Page 41 of Ruined Promises

“Woah, did a hurricane blow through here?” Hadley asks, standing in my doorway, leaning against the jamb. I glance over at her, giving her a death stare. She is dressed in black pants and a black top, her typical uniform, getting ready to head into the salon.

I plop on the bed and fall back onto a pile of clothes. “Ugh, yes, Hurricane Lexi—category five with mass casualties.” I place my arm over my eyes, groaning. Ben should be on his way here to pick me up for our official first date. Yep, it’s nine in the morning, and we are going on a date. Apparently, it’s an overnight date involving us going out of town, but that is all he will tell me. Hence I am tearing my room apart, trying to figure out what to pack.

I was more than happy to just go out to dinner like a normal couple, but I guess nothing about us is normal. He has been tight-lipped about it all week, so he can’t get mad when he shows up and finds my biggest suitcase filled to the brim with different options. In my defense, I have no clue if I need something comfy, something fancy, something casual. I have no idea.

Hadley strolls into the room and peeks into my bag, “Hmm, interesting.” I peep an eye out at her curiously.

“Do you know where he’s taking me?”

A mischievous smile forms on her lips. “Maybe,” she draws out.

“Hadley Eloise Kincaid, I swear to God, I will burn all your vibrators if you are holding out pertinent information on me.”

“Woah, woah, woah! You’re a monster!” She mockingly slaps her chest. “Remind me to lock my bedroom door before I leave, andno,I don’t know shit about your weekend… for the record.”

I sigh. “Sorry about the threat to your pussy posse.” Yes, that is what Hadley calls her collection of vibrators. They all have names, too.

“It’s okay.” She sits down beside me and wraps her arm around my shoulder, pulling me into a side hug. “I’ll forgive you this once.” How either of us is keeping a straight face during this conversation, I will never know. “But in all seriousness, I don’t have a clue as to where he’s taking you or what you are doing. Just relax and enjoy yourself—enjoyhim.” She nudges my side and winks dramatically.

“Oh my God, will you get out of here already?” I push her off the bed.

“You know I’m leaving because I need to get to work before Chad finds something else to bitch about. But just relax, okay?” She pinches my chin between two fingers and forces me to look at her. “Okay?”

I nod. “Yes, Mom.”

“Good. I’ll see you when you get back. Have fun.” She blows me a kiss as she exits my room. I hear the front door open followed Hadley talking to someone. “Lex, Ben’s here.”Shit!

The front door closes, followed by Ben’s heavy footsteps along the hardwood floor. I quickly try to scramble, throwing clothes into the suitcase.

“Hey, ba—holy shit,” he interrupts himself. “What happened in here?” He looks around the room at the complete disarray of my living space while running his hands over his perfectly chiseled jawline.

I try to play it cool. “Oh, you know, just packing for our big trip.” And that’s when I begin to word vomit, like full-blown how many words can I fit in one breath. “I’m sorry, I’m not ready. I know you said to be ready by nine, but I’ve been trying to pack for two hours now, and since you haven’t given me any sort of detail as to what I need to bring, I sort of panicked.” My shoulders deflate as I breathe heavily.

In two large strides, Ben is pulling me into his arms. He first presses a kiss to the top of my head, before stroking his hands down my hand to latch around my waist. After a short hug and my breathing evening out, he cups both my cheeks with his palms and presses a tender kiss to my lips. “Hey, it’s all right. I’m sure whatever you packed will be perfect. Do you want me to help at all?”

I pull out of his arms and wave him off. “You could help by giving me some sort of hint.”

Ben sits back on my bed, resting on one arm, his ankles crossed, hanging off the edge of my bed. “No can do, babe. It’s a surprise.”

“Ugh, fine.” I pout like a child. “I just have a few things left to throw in the bag, and then we can leave.”

Thirty minutes later, Ben is loading my bag next to his in the back of his BMW. I also notice the vast size difference between our bags, but whatever.

“First stop is coffee.” If I weren’t already falling for this man, those words would have done the trick. “I wasn’t sure what you would want this morning since I’ve noticed when you are at the office, you drink your coffee hot; however, when you come back from coffee shops, it’s always iced.”

I’m impressed by his findings. I definitely prefer iced coffee over hot, but whenever I add ice on my own, it always tastes different and waters down faster. I’m sure it’s really all psychological, but fuck it, that’s my theory, and I’m sticking to it.

“Iced is perfect.”

Ben pulls into the parking lot of a coffee shop just beyond the city limits. With a quick kiss to my lips, he says he will be right back. While I wait, I pull out my phone to see missed texts from Hadley, Brynn, and Cal.

Brynn:Have a great trip. Do you know where he’s taking you?

Hadley:Can you believe this bitch? This morning she threatened to burn the posse because she thought I was holding out on her.

Brynn:Oh, no! Not that! Anything but that!

Cal:What’s the posse?

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