more than it was, but in reality, I was the one that I should’ve been worried about. She hadn’t seemed bothered at all. And that was driving me fucking crazy.
Chapter 20
Olivia
“Stop looking for your happy place in the same place you lost it.”
~ Maggie Calhoun
I stood in front of my floor-length mirror and adjusted the scoop neckline of my lilac sundress as I turned so I could see behind me. The dress had a low back and the spaghetti straps made a V. It snipped in at the waist and the material loosely hung over my hips, giving me the ever-coveted hourglass figure. “How do I look?”
“Good,” Molly responded without even glancing up at me.
“That would be a lot more convincing if you’d actually looked at me.”
She lifted her head from her Kindle. “You look good,” she said flatly then immediately dropped her chin and began reading again.
I loved my sister, but she was not the person to go to when one needed a confidence boost.
Tonight, I was going on a second date. It was the first second date that I’d been on since Tyler the nose picker. We were meeting at Movies in the Park. It was a weekly event that the town threw, weather permitting. Everyone gathered in the town square on the grass and sat and watched a movie that was projected onto the side of the courthouse.
Two nights ago, when I was at dinner with Jake, I’d mentioned that this week’s movie was going to be one of my favorites, Notting Hill. He’d said that he liked that movie too, so I invited him to come along with me and my sister, who had already made plans to see it.
I figured I could kill two birds with one stone. Molly was an incredibly good judge of character and I knew she’d tell me right away if she saw any red flags. I could trust her to tell me the truth and not sugar coat anything. I’d know if I was wasting my time and if I wasn’t, I’d get the first family introductions out of the way.
Jake was a doctor that I’d matched with on Love at First Click. He checked off all of my boxes and I was looking forward to seeing him.
There was only one problem…he wasn’t Holden Reed.
It had been a month since I’d consummated my childhood crush/first love/obsession. I’d hoped that doing so would have enabled me to put a period on the run-on sentence that was my feelings for Holden. Instead, it had only made me want him more.
I’d had sex with a handful of people. Five to be exact, including Holden. And while the other four were enjoyable experiences, none compared to what I’d shared with Holden.
One possibility I’d considered was that all of my pent-up emotions and expectations had heightened our encounter. But, honestly, the more I thought about it, the more I came to believe that the exact opposite would’ve been more likely to have happened. What were the odds that Holden would not only live up to the fantasies I’d had starring him, he’d surpass them? The term “slim to none came to mind.”
But he had. And then some.
My entire body flushed just thinking about the way he’d felt buried inside of me. The tiny hairs on the back of my neck stood up when I remembered the touch of his hands. My mouth watered as it relived the soft firmness of his lips and the expert caress of his tongue against mine.
Why did he have to be everything I’d ever dreamed of and more? And that was without him doing the things he’d said he’d wanted to do to me. I didn’t think I could survive him at full operating capacity. I’d have loved to find out, but I didn’t think I’d ever get that chance.
I’d been the one who had suggested a one-night-only event. There would be no encore. I had to admit that I’d hoped that there might be.
But it had been a month and nothing else romantic had happened between us. We’d talked and I was definitely back in friend territory, but the problem was, I wanted more than that. But I’d been the one serving so far and now the ball was in his court.
I’d watched too many girls throw themselves at my brothers after they’d hooked up with them. I was not going to be that girl. I could be friends with someone after we slept together…even if I was in