From This Moment On - By Debbi Rawlins Page 0,50
at her house, and seen to her door at the end of the night.”
“Oh, boy, if you ever have daughters their teen years won’t be pretty.”
He let out a short laugh. “Probably not.”
“I like that you’re all gentlemanly and chivalrous.” She saw the corner of his mouth quirk. “I do. It’s nice. I wasn’t laughing.” She braced herself. “I had a bad prom experience,” she said, hoping she was right, that telling Trace would ease the tightness in her chest. “I’d met this boy at the mall when I was fifteen. Garrett was seventeen, a private school kid. His family was loaded. Obviously he didn’t live in my neighborhood.
“Anyway, he followed me and a girlfriend around, asked for my cell number, tried to buy me lunch. I kept saying no and—” She smiled sadly. “And probably giggled a lot. Garrett was hot and funny and smart, and not what I was used to, so of course I was flattered. Every day for a week he showed up at the food court where we hung out. I have to admit, I looked forward to seeing him. Finally I gave him my number and agreed to go to a movie. The next weekend it was a party and then another party after that. It went on for three months.
“My friend was convinced he was using me, but he’d never pushed me into sex. We made out a lot but nothing too hot and heavy. I mean, I think Garrett really did like me. He even asked me to go to his prom.” Taking a breather, she studied the familiar storefronts they were passing. Were they headed back to the highway?
Trace squeezed her hand, then released it to use the turn signal. “I’m still listening,” he said quietly.
“His friend heard him ask me and I should’ve gotten a clue from his shocked face. But I was too excited. I’d seen a dress at the mall, a very expensive dress, and I was already planning the argument I’d give my mom. We couldn’t afford it, but I begged and pleaded so I wouldn’t feel out of place with all the rich girls. She gave in, then two days before the prom, Garrett called it off. He was still going, but he had to take someone else.”
She saw that he was pulling the truck over to the curb. “What are you doing? Don’t stop.” Part of the reason she was able to talk about it was the situation. Trace had to divide his attention, and somehow that made it easier. “Please.”
The helpless uncertainty in his eyes touched her. “All right,” he said finally, and returned to the flow of traffic.
“Garrett said he felt terrible. His parents had hired a limo for him, and a photographer to take pictures, and he said he was sorry but they wouldn’t understand him taking someone like me to the prom. He had college to consider and didn’t want to piss them off.” She refused to look for Trace’s reaction. “He said nothing had to change between us. He wanted to continue seeing me.”
“What a bastard.” He spat the words with so much anger she had to look at him. The veins stuck out on his neck.
“It’s okay. Jeez, it was so long ago. Anyway, I should’ve known better. My friends tried to tell me.”
“Tell you what?” Now he sounded angry with her friends.
“That I should stick to my own kind, and that Garrett was too class conscious and would eventually kick me to the curb.” She laid a hand on his thigh. “I don’t think about him anymore. Honestly, I don’t. Of course it crushed me at the time. I was only fifteen. In my head Garrett was like Wallace and I was mad at myself for being as stupid and weak as my mother.”
Trace shot her a confused look.
“Like I said, I was fifteen. One week my mom was the enemy, the next she was my BFF. I took so much crap out on her.” Nikki shuddered at the memories. “What still bothers me is the dress. She busted her butt working overtime to buy it for me. And I couldn’t return it because—” Oh, God.
She laid her head back against the headrest watching the thinning crowd. No use admitting she’d been the worst possible self-centered idiot. It wouldn’t change anything. Already she’d said too much. Trace was probably disgusted with this new glimpse of her. She was pretty sure they were about to reach the highway that