“I’m not, really. I’m just confused. You know me. I’ve had a hard time dating since . . .”
Lorea touched my shoulder. “I’m not trying to be mean. This is tough, but I think you need to look in the mirror and quit trying to please everyone else. What does Adri want?”
I slouched farther down on her sofa. “I don’t know.”
“I know Dallas is a nice guy, but you have to admit that if Luke is looking that good, you must not be completely satisfied.”
“If it had been up to me, I wouldn’t have gone on a second date with Dallas. He was all nerves and awkwardness. Then it was like he drank some magic elixir and became this guy who persistently goes after the girl he wants. He’s always been sweet, but now he seems to have come into a power of his own. It’s kind of nice having someone want me like that, and I can tell he cares about me.”
Lorea nodded. “He has done a great job of overcoming his shyness to woo you. But how long are you willing to stick around?”
Licking the back of my spoon, I gave Lorea a conspiratorial look. “He’s not afraid to be affectionate anymore. He’s a really great kisser.”
“So you’ve mentioned.” She raised one eyebrow.
“And it’s been a long time since I’ve been close enough to anyone to make out.”
“That’s debatable. You were close enough to Luke.”
“Lorea!” I reached over and pushed her off her perch on the arm of the sofa.
Lorea laughed and stood up. “Okay, here’s the deal. Dallas gets one more date. If you can’t honestly say that you feel an inkling of love or commitment for him, then you have to let him loose.”
I wrinkled my nose. “That doesn’t sound fun.”
“That’s probably because you don’t even need to go on another date. You know the answer. What about Luke?”
“He’s so irritating, such a know-it-all, a . . .” I struggled to find the word I wanted.
“A lawyer?” Lorea said and shrieked when I tossed a decorative pillow her way. “If he wasn’t a lawyer, would that change things?”
“Of course.” Then I thought of the conversation we’d had earlier and clenched my fist tight. “I guess not.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s still going on about how he’s against marriage.”
“I think that’s just some weird mind game he’s playing to keep you interested.”
I wanted to tell Lorea about Luke’s secret, but I decided to wait. For some reason, he trusted me, and I didn’t want to break that trust. I thought of the way he and Brock had bantered with each other and wondered if Brock knew about Luke’s wife. No. If he had, I didn’t think he would have been so brazen about setting up a double date.
Lorea studied me, and I turned to her and smiled. “I don’t think it’s a mind game. I think he’s committed to his plan. But it doesn’t matter, because I’m not going to let that cloud my judgment concerning Dallas.”
“Oh, really?” Lorea didn’t look convinced.
“I’m going to take your advice. Tomorrow, Dallas and I are going up to the hot springs. If I don’t feel anything more for him, I’ll break up with him.”
Lorea held out her pinky. “Swear.”
I frowned but hooked my pinky with hers. “I swear. I’ll nip it in the bud if there’s nothing there.”
“It’s a little late for nipping,” Lorea said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he proposes before the night’s over.”
I gasped. There was no way we were even close to that.
Chapter 24
A Twist on the Ring Pillow
Tie wedding rings to a vintage or family heirloom Bible using ribbons that match the wedding colors.
Courtesy of www.mashedpotatoesandcrafts.com.
The birds chirped outside the window of the breakfast nook while Lorea and I munched on extra-large apple-cinnamon muffins. I licked some streusel off my finger, figuring that one muffin would equal two meals if I was counting calories, but with the stress I’d had that week, I didn’t care.
“Thanks, Lorea. It was fun to stay here.” We had talked past midnight. Part of the conversation centered on my trying to convince her to give up her cynical views of love and romance. As usual, I didn’t make much headway.
“I’m glad you decided to come. And I know you don’t think I’m listening to you about love, but I am. Part of me would like to fall in love again, but until Mr. Right shows up, I’m not going to worry about it,” Lorea said.
I definitely didn’t want to argue with that progress. “I’ll be here when you’re ready to plan your wedding.” I shied away when Lorea attempted to slug me in the arm.
I checked my phone again. I’d sent a text to Tony asking him for news, but he had yet to respond, which meant there probably wasn’t any. My cell phone sang “Marry Me” as I pushed it back into my jeans pocket. I scrunched my eyebrows together when I didn’t recognize the number.
“Pyper’s Dream Weddings, where happily ever after is your destination.”
Lorea snorted, and I pushed her off the stool.
“Hi, Adri. It’s Necia.”
“Hey. How are things at the store?” Necia owned a cute consignment store called Everybody’s Closet, and I frequented it to look for unique pieces for wedding décor and fodder for my Mashed Potatoes and Crafts blog. Mom and Jenna had been on an upcycling kick for the past few months.
“I have something that might interest you.”
“That’s so nice of you to think of me.”
“Could you come over this morning?” Necia sounded nervous.
“Uh—sure.” It must be something big for Necia to want me to come right away. “How about I head over now?”
“That’d be perfect. Just come around back.”
I ended the call and grabbed the rest of my muffin. “I’m going to Everybody’s Closet. Necia found something she seemed anxious for me to see. Meet you at the store?”
“I’ll be there in the next thirty minutes.” Lorea waved as I hustled out the door.
The nice thing
