Chapter 17 Grayson
Chapter 17
Grayson
I hated shopping more than anything. More than heights. More than an empty stomach. Even more than I hated when the weather got above 75 degrees. It was essentially my idea of hell. The fact I was here with Paige when I should have been at practice was hard to believe. But more unbelievable than that? I was enjoying it. Paige could turn just about anything into something fun. I just wished we weren’t working toward getting some other guy to ask her out.
“So, what do you think?” she asked, stepping out of the fitting room with a flourish.
She was wearing a long teal-colored dress. It looked innocent enough at first, but then she spun to reveal it was backless. The straps were just a thin line of fabric, and it swept from the neckline in an uninterrupted curve to her waist. The style really suited her, but it was too easy to imagine Damien placing a hand against the exposed skin on her lower back, so I had no choice but to hate it on principle.
“You look beautiful, Paige.”
She rolled her eyes. “You said that about the last two outfits.”
“I guess you looked beautiful in them too.”
“Well, we have to pick one.” She sighed and went back into the fitting room, pulling the curtain closed. She raised her voice so I could hear her from the other side. “I need you to start giving me some constructive criticism, or we’ll never make a decision. ”
I hadn’t been lying. She’d looked amazing in all the outfits she’d tried on, but she hadn’t looked like herself. It didn’t feel like she was convinced by Bonnie’s fashion choices either. It was easy to tell when Paige was excited about something, because her whole face lit up and enthusiasm radiated from every pore of her body. Unlike me, there was never any doubt about what emotion Paige was feeling, and so far, it was obvious to me she was underwhelmed at best, and uncomfortable at worst.
When she reappeared in her next outfit, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack.
“You want to wear that to school?” She was in a pair of jeans that were so skintight they looked like they were painted on, and her dark top was low cut and fitted, I didn’t know where to look. I clenched my hands on my lap as I scanned the outfit, resisting the urge to let my eyes linger anywhere they shouldn’t. This outfit seemed to meet Bonnie’s strict criteria: more revealing than what Paige usually wore, and figure-hugging. If she showed up in this outfit at school, we were both going to get expelled. Paige for breaking the dress code, and me for breaking the nose of the first guy who checked her out.
“Okay, I know I wanted some constructive criticism, but I didn’t expect such a strong reaction,” she said, looking down at the outfit. “I don’t look good?”
“That’s not what I said.” She definitely looked good. Too good, if anything. But like all the other outfits Bonnie had picked, it just wasn’t Paige .
“But that’s what you wanted to say?”
“No,” I protested. “It’s just different to what you normally wear, that’s all.”
“That’s the whole point, Gray,” she replied with a laugh. “I’m supposed to look different. And see, the top has little stars on it. You know how much I love stars...”
I squinted slightly at the top and saw there were small stars faintly imprinted in the dark material. I shrugged. “You love stargazing. This isn’t that. And the stars aren’t the problem.”
She crossed her arms as she stared at me. “What’s the problem then?”
“I can tell you’re not comfortable.”
“Yeah, my butt kind of feels like it’s about to pop the seams,” she said, laughing again. “And I think if I bend over, my boobs might fall right out of this top.”
Calm thoughts , I told myself. Calm thoughts.
Thankfully, I was a master at hiding my emotions. “That’s not what I mean,” I said. “The outfit is fine. You look great. But you always look great. You could rock up at school in your PJs and still look great. But you don’t seem comfortable in it. You don’t seem like yourself.”
“This is what guys want though, right?”
“Uh, some guys, I suppose.”
She placed a hand on her hip and lifted a questioning brow. “Guys like Damien?”
My hands were clenched so tightly now I was certain my nails were leaving marks on my palm. “Probably. ”
“What about you?” she continued. “Would you want a girl if she was dressed like this?”
“I wouldn’t want a girl just because she dressed like this.” We were talking about Paige though, and that was a totally different matter. Of course I wanted her when she was dressed like this. I also wanted her when she was dressed in the old pair of blue and pink checked pajamas she had back at our house. Hell, I even wanted her in sophomore year when she’d gone to Cory Carter’s Halloween party dressed as an octopus. That had been a confusing evening.
“Come on, I get this isn’t exactly my style, but are you really saying you wouldn’t check me out if I walked past you wearing this?”
I shrugged.
“Grayson Darling.” The corner of her mouth lifted. ”Are you a prude?”
