A Twist of Date (9 page)

Staring up into his eyes, a feeling came over me, and I believed him. A sob escaped, my shoulders shook, and ten years of emotion came pouring out of me. “It happened with my mom. Why not you, too?”

“I’m sorry, beautiful.” He slipped his arms around me, pulled me tight against him, and held me. “Your mom’s crazy for leaving you. I’m not crazy.”

I buried my head in his shoulder, trying to catch my breath, and his spicy scent flooded through me. He tucked my hair behind my ear, then kissed the top of my head. His gentleness filled me with warmth. I tilted my face up toward his, leaned toward him, and our lips were a only breath away when he pulled back.

“What about The Boyfriend Bylaws?” he said.

A small laugh escaped. “How do you know about that?”

“Erica filled me in.” He ran his hands along my arms, then his fingertips skimmed my neck, sending chills throughout my body. Then, he slid his thumbs over both of my cheeks, wiping them dry. “She warned me that if I kissed you without permission from your roommate, you’d lose your car.”

Betty. On my tiptoes, I rested my chin on his shoulder, and stared down at what had been my shiny blue security blanket. I loved Betty, but I needed to start making my own decisions. I could call Patti, try to get permission, but I needed to break free of her rules. She’d hold me to our deal, though, and I was okay with that.

Tearing my eyes from Betty, I gazed up at Matt, then tilted my mouth toward his. “Her rules were good, but I don’t need them anymore.”

He pressed his finger against my lips. “I don’t want you to lose your car.”

It hurt to lose Betty, but it couldn’t end any other way. “It’s okay.”

“Not with me,” he said, then fumbled with something in his back pocket. He pulled out his cell phone, ran a finger across the screen, then showed me the display. “I texted Patti and got permission.”

The bright screen lit up between us, and there was a text from Patti’s cell phone number:

Mel lights up every time she talks about you, Matt. If she’s willing to take a chance with you, then our girl has finally made the right choice. Permission granted.

Touched beyond belief, I smiled, then threw my arms around him. “You clever guy.”

The corners of his mouth turned upward. “Anything to make you smile.”

“Then kiss me.” With my hand on the back of his neck, I brought him closer, then whispered. “We’ve waited long enough.”

We moved toward each other at the same time until our lips finally met. His mouth felt strong and warm against mine, sending tingles throughout my body. Then I ran my teeth along his bottom lip and pulled it into my mouth, wanting to taste every bit of him.

He parted my lips, and I melted against him. Then I gasped as our kiss deepened and he tasted me slowly, as if to savor every moment. As if this was what he’d been waiting for—and he had, we both had.

When the bubble around my heart faded, I knew our word of the day was love.

Chapter Ten

I got home at midnight to find Patti on the living room sofa, watching a movie.

Patti reached for the remote and hit pause. “So?”

Leaning back against the door to close it, I was still floating from Matt’s kisses. “How did you know?”

Her mouth twitched. “Know what?”

Forcing my legs to move, I came into the living room and sat on the couch next to her. “How did you know he was for me?”

Patti gave me a satisfied look. “I’ve known you since you were eleven, Mel. You think I couldn’t tell how you felt about him? You avoided him like crazy by dating any other available man?”

I gave her a huge hug. “Thanks, Patti. For being my friend and for The Boyfriend Bylaws.”

She hugged me back. “What can I say? Sometimes a friend’s just got to step in. After all, friends don’t let friends date badly.”

I pulled back and raised an eyebrow at her. “Oh, good. That means I get to work on you next.”

****

Patti and I talked until well past midnight. She’d heard of a job opening at a local private school, and I was so ready to apply. I’d earned my Bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, and it was about time I put it to good use. If I missed it, I could still teach aerobics on the side.

Even though it was almost one in the morning and two hours later for my mom in Colorado, I dialed her number.

She picked up the phone on the second ring. “Hello?”

“Hi, Mom. It’s Melanie.” I hesitated, wanting to tell her so much about my life, but one thing most of all. “I’ve met someone, Mom. I’ve met The One.”

“Oh, darling.” Her voice filled with emotion.

I knew in that instant it would be okay. That I was ready to listen to her now, accept that she wasn’t perfect, that she’d made mistakes, and that I could learn to forgive her.

“I’m going to put on a pot of coffee so you can tell me all about him,” she said.

And I did.

THE END

If you enjoyed spending time

with these characters,

be sure to read Kaitlin’s story in:

License to Date

(Better Date than Never series, Book #6)

(Coming - October 1, 2013!)

Dedication

This story is dedicated to my readers. Thank you for following The Better Date Than Never Series, for all your lovely reviews, and for supporting me in the career that I love. You guys rock.

Other books by Susan Hatler:

Love at First Date (Better Date than Never series, Book #1)

Ellen may not believe in storybook love, but it’s about to rewrite her life . . .

