“Okay, babe. I hear you. Keep in mind that it isn’t tonight yet.” He leaned towards me and his lips crushed against mine.  His tongue licked the seam of my mouth, and he nibbled on my lower lip. My brain turned to mush, and my body started to tremble in response. My eyes drifted closed as I enjoyed our first kiss.

Drake groaned deep in his throat, and I could feel the vibrations through the kiss. He pecked the corner of my lips and pulled away from me. Handing me the bags, he nudged me through the door before I could react. My head was still spinning.

“One hour. Be ready for me,” he said before turning around and striding away from me. Damn, I was going to be in so much trouble with this guy. There is just no controlling my response to him, I thought as I watched his ass until I couldn’t see him anymore.

Shutting the door, I heard my dad clear his throat behind me. “Still nothing to say about Drake?” He smirked at me, and I blushed. He had definitely caught us kissing. Drat! “Sounds like you need to go get ready for a party, honey. Aren’t you glad you decided to come with me this trip?”

I lightly punched him in the arm. “Geesh, Dad. You’re such a smartass sometimes. The normal response would be for you to threaten Drake with bodily harm if he touches me again. Not to taunt me about kissing him and going to a party. And didn’t you think it was odd that he asked you my shoe size? You just told him it without asking any questions?”

“It’s about time I saw you interested in a boy again, Alexa. I know that everything that happened with Brad scared you off relationships, but you need to learn to let people into your life. Even boys. Go to this party with Drake and have some fun. I’m right here, so nothing bad will happen to you. You’re safe. Live a little already!”

“All right, Daddy. I’ll go to the party with Drake. But don’t get your hopes up about relationships and stuff. I don’t know what’s going on with him, but Drake has a lot of explaining to do. Maybe we’ll get a chance to talk tonight and work some things out. That doesn’t make him my boyfriend though.”

My dad laughed and shook his head at me. “I heard him plain as day, honey. If he has his way, he will absolutely be your boyfriend. Mark my words. Good thing I like him.”

I headed upstairs and opened the bag. Inside was a stunning cocktail dress. The deep purple color was almost an exact match to the dress I’d worn last night. What were the odds that Drake’s sister would pick out something in my favorite color? I held the dress up to my body as I looked in the mirror, stunned at the thought that he might have been specific with his sister in what he wanted me to wear tonight.

I hadn’t brought many hair products or makeup with me. The downside of packing light and bringing my study materials, I guess. I wasn’t sure that my usual brush of powder across my face and touch of chapstick would do the dress justice, but it wasn’t like I had many options. Better to show the real me now so Drake knew what to expect going forward anyway. If he was expecting a frilly, girlie-girl, then he was going to be very surprised.

I pulled the shoes out of the box and gasped when I realized they matched the dress perfectly. They weren’t the heels I had been expecting. They were beautiful ballet flats, a deep purple patent leather with a red sole that couldn’t have been worn very much since they looked practically brand new except for a couple scratches on the bottom. They could only mean one thing. He had definitely told his sister what to find, and he’d based his instructions on what he had seen me wearing last night. This meant that he really had seen me and had been as drawn to me as I had been to him. It didn’t make any sense. If he had noticed everything I’d worn, down to my preference for flats, then why hadn’t he said anything to me?

chapter 6

An hour had never passed so quickly. Before I knew it, I could hear Drake’s knock on the door downstairs. My dad made it to the door before I had even reached the top of the stairs. Curious to see what they would say to each other, I paused at the landing so I could eavesdrop.

“Hello, Mr. Hewitt. Is Alexa almost ready to go?” Drake asked as he stepped into the house.

“I’m not sure, son. She hasn’t come down yet, but I expect she’ll be ready soon,” my dad responded.

“I hope so,” Drake offered. “The party will start soon, but I wanted to show her some of the property before we joined everyone. I didn’t think to ask earlier, but you’re more than welcome to come up to the house for the party, too.”

“Thanks, but I’m fine down here. Got some football to watch and snacks to eat. Not much for big parties anyway,” I heard my dad say. “Besides, you’ll be lucky to get Lex up to the party after your walk. She’s hard to rile, but once you get her going, you’d better watch out.”