,” but I merely patted his thigh.

“Clear your schedule this weekend. You’re all mine, Aiden Hart.”

Chapter 3

Aiden

Ididn’t understand why Meredith picked on my clothes. They were…fine. I’d found khakis that fit, bought a bunch, then picked out a few polos I could wear to work and the few places I went out to. Sure, it was plain, but there wasn’t anything wrong with them. At least I didn’t think so until Meredith frowned at me, plucking at the dark green material.

“Jesus Christ, Aiden. It’s like youwantgirls to think your mom buys your clothes.”

“She doesn’t, but what would be so bad about that?” I hopped out of her passenger seat after she parked. We’d exchanged numbers at the bar the last night, and she’d messaged this morning, ordering me to give her my address so she could pick me up. Bossy like that.

“You need to send out the right vibes.My mommy still dresses meis not the vibe you want, is it?” She looped her purse over her shoulder and tucked her hands into the pockets of her light blue denim jacket that made her eyes look more blue than gray today. “Where do you usually go shopping?”

“Amazon.”

Her upper lip curled. “Hey, I like one-day shipping as much as the next girl, but you can’t do all your shopping online if you don’t know what you’re looking for or what looks good on you.” She vaguely motioned to me because, I guessed, I didn’t know what to look for or what looked good on me. “We’re rectifying that.”

She marched off toward the mall—I honest to God didn’t even know they existed anymore—and I ignored the shape of her butt and legs in her dark jeans as she sashayed in front of me. Akron, Ohio, wasn’t exactly the fashion capital of the world, so I didn’t understand the connection of my clothes to getting a girlfriend, but Meredith was the teacher in this scenario, so I dutifully followed her into J. Crew.

I glanced at the price of a pair of sweats. “Rectify it by paying sixty bucks for sweatpants?”

She wrapped her hand around my wrist, tugging me further into the store. “You’re a single guy who works for full-time. You could afford one pair of sixty-dollar pants if you wanted to.” When I started to argue, she slapped her hand over my mouth. “But, no, you don’t have to buy them if you don’t want to.Today’s about finding your style so you know what to buy from here on out.”

Meredith’s skin was soft and warm, and I found myself leaning into her touch. Especially when she scratched her pointy nails down my jaw. “And this…” She smiled. “This is good. You should keep this scruff.”

She backed away, letting her hand drag down to my shoulder, and shivers raced up my spine. I covered my shudders with a forced laugh and shrug. “You didn’t give me much time to shower and shave this morning.”

That earned a grin. “I love a guy who comes when I call.”

I knew Meredith was a flirt, but I also suspected there was more to her than this game she played, and I didn’t know if I liked her hiding behind it. Especially when I basically offered myself up on a platter for her dissect.

I wanted to see her insides, too.

“So,” I started, circling around to inspect the array of preppy shirts and pants. “This is where you shop?”

“Nope. But I figured we could start in here and then make our way down until we find what we’re looking for.”

“You mean whatyou’relooking for?”

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