Me: Yep.
Presley: Where?
Me: Your choice? We could eat at your place or head to the park around the corner.
Presley: My place? Where are you?
Here goes nothing. Please don’t let her think I’m a stalker.
Me: In your parking lot.
The door to her apartment flies open, and she’s standing there with her phone in her hand. I suck in a deep breath at the sight. She’s wearing tight, short shorts and a skimpy tank top. Her hair’s piled on top of her head in a mess of tangles. She’s staring at me with her mouth hanging open and bright, wide eyes.
I step out of the car and raise the bag of food I brought with me. She waves at me to come up.
Thank God.
“Hi,” she says lightly when I get to her side.
“Hi.”
“What are you doing here?”
“Hopefully, surprising you with lunch.”
“I’m definitely surprised.”
“Would you like to eat here, or go someplace else?”
She bites down on her lip and glances behind her with a worried expression. “Umm, we can eat here, but it’s a wreck. We made forts last night and watched a movie. I didn’t have time to clean up yet.”
“I think I can handle a few blankets and pillows strewn about.”
“Well, it’s a little more than that. We may also have attempted to build a castle,” she explains nervously.
“Presley, if you don’t want me in your home, I completely understand. This was a lame attempt to see you again.”
Her nervousness eases, and she gives me a sweet smile. “It wasn’t lame. It was sweet, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” She reaches for my free hand and tugs me inside.
I groan at the sight in front of me. What I assume is her living room is an absolute disaster. Blankets, pillows, towels, and clothes cover every inch of the space. “Is that a rug hanging from your ceiling fan?”
“Yes! Little runt insisted we needed a flag for our tower.”
“Oh, God. This is a wreck.”
“I know. I’m so embarrassed.” She lets go of my hand and steps away.
I swing my head to her and jerk her back. “No, babe, don’t be embarrassed. I meant this is a terrible fort and castle. We need to move things around and use the right space to have a castle appropriate for a princess. And you don’t need half of this stuff. We can make it with a portion of these items.”
“What?”
“I’m an excellent fort slash castle maker. Maybe one day I can show you.”
She looks at me blankly then gives me a blinding smile. “You like to build forts?”
“Oh yeah, who doesn’t?”
“We’d love to have your assistance. Then maybe it won’t take two days to clean this up.”