Love Resisted (The Real Love Series) (11 page)

“Maybe you should just wear some slip-on shoes?” she asked.

“I can’t. I feel a little clumsy in them and seem to focus too much on my feet then. These are better, more secure. Only issue is I can’t bend over to put them on.” Gillian shook her head and watched Allie work the buckle as she rubbed her big belly.

Once she was done, Allie leaned in and kissed Gillian’s belly. “And how is the little lady bug doing this morning?”

“She had the hiccups a few minutes ago, but seems to be quiet at the moment.”

“So, to what do I owe the stellar wakeup call I got this morning? Did you know that your son decided to bomb me with mini donuts to wake me up?”

“Oh my God, no he did not!” Gillian said in a voice that was thick with a fake tone, implying she was appalled. Though she covered her mouth and tried to not laugh.

“Go ahead, laugh. He wasn’t laughing when I got back at him. It was hilarious to watch both Jake and Jonathan try to get away from me.” Allie snorted a laugh as she recalled it. “Anyway, what am I doing here? It’s my day off.”

“Oh, stop with the grumbling. It may be your day off, but we both know you weren’t going to be laying around,” Gillian said as she used Allie’s shoulder for leverage to get up off the bed. She made her way to the bathroom as she said, “We have nail appointments and clothes to shop for.”

Rolling her eyes, Allie tried to come up with a reason to get out of it all. Not that she didn’t love the idea of some pampering and retail therapy, because she could tolerate
that. It was the reason Gillian was doing it—her date. Coming up empty on any solid reason or excuse, she went with whining, “Really Gilly? Why do I even have to bother? It’s only one date, and I will not be going out with him again. Why do I have to try and impress him?”

Gillian wasn’t having it. She stepped out of the bathroom, toothbrush hanging from her mouth as she scolded her, “Don’t you even try and pull that crap with me, Allie Baxter.” She went back in and must have spit out the toothpaste because her next words lacked the mouthful of spit it previously had. “I recall a certain pain in my ass friend making me go out on a date, using words like, ‘It’s time for you to move on … be happy.’ Any of that ring a bell?”

Well crap, she had her on that one. Damn Gillian and her good memory
! “Okay, okay. I said I’d go, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to be happy about it,” she grumbled at her friend who waddled over and gave Allie a shove on the shoulder.

“You will too have fun. Just relax and have a good time. Letting someone in doesn’t mean you have to forget other people.”

Looking up at her best friend, she said, “You really are a pain in my ass, Gillian.”

Gillian smiled big and said, “I know, I learned from the best. Now let’s go, you drive.” Knowing she wouldn’t be getting out of this, especially after the dressing down she got last night, she followed after a waddling Gillian for a
day of preparations. Even if she told herself it wasn’t necessary. Even if she claimed she wasn’t remotely excited about it. Even if she was certain nothing would come from this. She still had to crush down those butterflies that kept trying to surface—the ones you got when you were excited and full of anticipation for something. Keeping them under control was her main focus at the moment, because as soon as she acknowledged them, she knew her resistance would be in jeopardy. And something told her that Mike Lawson was the man determined to make that happen.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

MIKE anxiously paced the first floor of his condo as he waited for the clock to countdown the final ten minutes. He texted Allie earlier to let her know he’d pick her up at six o’clock, and she should dress casually. His sister advised him that a woman always needed to know this information since it helped them decide what to wear. Mike could care less what she was wearing, so long as she was there. Brown paper bag, burlap sack, anything or nothing—it was all fine with him.

Based on their destination for the evening, he had chosen a pair of jeans and short sleeve button down shirt. Of course, the outfit was Paige-approved. You’d think he hadn’t been on a date in the past eight years, but he just couldn’t shake his nerves about this
one. It had to work out—that was all there was to it. A glance at his phone told him he had only five minutes left. He quickly calculated how long the walk next door would take him as he tried to decide when to leave.

Feeling like he was about to lose his mind, he said, “Oh, to hell with it.” He picked up his gift for Allie, not caring if he was early. Locking the door behind him, he bounced down the steps and discovered it only took thirty seconds to arrive on her doorstep. Taking her steps two at a time, he stopped at the top and took a deep breath, as he gave himself one last look over. He ran his hand down his shirt to smooth out any wrinkles that might have occurred since
leaving his place … in the last twenty seconds. One more adjustment to the bow on her gift, and he figured he was ready.

After three quick knocks on her door, Mike dropped his hand back to his side and waited. And waited some more. Should he knock again? He lifted his hand to do just that, but she opened the door. Slowly.

