“Are you okay? Did you cut yourself?” I rush into the kitchen, sidestepping shards of glass as best I can.

“Uhmm….yes, yes. I’m fine. Just clumsy. Go. I don’t want you cutting yourself in here. Go have fun.” Her voice is a bit shaky, startled from the piercing sound of glass hitting the tile.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Have fun. Be home by midnight, please.”

***

Zack is just starting up the walkway when I open the front door. He looks up and I watch his eyes take me in. Slowly. They rake over me, dropping from my eyes to my glossed lips down to my exposed shoulders. Taking his time, he follows the neckline of my simple, yet body contouring sundress, lingering when he reaches my full breasts. I’m sufficiently covered, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t aware that the dress showed off my assets well. Tight around my chest, gathering snuggly at the waist, with a scant amount of cleavage. Just enough coverage to still leave something for him to imagine. And I watch his face change as his imagination takes off running.

His eyes drift down my legs, tanned now from the eternal California sun. Momentarily he’s lost in what he sees and doesn’t even notice I’m watching him leer. Totally worth the extra effort getting ready tonight, I couldn’t be happier at the reaction I get. Eventually, his eyes make their way back up to mine and I arch one eyebrow, letting him know he’s been caught. A normal reaction might be to look embarrassed or perhaps even flustered a little. But not Zack. Instead, he flashes me a wicked grin. “You look incredible.” He’s the one doing the leering, yet I’m the one who ends up blushing.

Chapter 22

Zack

We arrive at Meson Ole before it gets crowded. Nobody goes to dinner in Long Beach at six o’clock, except old people. Nikki and I are directed to a quiet spot in the back corner that overlooks the outside dinner deck and ocean beyond it.

“Unless you want to sit outside?” the half interested waitress says as she points to the table in the corner.

One glance at Nikki longingly gazing out the window at the water and I say, “An outside table would be great if you could manage that.”

I hold the deck door as Nikki walks out, my gentlemanly gesture rewarded by the first view of her from behind. Holy shit, this girl makes my pulse race more than running eight laps this afternoon did. And it completely throws me every time.

She’s sexy as hell, but it isn’t just her smokin’ curves in that form-fitting little sundress. There’s an honesty about her — something that makes her so real. In Kardashian California, everything is planned, performed and perfected. Except for Nikki.

“Zack? Are you going to just stand there holding the door or join me for dinner? I think the loser has to actually eat dinner with the winner, not just stare at her from afar.”

Caught fantasizing about Nikki’s ass, it’s my turn to blush— something Nikki does a lot. From the amused look on her face, I’m quite sure she knows exactly where the blush is rising from too. I don’t think for a second that she’s oblivious to the effect she has on me. It would be nearly impossible to miss.

“Is it too warm for you to sit outside?” I ask as the waitress glides past, heading back inside to get us a bowl of chips and salsa.

“I think you’re warmer than I am,” Nikki teases.

As I stand behind her to pull out her chair, a slight breeze catches Nikki’s sundress and exposes her upper thighs. Her petite hand catches it before it goes any higher and smoothes it under her as she quickly sits.

The table is small, intimate. Taking my seat across from her, I pick up the menu, hoping to distract myself from the pulsating sensation I feel everywhere. My leg brushes against her long smooth one under the table.

“What do you like best?” Nikki asks.

It takes me a few beats to realize we’re talking about the menu. Good… let’s stick to the menu. I can handle that.

“I haven’t been here in years. But I used to like the steak fajitas. I was a kid though.”

“I actually know a few adults who eat steak fajitas too.”

Before I can respond, the waitress returns.

“We’ll both have the steak fajitas…from the grown-up menu,” Nikki beats me to the punch, a mischievous smile on her face.

I smile, sitting back to soak in the freshness of whatever is brewing between us. My shoulders relax as I mentally begin to accept what my body has already surrendered to. From the corner of my eye, I notice a pretty, albeit artificial-looking, blonde teen and her mother are seated a few tables away. The girl looks strikingly like Emily. Suddenly, whatever I’d begun to accept seems oh so wrong.

Why the hell did I think that I could be a normal guy flirting with a girl I’m attracted to? It always comes back to Emily. And it should. I’m being selfish, trying to change the inevitable.

As I shutter over the feelings I don’t deserve to feel, the conversation falls quiet. Nikki notices the change. I see a look of confusion replace the sexy smile I was enjoying just moments ago.

I don’t want to hurt her. She doesn’t deserve the crazy ups and downs that I put anyone close to me through. At least Mom and Dad understand why I sometimes withdraw or lash out. They get it. It doesn’t make it right, but at least they know it’s about Emily, not them. Nikki could never understand. And if she did, she wouldn’t want to be here with me in the first place.

Awkwardness sets in. “So,” I say, “what do you think of California? You moved from Texas, right?”