He’s ridiculously handsome and probably way out of my league. I work at a florist shop and he’s a lawyer. He dresses like he’s loaded and I’m sure he is. Everything about him is polished and put together. The one thing that strikes me as odd is that I’ve never seen a man so big in a suit before. He’s the size of a football player, but never once did I feel intimidated. When he looked at me with his soft brown eyes, with little lines at the corners, I felt so warm and happy.
I shake my head and come back to reality. We’re on two different playing fields, and I need to let go of the fantasy of him.
"You like this dress?" I ask her, turning so she can see it. “It's new.” It's a simple yellow sundress. It hugs tight on the top and flares out at my waist. I can wear pretty much whatever I want at the shop and I have a thing for dresses and bright colors. Ninety percent of my wardrobe consists of dresses identical to this, but I love them.
"It's adorable."
I huff at her response, picking up my glasses from beside the sink and sliding them on. "I didn't want to be adorable. I wanted to be sexy."
"You're wearing Converses," she laughs in response.
I look down at my shoes. I always wear shoes like these, or slip-ons. Especially to work. Sometimes I have to do a few deliveries and they work best for that. Plus, they’re comfy.
I can tell Tia is fighting a smile. "I'm sorry, Dove, but you,"—she shrugs slightly—"are never going to be able to fight the adorable thing." She reaches out and tugs on one of my big blonde curls. "Yellow makes your eyes pop."
"Like you can see them behind my giant glasses.”
"No missing those baby blues." She laughs and heads toward the kitchen for coffee.
I used to bring a travel mug of coffee to work so I didn’t waste extra money at the coffee shop. But that all changed the day I forgot it and popped into the coffee shop next door and ran into Beau. Now I'm there every morning hoping to run into him.
I look in the mirror, giving myself a once-over. I put on light makeup and have my blonde locks down instead of my usual ponytail. Grabbing my strawberry lip gloss, I swipe on a quick coat before flipping off the light and heading for the living room.
Our place isn't big, but it's cute. There are two small bedrooms and a shared bathroom. The kitchen and living room are tiny, but it's not bad for the two of us. I jumped on the place when I found an ad in the paper for someone looking for a roommate. I'd just graduated high school and for some reason I didn't have the drive to go to college. Even with my good grades I really didn't know what I wanted to do. My parents didn't take it well, but I have to live my life.
It was my first act of rebellion in my entire life. I told them I wasn't going to college and I was moving out. If they could have chained me in the house to keep me from going they would have. I knew deep down I had to get out. If I stayed with my parents they would build my whole life and that’s not what I wanted. I’ve felt unsteady for a long time and haven't had a direction. The only time that feeling has ever gone away has been in those few minutes when I was with Beau.
When I met Tia I wasn't sure how we'd get along. We seemed like such opposites in every way. But like the old saying goes, opposites attract. Right away we clicked.
When I walk into the living room I see her standing in the kitchen drinking her coffee. Her mug states that it contains the blood of her enemies and it makes me smile.
We might be night and day, but we work together somehow. Over the past six months she's become my best friend. She puts up a good front, but once she let me past that I found out she’s a sweet marshmallow inside. She’s loyal and would do anything for someone she called friend.
"Maybe I could go with you, move this along a little, because god knows you aren't going to make the first move." She pauses for a second. "And you shouldn't have to. A sweet girl like you should never chase."
"I could never…" I trail off. I wish I had the moxie to make a move on Beau, but I don't. Heck, when he touched me I couldn't even find words. We stood there just looking at each other in silence. Then he smirked a little and left. I stood like a seashell in a current, unable to process what happened. "No. I'm taking it slow."