Ellen’s figured out that finding the right guy is all about compatibility. That’s why she signs up for Detailed Dating—the local online dating scene in Sacramento. They ask men the hard questions, compare their answers with hers, then she filters through the profiles of each provided “match.” After numerous email exchanges, she narrows it down to two promising candidates she’s excited to meet in person.

When Ellen’s best friend asks her for a favor, dog-sitting leads to disaster and Ellen ends up at the local vet where she meets a man she can’t get out of her mind. Henry isn’t a logical choice, but she finds herself paying for dog obedience class to spend more time with him.

Ellen knows that in order to have a lasting relationship, she should take the safe route and go for one of the pre-screened guys. But, how can she think with her head when her heart keeps begging her to give Henry a chance?

Truth or Date (Better Date than Never series, Book #2)

Truth or Dare is all fun and games until a playful dare has Gina falling for the office playboy.

Gina Hall is done with men who won’t commit. Ten years waiting for her ex to propose wasted her time. Never again. When her friend Kristen starts a game of Truth or Dare, she dares Gina to go on a date with Ethan, who’s amazing and total marriage material.

As Gina plans the going away party for office playboy Chris Bradley, she spontaneously initiates a game of Truth or Dare with him. When his turn comes around, he dares Gina to pose as his girlfriend to help get a flirty colleague off his back. Gina finds playing couple with Chris way too much fun.

Even though Gina and Chris are pretending, their relationship begins to feel painfully real. Fearing she might be falling for another fly-by man, Gina must focus on Ethan so she doesn’t make the same dating mistakes all over again.

My Last Blind Date (Better Date than Never series, Book #3)

Should Rachel risk another dating disaster by trying yet again for love?

It’s Valentine’s Day and Rachel Price has a choice: Stay home and watch TV with her loveable doggy or let her best friend, Ellen, set her up on a blind date. What to do….

Ellen says the guy is a “10,” but the last guy she set her up with was a “–5.” Rachel’s been flirting with coworker Noah Peterson and she’s hoping he’s noticed. Then, she finds out Noah has
big plans
. Even worse, he advises Rachel to go on the blind date!

Should she play it safe and spend the Hallmark holiday with her loyal pooch, Chester, or risk another dating disaster by trying yet again for love?

Save the Date (Better Date than Never series, Book #4)

Kristen swears off men, but temptation swoops in when her sexy friend Ethan starts flirting with her.

Kristen knows men hide things. Case in point, her last boyfriend turned out to be married. Just like anyone else, Kristen is devastated. However, since Kristen evaluates people for a living, her ex’s duplicity has her searching for a new career as well as swearing off men.

Touring history museums with her sexy friend Ethan doesn’t count, because he has a girlfriend, and has only shown friendly interest in Kristen. He even helps with her career counseling tasks. Although Kristen has a secret crush on Ethan, spending time with him is safe. Until she discovers he’s actually single. Gasp. And now he’s flirting with her, too.

Suddenly, Ethan is way too dangerous. Not to mention tempting. Sure, he seems like sixty shades of perfect, but how’s a girl with bad judgment supposed to detect what skeletons he has in his closet?

An Unexpected Date

Holly may be living in her dream location, but is her little resort town too small to attract the right man?

Holly loves living in her cozy mountain town and all the surrounding beauty soothes her soul. She treasures beading jewelry for her own small business while watching nature and its amazing creatures outside her window. But, her mom begs her to move back to the city so she can find a man to marry. Holly doesn’t want to give up on her dreams, but does that mean she’ll have to give up on love?

Shaken

In high school, it’s tough enough reading Steinbeck and Shakespeare…
now
Kylie has to read minds.

High school junior, Kylie Bates, can suddenly read minds. When she touches people’s hands, she’s able to see their deepest thoughts. As if that’s not freaky enough, her dad sends her to help hottie detective, Sam Williams, track down a missing girl. Way too much pressure, especially for a girl who can’t watch
Scream
without getting nightmares.

Then, finding the missing girl leads to much more than Kylie’s prepared for. Like discovering that her dad has been lying to her. That she has a family she never knew about. That the girls have powers similar to hers. Oh yeah, and that someone is out to get her.

When the detective’s teenage wanna-be-cop cousin, Trip Williams, approaches Kylie at school insisting she help him solve the case, she discovers Trip might be the only one she can trust, and the only one to help her unravel the secrets behind her mysterious gift.

If you enjoy Susan Hatler’s books, you’ll also love Veronica Blade:

From Fame to Shame

W
hen good-girl Maddie switches places with her famous bad-girl twin Jackie, she has some pretty high stilettos to fill.

Despite the danger of tabloid drama if their identity swap is discovered, Maddie has to save her sister's butt. When Jackie’s ex-boyfriend shows up with a rekindled spark for “Jackie,” his deep gray eyes and sweet kisses make Maddie's heart thumpety thump. But dating the guy who dumped her sister is a no-no. Too bad Dallas isn’t used to girls saying no. What will happen when he discovers Maddie’s deception?