She clicks her tongue. “You still didn’t tell me what happened on y’all’s date.”
I bite my lip. To me, it’s private. I don’t know if I want to tell her, but I will. “It was perfection.”
Her eyes dance with excitement. “Yeah?”
“Yeah, we went out to your parents’ pergola—”
She sighs audibly. “Wow, he pulled out the big guns.”
I grin. “He did, and he had blankets and pillows, a beautiful lunch—”
“Pillows and blankets?” she asks, sitting up and looking down at me. “For lying down?”
My face burns. “Well, yes, we did lie down.”
“Did you do more than lie there?” she asks, her voice dropping.
“No,” I say softly, giving her a serious look.
She nods. “I didn’t think so.”
“But I told him,” I confess.
Her eyes widen. “You did?” When I nod, she leans into me. “What did he say?”
“That we’ll go at my speed. He just wants to be with me.”
Her lips quirk. “I told you he’d be good for you.”
I nod. “Too good.”
She smacks my thigh. “I’m happy for you, and I love that grin on your face.”
My cheeks deepen with color as she lies back, cuddling with our pillow. I lift my phone again, and I see he has sent a few texts.
Ryan: Are you not answering?
Ryan: How rude.
Ryan: If you don’t want to see me, just say so.
Ryan: But we both know I don’t care. I’ll find you, Sofia Castilleja, and I will make you like it!
Ryan: Okay, that sounded really creepy and stalkerish. That isn’t me. You know that, right?
Ryan: I suck.
I giggle to myself, and my lips curve into a big grin when he sends me a picture of himself with his lip pouting out. The text over the photo says, “Not a Stalker.” He’s not wearing a shirt, so he must still be in the locker room. I see his hockey equipment hanging above him. His hair is a tousled mess, and he’s glasses-free. He hasn’t shaved. His face is covered with a shadow of hair, but it’s the dimples that have me completely sprung.
As I text him back, my face hurts from smiling.
Me: Sorry, Amelia was talking to me. We get in at ten.
Ryan: LOL, I’m pathetic.
Me: Why?
Ryan: I was worried I really scared you away.
Ryan: Crossed the line. Man, maybe I am a dork.
Me: You are.
I snort as I wait for him to answer me.
Ryan: Please, don’t worry about my ego.
Me: It’s fine. Steady and strong.
Ryan: It is. I could really say something sexual there.
Her heart kicks up in speed.
Me: Really?
Ryan: Yeah.
Me: What?