Page 35 of True Honey
“Only because it’s making you uncomfortable,” he said, still rooted in place. “Not because you don’t look amazing.”
“It’s too silver and there’s not enough of it,” I said, looking down at the way it wrapped around my stomach and clung weirdly in all the most exposing spots. “I feel like a busted-up can of sardines.”
I wasn’t used to being on such a display. I used bigger sizes to hide the body that I couldn’t stand to look at anymore and now every single rigid curve of it was on display.
Silas chuckled.
“It’s not funny,” I said quietly and his smile dropped. He swiveled, looking at the piles of clothing he had laid on the love seat and started to shuffle things out of it. “What are you doing?”
“Removing anything silver or designed for someone half your age,” he said, concentrating on the clothing inside of me. “What about this one?” He asked, holding up a dark blouse with cap sleeves and pretty shiny detailing around the collar.
“Yeah,” I said, reaching out for it. His fingers brushed against mine as I took it and I could feel his eyes on my back as I retreated to the fitting room.
“For what it’s worth, you’d put all the other tin cans to shame in that,” he said as I closed the curtain.
I laughed under my breath as I slipped from the ugly tank top.
“I heard that laugh,” he said, his voice muffled behind the curtain.
The new shirt fit better and covered more areas of my chest that I was uncomfortable with, so did all of the other shirts he continued to hand me. Eventually we weeded out anything that I didn’t feel comfortable in and even found a few pieces that I genuinely liked including a few dresses that Silas insisted upon for the fancier events.
Once he’d set up the delivery he ushered me from the store, getting me something to eat quickly before promising to have me home to August by the time school was out.
He helped me with my helmet again, staring at me with a soft expression that didn’t leave space for me to feel anything but seen. “You did really well today,” he said with a smile before he shut the visor on his own helmet and climbed onto the bike.
I glanced at the ring again and nodded. Maybe I could pull this off. For August.
And maybe even for myself.
SHORE
Ifelt strangled by my own tie as I opened Drew’s door and helped her out. Arlo had given me the mustang for the evening so that I didn’t have to put her on the back of the bike in dress clothes. I didn’t really see an issue with it, I rode the bike in a suit all the time…
Don’t make her ride that bike in nice clothes, Silas.He’d warned me that if I so much as started the engine, he’d know, and then gave me the hundredth rendition of the Arlo King Mustang Monologue.
Drew looked up at the house, her green eyes wide with what could have been mistaken for wonder but was definitely terror. Her hair was pulled into a soft bun, a touch of makeup making her lashes impossibly long.The new clothes she had picked out had been delivered at the end of the week and she had picked a simple long sleeve black dress that hugged to her hips in the most distracting way.
I was going to tell her how wonderful she looked but Dean’s Jeep rumbled over the gravel in the driveway and stole the sound from my lips. Josh climbed out of the passenger side in a sweater and his hair brushed back neatly off his face.He looked like he wanted to puke.
That made two of us.
Dean blazed over in a blue dress shirt barely containing his shoulders, his goofy grin as loud as his arrival.
“We haven’t been properly introduced, I’m Dean,” he said to Drew, knocking her from her trance. She smiled at him politely and shook his hand.
“Drew,” she said.
Josh looked us both over before introducing himself and extending his hand to her. “I didn’t know you were bringing anyone to dinner,” he said, his eyes drifting down to the ring on Drew’s hand. She’d taken it off the second we’d returned to Harbor, putting it away in a safe space until she was forced to wear it again.
“Didn’t he say family only?” Josh questioned.
“You brought Dean,” I said, quickly defending myself.
Josh’s jaw ticked, his eyes darkening; he didn’t have to say a word. He was violently protective of the safe space he had created and willing to ruin tonight early over it.
I didn’t want to lie to him, not after all we had been through to get to a place where I could be honest but I also didn’t expect him to liefor me.
“Okay, tough guy, grill him later,” Dean said to Josh, his eyes trailing up to the living room window. My grandfather was standing in the window with a drink in hand and a scowl on his face. “I don’t remember Seymour being so scary,” was the last thing he said as the four of us climbed the stairs into the house.