“Hi Mike,” Allie said in that soft, shy voice of hers. Since it was dark inside her place and bright outside, he really couldn’t see her until she stepped forward to open the screen door for him, and he got his first glimpse. His body tightened at the vision of Allie—so tiny, fierce, snarky—wearing a black cotton summer-type dress. There was no neckline to it since it started out in a V at her cleavage and moved up and outward toward the curve of her shoulders. It left everything from her hairline, down her neck, and across her collarbones exposed—showing him all that soft, smooth skin.

Her hair was down, and she had one side draped forward over her shoulder, and her streak of purple flowed down the full length of her hair. It made him smile. Such a simple accent of color showed what personality this little firecracker possessed.

Realizing he had yet to respond, he cleared his throat and managed to get out, “Hi yourself.” He was happy he didn’t sound as choked up as he felt, so he continued, “This is for you.”

Extending his arm, he held out her gift, and prayed to God his sister hadn’t strayed him wrong with her suggestion. When Allie smiled and giggled in response, he decided Paige was going to be getting some flowers from him tomorrow. Allie reached out to take the vase he was offering. With a look of awe on her face, she asked, “You brought me a vase full of Starburst?”

“I heard you weren’t a huge fan of cliché, so I went with this. I was told they’re one of your favorites,” Mike said with a shrug, feeling a little self-conscious all of a sudden.

That was, until she pulled it against her body, looked down at it, and said, “They’re my absolute favorite.” She stuck her nose to the top of the vase and smelled them. Before tonight, he would’ve thought that was weird, but they were very fragrant—for candy. When she picked her head back up, she had a look of complete gratitude and said, “Thanks. That was very sweet of you.”

“I’m glad you like them.”

After a few moments of awkward silence, she turned to the side and set the vase down on a nearby table. Her turning afforded him a view of the back of her dress. And what a view it was. The front curved over her shoulders at the edge and then spread from a thick strap into many smaller strips of material. These smaller ones fanned out across her back and weaved in with the ones from the opposite side, making a grid across her entire back, ending at her waist. This pattern gave him dozens of little
glimpses of exposed skin, each no bigger than a nickel. But right now, he really loved the size of nickels.

A quick glance down the length of the dress showed that it flowed and moved with her and ended just at her knees. Her feet sported a simple pair of black sandals, and when she turned back toward him, he noticed the purple polish on her toes. He thought that if he’d seen that on any other woman, it wouldn’t be attractive to him, but on Allie, it was expected and very flattering.

ALLIE watched as Mike’s eyes traveled up her body, and she shivered just a tiny bit from the power of his gaze. When their eyes met, he smiled big and said, “I never thought purple could look good on toes.”

She was pretty sure she was blushing, but she couldn’t help it; the man knew what to say to bring these reactions out in her. The fact that he would notice a tiny detail, such as what color her toes were painted, stirred something inside her. He was charming. And since she had decided that she’d be holding back her inner bitch tonight, she let out her charm, too. Throwing a smirk his direction, she said, “You see, now that’s how you compliment a lady, Mike. Well done.”

“Ah, well you see, I was told I needed lessons. The internet can be quite resourceful,” he said, then winked, upping his charm factor. Strangely, his wink was even sexier when she wasn’t trying desperately to fight things. If she was only going to let this happen for tonight, then she was going to enjoy it. She would take it all in and be that woman who enjoyed the attention of a man. But tomorrow, it was back to resisting. She shook off the disappointment she felt when she thought that, grabbed her purse, and said, “Shall we go?”

“Absolutely,” Mike said as he moved to hold the screen door open for her, waiting for her to exit. Once outside, he made his way down the steps as she locked her door. Meeting him at the bottom step, he mimicked the move his son did just last week, and extended his elbow with a smile. Placing her hand against his arm, she let him lead her toward the parking lot.

He opened the truck door, and the step lowered for her. Smiling, she shook her head as the thought of him installing that for her crossed her mind. With his helping hand, and the step, she climbed into the oversized truck. Closing the door behind her, she took a moment to settle herself before he got in the truck. Trying not to be bitchy with Mike required more effort than she thought it would. This was new territory for her since there hadn’t been another man that tried her patience like he did. But focusing on why Mike was different, might give her an answer she wasn’t ready for, so avoidance was the best solution for now.

Mike jumped up into the truck and gave her a sideway glance and asked, “All set?”

Allie nodded at him and off they went. After a few miles of silence she said, “I’ve never received a vase full of candy before, let alone Starburst. How on Earth did you know they were my favorite?”

Mike opened his mouth to answer when she continued, “Never mind, that was a stupid question. I’m sure you found out from Gillian.”

