Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
CARA
“Okay, it’s almost perfect. Just one more thing.”
Today was probably one of the best days of my life. When I was younger, I loved playing dress up with my friends. As an adult, there was something so much more special about it.
I’d won the bet when we went hiking, and now I was dressing Vera up.
I had to go buy an outfit because she was too muscular for any of the things I owned.
I decided to go easy on her and get a plain yellow dress that stopped at her thighs and had spaghetti straps.
I didn’t want to freak her out with patterns or glitter or anything, and I paired it with plain brown wedges.
I was nice enough not to make her wear heels, but I was doing her makeup. We slicked her hair back and now she was getting a basic neutral make up look. She grumbled the entire time, but I couldn’t hide my smile.
“Are you enjoying yourself over there?” she asked with a frown.
I nodded, doing a little shimmy in my seat in the kitchen. “Yes. Yes I am. And now I’m done. The outfit is in the bathroom. I want to be surprised, so go put it on and come back out here, okay?”
“Do I have to come back out? Can’t I just stay in here forever?”
I laughed and shook my head. “No, babe. A deal is a deal. Sorry.”
“I don’t think you’re sorry at all.” She sighed and got up from her stool and headed to the bathroom.
I chuckled. I wasn’t sorry. She was the one who made the bet.
I sat impatiently waiting for her to get done.
I tried to listen for any hint of a reaction, but all I heard was mumbled Spanish.
I knew she wasn’t going to like anything I’d picked out, but the fact that she was being such a good sport and doing it anyway meant a lot to me.
I was just about to ask if she needed help when the bathroom door opened and she stepped out on wobbly legs, causing my mouth to go dry and my own legs to become weak.
“Holy shit,” I whispered, biting my lip.
I didn’t know what I’d imagined she’d look like when I picked out the dress, but it wasn’t what I saw.
I didn’t want to admit it, but seeing her in a dress, with her arms and legs on display, was making me all sorts of turned around.
I was getting turned on and I didn’t really know what to make of that realization.
“You know what? Nevermind. You’re not leaving the house like this. Go put on some baggy sweatpants. But not Gray! And a long sleeve shirt.”
She laughed and looked down at herself. “Why? You don’t like it?
I snorted a laugh. “I do and that’s the problem! I don’t know how I feel about anyone checking you out in this outfit. I didn’t think I’d like it as much as I do, and now I don’t want you out in public wearing that.”
“That’s very sweet, but a deal is a deal, remember? And now we both shall suffer.”
“That doesn’t seem fair.”
“That’s what the other women will say when they realize that you’re the only one who gets to see me out of this dress.”
“Okay. I do like that fact. Fine, we can go. Can you even walk in those? You look like a newly birthed baby giraffe.”
She laughed. “Yeah, I think I can handle them. Where are we going anyway?”
I smiled. “Just to the bookstore.”
She frowned. “Just to the bookstore? Where all of your friends happen to be ninety percent of the time? Great, that sounds like a wonderful time.”
I laughed and kissed her, loving how she melted into it instantly. If we kept going, we wouldn’t be going anywhere. Which is exactly why I broke the kiss once she started to lift my shirt up.
“Nice try, baby. You’re not getting out of this, I’m afraid. I’ll help you take it off later.”
“Oh I love the sound of that. Let’s hurry then so we can come back.”
I walked into the bookstore and was elated to see not only Kaia and Daisy, but Drea, Blair, Fallon, and Mackenzie all happened to be there talking at the café.
They all waved when they saw me walking in. “Hey, love! What are you—”
Drea was cut off when I assumed she noticed Vera behind me. I turned to her to try and gauge her thoughts on everyone staring at her, but she held her head high and smiled like nothing was different.
I didn’t want her to be ashamed or outright embarrassed to where she was upset by any means, but I wanted a little reaction at least.
We walked closer and all eyes were still on Vera when we sat down. “What’s going on guys?” I asked.
Everyone had finally taken their eyes off Vera and looked at me with a smile. Everyone except one person. The last person I expected, to be honest. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey, Cara. Uh, what’s going on here?” Blair asked.
