Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 87181 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87181 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Holly
I knew you cared.
Kai
Can’t have my student going MIA. It would be bad for business.
Holly
So what do you think of him?
Kai
I don’t think anything of him yet. You shouldn’t either. It’s still too new to read him.
Holly
I could read him like a book.
Kai
It must be a chapter book because you don’t know anything about this guy.
I snickered because I could almost hear his sarcasm through the text message.
Holly
He set up a second date. He sent me the reservation. I think this is a good thing.
A few minutes went by without a reply.
Kai
Get some sleep, Holly. Night.
I smiled a little. He didn’t say anything negative, which felt a bit like a positive coming from Kai. I replied as I yawned.
Holly
Night.
Kai
Hey, Holly?
Holly
Yes?
Kai
I’m glad you had a good night. You deserved a good night.
I smiled a lot that night, but Kai’s words made me smile the most. I was growing on him, which was nice, seeing how he was growing on me, too.
On the day of the second date, I was beyond excited. Matthew was taking me around town to see the best Christmas lights, with a night ending in ice skating at Millennium Park. I’d never been skating at Millennium Park in all my years in Chicago. Yet, I’ve written about it often in my novels.
All in all, it seemed like a perfect day to me. Before I could go, I had to check in with Kai on a few things I had planned for the evening festivities.
Holly
Matthew mentioned being unable to find a certain chocolate candy he loved. Would it be weird to bring it to him for date number two tonight?
Kai
For the love of God, Holly, do not give this stranger a gift.
Holly
Oh. Okay. No gifts. Got it.
Kai
…
Holly
What?! I said no gifts.
Kai
You bought the chocolate already, didn’t you?
Holly
I might have bought some from Amazon.
Kai
How many packs did you get?
Holly
Okay, to be fair, I thought it came with three, not three dozen…
Kai
Holly. Bring all of that to my apartment right now.
Holly
But Matthew said it’s his favorite! Maybe I can save it for the third date.
Kai
Holly. Now.
With a pouty lip, I grumbled and gathered the pounds of chocolate. When I reached Kai’s door, he opened it and instantly shook his head.
“You can’t be serious right now,” he said as he gestured toward the chocolate. “This is the definition of trying too hard.”
“I thought it was sweet. In my novels, it would come off as sweet.”
“It comes off as desperate, and you don’t have to be desperate. You don’t need to impress him with stuff like this.”
“Don’t I, though?”
His brows lowered with a perplexed bend. “What?”
“Isn’t it my job to impress the guy? Because if I don’t, he won’t want to stay.”
“Geez…no, Holly. Your only job is to be yourself. That’s all that matters. It’s his job to impress you. You’re already good enough. You have nothing to prove.”
I wonder if he meant to do that—fill my stomach with flutters.
I placed the bags of chocolate into his hands and then struck a pose. “Okay, Coach. How does this look for a date number two outfit?”
I wore an oversized olive sweater, dark blue jeans, and brown knee-high boots. It was a perfect fall day, and I’d take my trench coat with me if it grew colder at night.
His eyes moved up and down my body a couple of times. He tilted his head, and then when his eyes locked with mine, they seemed so gentle. It almost made me stumble backward because, for the longest time, Kai’s stares always seemed so intense and harsh. This time, his eyes were so soft and sincere.
“You look beautiful, Holly. Matthew will love it,” he told me.
For a second, I forgot how to speak. A spark of electricity raced through my system as Kai called me beautiful. Compliments from him versus other men felt different. They felt more authentic because I knew Kai never said anything he didn’t mean.
I lowered my arms from my dramatic stance and combed my hair behind my ears. “Thanks, Kai.”
He smiled, and I stared at it for the longest time. Kai’s smile felt like a sacred gift. He only handed them out to a few, and I was surprised he’d been sharing them with me so freely lately.
“You’re going to be late,” he said, nudging me away. “Have fun.”
“Thank you. I’ll call or text you to update later.”
“Sounds good. And Holly?”
“Yes?”
“This asshole better bring you flowers.”
HOLLY
He brought me flowers. A dozen red roses, to be exact.
My cheeks flushed as Matthew met me in front of my apartment building. “You didn’t have to meet me here just so we could take a taxi across town,” I told him.
“I figured it would be easier to give you the flowers if I did this. Then you can put them in your place right away. And don’t worry, this isn’t me trying to get into your apartment. I’ll wait down here until you put the flowers away.”