Semi-Sweet On You (Hot Cakes #4) - Erin Nicholas Page 0,91
seeing her have quiet, happy moments with her grandmother because she wasn’t stressed and pressed for time and weighed down by a million other things. Like guilt.
It was ironic that it was Hot Cakes that had brought them back together, but here they were and it felt good. Right.
Giving into the urge, he leaned in and kissed Whitney once more. Just a quick, sweet kiss on the lips, then he looked at her with the knowledge that he’d see her at home later. And maybe they could sneak in some quiet time before Magnum, P.I.
Whitney took a deep breath as she pulled her phone out and stared at the screen.
She never did this.
Never.
It was completely foreign territory.
Her phone was used for emails and the occasional call when she was away from her desk and pulling up her boarding pass when she was traveling.
She almost never texted.
And she never texted like this.
She wasn’t even sure she was going to do it right.
She swallowed. But she really wanted to.
Opening her contacts, she scrolled to the one she needed and pulled up the number. Then she typed, I got done early today and I’d love to just have some fun tonight. Are you up for something?
She stared at the words.
Then she frowned.
And typed, This is Whitney, by the way.
Then she sat and waited. And wondered if she should have said something else. Or said it differently. Was that enticing at all? Was it stupid? Is this how people started this stuff?
Finally, after about four years—or maybe about two minutes—she saw the little dots dancing, indicating she was going to get a response.
LOL. I know it’s you! And dammit! I’m so sorry! I’ve got plans.
Whitney felt her heart drop to her stomach. But she forced herself to actually smile, even though Piper couldn’t see it, as she typed back. No worries! Of course you do. This is really last minute. Sorry!
Don’t be sorry! Piper replied. I love that you’re done early! That’s awesome! I would love to do something but I’m… out at the alpaca farm.
Whitney paused with her thumbs over the keys and reread that. Piper was at the alpaca farm? As in Drew Ryan’s farm? Uh-oh.
We were going to talk about all of this, she finally typed back, suddenly feeling less silly about texting Piper for an impromptu girl’s night. Her nerves about asking a girlfriend out for drinks—something she’d literally never done before—disappearing in light of her concern over Piper getting cozy with Drew. Drew Ryan was a great guy. Good looking, kind, funny, successful. But… he wasn’t Ollie.
Whitney couldn’t explain it any better than that.
Ollie was a handful. She knew that. Especially for Piper. But he seemed to be Piper’s handful. He was Cam and Grant and Aiden and Dax’s handful too, but there was something about Ollie and Piper that just seemed to click. And Whitney knew that Ollie had feelings for Piper. He just wasn’t good at showing that. Or maybe even admitting it.
But she was rooting for them. And Drew Ryan would be fine. He could have just about any woman in Appleby. Drew wasn’t lonely, that was for sure. He didn’t need Piper.
We were going to talk about it, Piper replied. And we will. Promise.
Whitney felt terrible suddenly.
She and Piper had had a moment in the conference room earlier. A moment Whitney never had with other women. That moment of silent understanding that said I’ve got you, girl. Piper was like the little sister at Fluke and the guys all cared about her. It was obvious. But they were guys. And Piper had moved here from Chicago with them. Or because of them. She wasn’t from here and probably didn’t know many people. Piper maybe needed a girlfriend as much as Whitney did.
But what had Whitney done? She’d gone back to her office and gotten immersed in her work. Of course she had. That’s what she did. Today had been almost worse than usual. She’d flown through her to-do list, high from the meeting and knowing that the guys were excited about the new bars and then her talk with Cam.
Her heart flipped even now thinking about that.
It had been so much more than a talk. The way he’d looked at her. And cupped her face in his big hands. And looked into her eyes. The intensity in his voice when he’d told her that she was amazing and creative and sweet. And a little broken and hurt.