I shrugged. “Oh nothing. We were just in the neighborhood and decided to stop by.”
“Vera, love. Don’t take this the wrong way, but did you lose a bet or something?”
Vera finally showed some emotion and sighed a little. “Yes. I did, actually.”
“Mackenzie? Are you okay over there?” I asked, trying not to laugh.
Mackenzie had been staring at Vera since we walked in, like everyone else, but she still hadn’t taken her eyes off of her.
Fallon nudged her wife’s side who finally took her gaze away from Vera’s arms. “Yes, darling. Are you alright over there? Do you see something you like?”
“What?! No, of course not! I mean, no offense, Vera. You’re lovely. I mean, I don’t know what I mean. I—”
“Mmhmm.” Fallon scowled at Mackenzie, but her smile gave her away. “She’s definitely paying for that later. Anyways back to the bet?”
I smiled. “Yes. She bet I couldn’t go a whole day without my phone.”
“Wait, you won that bet? How?” Blair laughed.
“It wasn’t easy, but when she said I could dress her up, determination hit. She took me hiking, which ended up great for the both of us. We got caught in the rain, but after that… Anyway, I won the bet.”
“Okay, now I know you’re lying. You went hiking? You? Cara Brianne Wells. Went hiking? No.” Mackenzie shook her head in disbelief.
“Yeah, I don’t buy it either. There is no way you had sex outdoors, especially on a hiking trail. What bet did you really lose, Vera?” Fallon asked.
“Not the trail, the truck.” She smiled when I nudged her shoulder.
“Vera,” I whispered. “They don’t need to know that.”
She shrugged. “Sure they do. They don’t believe that you went hiking and had amazing sex in the truck after you won the bet. I’ve got to make them believe it, babe.” She winked.
“Oh my god, you whore!” Drea yelled.
“Jesus, Dre. Could you be any louder? And whore? Really? After all of the fornicating you’ve done, having sex in a truck makes me a whore?”
The whole time Kaia was interpreting for Daisy and they both had massive grins on their faces. Daisy was signing something and Kaia repeated what she was saying. “Oh my god I love you guys! Sex in the rain is so hot! Kaia we should—”
She turned to Daisy and they signed back and forth for a second before Kaia nodded and kissed her head.
“You're totally having sex in the rain, aren’t you?”
Kaia didn’t answer but her blush was answer enough. Daisy continued to sign as Kaia spoke. “Anyway. I’m shocked you won the bet too, Cara. But this was a wonderful reward for all of us. Vera, you look stunning. That dress really shows off your arms and legs.”
“I have to agree, baby. You look sexy.”
Vera smiled and kissed me. “Thank you. Can we go now?”
I nodded. “Yes, we can go now. We’ll see you guys later. Unless Mackenzie isn’t allowed out of the house anytime soon.
She scoffed. “What? Please. Allowed out of the house? I’m allowed to do whatever I want. I—” she looked at Fallon who had a raised eyebrow and her arms crossed. Shit, she was in trouble. “I might not be allowed outside, you guys.”
Drea laughed. “Damn, you’re so whipped.”
I looked at her. “Like you’re not. You threw a fit when she broke up with you and ended up in a coma until she took you back.”
“Cara! You know how I feel about you guys joking about that! It’s not funny!”
“I did not throw a fit! My body just shut down while it waited for her. And can you blame it? Look at her! She’s fucking perfect. Of course I’m whipped. Whatever my baby wants, my baby gets.”
Blair blushed and drew her in for a kiss.
“Same, baby. We are adult enough to admit that we’re whipped.
But so is everyone here. Kaia, you can’t tell me you’re not whipped for Daisy.
You’ve been obsessed since you two met. And Vera?
Come on. If this doesn’t scream ‘whipped,’ I don’t know what does. ”
Vera laughed. “Oh, one hundred percent. But you’ve met Cara. She’s incredible.”
“Go on,” I said, loving this conversation.
Fallon rolled her eyes. “Yes, we’re all dumb in love and whipped.
