“Your smile. Your eyes. I’ve always thought she was stunning. You’re definitely Vanessa’s twin in the most stylish glasses I’ve ever seen. Well, your hair is shorter and lighter, but the face is identical.”
“You are stunning,” Shep says, bringing my attention back to him along with a second round of blushing.
“She said Vanessa is stunning.”
“She said you look like her. And I said you are stunning.”
“Well …” My palpable nerves make my voice shake. “You’re my friend, so you have to say nice things to me.”
“I’m your friend…” he lathers Cersei “…so I’m honest with you.”
“You’ve known me two weeks. We’re still in the polite stage of our friendship.” I narrow my eyes at him, but I can’t entirely hide my grin.
He turns on the water again and begins to rinse Cersei. “I’m not that polite.” With a flick of his wrist, he sprays water all over the front of my shirt.
My white shirt.
My thin white bra.
I might as well not have a shirt or bra on. He can see everything.
“Shep!” I jump back, jaw unhinged. At first, I pull the material away from my breasts, but it’s not helping. I’m too wet. My shirt is too wet. So I cover my arms over my chest.
“Oops. My bad.” He redirects his gaze to Cersei, but his grin doesn’t budge.
I glance around and find a restroom just past the coolers, scurrying to it and locking the door behind me. “You shit, Shep,” I mumble, inspecting the two dark circles in the mirror, nipples popped out like cherries atop cupcakes. Grabbing a wad of paper towels, I scrub the wet cotton with frantic circular motions, cursing Shep under my breath. It does nothing but break down the paper towels and smear pieces of it along my shirt. Why don’t they have an eco-friendly air dryer?
“Sophie?” Shep knocks on the door.
“We are no longer friends!”
“Bullshit. Open the door. I have a dry shirt for you.”
I crack open the door.
“Let me in.”
I shake my head. “Give me the shirt.”
“I will, after you let me in.”
“I’m not letting you in. Where’s Cersei?”
“Marta is drying her, and she’s going to clip her nails for you too. No extra charge.”
I blink a few times. No extra charge. Does he think he’s winning? Does he think a free nail clipping makes up for this?
“Jesus … you’re going to get fired. And honestly, you deserve it at this point. I’d fire your ass for spraying down a customer. I hope the nail clipping comes out of your paycheck.”
“It will come out of my paycheck. Now let me in.” He pushes the door open despite my resistance. As he shuts it behind him, I snag two more handfuls of paper towels and cover my breasts.
“Give me the shirt.”
He hands it to me.
I hold the paper towels against my chest with one arm and snatch the shirt from him with my other hand. “Now get out.”
“My buddy, who was supposed to golf with me Friday afternoon, had to cancel. You should come with me.”
“I have to work.”
“That’s a lame excuse.”
“Says the guy with a job he doesn’t take seriously.”
“Reschedule your patients.” He slips his hands in his back pockets.
“Sorry, Mom, I can’t reschedule patients on a whim because your cat died.” I go with a ridiculous clown grin.
“I’m playing at a course in Sedona. My parents’ place is empty because they’re in Colorado visiting my aunt and uncle. Take the whole day off on Friday. We’ll come back Sunday evening.”
I chuckle. “No. We’re friends.” Glancing down at my drenched shirt, I frown. “Just barely friends. But friends who don’t have weekend getaways. And again, I have patients Friday who have been on my schedule for months. Also, we met two weeks ago. This is not only not happening; it’s ridiculous that you’d even suggest it.”
“What are you waiting for? You’re a grownup. You have the means. You’re your own boss. Don’t wait for your hair to turn gray and your joints to stiffen before playing golf and sipping cold drinks with friends.”
I shake my head slowly.
He takes a step closer. I retreat a step, my butt hitting the pedestal sink.
“There are four bedrooms and a sofa sleeper. We don’t even have to sleep on the same level. All the doors have locks, so I won’t have to worry about you sneaking into my bedroom at night.”
It’s impossible to keep from giving him an eye roll.
“Say yes, Sophie. Be old as fuck with me without actually being old as fuck.”
On an unavoidable laugh, I nod. As cautious as I need to be because my impulsive decisions have led to my current situation at home, at my core, I like spontaneity.
I also like Shep’s outlook on life, even if he’s on the verge of losing his job. “Fine. Now get out of here so I can change my shirt.”