Page 70 of Grumpy Darling

“That boy wasbornwith one.” She laughed before walking toward her car. “I’ll see you there.”

I was suddenly wondering if shopping with Bonnie and Gray was a recipe for disaster. The two of them rarely agreed on anything—I could only imagine how much their opinions would differ on what kind of clothes I should wear.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked as I approached Grayson’s truck.

He responded by opening the passenger door for me. “I want to do everything with you, Pidge.”

That feeling in the pit of my stomach was back. Why did my mind automatically go to places it shouldn’t? Seriously, how did Grayson not have a girlfriend already? I tried to remember if he’d always said things like this to me. He must have. But for some reason his sweetness wasn’t just washing over me like a cool breeze on a warm day. It was cutting deeper, sending shivers across my skin. Maybe I was coming down with something. A bad fluhadbeen going around...

“I really don’t think you need this makeover,” Grayson said before I could respond. He was still waiting by the open door of the truck, so I shook off my thoughts and climbed into the passenger seat.

“Well, sometimes, Grayson Darling, you are wrong. The makeover needs to happen. No guy is going to ask me out when I dress like this. Especially not someone like Damien.”

“You could wear a paper bag, and I still wouldn’t think you needed a makeover.”

God, he was stubborn. But I didn’t get a chance to tell him, because he closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side.

“Actually, the paper bag would probably be an improvement,” I said once he was in the truck. “I was literally wearing the same outfit as a teacher today, Gray.”

That took a little of the wind out of his sails. “I’m sure the teacher just has good taste.”

“It was Ms. Shannon.”

I couldn’t tell if Gray wanted to laugh or cringe. His eyes were certainly wide with surprise.

“Then I guess we should go shopping.” He started the engine. “But for the record, Ms. Shannon is pretty cool for an eighty-year-old.”

I laughed. Perhaps shopping wouldn’t be so bad after all.

When we arrived at the mall, I got a text from Bonnie telling me to hurry up because she was already in the department store. I had no idea how she’d gotten here so much quicker than us, but by the time we’d made our way from the parking lot to the store, she was already rushing between the racks, her arms laden with clothes. Grayson watched in horror. He was probably already feeling out of place, and the sight of all the clothes Bonnie was carrying couldn’t be helping.

“Sorry, I didn’t wait,” Bonnie said as she continued adding to her pile. “I can’t stay...”

“You can’t?” She’d been the one pushing for this makeover. How could she bail on me before we had even got started?

She pulled another dress off a hook before scrunching her nose up and quickly placing it back. “My mom just called. Turns out she’s already run out of baby formula and Tabi won’t stop crying. She needs me to pick some up and bring it home now.”

“Oh, well, that’s okay, we can do this another night.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she replied. “Your wardrobe won’t survive another night without major surgery. Damien’s never going to ask you out while you look like you might give him detention if he talks out of turn.”

She gave the shop floor one final scan and sighed. “This will have to do,” she said before walking over and dumping all the clothing she’d selected into my arms.

“It looks like plenty,” Gray muttered.

Bonnie ignored him as she went on. “I’ve tried to find you a few options, but all of them are a little more revealing than the stuff you’d usually go for. And you want something that highlights your curves instead of swallowing them up. Make sure you try them all, okay? There has to be at least one outfit you like.”

“Uh, okay.”

Bonnie then turned to Grayson and pointed a finger at him. “I’m putting you in charge, Grayson. Don’t let me down.”

“Yeah, uh, I won’t.” He looked slightly unnerved by the idea and, maybe for the first time ever, I wondered if Gray was a little intimidated.

“Good. Now, don’t have too much fun without me.”

And, like a whirlwind passing by, she was gone. The aftermath of her frenzy was the towering mountain of clothes in my arms. I pasted on a smile as I turned to Gray.

“So, we should probably start looking through this stuff for the perfect mix of revealing and figure-hugging...” My voice trailed off when I noticed how hard he was scowling at Bonnie’s selection of outfits. I suspected he was already regretting his decision to come, but his cheeks were also tinged with the softest hint of pink. Was he embarrassed too?

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