Page 31 of Twink Heart

?I was hooked.

Chapter Sixteen: James

After our heart to heart that morning, the rest of the day was pleasant and a little more comfortable than it had been previously. There was still tension in the air and Rowan wasn’t really sure how to act around me, but that was to be expected. He’d just taken a big step, and I didn’t expect him to suddenly be one hundred percent alright with everything. He needed time and space to feel comfortable.

?So, I did what I could to make him feel like there was no pressure. We lazed on the porch in the sun, we drove into town to get takeout, and spent most of the night watching movies. It was honestly one of the most relaxing Saturdays I’d had in a long time. Usually I was out at the beach or on a date in a vain attempt to find a guy who actually wanted me around. But being with Rowan made all that feel sort of superfluous. He might’ve been quiet, but I knew he wanted me around. I could see it in his gaze every time he looked at me.

?Those brown eyes of his made my heart soar.

?“I’m gonna put dinner stuff away,” he said after the credits rolled for the movie we’d just finished.

?“Okay,” I replied with a smile, handing him my plate. “I’d help you but I can’t walk.”

?“It’s fine. I don’t mind.”

?I grabbed his hand and pulled him down so he was face to face with me. “Thanks, babe,” I said and gave him a little peck on the cheek.

?The man turned a bright shade of lobster in all of three seconds and practically ran to the kitchen to pack up our leftovers. It was the first time I’d made a move on him all day and it was worth it. I loved seeing him all flustered. It was adorable.

?Sliding my phone out of my pocket, I decided it was time to doom scroll for a couple of minutes. I hadn’t checked anything all day and even though I wasn’t especially popular, I didn’t like having a ton of notifications on my phone. For some reason that just drove me crazy.

?As I unlocked it and swiped to the home screen, I saw I had a couple text messages waiting for me from a named contact. Opening the app I felt my heart sink. They were from Ray, the guy that had stood me up over a week ago and never reached out again.

Ray: Hey cutie! I’m gonna be back in town this weekend and I thought it might be nice to hang out. God knows I miss that sweet ass of yours :P

Ray: You still there or are you ignoring me?

?I sat there for a moment, reading over his messages. It was surprising to hear from him to say the least. He’d canceled our previous date at the last minute and acted like it was no big deal. Then he waited over a week to text me again? And now he had the gall to make it a booty call?

?I knew my reply before I even brought up the keyboard.

Me: Sorry, I’ve had a lot going on. But I’m gonna be busy all weekend, anyway. I figured when you didn’t reach out after last time that you weren’t interested anymore.

?There was a little hesitation before I pushed send. The message was pretty straightforward, and some people saw that as rude. However, so was canceling a date an hour before with no explanation and no intention to reschedule.

Ray: Something came up, and I had to go back home.

Me: I thought you said you lived here in town?

Ray: I don’t think I did.

Me: No, you did. You said you had a house on the north side of town on Hamlin Lake. You even offered to take me there.

Ray: Why are you making stuff up? Do you want to meet up or not?

?Okay, now I was getting mad. It was one thing to ignore me, but it was something entirely different to straight up gaslight me.

Me: No. I’m busy.

Ray: You don’t have any time at all?

Me: Nope.

Ray: Well, whatever you’re doing, it better not be anything with another guy. We’re together.

Me: Excuse me?

Ray: I bought you dinner, and you begged me to fuck you. I’d say that means you owe me at least a chance at being your boyfriend.

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