Chapter 12 #2
"You better not have. She's my future stepsister."
"I know."
"I've always wanted a sister, Toll."
"Stass, come on."
I stepped back and stopped listening. So what if they had a connection—one close enough that they'd given each other nicknames, I mentally added.
Stacia was tanned and toned, beautiful with her long lashes and swimmer's body.
Looks-wise she'd be a good match for Tolliver, and they were both athletes.
Maybe she was the one. Stacia could very well be Tolliver's girl, the one he wanted to impress.
Friends to lovers, especially when you grew up with them, was one of my favorite tropes.
But...a feeling bloomed in my gut that I didn't recognize.
Jealousy. I didn't have a lot of experience with the emotion, but I was pretty certain that's what this was.
Shaking my head, I looked to the dresses Stacia had picked out and sighed.
There had to be at least a dozen.
Best to get it over with.
The first dress was a simple sky blue A-line.
I couldn't help but think it matched Tolliver's eyes.
When I walked out so Stacia could see, he sat up and said, "I like that one."
"Me too," I said with a shrug. "Though it is a little loose around the middle."
"We could have that taken in," Stacia said, circling until she was standing in front of me again. "How do you feel in it?"
"Good."
"Just good?"
"Very good," I tried, but Stacia shook her head.
"Next," she said.
I didn't argue, mainly because she'd gone to the trouble of arranging this so I wouldn't show up at my mother's wedding looking like a raggamuffin. When I came out in dress two, Tolliver and Stacia were still there.
"Pretty," she said. "And a better fit than dress one. What do you think, Freya?"
"I like it," I said, though I wasn't loving the slightly itchy feel of the tulle, brushing against my legs.
"Toll?"
"I like it too," he said.
"You said that about the first one," Stacia said with a roll of her eyes.
"Well, I do."
"Let's keep going."
And so, we did.
We went through a few more dresses. Each one was different but perfectly acceptable. Stacia, though, always found something wrong. And Tolliver was no help whatsoever. By the time we were on the next to last dress, Stacia had had enough.
"Tolliver," she said, throwing up her hands, "what are you even doing?"
He held up his hands. "Uh...eating a cookie?"
"That's not what I mean, and you know it."
Quickly, stuffing the cookie whole into his mouth, he chewed and swallowed.
"I hope that was good," I said.
"It was," he said, washing everything down with a sip of cucumber water. "Very refreshing."
Stacia sighed. "What do you think of this dress?"
"I already told you," he said, looking at me then her, "I like it."
"You've 'liked' all of them."
"Yeah."
I spoke up as Stacia growled. "I think she was hoping for a little more input than that."
"Thank you, Freya," she said.
"Well, I do like all of them," Tolliver said.
He glanced at the dress again before meeting my eyes.
"She looks beautiful in everything."
My cheeks flushed, breath catching in my chest.
"Oh," Stacia said, "well, that's sweet then."
It was.
It so was.
"I think Freya has to choose the one she wants regardless of what anyone else thinks," he said.
"I agree," Stacia said then shooed me back into the dressing room. "Last dress, please. And if that doesn't work, there are plenty more in the store."
With a deep breath, I nodded, not looking at Tolliver, and closed the dressing room door.
The last dress was flowy with a simple bodice and a slit up the side. It was a cross between a light dusky pink and mauve that looked good against my skin, making it almost glow. Something about the train made me smile too. Fitted to my hips then fluttering to the floor, this dress felt magical.
The only problem was I had a hard time zipping it since the closure was fully in the back.
"Hey, Stacia?" I said. "Can I get some help in here?"
A second later, the door opened, and when I looked up into the mirror, I saw Tolliver's eyes staring back at me. They held mine as he stood there just inside the door. I felt my face get even hotter as we both stayed frozen.
"You said you needed help," he said finally.
"I asked for Stacia."
"She's somewhere looking for more dresses."
"Oh."
"Anything I can do?"
"Yeah, I...the zipper, I just can't reach it," I said.
Tolliver nodded and stepped forward. "I'm going to move your hair, so it doesn't get caught."
"Okay," I said softly.
His hand brushed along my shoulder blades, and I trembled.
"All good, Kent?" he said.
Not trusting my voice, I nodded.
As he gripped the material of my dress in one hand, he pulled the zipper up with the other. Tolliver didn't touch me. His knuckles didn't graze my skin. But goodness, the warmth of him was enough to make me weak in the knees.
"There," he said.
"Thank you," I replied.
"You're welcome."
As I looked up and caught sight of us in the mirror, I expected him to step back, but he didn't.
"What do you think?" he said.
"Of what?"
"The dress."
Shifting my focus, I took in the full picture, trying to focus on what I wore, but I already knew the answer. Felt it.
"It makes me feel beautiful," I said.
Like Tolliver did when he looked at me how he was now.
"Then, I think this is the one," Tolliver said.
"I think so too."
A beat passed then, "Did I do something to make you mad?"
"No," I said.
"I thought we had fun at the library."
"We did."
"Seemed like you were pissed at me after. Or at least annoyed."
"I was, but it's stupid," I said. He lifted a brow, so I added, "You and Stacia seem friendly."
Tolliver's brow furrowed. "Not sure what that has to do with anything. Like I said, our parents are tight."
"You called her Stass."
"Because it's her name?"
"Tolliver, don't play dumb."
"I'm honestly not."
"If you wanted to be in a situationship with her, I wouldn't blame you," I said with a shrug. "She's a good person, bright and bubbly. Attractive."
He looked at me like I was crazy. "And?"
"Ugh, fine. I thought she might be who you wanted to impress."
Tolliver stood frozen.
"And I may have gotten a tiny bit jealous." I crossed my arms as his lips lifted in a slow smile. "Why are you laughing?"
"I'm not," he said, stepping closer.
"Yes, you are."
"Nope."
"Your sense of humor is not one of your strong suits, Stone."
"Well, obviously, reading people isn't one of yours."
My jaw dropped.
"It's you, Freya."
"What?"
"You're the girl," he said.
That made my words suddenly disappear.
"I knew you'd dated Wayne, figured you were into basketball. You pretty much always sat at that same table after school. So yeah, I was out there, trying to impress you."
Shaking my head, I repeated, "You were?"
"So, did it work?"
"You gave me a concussion," I said.
"Yeah, not exactly the smoothest way to get your attention."
After a moment, I laughed and so did he.
"You really look beautiful," he said.
Leaning up, I stole a kiss from his lips, lingering there for a moment, then retreated back into myself.
"We should go out there," I said, "before Stacia gets the wrong idea."
He nodded and stepped back out, looking a little dazed, leaving me feeling so much. I wasn't sure what to do with it all. But I'd found my dress for the wedding. I'd discovered who Tolliver was interested in. Now, I just needed to figure out a few things.
Like why I was suddenly rethinking my whole no-dating-jocks policy.