She shifted into neutral as we closed in on a stop sign, pressing down on the brake until we came to a stop. “I don’t know if I should do this.”
“You got this,” I reassured her, wanting, for some reason I couldn’t fathom, to make her believe in herself. Awkwardly shy was one thing, but I had a feeling she tended to get down on herself, and I hated the thought of that. “You just need to relax.”
“I am relaxed,” she gritted as she white-knuckled the steering wheel and pulled herself even closer to the dash.
“Uh huh. Sure you are, babe. I want you to do something for me, yeah?”
She nodded at the windshield, refusing to take her eyes off the road even though we were at a full stop. “Okay. Sure. Yeah. Because everything so far’s been a piece of cake,” she snapped.
My chin jerked back and a stunned chuckle bubbled from my throat. “Damn, was that just sarcasm from Willow Thorne?”
Her head jerked around, her eyes wide with shock. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry. That was really rude.”
Fuck me, but I liked that attitude on her. “Don’t you dare apologize. It’s nice to see you have some claws. Seriously.”
Her blush returned, and I felt my dick stir. Goddamn it, being around this woman was becoming a serious test of willpower. It didn’t make a damn bit of sense why I’d feel drawn to her, but apparently my dick was a fan of bashful and unassuming. After damn near two decades of having particular tastes that ran more in the direction of biker bar babe, who knew I’d be capable of change. Problem was, Willow was most definitely not a one and done kind of chick. And I wasn’t a long-term dude.
The best I could give her was friendship. That was, if she was willing to accept it.
“All right, so what do you want me to do?” she asked, yanking my mind out of the gutter.
“First off, how about you start by not choking the steering wheel to death?” I teased. She pulled her hands back like she’d just touched a hot pan, causing me to laugh. “Just hold it like normal, mouse.”
“Okay. I can do that.” She took the wheel again, this time holding it like a normal person would.
“Now scoot back in the seat. No need to be right up on the pedals. Stop thinking about what you’re driving, and just drive like you always have. You know how to do this.” I pointed at the stop sign through the windshield. “Now go.”
She blew out a breath and nodded resolutely. Easing her foot off the brake, we started to roll, and she smoothly shifted into first gear, then into second, and so on until we were moving smoothly.
“I’m doing it!” she squealed delightedly, hopping a bit on the bench seat. “I’ve totally got this!”
“Yeah, you do, babe.” I sat back with a grin, my balls dropping back down to where they belonged now that my baby was no longer at risk.
Willow
“Willow Matilda Thorne, you sexy little land mermaid.” Aurora planted her hands on her hips and gave me a shit-eating grin as I stood before her and Lark inside the first store we’d hit at the mall in Richmond. Just like Lark, she was sweet and kindhearted, but in her own loud, peculiar way. I’d laughed more in the past hour in her company than the whole last week combined. “Who knew you were hiding that perfect rack behind all those baggy clothes! You sneaky, adorable minx!”
Lark looked at her best friend like she should be locked in a padded cell. “Land mermaid? You mean human being?”
Aurora rolled her eyes dramatically. “Well, yes. But my description is a whole lot more fun and makes her sound exotic.”
I lifted my hand in the air like I was in a classroom waiting for the teacher to pick me to answer a question. “Uh . . . I’d just like to add that my middle name isn’t Matilda. It’s Lee.”
“Oh my God. Whatever,” she groaned dramatically. “I felt like middle naming you, and I didn’t know what it was, so I took a leap. Personally, I think Matilda is better than Lee.” She crossed her arms and studied me seriously. “How tied to that name are you and would you be willing to change it?”
“Well, it was my grandmother’s maiden name, so . . .” I let the rest of the sentence hang, assuming she’d get the gist of it.
“So that’s a no then?”
“Yes, weirdo,” Lark inserted. “It’s a no.”
She released a put-out sigh that made me giggle. “Fine. Enough about the middle name then. Let’s talk about the fact that you are rockin’ the hell out of that dress, baby doll.”
Lark nodded in agreement. “She does not lie, honey. You look fabulous.”
I trailed my hands down the soft jersey knit material. I was really far out of my comfort zone in something so fitted. There was something different between regular clothes being tight and workout clothes, but Lark and Aurora’s insistence that I looked good had done wonders in bolstering my confidence.
“That dress is a winner. You’re getting it,” Aurora decreed. “Now let’s get that fine ass of yours into some jeans, shall we?”
I tried on more clothes over the next few hours than I’d probably worn in the past six months total. Any time I blanched at a price tag or argued that it was too much, Aurora stormed up to the register, pulled out a credit card, and ordered the clerk to swipe away.
“Just let her do this for you,” Lark had whispered after that very thing happened in the third store. “She’s loaded, but it isn’t about that. This is her way of showing you that you’re one of her people. She’s got a big heart and wants to do for her friends. It makes her feel good, so just let it happen.”
As difficult as it was, I swallowed down any more arguments and thanked my new friend profusely for spoiling me.
“It’s what I do, my angelic little starfish. And it’s totally my pleasure if you wear this stuff out in public so the world can see how flipping gorgeous you really are when you aren’t hiding.”
Once I had a new wardrobe well in hand, we stopped for a quick lunch at this adorable little bistro before they surprised me with a trip to a salon and spa in the city where they treated me to a new hairstyle and a mani-pedi.
“So where to now?” Lark asked after sucking back the last of the champagne the spa offered while we were getting pampered. “I’m thinking we go to Sephora for makeovers.”
“I actually did that a while back. I spent a small fortune on a bunch of makeup I’ve never worn because I’m not totally sure how to use it.”
Lark let out a giddy squeak and bounced up and down. “Then I say we take this party back to Willow’s for makeup lessons.”
Aurora’s hand went up in the air so fast it was a blur. “I second that motion.”
I followed Aurora’s example and finished off my champagne. “All right. Let’s do this. I’ve got plenty of wine at the house anyway.”
“Yes!” Aurora cheered, hooking her arm over my shoulders and leading me out of the salon. “I knew you and I were going to be the best of friends. The first time I saw you I said to myself, ‘Self, that chick and you are gonna make Redemption your bitch.’ And you know what? I was totally right!”