Page 56 of Girls Will Be Girls
I continue with the class, ignoring him because he ignored me, and I’m feeling petty.
Lou crouches next to me, letting go of my arm as I move into the pose, one leg stretched out long behind me and the other angled into a fold in front. I look like a twisted sphinx.
“I’ll be out all day in the sticks.” His eyes dart to where I’m adjusting my hips and then back to me. “And I wanted to apologize.”
I scoff and fold down over myself, copying everyone else, but angle my head up at Lou. “Oh yeah?”
He rubs the back of his neck, looking chastised. “Yeah.” He says, defeated.
I take him in for a moment, and I notice that he looks tired. The same kind of sexy disheveled as the first time I saw him, but with more genuine exhaustion in his eyes. My pettiness and anger towards him wavers a tiny bit.
“Will you meet me later?” He asks gently.
I study his tired face. “Fine.”
“I’ll probably be late again. Can you meet me at the bar around eight?”
“Okay.”
“Thanks.” He squeezes my forearm.
He goes to leave before thinking of something and turning back to kneel in front of me as I’m moving to the other side of the pose, switching legs.
“I’m sorry for interrupting.” He says.
I adjust my hips again and feel him watching me. “Yet you’re still here.”
“Sorry.” A hint of a smile plays on his lips. “Also, you look really nice today.”
I glare at his flattery attempts, but it just makes his smile tick up more.
He squeezes my arm again. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Then he’s darting off down the road, clearly in a hurry to be somewhere, as if he spent any free time he had trying to find me.
I spend the rest of the day in ultra work mode. I’ve been drafting nonstop, and it feels good not to feel distracted or annoyed.
It sort of feels like I have the upper hand right now, which is good, but also makes me a little uncomfortable when I picture his sleepy, sad face, which is why at lunch I caved and relinquished just a smidge of power to him by finally texting him.
Louisa:
On a scale of one to date, how much of a date is this?
Lou (fiancé):
Well hey there, baby girl
Louisa:
Oh look at that…
Instant regret
“Lou (fiancé) heart reacted your message”
Lou (fiancé):
Tonight’s not a date
