Page 20 of The Forever Formula
“See you tonight?” I asked.
“Yeah, see you tonight.”
• • •
“Where have you been?” Austen asked me when I got back.
“At Rachel’s place,” I was relieved to report. At least that should earn me a little more time.
The look of relief on my brother’s face made me feel a little guilty. “Oh, good. Did you talk to her about selling?”
“No. But I invited her and her friend to the festival.”
“Her friend?” he asked. Admittedly, the idea that a new person was in town was enough to make any guy around here curious.
“Her name is Megan. She’ s pretty. I don’t know anything else about her. Does that answer all your questions?”
Austen fixed a sly grin on his face. “Just stop me when I get there.”
“You’re sick.” I slapped his hands down. “This is why I get more girls than you.”
He scoffed. “You do not,” he said, then brightened. “So, at this festival, I distract the friend while you butter up Rachel, is that the plan?”
I wanted to shake my head at him, but I couldn’t. The reality was, if he thought I wasn’t going to help the effort, he’d do it himself. And if I could protect Rachel from that while she grieved, then that’s what I’d do.
“Or we could just have fun and not have an ulterior motive,” I said in an effort to ensure that he didn’t hound me all night.
“Okay ...” Austen looked confused by this.
“You catch more flies with honey, right?” I said, reminding him of the old saying Grandma Dottie taught us.
Austen furrowed his brow. “I guess so,” he said slowly. “You sure that’s all this is?”
Sometimes I underestimated Austen. He was smarter than I gave him credit for.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I snapped, perhaps a little too defensively.
“Just get it done,” Austen growled, clearly losing patience. He turned and stomped out of the house.
Dottie’s chihuahua trotted over, and I scratched her behind her ears. “You believe in me, don’t you, girl? Come on, let’s go get ready.”
I knew I shouldn’t be thinking of this as a date. After all, Rachel wasn’t going with me. She was just going to the same location with her friend. But the stupid caveman part of my brain had me doing exactly what I knew I shouldn’t.
For instance, I pulled out a new pair of boots I bought yesterday when I realized First Friday was coming up. And I might have a new shirt too.
I could only imagine the shit Austen was going to give me about this. He’d either think it was part of my master plan, or he’d know I had my eye on Rachel.
But I still maintain that neither was true. Right?
Yeah, that was sounding weaker and weaker by the minute.
At least Austen wouldn’t know I’d done some manscaping. He’d never let me live that down. Not that I thought anything was going to happen in that department.
So, why I had done it, I wasn’t sure.
But couldn’t a man make himself feel good by sprucing up a bit from time to time? It made me evolved, if anything.
There was no sixteen-year-old inside me begging to finish what we’d started so long ago. Definitely not.
