for Gemma, pay for it and bolt from the store as quickly as I can. I’m not too far from the restaurant so I opt to walk rather than get my car. With the crowd of people still surrounding the bookstore, I figure it will be quicker by foot. As I make my way to the restaurant, I can’t help but to think of him, the stranger at the bookstore. I didn’t even get his name. I gave him mine but it never even occurred to me to ask for his. No wonder he didn’t ask me for my number, he probably thought I wasn’t interested. I seriously need to work on my flirting skills. What am I even thinking? Flirting skills? Me? I wouldn’t even know how to flirt if I tried. It’s been so long since I’ve even had a date. My life has been filled with nothing more than work, the occasional outing with my best friend, Jordan, and spending time with my family. Men aren’t even on my radar and I’m not sure that I’d ever allow them to be again. Maybe it’s a good thing Hot Stranger didn’t ask for my number. I don’t need anything or anyone messing with my life right now. The life that I’ve worked so hard to get control of again. No, I cannot let anyone destroy my peaceful existence, not even someone who made my knees weak with a simple smile. I enter the restaurant and the hostess escorts me to the small, private room in the back where my family is surely waiting for me.
“Auntie Elle!”
“Hey, Gemma. Happy Birthday, honey!” I say as I hug my niece. “How’s it feel to be 13? You’re officially a teenager now.” Gemma is tall for her age, almost as tall as I am. She has the signature Brooks family brown hair and brown eyes and already knows more about fashion than I do.
“It feels absolutely no different,” she says with a smile. She looks down at the bag in my hand “Whatcha got there?” she asks expectantly.
“What, this?” I ask teasingly. “You want this?”
“Please tell me that’s what I think it is!” she begs.
I can’t help but giggle. “Oh alright, I’ll put you out of your misery. Here you go.”
“Ahhh, thank you so much, Auntie Elle!” she shrieks as she throws her arms around me.
“You’re welcome, honey.”
I walk further into the room greeting some cousins, uncles and aunts until I finally reach my brother, Gavin, and my father. “Hi, Dad. Sorry I’m late,” I say as I kiss his cheek. My father, at first glance, is an intimidating man. At 6’2”, he towers over me. He has the body of a linebacker, well, maybe a retired linebacker, salt and pepper hair and dark eyes. The eyes are what I found to be most intimidating when I was growing up. Of course, now I know that my dad is a big softie at heart but he could aim his eyes at you and glare a certain way that would make even the bravest man cower. I think he perfected that look in his years as a police detective. He retired from the force last year, much to my relief, and has spent most of his time since then traveling.
“It’s okay, kiddo. You haven’t missed anything,”
I turn to my brother and give him a hug. “Hey Gav.”
“Hey, I see you found the book?”
“Yeah, I did. I had to fight my way through a massive crowd of girls waiting to meet some Latin singer but I got it.”
“Well thanks, sis. I’m glad Gemma can count on you for stuff like that.” I smile and give him a nod.
Gavin is as tall as my dad, slender, with brown hair that needed to be cut about two weeks ago but still looks good on him. He is a catch but my brother just doesn’t want to be caught. He has dedicated himself to being the best dad he can be and women are secondary. I guess you can say that he is a bit of a serial dater. I, on the other hand, also don’t want to be caught but I don’t even bother dating.
Gavin is older than me by four years. He was 22 when Gemma was born and completely unprepared to be a father. The girl he had been dating for a little over a year got pregnant and decided that she wasn’t ready to be a mother. I can’t necessarily say that I