“You’re a great friend, Becca. You always have been. That’s why I’m here right now. That’s why I’ll always be here.” She gave me a warm smile. “Now, do you wanna hear about my hot date or not?”
“Of course, I do!” I sat down on the edge of the bed, crossed my legs, and gave her my full attention. “I want to hear all about her.”
“Well, her name is Joan, and she’s pretty awesome.”
Celeste sat down next to me and told me all about Joan. It did my heart good to see my dear friend so excited. She’d spent the past year trying to recover from a difficult breakup, and this was the first time I’d seen her truly excited about dating again. When she was done telling me how she and Joan had met, I asked, “So, what are you two going to do tonight?”
“I was thinking I’d take her to the Rainbow Room for drinks and maybe dinner, and then we’d see how things go from there.”
“That sounds like a great plan.”
She glanced down at her watch, then stood up and said, “I better get going. I need to change my clothes and be at her place before seven.”
“Okay.” I hugged her. “I hope you have a great time.”
“Oh, I will. You can count on it.” As Celeste started walking out of the room, she said, “You should message the hot biker guy. That way, you’d have a good time, too.”
“I’ll have a good time all on my own, thank you very much.”
“Pfft, not as much fun as you’d have with him.”
“Will you just go already!”
“I’m going, I’m going.” On her way down the stairs, she shouted, “I’ll call you tomorrow!”
“You better.”
Seconds later, I heard my front door open and then slam shut, and I was officially alone. I glanced over at my phone, and for a moment, I was tempted to take Celeste’s advice and message Thatch.
But after thinking it over, I decided against it.
He knew I was here alone. If he wanted to see me, then he would’ve made arrangements to do so. He hadn’t, so it was time for me to move on. I picked up the clothes I’d tried on and put them away, then went into the bathroom and drew a hot bath. While the water was running, I rushed downstairs to pour myself a glass of wine and turn on some music.
By the time I made it back upstairs, my bath was ready, and I spent the next hour enjoying a long, hot soak. After I got out, I put on my favorite PJs, ordered a pizza, and searched for a movie to watch. I was just about to start painting my nails when I heard a knock at the door. Even though it was a little fast, I figured it was the pizza guy, so I shouted, “Just a minute!”
I quickly grabbed my wallet from the kitchen table and rushed to the front door. When I opened it, I was surprised to find Thatcher standing there, and as always, he looked incredible in his dark button-down shirt and leather cut.
His dark hair was disheveled in the most delicious way, and his full lips curled behind his thick beard made it difficult to think about anything else. After a quick breath, I finally managed to speak. “Thatch? What are you doing here?”
“You mentioned something about having dinner the other night.”
“Yeah, I did, but I never heard back from you.”
“I didn’t hear from you either.”
“So, you decided to just come anyway?”
“Well, yeah. I wanted to see ya and figured this was the best way to do it.”
“You could’ve called and given me a little warning.”
His eyes drifted over my old plaid flannel pajamas and snickered. “But then I would’ve missed out on seeing ya in those sexy PJs.”
“That’s it. I’m going to go change.”
I immediately turned to head upstairs but stopped when I felt Thatcher’s hand on my arm. “The hell you are.”
He stepped inside and shut the door, then pulled me close. And, of course, I immediately melted into him. I simply couldn’t help myself. There was something about feeling those big, strong arms and the warmth of his broad, muscular chest that made my knees weak.
After several moments, he looked down at me with one of his sexy smirks, and a chill skirted down my spine, making me feel even more mortified that I was standing there in my flannels. “Clearly, I wasn’t planning on seeing anyone tonight. Just let me run upstairs and change.”
“Why would you change?” The sexy smirk returned. “The flannel’s good.”
“Oh, God. You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“It’s pretty soft.” He reached up and ran his thumb across the lapel. “Feels like you’ve had them awhile.”
“Thatcher.”
“I’m just fucking around.” He motioned his head behind us, then ordered, “Now, move that sexy little ass of yours over to the sofa, and let’s figure out what we’re gonna have for dinner.”