Page 110 of Red Queen (Red Thorns Crew 3)

35

Max

My leg bounced as I sat on the couch. How much time did Dani need to get ready for this damn thing, anyway? Jeans and a T-shirt with my jacket. That’s what she said would be appropriate enough for this. “Just wear whatever you want,” she’d said.

But now I wondered if I was too dressed down.

“Nervous?” John asked.

I stopped bouncing my leg. “Fuck off.”

He chuckled. “Hey, I’d be nervous if I were meeting the parents of the girl I corrupted, too.”

I glared at him. “She’s hardly a girl. You know that much.”

“Out of everything I said, that’s what you took away?”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek to keep from firing back. Because John’s words were only confirming the one thing I feared this entire time. That, without my influence, Dani wouldn't be in this situation. No matter how much she boasted that this was for her and no matter how much she told me this is what she wanted, I still wasn’t sure.

Would Dani have chosen this path had it not been for me?

“He still nervous?” Rupert asked.

I heard his lips smacking away on a sandwich as I slowly lifted my eyes.

“You’d be nervous, too, if you were in my shoes.”

He barked with laughter. “Damn right I’d be. That girl was practically--”

John nudged him in his ribs and Rupert grunted. He swallowed his sandwich before casting John his own glare, and I pulled my eyes away from them. I peeked down the hallway. I really needed Dani to hurry up. We were thirty minutes away from this hotel and we needed to leave five minutes ago.

“Gorgeous! I’m sure you look fine! We have to get out of here!”

I heard a door open. “Three more minutes! Just got to get my lipstick on.”

I furrowed my brow. “Lipstick?”

Rupert chuckled. “Oh, you’re gonna be greatly underdressed.”

I stood from the couch as my voice dropped. “Will it be ready for her when we get back tonight? Or do you need more time?”

Rupert nodded. “I’ve already seen it. It’s perfect, Max. She’s going to love it.”

John came over and clapped my shoulder. “She deserves this, and so do you.”

Rupert took another bite of his food. “All you have to do is be yourself.”

John pointed at me. “But if you want to channel anyone in this situation, I suggest--”

Dani’s voice pierced our conversation. “All right. I’m ready. I just need to find my purse. Have you seen it anywhere?”

I saw John’s jaw drop open as Rupert’s eyes widened. And when I turned around, my heart stopped in my chest. My God, Dani looked incredible. Like the perfect specimen of an angel that had dropped from heaven just to save me. My eyes roamed her body as I pulled away from John’s grasp. The floral-printed dress she wore accented the sunkissed glow of her skin, hitting her just above her knees. The heeled boots she had on made me salivate. Her curves were accented by a bow tied behind her back. She had her hair pulled back into a half-ponytail, making her eyes sparkle as her ruby red lips curled into a grin.

She knew exactly what she was doing to me.

And it only confirmed that I was making the right decision.

“You look amazing, gorgeous.”

---