We’ve got a doctor’s appointment to get to, so we have to go.
But we love you guys and enjoy the rest of the day.
Vera, I can see how uncomfortable you are, but the fact that you’re sucking it up for Cara means a lot to all of us.
Just so you know. Bye guys.” Mackenzie helped her stand up as they left the store.
The rest of us followed suit and said our goodbyes and we left the store hand in hand.
We’d only gotten a few blocks away from the store when Vera cursed under her breath. “What’s wrong? Are the shoes hurting you?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No. Worse.”
“Vera? Wow, Chica!”
I looked to the voice and saw it was Vera’s best friend and employee, Nico, walking with another man that worked on her team. Oh no. I suddenly felt awful about making her go out in public like that.
“Nico, Johnny. What are you guys doing over here?” Vera asked with a tight lipped smile.
“We should be asking you the same thing. Why are you dressed like that? Are you switching styles on us? I’ll be honest, V, I don’t think lady is your style.”
Johnny laughed and I wanted to back hand them both, but I just stood there, unsure of what to do. I didn’t want to intervene and have Vera upset with me. But was doing nothing any better?
“Yeah, V. The dainty look isn’t for you. It fits your girlfriend more.”
“Well, as always, it was so nice to see you, Johnny. Nico.” Vera took my hand and we continued our walk down the street.
When we were out of ear shot I stopped us, ready to turn down the street to our car. “I’m so sorry I made you come out in public, honey. I think you’ve suffered enough. Let’s get you changed into your comfortable clothes.”
“It’s okay. I’ll get shit for it on Monday and they’ll have to work extra late and miss Monday Night Football.”
“Won’t that mean you have to miss it too?”
She smiled.” I don’t have to work late. That’s the wonderful thing about being the boss and having a team.
I make them do the dirty work. But if you’re trying to get me out of my clothes, all you had to do was say so.
” She winked and kissed me, making me forget about where we were or what we were talking about.
After we got home and I helped her out of her dress, I spent the next hour apologizing and she spent an hour teasing me until I couldn’t take it anymore and she gave in, making me come so hard I had stars dancing across my vision.
We got cleaned up and I offered to bake her something while I had to pack.
I was going out of town for the next few days for work, and had some last minute packing to do, but I was feeling anxious so I needed to bake something.
Vera was supposed to be keeping me company, but she was more of a distraction. Not that I was complaining.
I’d banished her to the patio with a beer so she could relax and watch the sunset while I finished up the peanut butter blossom cookies I was making. I had just put the chocolate kisses on and they were back in the oven for a few more minutes before they were done and ready to cool down.
I made sure all my chargers were packed away in my bag.
I’d been charging everything that I’d need all day while we were out.
I also made sure to put my medication and vitamins in my bag.
I had anxiety when flying and high blood pressure so I made sure those were set out for the morning so I didn’t forget to take them.
Finally, the cookies were cooled down enough and I brought a plate out to
Vera who was sitting on the patio couch looking at the sunset. “It’s gorgeous isn’t it?” I asked.
I sat down next to her and handed a cookie over. “Thank you. Yes, it is. It never ceases to amaze me, no matter how many times I see it. It’s so peaceful.”
I smiled and snuggled close to her. She wrapped her arm around me and kissed the top of my head. “Why are you anxious, baby?”
She knew me too well. I sighed. “I’m always nervous when flying. And as independent as I am, I’m going to miss seeing you or talking to you everyday. I mean I know it’s only for literally a couple of days, but still. You’ve grown on me, okay?”
She smiled. “I know, but everything will be okay. You’ll go do your boss girl things and come home to me. It’ll be done before you know it.”
I wanted to comment on what she’d said. Coming home to her. I didn’t want to overthink things, and honestly, I wasn’t ready for that conversation yet, so I didn’t say anything about it. “I hope so. I’m just glad you’ll be here when I get back.”
She took my chin and tilted it so I was looking at her. “I’ll always be here. Béseme, Princesa.” And that’s exactly what I did.