My eyes narrowed. “I’m just concerned about how many guys are going to be checking you out.”
Her face lit up and I realized that was exactly the wrong thing to say if I wanted to steer her away from choosing this outfit.
“So, this is the one I should get?”
“Let’s just see the next option.”
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
“Next outfit, Pidge.”
She was still grinning as she disappeared back inside the fitting room. I didn’t want to know what she was trying on next. I just had to pray it was less revealing than the last one. I didn’t know if my heart could take another shock .
My phone had been buzzing like crazy in my pocket, and I reluctantly took it out, if only as a distraction from what was going on behind the curtain in front of me. The group chat Parker had started for his so-called “Operation Shrek” was blowing up. It also appeared to have a new name: “Ogres Are Like Onions.” With a heavy sigh I opened the chat.
Matt: Where the hell are you, Gray?
Reed: Coach said there was an emergency???
Owen: What’s wrong?
Parker: You’re not ditching practice to get another facial, are you?
Matt: ANOTHER facial?
Missing practice might not cost me my spot on the team, or my place at Ryker, but it might just cost me my dignity.
Me: I’m helping Paige. She’s the one with the emergency.
Reed: Is she okay?
Matt: I had last period with her. She seemed fine.
Parker: It’s totally a facial. I called it.
Matt: What’s with Grayson and facials????
Owen: Is this a part of her coaching?
Parker: Grayson likes his skin to smell like raindrops and his face to feel smooth as a baby’s bottom.
I should have known they’d want more of an explanation. Damn it. Why didn’t I just leave my phone in my pocket. I’d been doing a pretty good job of pretending this text thread didn’t exist until now. Apparently, watching Paige try on all these outfits had completely clouded my judgment. I knew there was no avoiding the truth though. If I didn’t say something soon, they’d just start asking more questions about my facial.
Me: We’re shopping for clothes.
I sighed when I saw the notification that immediately came up on screen: Parker is typing...
Parker: Hahhahahahahahaha.
Parker: Dude. That’s so much worse!
Reed: Why did you skip practice for that?
Me: It seemed like a good idea at the time. You told me to take every opportunity I could.
Reed: I didn’t mean skip practice and go SHOPPING.
Matt: You could always just leave. You might still be able to make it here in time.
Owen: He can’t leave. Paige needs his help and he’s trying to win her over.
Parker: First a facial. Now this. Are you even trying to get out of the friend zone?
Screw Parker. I was just following their advice and finally doing something about my unrequited feelings for Paige. I just hadn’t figured out exactly how being in this store was helping. Sitting here judging outfits certainly didn’t feel like it was getting me anywhere.
I quickly stuffed my phone back in my pocket as the fitting room curtain started to peel back. This time, when Paige emerged, she had a warm and genuine smile on her face, and I mirrored her expression when I took in her outfit.
She was wearing a soft pink dress with tiny white flowers dotted all over it. The fabric looked light and delicate, and it gently hugged her waist but flared around her knees. It wasn’t that different to the dresses already lining Paige’s closet, and I was surprised it had made its way into Bonnie’s pile. It was such a contrast to the previous outfit, but, damn, she looked perfect in it. My heart thumped a little harder as if to echo its agreement .
“Now that’s beautiful,” I said. “Forget what I said about the others.”
Her face shone even brighter as she smiled back at me. Then she looked down at the dress and brushed her hands over it. “Thank you,” she said. “I love it, but it’s not really what I came here for.”
“What do you mean?”
“It doesn’t meet Bonnie’s criteria.”
“Well, she picked it, didn’t she?”
Paige looked back up at me and scrunched her nose. “Not exactly. I may have grabbed this one myself while we were walking over to the fitting rooms. I couldn’t help it!”
I felt a smile tease my lips as I imagined how outraged Bonnie would be if she was here. At least this explained why Paige liked the dress so much.
“I guess that means I can’t get it.” She sighed.
“Why not? I think you should wear what makes you happy. And you look pretty happy right now.”
“Maybe that’s not just because of the dress,” she whispered. “I’m having a good time with you.”
That really brought out my smile. I wanted to take her words as some small hint that this was all starting to pay off. But I knew she didn’t mean anything by it.
She turned to look in the mirror once more and sighed again. “I better take this off. ”
“I vote we get this dress and then we go get ice cream.”
“You would vote that.”
