Page 22 of What if I Told You

Pretty.

Perfect size. Perfect shape.

Perky too.

Ugh.

Get a fucking grip.

My eyes land on the part of her I had forgotten about over the years. Just above her heart sits a small owl tattoo. It was the very first tattoo she ever got and I remember she wanted me to hold her hand as she got it. She was so fucking brave that day. She didn’t need me, but I was happy to be there for her.

A tightness pulls in my chest so I gesture to the obscene number of cinnamon rolls on the counter. “Babe, did you really order all this?”

“Yeah. You didn’t have any I could make so I just Door-Dashed the whole menu.” She tears another piece off and shoves it in her mouth. “You know I crave cinnamon rolls when?—”

“When you’re nervous.” I nod. “I remember. This looks more like you’re going to be nervous for the rest of the year.”

“I know, I know.” Her eyes are watery as she twists her hair around her finger. “But what if I told you I have no self-control when I’m nervous and so I couldn’t help myself and once I saw the menu I wasn’t sure how much I would want to eat because I was hungry but then like, not hungry at all, you know? Because the last thing I want to do when I’m nervous is eat but then I get this craving and I just have to have it and I couldn’t stop myself this time so before I knew it I had clicked though the entire menu and hit submit.”

Another thing my best friend does when she’s nervous?

She rambles.

“I was sure to give one to the doorman when he brought my order up this morning though so that was nice. And of course you should eat some. Obviously, I won’t be able to eat all of this, but I can save them. Maybe freeze them for another time.” She wraps her hand around my wrist. “Oh, and I promise I’ll clean up this mess, okay? I just needed space to lay everything out so I could decide what to wear, only I couldn’t decide on business professional or business casual since, well, you know, a mascot doesn’t usually wear dress pants and heels, but I don’t have the job yet so I wasn’t sure and now that’s where you come in because?—”

“Ella.” I stop her with the placement of my hands on her shoulders.

She finally swallows the bite of cinnamon roll in her mouth. “Yeah?”

“Take a deep breath with me.”

I take a slow deep breath, my eyes locked on hers as she breathes in with me. We both breathe out as I count to ten in my head.

“Team colors. Navy blue dress pants are fine. Yellow top. A small pair of earrings and wear your hair in a ponytail. The curly kind you do when you’re cheering.”

“Heels?”

I nod and give her an approving smile. “Heels. And you don’t need a ton of makeup. You’re stunning just the way you are.”

Her cheeks pinken as she tilts her head in a nod and then reaches up to kiss the side of my face. “Thank you, Auggie.”

Trying to break her anxiety I glance down at her chest and wink. “The lace bra is nice but a little much for a job interview…you know, if you were wondering.”

She rolls her eyes. “I don’t care about my bra. This one makes me feel good. And pretty. And confident. But I’m ninety-nine percent sure nobody at the Anaheim Stars is going to see my black lacey bra today so that’s inconsequential but thank you just the same.”

“My pleasure. I’m going to hit the shower.”

I give Ella a little time to herself to finish getting dressed, which gives me the opportunity to walk away from my nearly naked best friend before my mind starts playing tricks on me. Once I’m stripped down and in the shower it dawns on me that I haven’t called on any of the puck bunnies usually on standby in weeks.

Since I offered my place to Ella.

Fuck.

I invited my best friend to live with me and now she’s the cock block I never saw coming.

Coming…

Christ, I may never be coming again if this keeps up.

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