“Actually …” he said, but when he didn’t finish, she looked over at him. As he pulled into a parking lot, he had a grin on his face that she couldn’t decipher. Torn between wanting to know what that grin meant and how he knew about her love of Starburst, she waited. When he parked, he looked over at her and said, “Actually, I found out from you.”

“Me?” she asked with confusion.

He let out a small laugh and nodded his head, “Yeah, from you. About two months ago, I had a client of mine give me some chocolates. I ran into you coming from your car and offered you some. You said, ‘No thanks, not really into chocolate. Now if those were Starburst, it’d be a whole different game.’ And then you kept on walking. Do you remember?”

A little shocked, she said, “I do now, but I’m surprised that
you’d
remember.”

Pulling the keys from the ignition, he silently jumped out of the truck and made his way to her door. She opened it and took his hand to get out. Once
on the ground, she was caught between his body and the truck. This was apparently a common position for them. Glancing up at him, he gave her a sweet smile and said, “I’ve got a pretty good memory, Allie. But I remember because I listen to you.”

“Oh,” she barely muttered, because there really was no response for that. He remembered a random conversation where she was most likely a bitch to him as she refused his polite offer for chocolate. She inwardly groaned. Hoping he
didn’t
remember everything she said. Or at least,
how
she said it. He must not, though, since he still wanted to go out on a date with her.

A smug expression crossed his face, and she couldn’t help but shake her head at him. He obviously enjoyed the fact that he reduced her to one-word answers. That might’ve been his plan when he took her hand, still in his from helping her from the truck, and brought it to his lips. He placed a light kiss to her knuckles, before dropping it back down without letting it go. She could only stare at him as he tugged her away from the truck, and said, “Come on, let’s go.”

Once she cleared the doorway and he closed it, she caught sight of their apparent destination. She hadn’t realized where they were ‘til then. Looking over at him, she said, “Um, Mike. In case you need another lesson, I should let you know that the grocery store sells food, but it usually requires preparation. What you need to do is find a restaurant where they make
and
serve the food. That’s where you take a girl on a date.”

“Really? That’s good to know. I’ll make sure to file that information away for future use,” he said, dripping with
sarcasm, as he continued to lead her inside. Making their way toward the deli area, Mike gave the clerk his name, telling her he was there to pick up an order. When the young woman lifted a picnic basket, complete with a red-checkered tablecloth peeking out, Allie couldn’t help but smile at the presentation of it.

Looking at him, she asked, “A picnic?”

MIKE smiled and replied, “Of sorts.” Picking up the large basket, he led her out of the store and back toward his truck. He opened the back door and placed the basket on the floor next to the cooler and blanket he’d packed. He knew she was watching him as he loaded it in, so when he looked back at her as he closed one door and opened hers, he had to smile at the questioning look in her eyes.

“What does, ‘of sorts’ mean?” she asked as she climbed in.

“It means it’s more than just a picnic,” he told her as he closed the door. Once they were on their way, he asked, “What kind of music do you like?”

“All kinds. Anything that has a good beat and gets my attention. I listen to everything from jazz to country—I like it all.”

“Glad to hear it,” he said as he got on the freeway heading toward their destination. The ride there was pleasant and filled with general conversation—everything from her work, his work, her love of Starburst, and how Tootsie Rolls came in a close second. Mike was thrilled to be getting a glimpse at the elusive creature he had been chasing for months. When she let her guard down, she laughed more, smiled more, and clearly enjoyed doing both. He imagined this was what her family got to see on a regular basis, and he was going to do whatever he could to keep down that wall.

There was some traffic getting into the Point Loma area, but surprisingly he was able to find a decent parking spot. When he took the keys out of the ignition and glanced at Allie, she was looking out the window, clearly trying to figure out why they were there. Obviously she had never attended this event, which only made him happier.

“Never been to a Point Loma summer concert before?” he asked.

“No! They have concerts in the park here?” she asked with enthusiasm. Paige’s bouquet of flowers just got significantly larger. Not that she had picked this, but her help in planning this date and reassuring him that it was a good idea was appreciated.

“Yeah. Been coming here for years. They have them once a week for five weeks every summer, and the bands are usually local.”

“How exciting. I can’t believe I didn’t know about this.”

“Well, I’m glad I could show you something new,” Mike said with a smile. She looked over at him and smiled—it was nothing short of breathtaking. And it was because of him. That male ego of his grew a little bit. After he helped her out of the truck, he gathered what he brought for them. Slipping bottles of beer and water in with the food, and the blanket over his arm, he made sure to have one arm free for her. Putting his elbow out, he led her toward the park and what he hoped would be a great first date.