“What can I say, I’m an easy man to please.”
“Not particularly hard when all you want in life is hockey and food.”
“And you...” I muttered as she returned to the fitting room. I’d said it so softly I was shocked when she spun to face me.
“What?”
“Uh, fondue,” I stuttered. “All I want is hockey, food, and fondue.”
She frowned at me, then laughed. “I think fondue falls under the food category, Gray.”
“Right. You know I can’t think straight when I’m hungry. It’s been hours since lunch.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. I’ll be quick. There’s only one more outfit, and then we have to make a decision.” I sighed as she disappeared behind the curtain again. Fondue? Was that really the best I could come up with? Parker was right. I needed to try harder, or I was going to fall even deeper into the friend zone. A part of me wished I’d just told her the truth about what I’d said. Told her she was all I wanted and everything I needed. But I knew she wasn’t ready to hear that—it would only freak her out.
Paige’s voice drifted over to me from behind the curtain. “Can you give me a hand?”
“What was that?” I swallowed. Had I heard her correctly?
“Can you give me a hand?”
“Uh, sure, what do you need?
Paige responded by pulling back the curtain and I felt my breath catch in my throat. She was wearing a short black dress. It was sleek and fitted and cut at all the right angles. Short enough to show off her perfect legs, but there was also still enough material to leave something to the imagination. I didn’t think I’d ever seen her wear an outfit like this before, and while it was definitely one of Bonnie’s selections, she looked incredible. I went to tell her she looked beautiful, like I had with almost every other outfit, but I found my mouth was suddenly dry and all I could do was let it hang open slightly. I was speechless.
“I need you to zip me up,” she said, beckoning me toward her before spinning around to reveal the zipper on the dress was open about halfway down her back. “Is that okay?” she added, glancing at me in the mirror.
Words escaped me, but somehow I managed to nod, stand up, and step toward her. When I reached her, I gently took the zipper and slowly pulled it up her back. She seemed to shiver as my fingers lightly brushed against her skin. When the zipper caught, I placed my hand on her waist to straighten it before I continued sliding it up to the base of her neck. She pulled her hair out of the way, sending the scent of her sweet shampoo washing over me. When the zip reached the top of the dress, I realized I was holding my breath. I let out a sigh of disappointment as I dropped my hand. But when she turned, I stopped breathing again.
The way her big brown eyes peered up at me had me frozen to the spot. My chest hurt from how much I wanted her, from the restraints I kept so firmly around my heart. It was time to let a little more of it go.
“Well, what do you think?” Her voice was breathy, like perhaps she was just as affected by our proximity.
“I think if you wear that dress for a second longer, I’m going to forget we’re just friends.” My voice came out as a low growl, and she inhaled sharply as sparks flared to life between us. They sizzled and hissed like a fire flaring too hot. I realized my hand was still gripping her waist, but instead of pulling my fingers away like they’d been burned, I felt the urge to pull her closer to me.
“Is that what you wanted to hear?” I murmured.
All she could do was nod her head up and down.
“How’s it going in here? Can I get you any more sizes?” A high-pitched voice pierced the silence between us and we both turned to look at the enthusiastic sales assistant who had just entered the fitting area.
“Oh,” she said, when she saw us standing on either side of the entrance to Paige’s fitting room, barely an inch between us. “I, uh...” She paused, and her lips twitched into a subtle smirk. “Sorry,” she added. “I see you’ve got everything you need.”
She spun on her heel and disappeared as suddenly as she’d arrived. I turned back to Paige, but she had taken a step away from me.
“So, uh, I guess this dress is guy-approved?”
Through the foggy haze clouding my thoughts, I worried I’d said too much, so I mirrored her reaction and took a quick step back .
“Yeah, I guess.”
She swallowed and nodded once more before giving me a smile. “I don’t know if I like it as much as the pink one, but I promised Bonnie, right? I think I’ll get this one and maybe the outfit with the stars. You did say that one would have all the guys checking me out after all.” She was bright and bubbly again, like she’d already forgotten whatever the moment was we’d just shared.
“Sounds good,” I said, struggling not to feel crestfallen. Had she really felt nothing? Could she not feel the sparks darting between us?
As she disappeared into the fitting room, I sunk back into my chair. Why did it feel like every time I tried to take a step forward with Paige, I actually took two steps back?
I was never coming shopping again.