“There, that persuasive enough?” he murmured, his words husky and deep. Giggling, I nodded, enjoying the smile that spread across his face. “Good. Now let’s go get the books you wanted checked out and put the history book back.” We had just turned the corner, nearly colliding into a librarian in the process.
“Excuse me, dears, but have you seen a book cart recently? It was near the desk earlier, and I can’t remember where one of the other workers or I placed it,” she asked, looking at Jesse. “Wasn’t sure if either of you had seen one of the other volunteers with it.”
“Nope, I haven’t,” Jesse told her.
“Uh, I think I saw one over by the fantasy section, but that was about fifteen, twenty minutes ago. Not sure if that was what you meant or not,” I offered, wondering if the man from earlier was just a do-gooder or if he had been a volunteer, but before I could ask the librarian or tell her about him, she gave us a grateful smile and started toward that section of the building. “Well, good thing we finished making out when we did; otherwise, that would have been embarrassing.”
“Eh, I guess, though I would much rather keep kissing you,” he confided softly, “and do more, so you better be ready next chance I get, Em.”
Oh, I definitely would be because doing more with my quiet, gentle boyfriend?
Sign me up!
14
March 19th
I missed out on Cinnabon today, but I still considered it a win.
#DinnerAndMovieDate #TheClassicsReallyCanBeTheBest #ThankfulThursday
“Hello?” I greeted, balancing the phone between my shoulder and cheek so I could finish brushing my hair.
“Hey, Babydoll.” Kingston’s smooth, melodic voice filled my ear. “I was just calling to see if you had any plans today.”
“Nope, I thought about going to the mall for a bit but hadn’t decided yet. Why, what’s up?”
Spring break was officially half over and, true to my word, I had spent most of it either working or relaxing, but with Jesse volunteering eight hours a day over at the thrift shop and the three of us taking turns with him, we hadn’t had much time together with all three of us.
“Reid’s with Jesse today, so I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go on a date with me? I know it’s short notice, but you’re busy going dress shopping with Mom and Lyla this weekend, so I thought we could hit up that movie that came out last week and get some food.”
“I’d love to!” I immediately threw away the idea of going to the mall. The mall would still be there another day, and I’d rather spend time with Kingston than walk through stores alone anyway. “Any idea when? I’m almost done getting ready for the day, just had to work out a knot from hell in my hair, but I think I’ve got it.”
Really, Emma? Talking about your hair tangles?
Social awkwardness: one. Emma: zero.
“I’m not doing anything now if you’re up for it. We can get lunch and stuff. I do need to drop off Reid’s phone though; he forgot it this morning. Want to join?”
“I’d love to. See you in a bit?” I asked, my smile obnoxiously wide as I started to dig around in my makeup bag.
“Be there in twenty, Babydoll.”
As soon as we were off the phone it took everything in me not to squeal in excitement, loving that Kingston was growing more confident in our relationship. I finished getting ready as quickly as I could. Knowing there was no time to style it fully, I threw my hair up into a ponytail and got dressed. I glanced in the mirror one more time to make sure everything looked good, my eyes trailing over my outfit: a dark pair of jeans, my favorite maroon blouse, ankle booties, and a lightweight jacket. After tossing on a scarf, a light coat of lipstick, and mascara, I was ready by the time he pulled up. Thankfully, my mom was spending the day in the office for the first time in what seemed like months, so I didn’t have to listen to a lecture or see her judgmental gaze.
“Hey,” I greeted, slipping into the passenger seat.
“Morning, Babydoll. You look beautiful today,” Kingston murmured, leaning over for a kiss. A slight burn of a flush bloomed on my cheeks, making me glad I’d continued to forgo blush in my makeup routine. King’s kiss was strong and warm, a layer of minty Chapstick coating his lips.
“Thank you, you look pretty good yourself,” I whispered against his mouth, a smile growing when he chuckled. Kingston wore his usual attire of khaki pants, boots, and a button-up shirt that was rolled at the sleeves, his jacket sprawled out in the backseat. The green of his shirt made the honey brown in his eyes pop, a nice contrast to his golden tanned skin.
“Thanks. We ready to go?”
“Yup, I have everything I need.” With that, King pulled out of the driveway and started toward the thrift store.
It was a quiet ride, Kingston and I holding hands and listening to the radio as we drove through town. It was that perfect time between morning rush hour and lunch time, so traffic was light and we reached the store in no time.
“Want to come in? I’m sure Reid and Jesse would love to see you,” King asked as he parked.
“Sure, might check out the racks quickly too. I love a good thrifted item.”
The shop was fairly empty, a few people scattered throughout the different sections, but for the most part it was just employees and Reid and Jesse. Since they were talking with one of the guys who worked there, Kingston and I veered off to the side and started flipping through the racks.
“Oh my god.” I burst out laughing when I looked up and found Kingston wearing a gaudy and quite hideous faux fur coat.
At least, I hope it’s fake.
“What? Don’t think I can pull off the Siberian resident? Living life in the middle of a tundra?” he joked, my laidback boyfriend striking a subtle pose with a lifted chin and regal frown. It was reminiscent of Reid, but seeing King goofing off was different, and something I was definitely enjoying.
“I was thinking more like a pimp since all you need is a cane and a big bling ring.” Pulling a jacket off the rack, I slipped it on with a smirk. “There, now we match in ridiculousness.”
“Nah, shoulder pads and sequins are coming back into fashion, haven’t you heard?” King couldn’t even get through his entire question before dissolving into a fit of laughter. His eyes watered as he leaned against the shiny metal rack to help keep him upright. “I can’t, with you in shoulder pads bigger than a quarterback’s, you look like an alien.”
“Just you wait then.” Darting down the aisle, I scooped up a hat and a pair of sunglasses I had noticed when we first got here. “Hello, human,” I rattled off, doing my best to sound like a robotic extraterrestrial, standing back up from where I had kneeled. Only instead of it being just King, Reid and Jesse stood with him, all three looking at me with laughter in their expressions.
“Hi, boys,” I greeted warmly, not embarrassed that I was making a fool of myself.
“That’s... certainly a look, Cali girl,” Reid mustered, smashing his lips together. “Though I think I prefer the hats and girly look, not sure if a dystopian post-alien invasion vibe is quite your style.”
“Yeah but think of all the people I could shoulder out of my way in the halls with these things.” I shifted my shoulders back and forth to demonstrate my point, earning another bout of chuckles. “How’s everything going today?”