Page 95 of Playing Flirty

Even though we texted occasionally, we hadn’t reached the level where I felt comfortable texting him out of the blue. I knew he wasn’t much of a texter, but I needed to touch base—as if a part of me needed to make sure he was real, that we were real, and not some figment of my imagination.

I took out my phone and typed a message with speedy fingers and a speedier heart.

Rose:Missing my favorite rival. The games are too easy with this lot.

I held my breath, watching the message saydelivered. Three dots appeared immediately.

William:I prefer the term “archnemesis.”

Another reply came through a second later.

William:And I miss you too.

It was real. Really, really real.

Round 31

Iwas buzzing with excitement for three reasons: One, it was Friday; two, it was my last day of work, and I was leaving early; and three, it was Neema’s bachelorette party.

Despite the multiple stressors banging on the inside of my cranium, it felt good to focus on celebrating my best friends’ upcoming marriage.

Shaun eyed me the entire day in a poor attempt to milk information out of me.

“We’re ending up at the same place. That’s all you need to know,” I said.

He scrunched his nose. “Fine. Then at least tell me what William has in store for me.”

“I don’t know,” I replied honestly, my heart turning at the memory of William’s pained expression.

“Then what the heck do you keep discussing on the balcony?”

Oops.

“Okay, you got me,” I said. “But I promised not to tell you.”

He blew out a long breath that almost looked like relief. I felt a tiny bit guilty for taking advantage of how trusting he was.

I turned around and packed up my things.

“This is the last time I’ll see you do this,” Shaun said.

“Oh, shush. You’ll still see more of me than you planned for.” I pinched his shoulder, and while I’d thought I might be sentimental about it all, I wasn’t.

I was nervous, yes, but more so, I was excited, and today was going to be awesome. Grabbing my bag, I yelled, “See you later, Terminator,” and left.

Once I got outside, Neema climbed out of the car and handed me the keys. “And you’re done!”

“I’m done!” I said, climbing into the driver’s seat and tossing my box of belongings into the back. We took one long glance at the building that I’d spent more time at than my own home.

Neema’s smile was wide, and she didn’t bother asking me where we were going. She knew I wouldn’t tell her anyway. After collecting Claire, our first appointment was a group massage. We needed to loosen up, and I was sold on the five-star review that consisted of no fewer than fourteen exclamation marks.

Once we were thoroughly relaxed—the poor redheaded massage therapist had to summon her inner strength to remove the knots in my body—we showered and changed our clothing before the hair and makeup appointments I’d arranged.

I slipped on my bachelorette outfit: a short red skater dress, cinched at the waist, that looked to be made of glitter and provided enough flexibility for the routine. I pulled on a pair of leggings underneath since I wasn’t prepared to flash the entire club while doing my twirls.

“You look hot,” Neema said, walking out of the changing room in a sparkly gold miniskirt and a black blouse. She letloose a whistle. “The men are not going to know where to look.”

My entire body became a live wire imagining William’s hot gaze. It was his turn to drool, and my turn to tease.

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