Page 37 of Love to Prove You Wrong

She tapped her chin. “Put it in the maybe pile.”

I threw the dress down and went through my other clothes.

“So, are you excited Justin asked you to go with him?” Suzie asked.

I shrugged. “It’s nice.”

“Nice? Come on, Addy. One of the world’s hottest movie stars has asked you on a date and all you have to say about it isnice?”

I sat down on the bed. “To be honest, I don’t know what to feel. Am I attracted to him? I think so. Yesterday, during the movie screening, his toe touched mine and I almost exploded. The real question is, do I like him?”

“I know you two share an unpleasant history, but even I can see that he’s fond of you,” Suzie said. “Are you… afraid he’ll hurt you again?”

I bit my lip. “Maybe. I can’t even think about that. My last relationship was messy, and I don’t want to put myself through something like that again.”

Suzie smiled at me. “Addy. You once told me to take a risk and follow my heart, remember? And look how that turned out. I have the most amazing husband I could’ve ever wished for.”

“I’m sure his yoga experience comes as a great plus in other areas as well,” I said with a giggle.

She grinned. “Can’t argue with that. But enough about me. We’ve only got an hour before Justin is picking you up. Do you still have that dress you bought for the Snow Ball two years ago?”

I went through the pile of clothes on my bed. “I do.”

“Why don’t you wear that one?”

I unzipped the garment bag. “I don’t know. It’s way too fancy. It’s even got tiny rhinestones and a sash. That’s not the kind of thing you’d wear for a helicopter flight.”

“Yeah, and also not for a lobster dinner.”

“Although, the bib you’re forcing me to take would cover most of it anyway,” I said with a laugh.

In the end, I settled for a knee-length dress with a lace overlay and paired it with a pair of blue pumps. It was a purely practical decision. Justin probably bought his suits at one of those fancy stores that had a strict no denim and sneakers policy.

Suzie and I exchanged our goodbyes after she insisted I shove a bib in my purse, and I walked toward the inn’s parking lot. Justin was leaning against his car, checking something on his phone.

He was dressed in brown leather shoes, suit pants with a dark belt, and a fitted shirt that probably cost more than I made in a month. The sunglasses on his face were too much to handle, though. They made my heart pound so fast I was afraid I might have a heart attack.

I coughed to make him aware of my presence and he looked up. He slid his shades down an inch or two, and a big smile made his eyes light up like fireworks on the fourth of July.

“Let’s go,” he said, pushing himself off his car and opening the door for me.

I slid into the leather seats, feeling a bit shaky.

Justin walked around the car to get in his own seat. He then gave me a small nod before directing his gaze to the rearview mirror and backing out of his parking space. “You look great.”

“You too,” I said.

Great was kind of an understatement. Scorching hot was more like it.

“Make yourself comfortable,” he said. “It’s going to be a while before we get there.”

“Oh?” I asked.

He grinned. “Unfortunately, Old Pine Cove doesn’t have a suit store yet. At least not the kind I usually shop at.”

We spent the hour-long ride to the suit store talking about mundane things, yet the tension between us was unmistakably there the entire time. Like when he put his hand on the gear shift and accidently brushed my leg. Or when I caught him looking at me for a beat too long and I had to snap him out of it before we hit a tree.

I told him about my love for animals, how a petting zoo helped lower people’s stress levels, and how I hoped the patch of land next to the inn would be mine soon.

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